The devastation in her big, round eyes as they met his tore at his heart when she stared back at him. Evie released a humorless chuckle and sighed.
“After that, my father hung up.”
So many curse words flew through Beckett’s mind at once. The rage he felt toward Evie’s piece of shit dad was unprecedented to the point of becoming downright murderous.
Alternate plan: Find Phillip Mitchell’s selfish, money-lovin’ ass and fucking kill him.
A memory shot to the forefront of his thoughts. One from when he, Digger, and Apollo had been escorting Evie away from the cave to their exfil spot.
“That’s why you asked if your rescue had been government-sanctioned or private pay,” he surmised.
She nodded, swiping angrily at a tear that had escaped. “When you said your team took on government and civilian contracts, I thought maybe that was why my father refused to pay. I thought…no, I’dhopedyou were going to tell me my father had hired your team to find me, andthat’swhy he’d said the things he had on the phone. Because he already knew I was being rescued, and he didn’t want to play into the kidnappers’ hands.” Sadness filled her gorgeous stare. “Obviously, that wasn’t the case.”
“I’m so sorry.” Beckett’s heart broke for what that must’ve been like for her. “I see now why you didn’t run straight to him when you got back to the States.”
“Didn’t see any point in going to him.” She shrugged. “And the suckiest part is I can’t even talk about it. Not the kidnapping. The rescue.” Her mesmerizing eyes lifted back up to his. “You. I mean, Lo’s really the only friend I have, but still. It’s hard, you know?”
“I do.” He nodded.“I’m guessing Homeland saddled you with an NDA?”
“They said it would protect me, as well as you and your team.”
More like covering the government’s bureaucratic asses, but whatever.
“Some government ops are like that,” he shared. “A lot of them, actually.”
“On the flip side, while it sucks not being able to talk about it with Lo, it’s also been nice not having to worry about getting bombarded by the press. I’ve seen those kinds of stories and always felt so bad for those involved. Going through something like I did was bad enough. Having to rehash it for reporters every time you step out the door…” Evie’s spine straightened a tad with a more confident shake of her head. “I’ll pass.”
The table grew quiet for a stretch before Beckett decided to risk asking another prying question.
“Your dad,” he began. “Do you know why he would refuse to pay for your freedom?”
“Money.” Her bitter response was instant. But then, “I should back up. My dad and I have never really been close. Actually, we’re absolutely nothing alike. My mom, on the other hand…” Sadness filtered into her multi-hued gaze. “She did her best to be a good mother. But she died when I was young, and I’m an only child, so…” Evie sighed. “The fact of the matter is, I’ve never been what you’d call a Daddy’s girl.”
“Because of his job?”
“Partially. With my father, work always comes first. No, that’s wrong,” she quickly amended. “Money.That’swhat always comes first. Which is why he refused to pay the ten million for our release. But even with money aside, our personalities and interests have just never really aligned.”
“Ten million?” Beckett considered this. “I gotta be honest, Evie. I’ve seen your father’s financials. To a guy like him, ten mill is?—”
“Less than the amount he spent on his last charity event,” she finished for him. “Yeah. I know.”
“Jesus.” He fell back in his chair and ran a hand over his jaw. “I don’t even know what to say.”
What could he say?
Sorry your dad’s a money-hungry douchebag who’d rather foot the bill for your funeral than keep you alive?
“It’s okay, Beckett.” She brushed his concern away. “I knew he was all but done with me when I went against his wishes and signed up for the trip to Afghanistan. I just have to face the fact that my father saw an opportunity to finally be rid of me, and he took it.”
But why? Why, in God’s name would a father do that to his only child?
Evie was obviously still dealing with the fallout of such a crushing blow, and it broke his heart to see. It was also clear that the woman was trying her damnedest to not only deal with all that she’d been through but also accept the severed relationship with her father and move on in her own way.
And for that, he couldn’t be prouder.
Minutes later, their food was delivered hot and ready to eat. The pair spent the rest of their lunch in a carefully balanced dance of consuming their delicious lunch and changing the conversation to a more normal, casual tone.
Over the course of the meal, Beckett learned all about Evie’s friend Lo and how the two had been best friends since college. Evie shared that Lo had started out as an education major but then switched to journalism and photography mid-semester of their junior year.