"I guess I'm out of touch. What's been going on with the company?" Gabrielle asked. She was dutiful in sending in her voting proxies whenever needed, ensuring she consistently voted for whatever position Serena supported.
Serena dragged a hand down her face. "I don't want to burden you with this now."
"No, tell me. I want to help if I can. In fact, the distraction might do me good," Gabrielle said.
"You know the bylaws of the company. Every critical decision is now subject to a family vote. They don't try to understand the vision I'm trying to implement. Most of them know nothing about growing coffee beans. Yet, they want to stand in the way of progress because they're afraid of losing some of their net worth."
"But your ideas are amazing, from what I've seen. The company has flourished since you took over. The expansion into Europe was a success and made everyone richer."
"Doesn't matter. The lawyers have advised me that we must have our parents declared legally deceased. That will trigger the wills to be probated."
Realization settled within Gabrielle. "Which will make you the fifty-one percent owner of the company. The rest of us will have equal shares of the remaining forty-nine percent. You could make all the decisions for Hullabaloo without consulting anyone."
Serena sighed. "Don't make it sound so diabolical. There's still a board of directors, and I'm happy to give you an appointment. I have no issue with knowledgeable members of our company weighing in on my decisions. But we need to get the paperwork filed."
"What if they're still out there." An unease snaked through Gabrielle. "We don't have any proof that Mom and Dad are …" She couldn't say the words. Serena must think she was silly for hoping their parents could still be alive. She could see it in her big sis's eyes. Maybe she was delusional, but that hope kept her guilt and regret at bay. "They could be trying to come home to us."
"I hope they are … still … out there. Alive," Serena said, her words slow, delicate, and unconvincing to Gabrielle's ears.
Her sister had been around to hear all the speculation from experts on the fate of their parents. The dire outcomes all led to one view—Bernadette King and Peter da Costa had died when their plane crashed into the side of a mountain in a desolate and uninhabited part of the African continent. Gabrielle couldn't blame her for giving up hope.
"If we find them, of course, the legal death certificates would be overturned, and everything would … go back to how it was before," Serena continued.
"What does Ike think about all this?" Gabrielle wondered if her brother would believe Serena was being reasonable or making a power grab to suit her ambition.
Serena shrugged. "Ike and I haven't spoken since the plane disappeared. We don't need him to make this happen. The lawyers say only a majority is needed. Two of the three of us. Will you at least think about it?"
"Yes, I'll think about it," Gabrielle said.
"Good. Now, the only other options to move you into would be the villa near the peak of Cabrito mountain, which is out of the way, or the cottage on the private beach," Serena said, rubbing her arm. "I'd prefer the beach cottage. It's closer to the main house, and it's been renovated. Nothing to trigger any memories. What do you say?"
"The beach cottage sounds perfect."
Chapter11
Her voice was the sweetest melody tickling Sebastian’s ears—confident, poised, and strong. The beautiful face stared back at him from the video screen. She walked across a stage, enlightening an audience of corporate types on ways to emerge anew from unexpected circumstances. The passion in her eyes blazed through the camera, intense and with a purpose of improving lives.
That light and fire had gone out of her eyes yesterday.
He’d watched it happen as she received the shocking news about Damian Hester and the potential threat of kidnapping by Quattro.
That light had been replaced with thinly veiled fear.
The same look took over his mother’s gaze when she realized what his father had been doing. He could never forget that look as long as he lived. To see it in another woman’s eyes had rattled him to his soul.
Watching from the main house, he’d waited for Gabrielle to settle into the beach cottage before taking the path down. He’d thought it would only take a day to get the new security system in place, but they’d hit roadblocks trying to secure delivery of the complex equipment to the island. It would be another two or three days before the installation could be completed. Two or three days until Sebastian would feel comfortable leaving her alone on the property while he monitored the grounds from the comfort of his home in the Tango Lowlands.
Until then, he wouldn’t let her out of sight.
That’s why he’d spent the night under the stars in a hammock about twenty feet away from the beach house. Sleep had alluded him. What started as idle curiosity turned into an all-night obsession.
Gabrielle had built an impressive library of her talks and teachings on her Emerge Anew website. She coached and mentored people about how to bounce back from unexpected and, at times, tragic circumstances in dozens of video series.
Sebastian figured he’d damn near watched them all last night, mesmerized by Gabrielle. Her transformation had played out through the videos, changing from a broken and confused victim to an empowered, strong woman determined to help others succeed on the journey she’d already conquered. She had been transparent about her past and struggles, not shying away from the vulnerabilities that haunted her. He knew her better now. Her thoughts, fears, mannerisms, likes, and dislikes. Her videos had lured him into a parasocial relationship, building an intimacy and connection that he knew was only in his mind.
But that didn’t stop it from feeling real.
He’d misjudged her.
