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“I put some of it in Burdett. Grandma Carter has stock in First National.” He shrugged.
“In an account?” Mr. Carter asked.
“A little bit. There’s nothing illegal about opening a new bank account. Some of it’s in a safe deposit box,” Easton said casually.
“Is the account in Carter Energy’s name?” His father grabbed the back of a chair. “If it is, it’s as good as SPE’s.”
“I put it in the drilling company we set up back in the day to shuffle money around. Totally separate from Carter. Look, it’s only two hundred forty grand. You’re on the account. I’ll get you the number and you and Mama can take it.” Easton’s forearm flexed and released in a rapid clip. He glanced toward Drew, who looked uncomfortable.
“We’re not touching it,” Harris responded right away.
“We know you need it,” Easton insisted.
“We just made two hundred million from selling the company,” Harris said. “And you’re the one who’s in trouble.” He stared back at his son.
“You sold Carter Energy for two hundred million?” I asked like he was insane. He’d said SPE got a good deal, but that was a fire sale price.
“No. That’s our part. You each receive two hundred million. We’re still shoring up the transfer of assets,” he said.
It was my turn to grip the back of the sofa. That was a ton of money that truthfully Easton and I didn’t need. “What do you mean Easton’s in trouble?”
“He sold his house in Houston and moved in with us. Sold his boat, his Jeep. He started bringing his lunch to work, and if we went out to eat, he ordered the cheapest thing on the menu.” Harris laid out his case as if he’d sifted through all the facts a thousand times. “I can’t understand why you took from Carter Energy when you could’ve asked your mother and me. Why did you need that much money?”
“I didn’t,” Easton said, aghast. “I sold the house so I could be closer to Mama, and I realized it wasn’t what I needed anymore. I’d planned on expanding the family and wanted something with some land, a home not just a house.”
We all stared at him.
“I thought you got rid of those things because you needed money,” Harris said. “When the last five million disappeared, I decided to sell the company. I figured what we’d make off the sale could save you. And I’d arranged for you to keep a position with SPE in case that wasn’t enough.”
Easton blinked. “You did it for me?”
Drew stiffened in his seat and his jaw clenched.
“Yes, but it was for all of us.” Harris looked around the room at everyone, deep love in his eyes. He was willing to sell his company, the one he built that meant everything to him, for his family.
“You’re the one in trouble. Why is your personal bank account depleted?”
We all gaped at Easton’s direct question.
Harris shrank back as if he’d been slapped. “It’s not, but even if it was, how do you know that?”
“You keep running through the money I deposit,” he continued, ignoring the question.
Loretta put a hand to her throat. “Easton, you didn’t.”
“Would someone please explain what the hell is going on?” Harris loosened the collar of his shirt as if it were choking him.
“Your account was low. Easton and I talked about it, and he deposited what we thought was plenty of money,” Drew said.
“No one has answered how either of you know the balance of our account.”
“I saw a statement,” Drew said easily, which I supposed technically wasn’t a lie.
“How much did you deposit?” his father asked Easton.
“Doesn’t matter.” That forearm flexed, flexed, flexed. “Why are you running through money like it’s going out of style?”
“We aren’t,” Harris shouted.
