SWNOVELS Now You’re Mine: Chapter 25
“Don’t argue with me, Sebastian.”
I march over to the elevator of the penthouse and push the button. It lights up, and the doors immediately part. I step inside with my bodyguard on my heels, his face creased with concern as I select the first floor.
“Mrs. Bennett–”
When I shoot him a dirty look, he clears his throat. Just because I’ve accepted Hayden calling me that doesn’t mean I’m ready for the rest of the world to do it too.
“Miss Calista, Mr. Bennett gave me strict instructions not to take you anywhere except the hospital to visit your friend. Now that she’s been discharged, you’re supposed to stay home.”
“I understand your reasons for wanting to keep me safe. Not only is it your job, but Hayden is not someone who likes to be disobeyed. With that being said, you’re not going to change my mind. I have to speak to Mr. Davis. Today.”
Sebastian slams his hand on the door’s edge, preventing it from closing. “I take my job seriously, so seriously, in fact, that I’ll pick you up and carry you out of this elevator kicking and screaming if I have to.”
I glare up at him in an effort to conceal my nervousness. “If you do, I’ll tell Hayden that you groped me.”
My stomach churns with acid at the lie. And the look of horror on Sebastian’s face. He pales, and his eyes widen. If I wasn’t trying to intimidate him, I’d be amused that this brawny man the size of a mountain is scared of Hayden.
“You wouldn’t do that,” he says.
“Wouldn’t I?”
“Do you have any idea what that man would do to me if he thought I touched you?” The bodyguard shudders. “You’re cruel to threaten me like this.”
I quirk a brow. “Desperate times…”
He mutters something under his breath—a curse in Russian, if I were to guess—and folds his arms. “I’m doomed either way. If he doesn’t kill me, I’ll consider myself lucky.”
“If he gives you a hard time about taking me out, then I’ll advocate on your behalf.”
He says something else in a foreign language, and when I frown at him, he says, “It’s better to be at the right hand of the devil, than to be in his path of destruction.”
“Am I the devil?”
Sebastian sighs. “That depends on how Mr. Bennett reacts.”
I take pity on the bodyguard and keep to myself, staying close to him as he guides me to and from the vehicle. The campaign headquarters hasn’t changed one bit. I stop and stare at it briefly before Sebastian is ushering me indoors, his head on a constant swivel.
Once inside, I walk toward the offices at the rear of the building. Sure enough, Robert Davis sits at his desk, his eyes glued to the computer screen in front of him. I run my gaze over him, searching for any changes. His hair is still the same mousy brown, lying limply against his forehead, but his clothes are pressed and his tie straight.
For a moment, it’s like I’ve been transported back in time when my father still lived and Mr. Davis was by his side for every event. My throat closes as emotion threatens to choke me. Sebastian briefly places a hand on my shoulder.
“Are you all right?”
“I will be. It’s just that I haven’t been here since my father died. I don’t know why I didn’t think it’d affect me to be here.” I straighten my spine and nod. “Okay, I’m ready.”
I walk up to the office door and grip the handle. Robert’s head snaps in my direction as I open the door and step inside, with Sebastian right behind me. The manager blinks at me in confusion before rising from his chair with a smile.
“Miss Green, what a pleasure to see you again. I hope you’ve been well?”
“I have. Thank you, Robert.”
He gazes at Sebastian and then returns his attention to me. “Is there something I can do for you?”
“Yes.”
“Please have a seat.” After Sebastian and I occupy the set of leather chairs in front of his desk, Robert sits as well. He clasps his hands and rests them on the desktop, leaning forward. “What can I help you with?”
“I want to know about my father’s involvement with AstraRx.”
Robert’s eyes briefly flare before his gaze is shuttered. “I’m sorry, Calista. I have no idea what you’re talking about. Your father was a very busy man, but that’s one company that he wasn’t affiliated with.”
“Please don’t waste my time with lies. I spoke to Melissa Flynn yesterday, and she was very clear about working with my father in the past.”
“Again, I regret to tell you that you’re wrong. I don’t know who this Flynn woman is, but she’s obviously lying.”
I take a deep breath in an attempt to calm my anger. “Given the fact that you’re desperate to hide this from me tells me that whatever my father was involved in wasn’t good. If you’re trying to protect me or his memory, don’t. I need the truth. My life might depend on it.”
Robert squints at me. “Are you in some sort of trouble?”
Sebastian shifts his gaze from the manager to me. With the subtle movement, I sense what he’s trying to say without words. “Okay, that might’ve been a little dramatic,” I say, backtracking. “However, I want to know about my father’s dealings. I need closure. It’s been a year and I still don’t have any answers concerning what happened to me that night.”
“And you think AstraRx has something to do with the incident?” When I nod, he sighs. “Listen, Calista, I wish I could help you, but you’re making connections that simply aren’t there. Maybe it’s best you forget this whole ordeal and put it behind you.”
His words, condescending and judgmental, are like a match. Righteous indignation explodes within me.
I leap to my feet and snatch the letter opener off to my right. As soon as I curl my fingers around the gold-etched handle, I slam it into the desk, the tip disappearing into the wood right in front of him.
Robert jolts, and his eyes widen to the fullest extent. I can see myself in the darkness of his pupils, my chest heaving and my expression furious. Before he can react, I lean forward, still gripping the handle.
“I came here for answers, Robert. If you won’t tell them to me, then you can deal with Sebastian here. He’s more than a bodyguard, he’s Bratva.”
The manager throws up his arms, his palms facing me. “Okay, fine. Let’s all calm down.”
“Don’t you know that telling a woman to ‘calm down’ has the opposite effect?” I narrow my gaze. “Start talking.”
“Okay, fine. Yes, your father had dealings with AstraRx. More specifically, the owner, Thomas Russell.”
With a firm jerk, I rip the letter opener from the wood with Robert watching my every move. After that I sink into my chair with the makeshift weapon resting on my lap. “For what?”
Robert scrubs his jaw with his hand, peering at me and then Sebastian. “Mr. Russell approached your father many years ago, at the beginning of his political career. The senator wasn’t a fool, but he was much more impressionable back then. The owner of AstraRx ended up being a huge contributor to his very first campaign.”
I clutch the handle until my hand shakes. “What did my father promise him in return?”
“At the time, the pharmaceutical company tried and failed to launch a new drug that had the potential to make millions of dollars. It kept getting flagged by the FDA because of detrimental side effects. Your father voted on certain laws that allowed AstraRx to bypass some of the red tape and ease the distribution of the drug into the market.”
“Oh, my God.” I slump in my chair and bow my head. “Are you saying that my father knowingly helped put a dangerous drug into the hands of the public in exchange for funding?”
“I’m so sorry, Calista.”
“Why would he do that?” I whisper. “My father was a good man. He’d never willingly hurt anyone.”
Robert shakes his head slowly, either in disagreement or in pity. “Everyone has skeletons in their closet. It’s only a matter of when they’re exposed.”
I sit motionless as his words sink in. My father, the honorable senator I’ve idolized all my life, helped unscrupulously distribute a dangerous drug just to further his political ambitions. How did I not see this part of him?
“He was a different man back then, Calista,” Robert says gently. “I think once he got entangled with that company, it was hard to extricate himself. But he eventually did. We all make mistakes, especially when we let moments of weakness rule us.”
I shake my head, sorrow mixing with anger inside me. “A mistake is accidentally running a red light, not sacrificing public health for power and greed.”
“What’s done is done,” Robert says. “Your father came to deeply regret those early unethical choices. He spent the later part of his career fighting hard for consumer protection laws.”
“That doesn’t make it right. Who knows how many lives were ruined or lost because of his actions?” I pause. “When did my father finally stop dealing with AstraRx?”
Robert drums his fingers on the desk. When he finally answers me, there’s a veil of guilt covering his face. “I think it was approximately a year ago.”
I close my eyes, suddenly exhausted. My image of the principled, heroic father I loved has been shattered. The letter opener slips from my fingers and clatters to the floor.
“Are you ready to leave, Miss Green?” Sebastian asks, keeping his gaze on Robert.
As if the manager could hurt me anymore than he has already.
I take a shaky breath. “Yes.” I look at Robert. “Thank you for telling me the truth, even though it was hard to hear.”
“I know I haven’t been around much since the funeral, but if you need anything, don’t hesitate to call.” Robert gets to his feet, and I follow suit. He reaches for me and immediately drops his hands at Sebastian’s glare. “Senator Green may not have been the most ethical politician, but he was a wonderful father before his untimely death.”
A thought strikes the heart of me, making my pulse race and my skin sweat. What if this pharmaceutical company was involved with my father’s murder?
I bend down to retrieve the letter opener. Once I’m upright, I lift my chin and pin Robert with a hard look. “I’m going to keep looking into my father’s death until I find who’s responsible. If you had anything to do with it, tell me now.”
Robert raises his hands. “No, Calista. I swear it. The only thing I’m guilty of is not talking your father out of that mess.”
I pocket the letter opener inside my coat, not only as a keepsake but to issue a warning. “I hope you’re telling the truth.”
Sebastian follows me as I hurry out of the office building with the letter opener heavy in my pocket. The morning air hits my face, unsuccessfully cooling the turbulent emotions burning inside me. I stop on the sidewalk, wrapping my arms around myself as I try to steady my breathing to keep from having a panic attack.
My bodyguard approaches me while maintaining a respectful distance. “I know this is a lot to take in,” he says. “But you’re not alone in this. Although I’m certain Mr. Bennett won’t like seeing you upset, he does care for you.”
I nod, not trusting my voice yet. A few rebellious tears slip down my cheeks.
Sebastian offers me a handkerchief from his pocket. I take it with a whispered “Thank you” and then dab my eyes.
“Whatever mistakes your father made, he clearly regretted them and tried to make amends,” Sebastian continues. “You admired him for good reason. That hasn’t changed.”
I shake my head. “I feel like I didn’t really know him. I’m not sure how to reconcile the scheming politician with the man who put band-aids on my scratches as a kid.”
“Sometimes people have more than one side to them. The one they show the world and the one they keep hidden. That doesn’t mean you can’t love part of them.”
“I don’t know how to love in pieces. When I give someone my heart, I share all of it.”
“Mr. Bennett is a very fortunate man then.”
I sigh, folding the handkerchief neatly before offering it to Sebastian. “Maybe you don’t want this back?”
“You keep it, Miss Green. Hopefully, you won’t need it again anytime soon.”