Page 50

It’s not the first time I’ve walked into a room of my father’s without him in it. The last time, I left with a drive in my purse.

This club has been my life. It’s where I grew up. It’s where I made my biggest mistake, but also my best decision.

I look around. The colors are now black and silver, the logo is a black panther, the furniture is modern and sleek. There are no trophies and no photos, just generic art and awards that aren’t my dad’s.

Everything related to Scarlet Tide has been erased. Or been put behind glass next door. It’s an insult, a disservice to everyone who worked here, who bled for the club. To my family.

I walk to the desk and sit in the leather chair. I don’t touch anything. It’s not mine.

I lean back, closing my eyes. I think about how I’m going to make him see the truth. I’ve been rehearsing it in my head a lot.

I need him to understand what he did, what he destroyed. I need him to take responsibility. To apologize. I need him to be the father I used to know, the man I used to admire.

I don’t know how long I’ve been sitting there when I hear the door open. I open my eyes and see him. He looks older. He’s wearing a suit and a tie, but they don’t fit him like they used to. He’s lost weight.

He’s not the same. Neither am I.

“Alycia,” he says, surprised. “I couldn’t believe my ears when they told me you were here.”

“I need to talk to you,” I say, staying exactly where I am.

“About what?” he asks, sounding curious but also cautious. He can sense the storm brewing.

I point at the chair in front of the desk. “Sit down, Father.”

It’s ironic because I’m sitting in his. I expect him to say something, but he keeps his mouth shut and does as I say. We face each other across the desk, like two strangers.

“You know why I’m here. You know what you did.”

He sighs, rubbing his temples. “Alycia, we’ve been over this. We all made our decisions. I’m sorry you regret yours.”

My eyebrows fly up. “Excuse me?”

“That’s why you’re here, isn’t it? To ask for your job back? To apologize for leaving?” He waves his hand. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll talk to Caleb. I can convince him to take you back.”

“Do you even hear yourself? You’ll talk to Caleb. You’ll convince him to take me back.” I shake my head and laugh. “What happened to you? When did you become someone else’s bitch?”

“Alycia,” he warns.

“You used to be the one people came to for permission,” I continue. “You used to be the one people respected. You used to own this. You used to rule over the club like its own little kingdom. What happened to you, Dad?”

He leans forward, his eyes narrowed. “Don’t you dare judge me, young lady. You have no idea what I’ve been through. What I’ve sacrificed. What I’ve lost.”

“You lost everything,” I say. “And it was your own doing. You sold your soul, your legacy, even your family.”

“I didn’t sell anything,” he says. “I did what was best for the club.”

“You did what was best for you. You’re so fucking egotistical that all you wanted was to make sure your legacy lived forever. You know, that legacy died the day you let Apex in. You have to be blind not to see it.”

“I won’t allow you to talk to me that way. I don’t care how pregnant you are.”

“I came here to give you a chance to right your wrongs,” I tell him, my chin trembling. My vision blurs but I push through it. “I came here because I wanted you to become a part of our family again, to be a grandpa.”

“I want that,” he says.

“If you truly wanted that, you’d have fired Declan when I told you what he did to me.”

“I went to Caleb,” he says. “The morning after the final, I was in his office.”