Page 67 of Family Affair

“All of the above.”

Alex took a sip of the whiskey. “And what did he say?”

“Nothin’ – got no mouth. No lips, no teeth, and no tongue. Hell, he’s got no head to speak of, pardon the pun.”

Maureen stifled a gasp by pressing a fist to her own mouth as if reassuring herself that hers was still in place.

Cade speared her with a look. “Horrific, isn’t it? This is what a round of buckshot at close range does to a man.”

A fresh torrent of tears sprang from her eyes, smearing her eyeliner.

Rick pointed a finger at Cade. “Stop this bullshit at once, Cade. Your mother is upset enough.”

“And whose fault is that?” Cade murmured, staring her down until she sobbed and covered her face with her hands.

“What the hell, Cade? The fault is definitely not hers. Leave Mother alone!” Alex grabbed him by the shoulder trying to turn him away from Maureen.

“I didn’t do it!” Maureen startled everyone as she jumped up from her chair, swiping at her eyes. “I swear to God, I have nothing to do with his…” She wordlessly gestured in front of her face, implying Williamson’s missing head.

Ross stopped typing. Alex embraced her and patted her on the shoulder. “Calm down, Mother, calm down. Cade’s just being a jerk.” He threw Cade a fulminating look.

Ross’s clear grey gaze, so much like Maureen’s, sharpened. “Mother? What’s going on?”

“I asked him, all right?” She pointed at Cade. “I went to see him... I wanted it to stop. I asked him to kill Ward!” She screamed that last part, and her high pitched voice bounced off the walls in the ensuing silence.

“Maureen,” Rick whispered, his eyes unnaturally black on his suddenly bloodless face. “Why?”

She spread her arms in a defenseless, sympathy-inspiring gesture. “Rick, I didn’t know what else to do. To go through a scandal again after all these years, to deal with the police, and reporters, and lose what little’s left of the company… I hate Ward for his stupid revenge games. I wanted him dead.”

Alex glanced at Cade and rotated his shoulders to ease the tension.

Dan looked stricken.

“And what did you say?” Ross asked quietly, giving Cade an unwavering look.

Maureen shook her head, too distraught for words.

Cade focused on Ross. “I told her the same thing I had told Alex. I wouldn’t kill Ward. Not for any money, not for the family, not for some dubious honor. Some lines are not to be crossed.”

Now all eyes in the room bounced back and forth between Alex and Maureen.

With a regal wave of his hand, Alex recovered his unflappable air of authority.

“So it appears Mother and I were thinking alike. Not surprising, given how much the two of us care about the Sheffield name.” He swept an accusing glance around in an insinuation that he and Maureen were theonlytwo who cared.

“Hell.” Rick croaked. “Too many goddamned problem solvers in this family, happy to pull the trigger. One murdering kid is more than enough.” He nodded toward the portrait of Frank mounted on the wall, oddly, right above the bar.

Cade avoided looking at the portrait.

“Oh, for god’s sake! Let’s not pretend we were the only two who thought of sending Ward’s unblemished soul straight to hell.” Alex spun around slowly. “Y’all thought about it, admit it. It’s an obvious solution, after all. No person – no problem. I’m just being honest.”

“Some honesty,” Dan mumbled.

“Just because you hide from all your problems in the bottle doesn’t mean the problems will go away. I think proactively, as opposed to some.” He looked pointedly at Ross.

“Alex, listen to yourself!” Dan bristled. “Since when has killing a person become proactive? I am a lawyer, for chrissakes, I uphold the law! So, no, excuse me for not thinking about killing the fucker. Since you thought so much about it, tell us, did you do it? Did you whack him?”

Alex recoiled. “No. I… I mean, I don’t know how. That’s why I asked Cade.”