West frowns. “What business?”
“What testing?” Winnie asks.
West shushes her, and she turns the weight of her glare on him. He ignores her, focusing on the lawyer.
“The business of who will be the caretaker of his other concerns as well as his ranch, should he stay in the condition he’s currently in for longer than the next twenty-four hours. At this point, that’s you, Ms. Parker, and you, Mr. West.”
I jerk, some of my numbness dissipating. “Me?” I blink, the world sliding into sudden focus. Everything is too sharp, too bright. My body aches with a caffeine hangover, but I ignore that, pushing back knotted hair that snares in dry fingers. “Why would he do that? When?”
“When? The day before the incident. Why? Because he believes you—both of you—have no real interest in his fortune. I did try to explain to him that would be unlikely, but seeing you both here over the last hours…I believe I might understand his line of reasoning a little better now.”
Winnie sits quietly, staring at her hands.
“Ms. Rand.”
Winnie looks up at the mention of her maiden name. “What?” she snaps. “I’m sorry. I haven’t used that name in a long time.”
McCullins nods. “I’m sorry. Mrs. Hamilton. Rand established a trust fund for your daughter, Sally, nearly nine years ago, just after her birth. Current assets stand at twenty-seven million dollars. I am authorized to transfer one million dollars into her account from the family trust each year on her birthday for expenses, with the rest to mature when she turns twenty-one. I believe her next birthday is in two weeks?”
Winnie doesn’t nod, but I do.
“There are considerable investments that are managed and will continue to grow. I can have an advisor take you through them.”
Winnie glances around, standing. Her hands shake. “I never asked him to do that.”
“That trust is to be transferred to you, Mrs. Hamilton, regardless of whether Rand recuperates or not. He also made changes to the family trust and would like both yourself and Ms. Parker to become joint signatories. I will forward you the information. And here is our man.”
Cord’s lawyer dumps the biggest bombshell of our lives into our laps and walks away. He speaks softly to a uniformed officer who waits further along the hall.
Winnie crushes my hand in hers. “I didn’t know we had a family trust,” she says, stunned.
West snorts.
She glares at him again. “What, and you did?”
“Of course. I helped Rand set it all up, back when everyone who mattered abandoned him. Took him to meet with lawyers, read over the drafts to make sure it secured a future for your family.” He clenches his teeth, a muscle working in his jaw. “Your parents know because they send requests to withdraw from it, even though they refuse to speak to their son.”
“The fu—” Winnie’s mouth shuts. “Apparently, that happens to self-made CEOs.” She shakes her head, muttering.
West eyes her and then tips his head sideways to study me.
“I didn’t have a clue.” I scrub my face with my hands, trying desperately to wake myself up.
“He’s not dead yet,” Winnie whips back, her usual fierce self out to play. “And he’d better wake up so I can get that money and throw it in his face.” She huffs.
West turns his sturdy back to her with an odd expression.
I cough into my hand. “You and West will make great friends.”
A surgeon approaches us, and I step back, my knees bumping into the row of plastic chairs. “You guys are family.” I give them both a push.
West glares at me. “Don’t be stupid, Lanie.” He grips my wrist tight, pulling me forward. “Didn’t you just hear what McBuffins said?”
The cop down the hall coughs, but it sounds a whole lot like a laugh.
Winnie raises an eyebrow as she looks at me. “You’re right. I do like him.”
The doctor waits until we’re quiet. “It’s good to see you again,West. And I’ve heard about you, Lanie.” He casts a glance down the hall toward Cord’s lawyer.
