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Rainy gritted her teeth with what looked like disgust. “You…”
27
He put up his hands to stop her. “Don’t say anything you can’t take back.”
“Oh, there’s plenty I’d like to say, and I won’t regret a word,” she said.
“It’s clear you’re here to settle a score, maybe two or three, but I think you’ve misread my involvement,” he said. “I’m not the enemy. Killion came to me for help, and I helped him.”
“H-he did?” she stammered. “Why? Why you? Help him with what?”
“You can put the weapon away. I’m not going to hurt you. I’m here to help you. We knew you’d come here, and I’m here to help,” he shared.
Rainy hesitated a moment, then finally gave in, holstering her weapon. “Start talking. This better add up quick, or…”
“You’re not going to hurt me, Daughter. I’m always on your side, always have been, and you know that,” Cormack said.
“Daughter?” She chuckled. “Okay. If you’re on my side, where’ve you been other than conveniently popping up in the middle of chaos before disappearing again?”
“I’ve been watching over you, the babies, and your brothers the whole time. As for remaining under the radar, well, that should be obvious. You’re a smart girl and well-trained. You know how this works.”
As much as it pained her, she believed him.
“I know that’s not the answer you wanted because you want someone to pin Killion’s death on, but it’s the truth. I stuck around because I knew he was going to need me.”
“For what? Instead of dancing around the issue with dramatics, how about you shoot straight from the hip… Dad. Tell me what you and Killion planned and why it went…” She paused as her lip began to quiver. “Why it went horribly wrong.”
“It didn’t go wrong, darlin’,” Cormack said, pulling out a chair for her while taking one across from it. “Killion’s plan was brilliant, but I’m sure you already guessed that. The team was getting nowhere fast, and the threats on all of you were growing by the day. He wanted to put pressure on whoever was behind it all and send a message to anyone paying attention who thought they may want to take a swing at him too.”
“Okay. Sound idea. Why couldn’t he do it at Watermark? Why did it go down the way it did? Surely leaving his family behind wasn’t part of the plan.”
“I’m sorry, Rainy Jo, but it was. With someone getting as close as they were, and others likely waiting in the wings, the only way to stop it all was to die. It was a one-shot deal –– get them all while they tried to strike when you all were most vulnerable.”
“He planned it this way? Leaving the babies and me was a part of the plan?” Rainy stood and kicked her chair behind her and began to pace. “This isn’t making sense, Cormack. He’d never hurt us this way.”
“He didn’t do it to hurt you. He did it to protect you. It worked too.”
“How? There hasn’t been an arrest yet.”
“There have been many. Rogue operatives from all over have been falling for the digital trap he left, leading us right to them,” Cormack shared. “They’re all in custody at an undisclosed location awaiting private trials, which will consist of a ride to a supermax prison that’s sort of… off the grid. No stops at the courthouse, no jury, just straight to a cage where they’ll remain indefinitely.”
“Is that even legal?”
“Does it matter?” Cormack tossed his hands to the side. “It was either corrupt justice through traditional channels or we do it our way so they never get out again.”
“What about the one… the one who attacked BK and Watermark? The one who…”
“Killed him?” Cormack asked, and she nodded. “Yes. As predicted, other’s coming out of the woodwork like they did motivated his main target. It became a race to whatever was left.”
“The ledgers,” she said. “They couldn’t have him, so they were coming for the ledgers.”
Cormack nodded. “And they were going to attack all of you, over and over, until they found them.”
“Just like Killion predicted. He said they’d never stop, and there’d always be someone else waiting in line.”
“He was right, Rainy. This was his only real chance to get to him.”
“Him? Killion figured out who it was?” Cormack nodded, and Rainy grew angrier. “Then why not just go after him? Why did he…”
