Dad’s expression still hadn’t budged. “This all sounds very precarious, Wylder.”
“It doesn’t have to be. Once they’ve stormed the building, we’ll make sure they’re trapped inside, and we’ll have left nothing to incriminate the Nobles. We could even set up recording equipment that’s supposedly surveillance cameras and turn them on then so there’ll be video evidence of the Steel Knights with the truck. Then we send the cops in after them, they’ll find the drugs and Bryant and the rest, and they all get arrested. We can leverage the dirty cops we have on the payroll to make sure the case isn’t dropped or settled out of court. They go to jail, we have no more problems, and we keep our hands clean of the whole mess.”
Dad started to laugh. The sound was so mocking, my stomach clenched. He always made me feel like I was still a thumb-sucking child, incapable of making decisions for myself.
“Are you done yet?” he asked.
I’d thought what I’d already said should be enough. I frowned at him. “Well—”
His tone turned outright icy. “The attack on our territory has already put a dent in our reputation. The last thing I need on top of that is to look so weak we’d turn to the police for help. It’s nothing short of pathetic.”
The back of my neck burned. “It wouldn’t be weak—it’d be playing things smart. Why should we put our men at risk when we can—"
“That’s enough,” Dad interrupted. “I listened, and I’ve told you what I think of your ‘plan.’” His voice dripped with derision. “Think of a better one next time, or don’t bother wasting my time.”
He swiveled his chair away from me, a clear dismissal. Anger and shame seared through my chest, but what else could I say to him? Maybe it’d been a losing battle trying to get him to consider any idea I came up with. He still only saw me as his second choice.
As I got up, Dad’s phone rang. When he looked down at the caller ID, he frowned before lifting the phone to his ear. “Jasper, how nice to hear from you. I assume your evening went well?”
I stopped in my tracks, my pulse stuttering despite my best efforts at keeping my emotions under wraps.
After a pause, Dad went on. “I hope the girl met your expectations?”
I waited with bated breath, watching what I could see of my father’s face carefully. All my nerves were clanging for a fight.
If the bastard had so much as laid a finger on Mercy I was going to fucking kill him. Even if that meant moving against my father and raising hell, I wasn’t sure I could stop myself. Because Mercy was worth it… and that was the whole damn problem.
Jasper talked for a little longer, and Dad’s lips pressed together. Definitely not a good sign. My body tensed.
“I see,” Dad said. “I look forward to enjoying the results of our arrangement. Good night, my new friend.”
He cut the call and turned to me. “Well, that was an interesting chat.”
“And?” I said, swallowing the question I really wanted to ask. “Is the deal on?”
“It appears so. He liked Mercy very much. He seemed quite impressed with her.”
I found his tone even harder to decipher than usual. Was he just keeping his delight at the news that the deal had gone as planned subdued, or had something else gone wrong that he wasn’t mentioning?
“That’s a good thing, right?” I said.
“Yes,” he said, without a hint of enthusiasm. He paused and eyed me so shrewdly the hairs rose on the back of my neck. I did my best to mirror his impassive expression. After a moment, he looked away. “We have a powerful ally on our side. No need to rely on agents of the law. Is there a reason you’re still here?”
“I just wondered whether the alliance had gone through. Good night.” You prick, I added mentally as I pushed past the door.
He’d barely considered my plan. He’d started shooting it down from the very beginning of my explanation. When I was out of hearing range of the study, I slammed my fist against my palm in annoyance.
How the hell was I supposed to step up and prove myself the way he supposedly wanted when he decided every thought I had was worthless before he gave me a chance?
“Wylder?”
I looked up to see Gideon walking down the hall toward me. He looked almost as wound-up as I felt. What was he so on edge about?
“What’s up?” I asked.
He tipped his head toward Dad’s study. “I saw you coming out. You looked pretty pissed. What’s going on?”
My jaw worked. If Gideon thought the plan was stupid too, then at least I’d know it wasn’t just my dad dismissing me out of hand. “Let’s go to my office, and I’ll tell you.”