Chapter 4: Who Declined

"I told her the truth," Walter said. "Which seems to be the one thing nobody in this family has done."

Everett came into the study and shut the door behind him.

He did not look at me.

"Dad, you don't understand what you're looking at. Those offers were never real. The board would have fought every one of them."

"The board never saw them," Walter said. "I sent them under my own name."

"Then I was protecting her."

"From what?" Walter asked.

Everett's mouth opened and closed.

I watched him search for the answer, and I realized I had never once watched him search before.

"From pressure," he said finally. "From people looking at us."

"Everett," I said. "Which of those pages says I asked you to decline anything?"

He turned to me with the voice he used on clients.

"Nell, come home. We'll sit down tonight and I'll explain all of it. I swear."

"I'm not coming home."

"You don't have anywhere else."

"I do now," I said, and held up the folder. "This is the only thing I need from you."

Walter put a hand on his son's arm.

"Monday morning at nine, Nell will collect her things from the ninth floor," he said. "You'll let her walk in the front door. Is that understood?"

Everett looked at his father's hand, then at me, then at the floor.

"Fine," he said. "Monday."

On Monday I walked into the lobby of Stroud Group carrying an empty box and wearing the navy blazer I had worn for twelve years of Mondays.

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