“Daddy never mentioned anything about being approached by another company,” Michaela says. I’m not surprised he’dkeep quiet about that encounter. “Isn’t High Stone Holding owed by the Madigans?”
“Yes.” Slate answers her question. “They’ve been part of the top three hotelier dynasties for several decades and they’ve been fighting dirty to outrank us from the number two spot for as long.”
“And by dirty, Slate means by any means possible,” I say. “Ripley Madigan, the head of the family, is the kind of man who’s willing to prostitute anyone to get what he wants.” Bile rises in my throat at the memory of the six months Marie-Clémence played me for a fool.
Michaela frowns.
“Niels was surprised by the level of details Potter knew.” Dad keeps talking.
“Did the Madigans approach Daddy or was that Potter taking a wild guess?”
“They did,” I say. “Several times and they were waving big money at him, but—” I purse my lips.
“But what?”
My eyes bounce from Slate’s, to Wilder’s, and to my father’s.
“But what?” Michaela places a hand on my forearm. “Tell me.”
I push my plate away, my appetite gone.
“Tell her,” my father says. “She has a right to know. You’re married now, so she’s safe.”
“Okay, this is scaring me,” Michaela says. “What’s going on?”
I reach out and smooth the frown line between her eyebrows. My eyes bore into hers for a prolonged beat.
“Tell me, Phoenix.”
“The marriage wasn’t optional for your father because he wanted to make sure you didn’t get screwed over. Additionally, in his eyes, the marriage protected your legacy against backlash from the scandal around Thana’s lover.” I pause. “When RipleyMadigan approached your father, he thought he had struck gold. It was the perfect timing, and he figured one of Ripley’s three twenty-something sons could be a decent candidate as a husband.” Another pause. “Those are his legitimate sons. Rumor has it, he has as many as a dozen illegitimate kids. “Ripley refused the option of you marrying one of his sons. He wanted to keep you all to himself?—”
“He’s old enough to be my grandfather.” The note of hysteria in Michaela’s voice is unmistakable.
“Ripley is sixty-eight years old,” Dad says. “The difference of age is preposterous.”
“The man keeps busy,” I say. “He has four young girlfriends on the side, along with his wife of forty years.” Since the vermin blindsided me a few years ago, I paid astute investigators to dissect his life after the meeting with Niels. They couldn’t dig up all his skeletons—because an unscrupulous guy like Madigan has a boatload of them––but what they reported back was enough to prevent any nasty surprises before accepting my now-father-in-law’s proposal. “He has a penchant for selecting virgins, days after they come of age. It’s like he grooms them and stashes them somewhere with the clock ticking, counting down to their eighteenth birthday. He phases them out when they turn twenty-one––”
“I’m twenty-three,” she says.
“True.”And she’s not even a virgin.“According to your father, Ripley was willing to make an exception to his rule because you bring far more to the table than his dumb virgins do,” I say. “Ripley’s words, not mine.”
Michaela blinks. “His wife doesn’t care?”
“My guess is his wife is willing to turn a blind eye to maintain the lifestyle she’s accustomed to. And here’s the kicker, the girlfriends live together in a neighboring house, so it’s not like Mrs. Madigan is oblivious to her husband’s cheating ways.There’s more. Ripleyoffershis girlfriends to business partners to seal deals.”
Michaela turns as white as a ghost.
“His girlfriends are always well taken care of when things go his way, so they’re okay with beingprostituted,” I say. “It’s a win-win for everyone involved.”
She gasps.
Anger bubbles inside me at the horror reflecting from her eyes. I hate seeing my little dragon this vulnerable.
“Ripley is into sordid and demeaning sex.” I keep talking. “Your father refused to hand you over to a pervert. Ripley put pressure on him. Niels wouldn’t cave in. He wouldn’t budge from his position. Then, Ripley pulled out the big guns. He started blackmailing your father.”
“What?” Michaela’s brows pinch together.
“Ripley knew how desperate your father was. He also knew about Thana and her lover—I mean, he knew everything.”
