Page 45 of Kane

Steeling herself for whatever her father would throw at her next, she approached the front porch only to run into the groundskeeper, Raul, who was pressure washing the pavement.

He stopped the spray and tipped his hat. “You may want to go in through the back, ma’am. Don’t want to ruin your nice shoes.”

Though the advice came too late to keep her pumps completely dry, she turned, then rounded the house to enter through the French doors into the sunroom. There, she slipped her shoes off her feet and carried them into the house, in search of a hand towel to wipe off the patent leather.

The linen closet was only a few steps down the hall.

What’re a couple more minutes? It’s not like Dad is expecting me anyway.

Frankly, she’d been rather surprised when she’d gone to his office, and his assistant had told her he was working from home for the day. Her father was never home during business hours on a Thursday, or any other weekday, come to think of it.

She padded in her bare feet toward the towels, trying to remember if her dad had ever worked from home in her life.

“—can’t possibly stand for this.”

She froze a few steps away from her father’s office. The man’s voice wasn’t familiar, but it was a rare occasion to hear anyone talk to her dad in such a tone. Generally, he surrounded himself with smooth-talking politicians like himself, servants, or sycophants. This man sounded…angry.

“I know how you feel about the Skulls. It’s a damn cautionary tale about getting on your bad side. Imagine our surprise you would allow this to happen.”

The Skulls? Why was someone talking to her father about Kane’s biker gang?

“To be frank, Mr. Bennett, I had no idea this was going on,” her father said. “I pride myself on having my finger on the pulse of what’s happening in this community. Though I was aware of Mr. de la Cruz’s unexplained absence, I didn’t realize someone had stepped in to fill the void so soon.”

De la Cruz? The drug dealer?

“The darks are always gonna need their fix. It’s a fact of life. Butweshould be the ones in charge of distribution;weshould be the ones who profit from their weakness.”

She ground her teeth at the man’s racist rant.

“Why come to me? What do I get out of your success?” Her father gave words to the questions rioting in her head.

“Because nothing happens in this city without your blessing. If you don’t want the Skulls taking over the drug line, you’ve got the connections to take them down. And here’s the thing, Mr. Mayor. Taking them down is win-win for you. Not only do you get to stick it to the Hales, but you guarantee a stake in our business. One percent of our profits will go directly into your campaign fund. A penny of every dollar we’ll make. You getmoneyout of it…and satisfaction.”

Silence greeted the man’s offer. She let out a wavering breath. The man had underestimated her father. He wouldn’t—

“Five percent. Direct deposit into the campaign fund.”

“Done.”

She braced her hand on the wall, her head swimming as her father wheeled and dealed in the next room.

“Give me a few days to get everything in place, and Mr. Bennett, don’t call me; I’ll call you. I’m sure you understand why discretion in this matter is vital.”

She took two steps backward, then whirled and rushed back down the hall to the kitchen. Her thoughts spun out of control. Kane’s club was dealing drugs? Was he? If her father had it out for him, it didn’t really matter. He’d go down one way or another. Unless she warned him.

Even as her dad kept Kane out of jail all those years ago, in his own way, he’d stolen Kane’s future. Their future. She’d be damned if she let him do any more damage.

Slipping her shoes back on, she rushed back around the house but froze when she caught a glimpse of Raul lugging the pressure washer back to his pick-up.

She couldn’t leave without seeing her father. Someone would mention the fact she’d been here; she hadn’t exactly been stealthy.

Her hand shook as she pulled her phone from her purse and pulled up her father’s contact. He answered on the first ring.

“Now is not a good time, Amanda.” He didn’t even bother to say hello.

“I’m here at the house, Dad. Eddie said you’d gone home. Are you sick?” Her voice didn’t shake once. “Raul’s been working on the porch; I’m coming around back, okay?” Slowly, she started retracing her steps.

“No. There’s no need. You and I can catch up later. Maybe have lunch tomorrow.”