Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 77170 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77170 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 386(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 257(@300wpm)
Donny eyes her.
Callie crosses her arms. “Well, I don’t. My family is proud too. Your uncle and your father offered to pay us off when our vineyards were destroyed in that fire, but did we take your handouts? No, we didn’t.”
I’ve always liked Callie Pike, but I like her a whole hell of a lot more in this moment.
“But,” she continues, “it is Dale and Donny’s fault that you weren’t here that night to defend your property. It was open and ripe for the picking. Obviously, someone knew it, and someone trashed it, taking whatever else might’ve been hidden under those floorboards.”
“I never found anything else.”
“I understand that,” Donny says, “but you probably didn’t look that hard either.”
“I looked.”
“But did you look at all the places the thieves looked?”
I hate to admit that he’s right. “No, I didn’t. It didn’t occur to me that someone might’ve hidden stuff in a couch cushion.”
“I’m not even talking about that. That couch probably hasn’t been there for fifty years. I’m talking about inside the drywall, underneath the joists. All the places they trashed.”
“You’re right,” I say. “I didn’t.”
“That’s what Dale and I planned to do, but in the end, I couldn’t do it. I’m an ethical lawyer, and I breached my ethics. I couldn’t live with that, so I put an end to it. Because I breached my ethics in the first place, your place got trashed. So yeah, I believe it was my family’s obligation to restore it.”
“You know you paid me way more than my policy limits.”
“Yeah, and what we gave you allowed you to get it done quickly, just the way you wanted it. Better than any insurance payout would’ve been.”
“True, but it still wasn’t your place.”
“That’s what I’m trying to tell you, Brendan.” Donny taps his chest. “It was my place. The whole thing was my fucking fault.”
Callie nods. “I love him, but he’s right. He screwed up, and he knows it.”
My hands are already curled into fists, and anger has slithered up my spine.
I’m not going to get into a fight with Donny Steel. I could take him, but it’d be tough. He’s one big muscle, just like his brother. Besides, what am I really angry about here? Is it the fact that the Steels paid my bills? Yeah, but I’m more angry about…
Ava…
Ava, Ava, Ava.
Does she know about this?
“What am I supposed to do about this? The insurance company thinks my claim is still outstanding.”
“Simply call them and withdraw the claim.”
“And say what? Some anonymous benefactor took care of it?”
“It doesn’t matter what you tell them,” Donny says. “They’ll be happy as clams that they don’t have to pay you.”
“He’s right,” Callie says. “I’ve told you, Brendan, that I don’t agree with what he did. He and Dale made a huge mistake, but they tried to fix it. They’ve tried to make you whole.”
She’s not wrong. They have. In fact, they went above and beyond—though the amount it took to fix up my place is only pennies to the Steel family.
“Please take the money,” Callie says. “I won’t say it’s their generosity, although they are generous people. But this isn’t generosity. This is just righting a wrong.”
I roll my eyes, shaking my head. “Righting a wrong? Maybe. You know I could have you disbarred for this.”
“You could,” Donny says. “I wouldn’t blame you.”
Callie gasps. “Brendan, please…”
“For Christ’s sake, I’m not going to go to the bar association. But you realize, don’t you, that if there was anything else to find at my place, it’s long gone now?”
“Yeah, I know,” Donny says. “And yes, I know it’s all my fault. Not my finest hour.”
I sigh. I can’t give this man any more shit. The first seven years of his life were horrific. He was doing what the Steels always do—looking out for his family.
“I’m going to pay you back.”
“That’s your choice,” he says, “but I don’t expect it. I don’t need it. I don’t want it. No money you can pay me will bring back whatever may have been found at your place. We’ve done what we can. I don’t know how much Ava has told you, but there was some serious shit going down on our property without our knowledge. We put an end to it, but there’s still stuff going on.”
I nod.
“What exactly has Ava told you?” Donny asks.
“That’s between her and me.”
“I understand.” He nods to Callie. “You ready?”
“Yeah. We should get back to the office.”
I nod again. I don’t open my mouth because I’m not sure what will come out. The two of them leave, and I check my watch.
Two o’clock. I open the bar at four.
I have time.
Time to go see Ava…and find out whether she knew about this all along.
Chapter Fourteen
Ava
Someone’s pounding on my door. I mean really pounding. I hear it all the way up at my place.