The Sound of Secrets (The Monsters Duet #2)

Chapter 9

Win

“I can’t work with her, Win. I’m telling you; I won’t last the month I promised if I have to keep taking orders from that woman.” Alistair slammed his palm down on the desk separating us. He was so agitated that his cheeks were red and his breathing was uneven. The top few buttons of his shirt were undone, and his tie was missing. He looked like he’d gone a few rounds with a heavyweight boxer — and lost. “She’s relentless. She acts like I’m not doing my best to juggle the demands of two businesses.” He thumped my desk a second time and glowered at me. “She suggested I let someone else take over the design firm. I know my company isn’t a conglomerate like Halliday Inc., but it still employs over a thousand people, and it’s something I want my younger sisters to be involved in when they’re older. I can’t just let it fall by the wayside and play the role of the saintly Halliday bastard. I don’t owe you or the family that much.”

I stepped in when one of Alistair’s younger sisters was incredibly ill. His family didn’t have much money, and the girl would’ve died without my contacts and intervention. My half-brother owed me, but I considered us even for the way he stepped up and took care of Winnie and Channing when I was unable to.

“If it’s too much to manage both, you need to let me know. I’ll help you figure out a way to fulfill your obligations to both operations.” I stared at my half-brother steadily.

He’d proven to be remarkable. It was a shame my father didn’t acknowledge him before he died. Alistair was a better heir to the Halliday name than I’d ever been. He thrived in the competitive real estate markets and was measurably more charming and likable than me. While I parroted my father’s actions and blindly went through the motions of being the CEO, Alistair actually embraced the role and took the responsibility seriously. He was already impressive. By the time I walked away from the title, he was going to be a force to be reckoned with — but only if he survived his mentorship.

Alistair grumbled and flopped back in the leather chair dramatically. “No. I don’t need your help. What I need is for you to rein in the woman who acts like she’s the warden and I’m a prisoner on death row. I can’t even take a piss without putting it on our shared schedule. I feel like she’s waiting for me to make a break for it so she can have me executed.”

I chuckled at his analogy. “Bellamy is serious about work. She reluctantly uprooted her life to come back here and teach you. I told you, if you aren’t the right fit for the position at the top of the food chain, someone is going to gobble you up on their way to that peak. I’m going to be disappointed if you’re throwing in the towel so soon.” I leaned back in my seat and laced my aching fingers together to suppress the constant pain that tingled within them. “There’s nothing wrong with asking for help when you’re spread too thin.”

He gave an incredulous look and questioned, “Since when is it okay for any Halliday to admit they might be overwhelmed? I thought anyone with that name had to be perfect, no exceptions. Aren’t we supposed to do it all?”

My eyebrows arched, and my mouth shifted into a sardonic grin. “That’s how it has always been, but there’s no reason to keep things that way. You and I can break the cycle. I don’t want Winnie to think she ever has to face the world alone. I don’t want her to assume she has to have all the answers just because of her last name. And you…” I trailed off and softened my tone. “I want you to succeed. This company is as much yours as it is mine. I think you will do amazing things here once you find your footing. I didn’t bring Bellamy here to go easy on you. I brought her here to show you how hard it’s going to be to manage a company like Halliday Inc.” I relaxed my clenched hands and flexed my fingers. “When Winnie is old enough, you’re going to have to teach her everything you’ve learned. You’re going to have to be tough on her. She needs to learn to fight for her position at the top, the same way you are now.”

Alistair swore again and rubbed a hand through his short, dark hair. He resembled Archie when he was agitated and disheveled. I didn’t let the familiarity soften my stance. He had to get through a month of intensive training at the hands of his competition, or else he wasn’t cut out to take my place.

Whatever he was going to say next was interrupted by a crisp knock on my office door. A tall, elegant woman stepped into the room without waiting for me to give the go-ahead. Bellamy Rose was a stunning and sophisticated corporate executive. She was a blonde, blue-eyed knockout. I had no problem seeing why my mother banished her to parts unknown once she caught sight of her. The blonde woman was around Channing’s age, which put her a decade older than Alistair. I knew she thought he was a spoiled kid and didn’t have the stuff to make a successful CEO. He wasn’t battle tested and hard enough to be cutthroat and cruel when the job required it. Her personality was stern and austere, similar to mine. I knew the two of them would clash, which was the reason she was my top choice for my half-brother’s mentor. If he convinced Bellamy he was the right pick for my replacement, none of the holdouts on the board of directors would have a leg to stand on.

“We have a conference call with Singapore in ten minutes. You haven’t gone over the notes I left for you. Your assistant from the design firm is trying to reach you. Apparently, a hotel chain you’ve been wining and dining wants to move forward with the contract you presented. But you need to have the details ironed out by the end of business today.” She looked at the dainty watch on her wrist and her pale eyebrows furrowed. “I don’t know how long the conference call will run, but it could go past the deadline the hotel gave.” A muscle jumped in Alistair’s cheek. His gaze shifted between me and the pretty blonde. I could tell he was agitated and holding onto his calm by the skin of his clenched teeth. I wanted to jump in and smooth things over, but he had to learn how to delegate and ask for help when he needed it.

My half-brother reached up to re-button his shirt, and he fished a tie out of his suit pocket. After straightening himself up and smoothing his finger-ruffled hair, he calmly told Bellamy, “Send me the notes for the meeting. Highlight any pertinent information.” He shot me an annoyed look and asked, “Can you sit in on the meeting for the first ten minutes while I complete the situation with the hotel?”

I chuckled at how belligerent he sounded but agreed to fill in for him until he was free. I watched him slip out of the office without once looking at the blonde woman. Bellamy glanced at me from the corner of her eye as we walked to the conference room where the video interface was located.

“He’s too young. This place is going to crush everything that makes him special. It’s going to break him down and turn him into every other Halliday who came before him.” Bellamy’s tone was icy, and her aura was as frosty as her outward appearance. “You should cut him loose, not tie him down.”

“No, it won’t. Not with you here. Why do you think I caved to all your ridiculous demands? You’re here to teach him, and you’re here to protect him.”

She scoffed as I opened the door. “Why would I do that? I can already replace you. What makes you think I’m the sort of person who keeps the competition safe for the greater good? ”

“If you wanted my job, you would’ve come for it long ago. What you like is a challenge. You enjoy building something great and watching it grow. Alistair is the perfect project for you. Once he figures out what to do, he’s going to be unstoppable, and even Halliday Inc. will pale compared to what he’s capable of.” I couldn’t keep a hint of pride out of my voice.

“You’re awfully sure of someone you didn’t even acknowledge until six or seven months ago.”

“He’s my brother.” It was the first time I admitted the blood tie aloud. It was the first time I didn’t tack on the obligatory ‘half’ to his identity. I couldn’t pinpoint when my view of the younger man shifted to include him as part of my family, but there was no denying that his position as my younger brother was solidified, not only in the company, but within me.

Bellamy remained silent until the meeting started. I let her lead and was basically nothing more than a seat filler until Alistair entered the room. I left them to their own devices and was headed back to my office when a frowning Rocco intercepted me.

“Paul Harvey is here and demanding to see you.”

Rocco had been busy digging up everything he could on Channing’s past. He was trying to find anyone from the hospital the day her baby was stolen. He was looking for the lawyer my mother hired to facilitate the adoption. He already located her ex, but the guy was a junkie and currently locked up for drug-related offenses. He was also doing a deep dive into the man waiting downstairs, and none of the information that crossed my desk was good .

“Let him up. Might as well let the games begin. We knew he was going to engage once he started the ball rolling at the birthday party. Better he comes at me than going after Channing.”

A few moments later, I was back behind my desk, staring at the smug face of the man who had a hand in Channing’s worst memories. Maybe I instantly distrusted him because I was also to blame for taking major life decisions away from her, and I didn’t want to be painted with the same brush as her old man.

“What can I do for you, Mr. Harvey?”

Channing’s father was dressed like a dockworker. I was certain no one had ever been in this office while wearing stained overalls and dirty boots. He looked like he didn’t have a care in the world, but his gaze was razor-sharp and cunning.

“Sorry, I didn’t come bearing gifts. I wasn’t aware my daughter married one of the richest men in the universe.” His eyebrow lifted condescendingly. “Or should I say, I wasn’t aware that another one of my daughters married into the Halliday family. Hopefully you’ll take better care of my daughter than your brother did.”

“If Channing wanted you to know she was getting married, she would’ve told you.”

The older man cackled. “Channing’s always been hard-headed and independent. She never liked anyone to question what she was doing.” He gave me a pointed look. “I know she recognized that boy at the party. He’s a dead ringer for her ex-husband. She’s gotta be asking the same questions I asked when I stumbled upon him by accident. It’s too much of a coincidence, don’t you think? ”

“She wasn’t hard-headed and independent. She was abandoned and left to care for her ill mother. She had no choice in the matter. I think that you take me for a fool. All it takes is one DNA test to prove that the boy isn’t related to Channing in the slightest. She’s not as sentimental or foolish as you think. She won’t believe whatever truth you’re trying to sell her simply because she wants to know what happened to her child. Not after a lifetime of abandonment and abuse.” I cracked my knuckles and met the man’s amused gaze with an icy one of my own. “If you want to get to her, you have to go through me first.”

The older man leaned back in the chair across from my desk and smirked at me. “Sure, a DNA test is fail-proof. But while you wait for the results, imagine the damage that will be done when the news gets out that Winchester Halliday’s wife had a baby, and then gave it away when she was a teenager because she was strung out and psychotic. Do your peers and business associates even know you’re married? What will Channing’s history do to your stock market value? I can already picture the way the press will drag out the bloody history between the two families for click-bait. And how much will that kid resent being in the spotlight once the news breaks if he is her son? It’s all so messy.”

I chuckled and fought an eye roll. “It’s almost cute how you think any news involving the Halliday name goes to press without my approval. And I don’t give a shit about stock market value. I resigned. Halliday Inc. isn’t the most important thing to me any longer. Your daughter is. And I will do anything to protect her. ”

Channing’s father frowned. “What do you mean, you resigned?” He glanced around my office, a million questions flashing across his face.

“I stepped down from my position as CEO the same day I buried my mother. My replacement is in training. You figured you’d waltz in here with your thinly veiled threats and I would throw a ridiculous stack of money your way to get you gone. I’m sure that tactic has worked in the past, but I squash bugs like you daily. I don’t need money to keep you away from your daughter. I can manage the task with my bare hands.”

The other man looked at my scarred fingers. “Are you sure you can do anything with those mangled mitts?” He scoffed, “You may be all high and mighty, Halliday. But I know Channing, and she’s as soft as they come. Any pressure, any hint of discord, the smallest idea that she harmed her own child, and she’ll break. I was there the night she gave birth. She reminded me so much of her mother. What type of liability would Channing be to you in such a state? I don’t think you know how fragile the Harvey women are. All it takes is a little push and they go over the edge. You haven’t seen just how out of control they can get. And I doubt you know how easy it is to turn a teenager against someone they feel wronged by. I’m not only talking about the boy. Winnie is my granddaughter. She deserves to know she might have a cousin her beloved aunt abandoned.”

“You allowed a predator to abuse your daughter right under your nose. Instead of protecting her, you hurt her further when she couldn’t fight for herself. What kind of father — what kind of man — threatens to harm his child’s wellbeing for his own gain? Anything you have to say about my wife is irrelevant. You have no clue how resilient and perseverant she is. And if you harass Winnie, I’ll have you locked up. I already told you, I’m her guardian. No one is allowed in her life without my approval. I get the impression you’re used to picking fights with much smaller dogs, Mr. Harvey. Fair warning, I’m a wolf. I won’t hesitate to rip your throat out if you come for one of mine.”

Channing’s father chuckled and slapped his thigh. A small cloud of dust lifted from the fabric of his worn pants. I fought the automatic nose crinkle of disgust as we watched each other without blinking.

“You talk a good game, Halliday. Only time will tell how much you take after your mother. I admired the way she handled her business. She never took her eye off the bottom line.”

“My mother did her best to murder both of your children. She’s not who I would look to for inspirational parenting.” I grunted as I sent Rocco a text to come get the intruder out of my office. I didn’t bid him farewell or send him off with insincere platitudes. Dealing with Channing’s father proved to be trickier than I imagined.

The entire room was going to need a deep clean to get rid of the destructive energy and the faint scent of ocean the man carried with him. I didn’t look down on anyone with a blue-collar job who worked long hours and had rough hands and strong backs from providing for their families. However, I had no patience for someone like Paul Harvey, who was dissatisfied with his lot in life, and instead of working to change it, he colluded and manipulated into getting more. I knew he often asked Channing for money, so there was no reason for him to show up at my office looking and smelling like he just left a dock, unless he was trying to make a silent statement.

When Rocco reentered my office, he had a pensive look on his face. “That guy is slippery. Dealing with him isn’t going to be cut and dry.”

I nodded my agreement. “We need to pick up the pace on figuring out exactly what happened the night Channing gave birth. And we need to figure out if the boy is really her son.” I sighed and rubbed my forehead in frustration. “She’s been through so much. I cannot let her father break apart everything she’s rebuilt.”

I promised myself I would protect her, even if it meant being more like my mother than I ever allowed myself to be.