Chương 12
Flynn said, “Kara.”
“I’m not finished.”
There was an odd tremor beneath her anger.
“You send me hotel complaints at midnight.”
“You forward your mother’s florist wars.”
“You expect me to know which investors hate cilantro and which cousins can’t sit near each other because of a fight nobody will explain.”
Despite everything, I almost smiled.
That was Kara.
Even furious, she cataloged inconveniences.
Then her tone went cold.
“But I am not taking the blame for murder.”
Aidan said, “No one asked you to.”
“You used my credentials.”
“No.”
“You used an API token assigned to my office.”
Flynn said, “Dad?”
Aidan did not answer.
Kara continued.
“The route order was built from a copied fingerprint packet.”
My stomach tightened.
Flynn asked, “Copied from where?”
“That part I don’t know.”
Fiona gave a short laugh.
“Convenient.”
“I know who used my token.”
Aidan moved.
I heard fabric drag against carpet.
“Who?”
Kara said, “You.”
Silence.
Aidan laughed again.
This time it sounded forced.
“You’re accusing me because you’re scared.”
“No.”
“I’m accusing you because your device signed into the administrative gateway from this yacht at 3:12 this morning.”
Flynn’s breathing went uneven.
Kara continued.
“You didn’t know the system mirrored session data to the shore server.”
Aidan said nothing.
“You copied Evelyn’s biometric package.”
Still nothing.
“You staged the route alteration to look like she ordered it.”
Flynn said, “Why?”
No one answered him.
He asked again.
“Why?”
Kara said, “Because if she disappeared and investigators found evidence that she ordered an unauthorized course change, it muddies the timeline.”
Aidan snapped, “That is speculation.”
“Of course it is.”
Kara’s calmness returned.
“Because I’m not stupid enough to pretend a server log explains motive.”
Daniel would have liked her.
I thought that immediately and hated that my brain still had room for ridiculous observations.
Flynn said, “So the route wasn’t part of my plan.”
Aidan answered, “Your plan was amateurish.”
That sentence broke something.
Flynn made a sound like a laugh but without humor.
“You let me think it was mine.”
“We let you feel involved.”
Fiona hissed, “Aidan.”
“What?”
“He deserves to know now.”
Flynn’s voice went flat.
“Know what?”
Aidan did not answer.
Kara said, “Don’t.”
“What does he deserve to know?”
“Flynn.”
Aidan sounded almost tired.
“Your mother and I have been fixing your mistakes since you were nineteen.”
“Don’t make this about my mistakes.”
“You lost twelve million dollars.”
“I lost three.”
“You lost twelve.”
“That fund recovered.”
“After I covered the margin call.”
Flynn said nothing.
Aidan continued.
“You borrowed against property you didn’t own.”
“You signed guarantees without understanding them.”
“You let a friend use your name on a venture that nearly got you sued.”
Each accusation came quieter than the last.
Not because Aidan was calming down.
Because he knew exactly where to cut.
Flynn said, “So this was about debt?”
Fiona answered before Aidan could.
“It was about survival.”
“Whose?”
“Ours.”
Flynn laughed softly.
“There it is.”
Fiona’s voice trembled.
“You think your father’s businesses are healthy?”
I held my breath.
Flynn said nothing.
“They’re not.”
Aidan snapped, “Fiona.”
“No.”
She sounded exhausted now.
“You wanted him involved.”
“You wanted him useful.”
“So let him understand.”
Flynn asked, “Understand what?”
Fiona said, “We are buried.”
The room stayed quiet.
“How buried?”
Flynn asked.
“Enough.”
“How much?”
Aidan said, “It doesn’t matter.”
“It matters to me.”
Fiona answered.
“Ninety-two million.”
Even through the bathroom door, the number seemed to alter the air.
Flynn said, “That’s not possible.”
“It is.”
“You told me Callahan Capital had two hundred million liquid.”
Aidan laughed bitterly.
“On paper.”
“You showed me statements.”
“Statements can show many things.”
Kara said nothing.
Neither did I.
Flynn asked, “How much is real?”
Aidan did not answer.
Fiona said, “Less than eight.”
Flynn inhaled sharply.
“You’re broke.”
Aidan said, “We are overleveraged.”
“You’re broke.”
“We have assets.”
“You have debt.”
“Don’t lecture me about finance.”
Flynn’s laugh became ugly.
“You convinced me to kill my wife because you screwed up your own company.”
The sentence reached me with physical force.
Not because it was new.
Because it was plain.
My wife.
Kill.
Company.
No euphemisms left.
Fiona said, “Nobody convinced you.”
Flynn went silent.
She continued.
“You were already resentful.”
My stomach turned.
“Mom.”
“You were.”
“Stop.”
“You complained constantly.”
“Stop.”
“You said Evelyn treated money like oxygen because she’d never had to earn enough to fear losing it.”
I closed my eyes.
Those were not words Flynn had ever said to me.
That did not mean they were not his.
Fiona kept going.
“You said her father treated you like decorative furniture.”
“Enough.”
“You said you were tired of being the poor husband in a rich family.”
“Shut up.”
“You wanted a way out.”
Flynn shouted, “I said shut up.”
Something crashed again.
This time Kara yelled.
Then the bathroom door handle jerked.
I jumped back.
“Evelyn.”
Flynn.
His voice was right outside.
I raised the brass lamp.
“Don’t come in.”
“I’m not.”
“Move away.”
“I need to talk to you.”
“No.”
“Please.”
The word sounded broken.
I hated that it affected me.
“You drugged me.”
“I know.”
“You were going to kill me.”
“I know.”
I gripped the lamp harder.
“You don’t get to sound sad about that.”
Silence.
Then Flynn said, “You’re right.”
I almost laughed.
“Congratulations.”
“I deserve that.”
“You deserve prison.”
Behind him, Fiona said, “Flynn, stop talking.”
He ignored her.
“Kara says outside security is already involved.”
My heart kicked.
He knew.
“You broke the door.”
“I know.”
“Where’s Marcus?”
A pause.
“Aidan restrained him.”
“Is he alive?”
“Yes.”
“Lila?”
“I don’t know.”
“Captain Mercer?”
“I don’t know.”
“Then find out.”
“I can’t.”
“Why?”
“Because nobody is listening to me anymore.”
That might have been the first true thing he had said all night.
I leaned against the vanity.
“What do you want?”
Flynn answered quietly.
“To get you out.”
I laughed.
“Through which deck?”
“Not like that.”
May you like
“You’ll forgive me for needing details.”
“Captain Mercer controls the bridge again.”
