Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 82767 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 414(@200wpm)___ 331(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 82767 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 414(@200wpm)___ 331(@250wpm)___ 276(@300wpm)
“Da, I’m not an idiot,” I replied. “The cops know where I am, and I’m within state lines. So, calm down.”
“Where are you?” he demanded.
“Where are you?” I copied him. There was no need for him to know where I was. He wasn’t usually interested.
“Sean said…” he began, and then paused.
“Yeah, can we maybe drop all the ‘Sean saids’?” I asked, aware how peevish I sounded.
“He is worried about you.”
“He is worried about himself,” I replied firmly, and he wisely chose to change tack.
“What have they said?” he urged. “They are telling us very little, you know.”
“Bullshit, Dad,” I sighed. “There is no way they are telling the CEO very little. If you want my version of events then I will give it to you, but don’t lie to me.”
He backtracked. “They aren’t telling us what you have said to them.”
“So, what you are asking me is whether I have done any of the shit they are accusing me of.”
“No…”
“Yes, and aside from that, who exactly is accusing me? Who discovered the so-called financial anomalies they are going on about?” I stopped and leaned on the wooden fence, taking an apple out of my pocket for the old shire horse rolling in the dry grass. He got up heavily and came to me.
“Why does it matter? It’s done now. I want to hear your side of the story.” Dad sounded exasperated.
“If I suspected any of you of skimming money from the business, I would have confronted you. Sean says Freya set me up, is that true?”
“Sean might have thought that, at one point, but he was wrong. When he called the authorities, it was too late. He didn’t know he was getting you into trouble,” he said, although I wondered if even he believed what he was saying.
“Like hell he did.” I laughed aloud and frightened the horses.
“Look, we know you took the Cre8ure idea from Dynasty Games. We can get past that. But the money is another thing…”
“You know?” I asked, confused. “What exactly do you know?”
“We know that the game concept is too close to theirs to be coincidence. Sean…” He paused here. “Sean worked it out. But look, I know we put you under pressure, I know you were thrown in at the deep end. The lawyers reckon we can get away with it. It might cost us, but we are good for it. I don’t care about that! But we need to know the truth about the irregularities in the accounts. I can’t protect you from the consequences of those.”
“Sure, Dad,” I said. “Here’s my version of events. I worked really fucking hard for you. I didn’t steal ideas. I didn’t steal games. I didn’t steal money. Now, is that simple enough for you? Or do you need to put ‘Sean says’ at the beginning of it to gain any credibility?”
“Keegan, you know there is more to it than that. I might not be as active in the company as I once was, but I’m not totally oblivious. I know that you have transferred the shares you got when you turned twenty-five to Mick. What are you playing at?” There was a warning in his voice.
“No, Dad,” I said, my tone matching his. “I want to ask the questions now. Tell me this, do you believe me when I tell you I have done nothing wrong?”
“Keegan, that’s not fair. I have seen the evidence in black and white. The figures speak for themselves. We need you to come back and explain it so we can work this out. Whatever has gone on, we need to work together to find a way out of this mess,” he said.
“It’s a simple question. Do you believe me?” I repeated, tears beginning to prick my eyes as the answer became very apparent without him even having to speak.
“Of course we believe you,” said another voice. I might have known Ma would have been listening.
“Thanks, Ma,” I said, and hung up before the stinging behind my eyes could reach my voice.
I put the phone in my pocket and kept walking, out over the fields and all the way into town. I sat down wearily outside the café on the painted wooden garden furniture and ordered a coffee. The waitress brought me coffee and a huge slice of cake that she said was the last piece, so there was no charge. The kindness of the small gesture touched me, and I thanked her with what was probably too much enthusiasm. Her hair was almost the color of Freya’s, and I allowed myself the indulgence of remembering how I had untied her hair and watched it cascade over her bare back, and the sudden shock of her taking me in her mouth unexpectedly. I let the images flood my mind as I ate the cake and drank the coffee and excluded everything but the pleasant sensations of the moment.