“Maybe to Sylvia Riscoff, but that old bat hates everyone and everything. Why do you care what she thinks of you, anyway? You gave her the biggest fuck-you of all time when you rejected her son in front of God and everyone. One of the most entertaining days of my life, I might add.”
Why do I care what Mrs. Riscoff thinks of me?Oh, that’s right,guilt.
“But—”
Magnus holds up a hand. “I know what you’re going to say, but nothing that happened a decade ago was your fault. You weren’t involved in that mess, so why do you keep trying to take on the responsibility for it?”
The old man is full of questions I’m not ready to answer today.
“I don’t know.” I release a long breath. “I’ve been holding on to it for so long, I don’t know how to let go.”
“No, you’ve been running so long, you don’t know how to stop. Maybe you oughta give that a try and see what it’s like to justbe.”
As he takes another swig of moonshine, I wonder how much he’s already had today and whether I should be taking his advice. Then again, he’s probably immune to its effects by now.
I stare out over the gorge.God, I missed this view.But that doesn’t matter.
“Sylvia will never let mejust bein Gable. She’ll run me out of town if it’s the last thing she does.”
Magnus glances over his shoulder at the house a hundred feet away. “Good thing Sylvia isn’t the one whose opinion matters in that family.”
“Like Commodore would ever take the side of a Gable. You twoshoot at each other.”
“On the daily. Keeps us both on our toes. But he’s got a leash on Sylvia, or should I say a tight grip on the purse strings.”
I don’t quite take his point. “What are you suggesting I do exactly?”
“Put some steel in your spine, hold your ground, and don’t let Sylvia Riscoff decide your future.” He tilts his head to the right, his gaze sharp. “You never know what might happen.”
27
Lincoln
My brother’swords follow me out of the hospital as I watch my sister direct her driver to lift Mother into her SUV to take her home.
“It’ll be interesting to see if you find out what it’s like to not have a claim to everything you think you deserve, big brother.”
His words stay with me as I drive back to my office, and they’re still on my mind when my phone rings.Commodore.
“I find out from Magnus fucking Gable that Sylvia’s having another one of herepisodes?”
“How did Magnus know?”
“How do you think? That black-haired Gable girl is in his shack right now, probably plotting how to bring about the downfall of the Riscoff clan by leading you around by the balls.”
“Whitney’s there? With him?” I reach out a hand to brace on the window. “That fucking shack isn’t even safe. If that thing falls off the side of the mountain with her in it—”
“Boy, you heard what I said about her. She’s bad news. Although, if she accidentally killed your mother, I wouldn’t exactly hold it against her.”
There has never been any love lost between my grandfather and my mother. She was his pick for my father’s wife due to her connections and family, but she apparently hid her true nature until after the wedding. Then everything changed. At least, that’s the story Commodore tells. I have a feeling it’s a lot more complicated than that. My father never hid the fact that he wasn’t happy in his marriage, but he did hide everything else. Or at least, he tried to.
“I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t say that about my mother, sir.”
“I know what she is. Sylvia and I agree on one thing and one thing only—no Gables are the best Gables.”
I ignore his comment. “Did you tell Harrison about the paternity claim and possible exhumation of the body? Because he knows.”
The call silences for a few beats. “I told two people. You and my lawyer. I’ve been wondering if that boy has informants, and I think we just got our answer.”