“Call her,” Kate heard herself say.
The room went quiet.
“What?” Dani asked.
“Call Lillian. Tell her...” Kate paused, the words like stones in her throat. “Tell her we'll take the money.”
CHAPTER 6
Kate hadn't slept. She'd spent the night staring at the ceiling, listening to the old inn creak and settle, wondering if she'd just saved everything or lost it all. At five-thirty, she gave up and went downstairs to find Pop already in the kitchen, staring at the coffee maker as if he'd forgotten how it worked.
“Morning, Pop.”
He turned, and for a moment his face was blank. Then recognition flickered. “Katie. I was trying to... the machine...”
“I've got it.” She started the coffee, noting how he watched her movements carefully, as if memorizing them. “Couldn't sleep?”
“Dreams,” he said vaguely. “Elizabeth was here. But young. So young.”
Kate's throat tightened. “Want some eggs?”
“I'm not hungry.” He sat at the table, his hands folded like a child in school. “Is something happening today? I feel like something's happening.”
Everything was happening. Lillian would arrive at ten to discuss terms. The bank needed documents. Tom had already sent three emails about legal structures for the trust. Butlooking at Pop's confused face, Kate just said, “Nothing special. Come on, let’s get you to the living room. Your favorite game show is on.”
It wasn’t true. The game show was a recording Kate played over and over for her father. Something about the old show kept his anxiety at bay.
Dani arrived at seven, carrying a box of pastries from the bakery in town. She looked like she'd slept about as well as Kate, shadows under her eyes, her usually perfect hair pulled back in a messy bun.
“Peace offering,” she said, setting the box on the counter.
“For what?”
“For pushing you. For bringing Lillian into this. For leaving in the first place.” Dani poured herself coffee with shaking hands. “Take your pick.”
“You did what you thought was right.”
“Did I? Or did I just do what was easier?” Dani sat across from Pop, who was dozing in his chair. “It was easier to leave. Easier to let you handle everything. Easier to accept Lillian's money without questioning it.”
“Dani…”
“No, let me say this.” Her sister's eyes were bright with unshed tears. “You stayed. You gave up everything to take care of Pop and the inn. And I went to New York and failed at three different careers and dated men who treated me like I was disposable. So who made the better choice?”
Kate didn't know how to answer that. Was staying the better choice if it meant watching everything slowly fall apart? Was leaving worse if it meant trying to find yourself?
“We both did what we had to do,” Kate said finally.
“Very diplomatic.” Dani managed a small smile. “You sound like Mom.”
The comparison caught Kate off guard. She never took seriously any comments about her being like Elizabeth; that was Dani's role, the pretty one who looked like their mother. But maybe there were other ways of resemblance.
Tom and James arrived together at nine, Tom in another suit, James in jeans and a MIT hoodie. They commandeered the dining room, spreading out legal documents and laptops like they were preparing for battle.
“I've reviewed the trust documents,” Tom said, all business. “They're solid. No hidden clauses, no tricks. She's essentially giving us full control of the money with only one stipulation.”
“Which is?” Kate asked.
“She wants to be involved in decisions about Pop's care. Not controlling them, just... consulted.”
