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I hit call on Daniel’s contact as I began navigating out of the parking space then proceeded toward Nora’s.
“Ms. Hanes, thank you for calling me back so quickly,” Daniel answered on the first ring.
I had met the man last fall and he was nice enough, but I was focused. “Daniel, what happened to Bryant James?”
There was a pause and the rustling of a few papers being shuffled around. “He’s no longer a part of Hush Shoes.”
I signaled at a four way stop, letting out a heavy sigh.
“How long has Clyde been out?”
More shuffling echoed along with a few muttered whispers. I could imagine a frantic search going on around Daniel’s desk as the junior associates tried to piece together the leadership of this new company. I had purchased Hush Shoes only six months ago, but Clyde and Bryant were already set in place to run it. As far as I knew, things were going well. We’d just checked in on a conference call two weeks ago. I had no idea how so much had gone this wrong so fast.
“He’s been out for five days.”
Double shit.
I didn’t understand why they were suddenly flaking out when Hush Shoes wastheircompany. I merely backed them as an investor. Maybe Clyde was just having cold feet, but our projections were up, the new shoe was set to launch within a few months and from the early responses we had in a few focus groups, the product was a hit. We already had three different celebrities on board with trying the product, and at least five thousand fashion influencers. For a low-level startup, we were doing great.
“I’ll call Clyde. For now, you’re acting manager, Daniel. Do you know what needs to be done?”
“Yes, ma’am. I just need approval for a few expenditures that exceed five thousand.”
I nodded, turning into Nora’s driveway. “Send everything to me. I’ll approve whatever you need, just keep things on track.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Shoving the gear into park, I let out another sigh.
“And Daniel, stop calling me ma’am. I’m Haley or Ms. Hanes.”
“You got it, Ms. Hanes.”
Our call disconnected, and I sunk against my headrest.
While the timing was terrible, there was something soothing about work. The ease and finesse of knowing exactly what to say and what to do. I knew when I graduated that I would walk in my father’s footsteps; it came so naturally to me. It was why I began shadowing his associates, tagging along in board meetings and hopping onto all of his business calls. Why I put up with as much as I have over the years. Being as young as I am in an industry full of sharks and monsters, I wanted to prove I could swim with them.
I learned that Blaire was right, I was a tool—and a sharp one, at that. I trained and studied. I hustled and obtained my BBA in record time, kept my head down, and helped Dad when he needed me. Then I discovered something about my father, and that’s when everything changed.
He had been opening shell companies in his children’s names for years, straining lines of credit and setting us as the CEOs without our knowledge, all to pad his ventures and expand the purse strings of his own wallet. I learned how to take control of those companies, and how to cut away the fat, just like Blaire taught me.
I controlled everything after I took the money left in them and created an empire, all under my father’s nose. My father’s associates learned what had happened, and since I had started running things at eighteen, most of them becamemyassociates. Gunther, one of my father’s oldest friends, was my mentor, and he had been helping me smooth out the areas I wasn’t familiar with. And since I was only twenty years old, I leaned on him a lot to guide me through everything.
My age didn’t prevent me from reaching for every single opportunity on the table in business meetings. At home, in my own life, though. I felt insecure, tiny. Unsure of what the future would hold and how I’d look in five years. Did I want a family? A husband…kids? My chest felt cold as the familiar numb feeling swept through me. I had no clue.
No plans.
No aspirations.
I just wanted to matter and make a difference somewhere, and for now that would have to be enough. Maybe I could carve a life out here…maybe I’d be that sharp knife Blaire talked about, but instead of cutting or helping my family, I’d be able to create a space where I could matter.
I had to stop overthinking things and get busy. Exiting the car, I made my way along the shoveled path to Nora’s house, eyeing the one next door.
My brother Colson was home, and while he’d started warming up to me, I was still hesitant to head over unless I had something to offer him. Instead, I trudged inside Nora’s freezing cold house and decided to start baking.
Right as I set my purse down on the counter, my phone rang.
Nora.
