Page 40 of Ferocious (IOU #6)

CHAPTER 40

Rowan

C harlie’s eyes bug out. “I’m sorry, what?” he sputters.

“It’s a lot of money. You can take control of the family trust from Remi,” Nana tells me. “Just get married.”

Is this the kind of bullshit I’m now a part of? I thought that kind of crap only happened on TV shows.

“No,” I say. “We’re not doing that.”

“I … I can’t,” Charlie says to Nana. He reaches out to me, and I take his hand. He squeezes. “I don’t want to hurt your feelings, and I appreciate the proposal?—”

“From my great-aunt, who I just met,” I say, laughing. “The idea is absurd. There’s no way I’m taking away my father’s money.”

“You don’t even know how much it is,” Barbara says.

Charlie curls his arms over his head. “But his father’s still alive.”

“Precisely,” I say.

Nana inhales sharply. “I’m pretty sure he will be in hospice soon, and he knows it. He’s been getting his affairs in order.”

“This is nuts,” I say, dizzy and nauseated. “I can wait.”

Nana clucks her tongue. “Just think about it. It’s twenty billion dollars.”

My stomach drops, even though I’d guessed something like that. “That’s a fuckton.” I glance at Nana. “Sorry.”

“That’s quite all right,” she says, waving a hand. “Swear away.”

Charlie drags his nails down his cheeks and slumps back in his seat. “Even if it would only be for a short time, it’s wrong to take the money from his father.”

“Agreed,” I say firmly.

Nana nods. “I wouldn’t pressure you, but I’m concerned about what might happen after Remi is no longer able—or around—to run things. It would calm things down if the estate went to Rowan right away.”

Charlie shakes his head over and over again. I press a fist to my lips.

“What do you mean, ‘calm’?” Charlie asks.

“There are always people who want a chance at the money,” Nana says.

“Yeah, okay. Any time a beneficiary isn’t vested, it can lead to a dispute.” Charlie looks thoughtful. “Litigation.”

“Hell no. I’m not getting involved in any of that lawyer shit,” I say.

Charlie raises an eyebrow. “Lawyer shit? That’s what I do.”

“You know what I mean.” I throw up my hands. “I don’t want to cause problems with my new family.”

“You might not have a choice,” he says.

Barbara looks at Nana. “I think we may want to let them have a little discussion.”

“Oh, but it’s getting interesting,” Nana says before relenting. “Okay, fine. We’ll be out in the garden.”

They stand and leave, taking Gideon with them. I don’t like that guy. He hasn’t said much since we arrived, but I don’t like him. Or maybe I don’t like him because he hasn’t said anything .

“Hey,” Charlie says, taking my face in his big hands. “Are you okay?”

I shake my head, my mouth dry and my eyes darting around. “Not really. How can my life have so many amazingly wonderful things in it now—like you and this insta-family—and still be so fucked up?” I hang my head. “While, yeah, access to the money would be wild, what does waiting a year matter? Plus, I can’t do that to my father, end of discussion.”

“Agreed.”

“I’d be a great husband, though,” I tease. I have no intention of swooping in and taking away Remi’s money. But I can’t help but poke Daddy.

“What? No. You’d drive me bananas.”

I widen my eyes. “Bananas? Me? How so?”

“Oh, I don’t know, menace. Maybe because you keep calling me Daddy.”

“Admit that you love it when I call you daddy.” I wrap my arms loosely around his neck.

Charlie gets in my face. “ Never .”

My forehead touches his. “Admit that you love that I ignore you and still do it.”

He pauses. And with that pause, he loses. I grin like I’ve won, because I have.

“Admit that you’ll never admit it.”

“Yeah. Okay. But don’t fucking call me daddy.”

“Deal.” I kiss him. “Daddy.”

“Such a fucking brat,” he mutters against my lips.

“Yeah, I guess. And your point is?”

“Is it okay with you if I take a look at what we’re dealing with? Do you have a copy of the trust instrument?” Charlie asks.

“No, but I’ll ask my father for it.” I pull out my phone and text him. He replies immediately, which warms my heart. “He says he’ll email it to me. ”

“Okay, forward it to me. Let me see if what Nana said is accurate.”

“Good idea. Maybe you can sort out what’s going on.” I want to change the subject. “Should we go find our way to the garden?”

“Yeah.”

We get up, and I notice a bookcase that’s tilted slightly away from the wall. “I think that’s one of the secret passageways the article mentioned,” I say, gesturing.

“Should we snoop at your great-aunt’s house?” Charlie asks.

“A quick look won’t be a big deal.” I pull on the side of the bookcase, and as I suspected, it’s a door. Behind it lies a bedroom with flocked gold damask wallpaper. From the ceiling, a black chandelier with clear crystals hangs over a bed sporting a platinum metallic bedspread and tiger-print pillows. A burgundy rug covers the floor.

“This place is wild,” Charlie says, peering over my shoulder.

“Totally.”

We close the room up again and head toward what I think is the garden. On the way, we pass a number of devices created by Houdini. “At least he knew how to get out of a tight spot,” I grumble, amazed at a metallic contraption that looks like the Tin Man from The Wizard of Oz . Framed posters advertising Houdini are next to shackles he used in his escape acts.

I open a door that leads out to a pool. A large jacaranda tree stands nearby, its trunk and larger branches adorned with twinkle lights as well as several huge metal lanterns.

“Cool pool,” Charlie says.

“Notice its shape? The article mentioned it, too.”

He squints. “Is it a …”

“Coffin? Yes.”

“Wow.”

“Nana’s ex-husband died from drowning. If it happened here in a coffin-shaped pool, that’d be particularly macabre.”

“If it was her ex -husband, he probably wasn’t here,” Charlie says.”

“True.” I glance around. “I can’t decide if I love this place or if it’s just too weird.”

“Sounds like everything that’s happened in connection with your family hits you that way.”

“Yep. I just don’t know what to think.” I take his hand. “Let’s go find Nana.”