Page 53 of The Last Resort
Rachel’s cell buzzed and she startled. She glanced at the screen.UNKNOWN CALLER.Normally she would have let such a call go straight to voicemail, but curiosity got the better of her, and she answered it.
“Hello.”
“Will you accept a collect call from inmate Scott Davilla at Ware State Prison, Georgia?”
Rachel’s vision blurred as her stomach dropped. Her father was calling. That could only mean bad news. He hadn’t spoken to her since the mid-point of the trial, refusing all her calls and efforts to talk. And now he was the one reaching out.
“Yes, I will take the call.”
There was a crackle and a click on the line, then a voice spoke. One she had not heard in a long time. “Rachel, are you there?”
“Yes.”
She didn’t want to call him Dad. Refusing to acknowledge their familial link was the only way she’d been able to stay sane over the past year.
“I hear you’re up in Aspen and have changed your name.”
“Yes, I am. And yes, I did. I’ve taken grandma’s maiden name. It’s all legal and court approved.”
Rachel speared her fingers through her hair. The empty parking lot was her only form of solace. No one else could hear this stilted, awkward conversation.
“I spoke to your sister. She tells me that she and Dan are not getting a divorce.”
“That’s correct. Dan has moved back into the house, and they are giving their marriage another shot. It’s really great news.”
A long stream of foul words had her pulling her phone away and counting to ten before holding it to her ear once more. “I was hoping you might be able to talk some sense into your sister. Let her know that she is being a fool keeping that man in her life. A divorce is the only sensible way forward.”
Yeah, you would think that you selfish bastard.
“Kellie’s marriage is none of mine or your business. Is there something else I can help you with?”Nope, still not going to call you Dad, you’ve lost that right.
“Your mother tells me you are working in Aspen. Doing some design stuff for a resort.”
And now we get to the purpose of your call.
Why her mother was still talking to the man who’d destroyed her life, Rachel couldn’t understand. But Patricia Davilla had stood by her husband all through the trial, and there was little doubt that she would be waiting outside the prison gates the day Scott was eventually released.
“I’m working for Dan’s parents on the old ski lodge they inherited. The people from Royal Resorts want to buy it, but the council won’t approve their building plans—which Royal Resorts needs in order to secure the purchase—until they come up with a viable design proposal.”
There was no point in lying or hiding any of this fromhim. She’d called her mother last night, and she wasn’t the least surprised to discover that the family grapevine had already passed that news onto her father in prison.
“Royal Resorts. And you’re now living with one of the family members at the lodge? That’s a golden opportunity right there, Rachel.”
She bit her bottom lip.Here it comes.“Yes, it’s a good opportunity to start to rebuild my career. As you can no doubt understand, Atlanta is well and truly burned for me.”
You burned it for me, Dad.
She wanted nothing more than to throw that in his face but knew it wouldn’t matter. He’d never accepted responsibility for stealing millions of dollars from his investment clients. Why would he give a damn about his family?
He doesn’t even care that I have been forced to change my name.
“Tut tut, Rachel. Come on, you must know by now that the Royal family has billions in the bank. They are richer than half the countries on the planet. You need to try harder to get on that sweet gravy train.”
Rachel felt nauseous. Her father was a con man, nothing more.
Matthew stood silently at the top of the steps of the lodge watching as Rachel spoke to someone on her phone. She had her back to him, and from her stiff posture and constant tugging of her long ponytail, it was clear she wasn’t enjoying the conversation. When she moved away from the building and toward the trees, he followed. She was preoccupied with the call, and he was worried that in the dark she’d fall into a snow drift or something.
Or something. Admit it, you’re protective of her.
