Page 92 of Lilly

"I'm surprised he'd go to such lengths to help you. I assume you're blackmailing him. There's no other way he'd take such a risk."

"Pearce, I don't have time to listen to your made-up stories."

"Does Caroline still not know about you and Phillip?"

She's silent. She didn't know I was aware of her ongoing affair with Phillip.

"I knew about it when we were married," I tell her. "There's no need to deny it."

"I never slept with Phillip," she snaps.

"You did, and you have for years. But that's not why I'm calling."

"Then what do you want?"

"To tell you that Lilly will never be part of it. Even if they approve Dean, that doesn't make Reed a member. And if he ever found out about them, he wouldn't join. Reed isn't like his father. The money, the fame, doesn't matter to him."

"Obviously, you don't know the rules, Pearce."

"Then inform me, Katherine," I say, wanting her to say what she knows because I'm recording the conversation and anything she says can be used by the organization to punish her or Phillip later.

"Phillip included a clause in Dean's contract that allows him to automatically make Reed a member when his father is officially sworn in. Dean had a choice not to check the box but he chose to do so. Reed will be a member whether he likes it or not."

I already knew that, but her admission is enough to get Phillip punished. He never should've told Katherine those things. She's not a member, or even the wife of a member, so Phillip is not allowed to tell her what goes on at the meetings.

"Then I'll make sure Dean is not approved for membership," I say.

"You're only one person, Pearce. Your vote isn't worth much. Phillip has already asked around and many of the members agree that at least one Kensington needs to remain connected to the organization after you die. And since you refuse to let Garret partake in their activities, Lilly is the next available option."

"She's the only option but she's not doing it. If Dean is approved and Reed becomes a member, then I'll make sure Lilly never marries him."

"And how will you do that, Pearce? She loves the boy. She's not going to give him up because her father told her to."

"She will if I tell her about them."

"You're finally going to tell her?" Katherine laughs. "Good. It's about time she learns what her father has done. And after she does, she'll never speak to you again. She'll run off and marry Reed, thinking he would never do such things, even as a member. She'll think he's better than you. So you see? Whether you tell her or not, your plan doesn't work. She'll still marry Reed."

"Which I know you don't want. He doesn't have the right background. He's not one of us. In fact, he's the last boy you'd ever want her to marry. Are you really so desperate for her to be part of this that you'll push her to marry a boy you disapprove of? He'll be your son-in-law, Katherine. How will your society friends feel about that?"

"I want back in, and if Lilly marrying that boy is the only way, then so be it. I don't have to interact with him. I don't even have to see him."

"If he's married to your daughter, at some point you'll have to see him. At least at the wedding."

"Knowing Lilly, the wedding will be some backyard barbecue like Garret had." She huffs. "It'll be a complete disgrace and I will not attend such an event."

"You don't plan to attend your own daughter's wedding?"

"If it's not done properly, then absolutely not. It doesn't matter if I'm there or not. All that matters is that she marries him. Which she will, because she's young and naive and doesn't know any better."

We could argue about this all day but I refuse to do so. She admitted she did this and that's all I needed to know. Except now I'm wondering if she did anything else.

"What else are you planning?" I ask.

She sighs. "More questions. More accusations. I really don't have time for this."

She was purposely vague, which means she has something planned and wants me to know so, but she won't tell me what it is. She wants me to worry about it, waste time trying to figure out what else she's up to. I hate these games she plays. She's been playing them for as long as I've known her, long before we got married.

"Fine. I'll figure it out myself."

---