Page 163 of Dagger in the Sea

“An arson investigation is being conducted. There’s been trouble, shall we say, in the neighborhood for months now.”

“Erin told me. I saw her about a week ago.”

“You saw her?”

“She called me, asked me to come by the office. She told me about my father giving her trouble.”

“Trouble is right.”

My heart pounded against my ribs, sending my head into a dizzying tailspin. Why hadn’t I considered he’d go the extra mile with my mother? Why hadn’t I assumed the possibility? All my professional life I’d been thorough, covered all possible angles, no matter how ridiculous they may have seemed. But I’d been arrogant where he was concerned, hadn’t I?

Benefactor. Destroyer.

The fucking son of a bitch had gone for it. He thought he’d taken care of me, and then my mother was next on his list. Both of us in one day.Motherfuckingfucker.

“Turo, your mother is unconscious and as such, you are her designated successor.”

“Say again?”

“You are now acting CEO.”

My hand throttled my cell phone. “Are you telling me she never changed her will after she fired me?”

“No, she didn’t. She’d never wrote you off. She always believed that you’d be back. That you’d be a part of her life again and that you’d work together once more. She had faith in you. You’re her son and she loves you.”

“You’re telling me the explanation for this is that she loves me?” My voice was raw.

“Yes.”

A whirlpool of adrenaline and madness pissed through me. “Marissa, the last ten years she and I didn’t have much of a relationship, if any. She was cold, I was mean, etcetera, etcetera. You know how it was, how it’s been all these years.” I lowered my voice. “You know who I am and what I do. Who I work for. Everything she despised. I disappointed her, betrayed her.”

“Don’t think I didn’t try to dissuade her,” Marissa said. “But there was a piece of her that never stopped believing in you. She felt awful about how things had degenerated between you, how she could have handled things differently. She really did. She felt powerless.”

“Erin Cavanaugh Bradley felt powerless?”

“As your mother, yes. She always put on a brave face, but she didn’t want you in between her and him, ever. His constant threats over the years—”

“What threats?”

“Lately it’s been all business. But when you were younger, he continually threatened to take you away from her.”

“I had no idea,” I said. Is that why she tried keeping me behind closed doors, at a distance? “Why would he have taken me when he’s been adamant to this day about keeping me a secret from everyone?”

“Well, if you don’t know that, who does?”

That stung. She was right. I knew he loved using his power to get what he wanted, to have the last word. Letting go of me and Erin had been easy for him, but she and I had become problems and that was definitely not him having the last word, and that he couldn’t let go of ever.

“Turo, Erin worked hard to keep you safe, to give you the best of everything, shielding you and making her business a success so that she wouldn’t have to rely on anyone or need anyone, not even her own father. She felt a great sense of failure when she forced you out, but she still believed in you. Never stopped wanting the best for you. That’s what a mother’s love is—an always proposition. Unyielding. Defies logic, practicality, legal advice.”

My skin heated, my head pounded.

Marissa cleared her throat. “As Erin is currently incapacitated, the power of attorney goes to me and you to make decisions for the company. We’ve worked together before, but that was then, and I for one, don’t trust you much.”

“Understood.”

“How soon can you be here? She needs you.”

She needs you.“I’m in Greece right now.”

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