Silence.
“You called me for money?”
I cleared my throat. “Uh, yeah.”
“Malin.” His voice sounded weird. I heard breathing over the connection. “Are you in trouble?”
“Nothing like that.”
“I—I haven’t heard from you in over six years.”
I blinked hard. Why did this affect me so much? I never shed a tear for that man. It was all for my other parent. Rupert. Who shouldn’t have died. There shouldn’t be a stump where that part of the bond used to be. It should never have happened!
“I wouldn’t have called if—if I didn’t need it.”
“Are you sure you’re not in trouble?” His tone was rough with emotion.
“I’m not.”
“Then, what’s going on?”
“It’s someone else in trouble, Dad. I’ll pay it back. I promise.”
“When do you need the money?”
“In the next fifteen minutes.”
“What?”
My breath shook now. “I know you can do it.” My dad, Tane Summit, was worth over two billion when I’d left his house. Probably double that by now.
“Consider it done. Where does that eight million need to go?”
I hadn’t thought about that part. He’d have to know. The transaction couldn’t be completed if I was the middleman. There could be no secrets.
“Brimstone Ranch.” My words came out garbled.
“Where?”
“Brimstone Ranch.”
There was a pause on the other end, a clearing of a throat. “All right. Tell them it’s done. I’ll call my bank now.”
“I’ll pay you back.” I kept repeating it as if that made everything good.
“Text me the account number. I have to hang up now to make the call.”
“Okay.” I should say anything but that. I should thank him. But my throat and tongue wouldn’t work.
Dad surprised me then. “No need to pay it back. You say you need it? Consider it a gift.”
The phone went dead.
I reeled. A gift? Instead of being happy about it, I felt sick. I didn’t have time for any of that so I buried away all the feelings that swept over me and held myself together.
Quickly, I pasted the information Jonah had given me into the text box, along with the exact amount minus the fifty cents I’d already paid. And that was that.
I walked back to Jonah’s office. As I entered, I dropped my phone into my vest pocket and said, “It’s done.”
