“Is that true?” I asked my father, even though I knew it was.
“Yes, it is. The business was ruining my portfolio. Since you were married to Robert, and he took care of you, your independent finances and credit ratings were of no consequence. It was the perfect solution until you up and walked out on him.”
“He was cheating on me!!” I screamed. “With every fake pair of tits he could find!”
“Macy, there’s no need to yell.”
I sucked in a huge lungful of air and slowly blew it out while counting to ten.
“Are you responsible for Aaron and I breaking up after high school?” I blurted.
“Yes, I am, and I won’t apologize for it,” my father sneered.
“Right. We’re done here. Macy, baby, let’s go,” Aaron said calmly and nudged me toward Shaker, who quickly ushered me to the door.
I stopped and turned back just in time to see Aaron’s fist slam into my father’s face. “Keep going, or he’ll have my ass for letting you see that,” Shaker whispered.
“I don’t want him to get in trouble,” I confessed.
Shaker grinned, “Trust me, he won’t.”
10
Ipromised Phoenix I would only hit the motherfucker one time, but after seeing his smarmy face as we revealed his sins against his daughter, I wasn’t sure I would be able to keep my word. So, I made my one punch count and watched with glee as Marvin McManis dropped to the floor like a sack of bricks.
Phoenix sighed, “Damn it, Badger. Now we have to wait for him to wake up.”
“Sorry, brother,” I shrugged. “Couldn’t help myself.”
Phoenix chuckled. “Can’t say I wouldn’t have done the same.”
While we waited for Marvin to regain consciousness, Phoenix pulled out his cell phone and made a call.
“Hey, man, I got some information you might be interested in. Are you in town?”
As it turned out, our FBI friend, Luke, wasn’t in town, but he sent some of his cohorts to pick up the papers Phoenix had, which detailed a host of fraudulent transactions conducted by Marvin McManis.
Marvin groaned and his eyes started to flicker. I picked up the glass of water sitting on his desk and emptied it on his face. “Oh, good, you’re still alive. I hate having to dispose of bodies while it’s still light outside.”
“Badger,” Phoenix warned with a chuckle.
“Gonna give it to you straight, old man. You’re fucked. Now, I don’t give a shit why you did all this, but Macy’s going to want to know, and I’m not going to lie to her. So, you gonna talk or do I need to make you?”
Marvin’s shoulders dropped liked and his whole body sagged. “Years ago, I mixed up two charts in the office. One patient had cancer, and the other one didn’t. By the time I figured it out, the cancer was too far advanced for treatment. That patient was Robert’s mother. Instead of suing me and reporting me to the medical board, he’s been blackmailing me for years.”
“How did he get involved with Macy?” I asked.
“I had nothing to do with that. I assumed he was genuinely interested in her. I’ll admit I didn’t do anything to discourage their relationship for my own selfish reasons.”
I gritted my teeth and balled my fists, but Phoenix stepped in front of me before I could take a step forward.
“Go ahead and take Macy home. I’ll wait for Luke’s guys to show up, and then I’ll meet you at the clubhouse,” Phoenix said.
“Thanks, man,” I said and made my way out to Macy, who was propped up against the cage laughing at something Shaker was saying.
“You ready, baby?”
“Is everything okay in there?” she asked with an audible tremor in her voice.