Page 76 of The Wedding Party

I text Aiden a hold until contact message to ensure our entry into the building does nothing to stop the flow of information I’m hoping to achieve in this meeting.

Natalie leads me to a conference room. “I need to talk to my parents for a few minutes. They’ve agreed to share this information, but they didn’t know it would be now. I need to give them a moment to digest it all.”

I nod and remove my coat, hanging it on the back of one of about a dozen chairs lining the long mahogany table. Tugging my phone from my pants pocket, I’m punching in Aiden’s number even as I walk to the window. The horizon is a floating line of peaks and valleys of the Rocky Mountains. Much like the peaks and valleys of grief and recovery.

Aiden answers and I explain my hold request. “Interesting,” he states. “Yes. Get in and get what you want, then we’ll follow and do the same. On another note, Carrie’s parents are at her house. They’re cooperative, but they’ve called in Ms. Littleton.”

“Of course they have.” The door behind me opens. “Gotta run,” I say, hanging up and sliding my phone into my pocket.

When I turn around, I find Natalie standing at the end of the table, framed by Mr. and Mrs. Phoenix. Both Mr. and Mrs. are dressed casually, him in tan slacks and a button-down, her in a floral dress and flats, as if they joined Natalie at the office after hours to avoid the staff. I’m also struck by how much Natalie looks like her mother—petite with the same green eyes and brown hair, and yet somehow Mrs. Phoenix is softer, gentler in her presence.

A man in a suit enters the room and joins the Phoenix family. He’s perhaps forty, with brown hair and glasses. “I’m Larry Ward, Agent Castle. I’m the family’s legal counsel. They asked me to sit in, but I don’t intend to interfere. I don’t believe they have anything to hide, and I’m here for support and guidance should it be needed.”

“Fair enough,” I state. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Ward.”

Natalie motions to the table. “Let’s all sit.”

There is a general consensus of this being a good idea as everyone moves to claim a seat. Mr. Phoenix is at the head of the table with his wife and daughter on his left and right. I sit down mid-table on Mrs. Phoenix’s side, eager to allow myself enough space to study all facial expressions.

“I’ll just say it,” Natalie offers, “and get it out there. I know you have to think the way my parents have helped Carrie get into a rehab facility is illogical.”

“I do,” I agree. “A stronger conviction comes not from insanity but a straight-up conviction.”

“As I’ve told them,” Natalie assures me. “But they did it to protect me.”

Chapter Sixty-Seven

“What does that mean?” I ask, on alert now, my eyes keenly focused on Natalie. “They did it to protect you?”

“It means that Oliver was adopted,” she informs me. “Which they feared would make me look guilty. You know, the jealous sister who wanted to be CEO, all the money, and attention, and so on.”

Now the family’s actions make sense. And it’s certainly an interesting twist that does, in fact, turn attention, at least momentarily, on Natalie. “Were you?” I ask. “Jealous?”

“God, no. Oliver was good at his job. He was patient. People piss me off. He was a buffer. I’m going to miss that—him. So much.”

“So much that you tried to kill Carrie,” I point out.

Mr. Ward clears his throat. “That was an emotionally driven outburst. She was in shock, but she’s aware of her poor choice to do such a thing.”

“Not the smartest move,” Natalie concedes. “But I’m pretty sure your father would approve. Don’t you agree, Agent Castle?”

“Don’t push Agent Castle,” her father chides. “The adoption wasn’t something we made public. We didn’t even tell the kids about it until they were teens.”

Mrs. Phoenix chimes in. “We didn’t want Oliver to feel like he was the lesser child. We only did then because I read a book that hit an emotional nerve. I felt we were being dishonest with the kids. We wanted them to know. The rest of the world didn’t need to know, but Oliver told Carrie.”

“I loved Oliver,” Natalie expresses eagerly. “I don’t care what the world says about me.”

“Our stockholders care,” her father reminds her.

“I know you know how shitty that sounds, Dad.” Natalie lambastes him, looking at me again. “He was my brother. I don’t care what the word ‘adoption’ means. He was my brother. I was never in his room the night he died. I’ll hand over my DNA, any data you want from me, and take a lie detector test.”

I’m not going to decline anything I’ve been offered, but I’m inclined to believe Natalie is telling the truth. I glance at her parents. “You offered to help Carrie in exchange for her silence,” I assume.

Mr. Phoenix bristles. “We didn’t offer to help her lie. We offered to help her get proper medical care. We just reminded her of Oliver’s legacy as a Phoenix.”

“In other words, for her protecting Natalie’s reputation,” I say, and I don’t give them time to reply. The motivation is clear. They can’t afford to have the world believe Natalie killed her brother and is now running the company. “Did you offer to help pay for Ms. Littleton?” I ask.

“You obviously can’t keep Carrie from slandering our daughter,” Mrs. Phoenix states. “Unless you tell me that’s a new FBI superpower, which I doubt. So no, we’re not paying for Ms. Littleton’s services, but we did offer her a bonus to protect our interests in the press.”