I wasn’t shocked when I stepped foot in my dad’s office and saw he was already waiting for me. He as working out his law firm today. I shut the door behind me and walked to the desk to take a seat.
“Padre.” I acknowledged him. “You summoned me here. I can’t only guess why.” It had only been two days since breaking the news of my engagement and I knew I couldn’t avoid my dad forever.
He stared at me with eyes that matched mine, but they were hard. His face still, lacking any emotions.
“We need to talk.” On cue, his office door opened and Emmet stepped inside. He approached the vacant seat next to me and took a seat. Dad looked toward him. “Did you bring the files?”
“Yeah.” He pulled his book bag in front of him and handed it over. Dad grabbed it and opened the folders. He searched the files silently, with me watching him curiously. I turned to Emmet but he gave nothing away. My brother had inherited our dad’s poker face.
Dad soon placed the folder on the desk and pushed it toward me. “Here. Emmet, what else did you find?” he asked.
“Well, outside of what’s in the folders, there’s speculation about her parents’ death.” My brow rose. I reached for the folder so I could look inside. It was obvious this was about Cashlynn. “While it was deemed as a robbery gone wrong, at one point they thought it was murder and Cashlynn was the main suspect.”
I scanned the documents. There was information about her parents and Cashlynn, including her bank statements and phone records before she got her burner. There were health records, showing a few broken bones she had as a kid, and other visits, one being a gunshot wound at sixteen.
What the fuck did she have going on then?
“Why was she looked at?” I lifted my attention to my brother.
He went into his book bag again and pulled out another folder. “There was no forced entry, no struggle or evidence that anyone else was inside the house. The only reason they ruled it a robbery was because some things were missing in the house, the window downstairs was open, and it wasn’t when everyone went to sleep. After further investigation, they ruled her out and deemed it a break in homicide. There’s been no arrest so far though.”
“Something about that situation doesn’t sound right to me.” Dad’s eyes landed on me with intensity as he rubbed his chin. “How did the two of you meet?”
“She broke in my house. I demanded she marry me.” I shrugged.
Emmet released a small chuckle while my dad looked like he was about to blow a gasket. “Do you understand the risk our family could be in if she’s on some shady shit? Her parents were snakes! They couldn’t be trusted, why do you think I never worked with them. A lot of people wanted their heads.”
“What does that have to do with Cashlynn?”
“Are you an idiot?” he asked in Spanish. “For all you know the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree!” I shook my head. While my dad made some valid points, I didn’t get traitorous vibes from Cashlynn. Dangerous maybe, but she didn’t seem untrustworthy if she didn’t see you as a threat. “Did you find out why there was a bounty on her head in the first place?”
“She stabbed Neil’s son and he wanted revenge.”
“Even more of a reason you need to reconsider marrying her. She could be the downfall of everything! From what I saw last night, she’s irrational and disrespectful. Is that someone you want to bring into the family?”
My dad rarely lost his cool. It was one reason things ran so smoothly so he must have really disdained the Cavanas for him to act like this.
My jaw clenched. Not only did I not like my judgment being questioned, but my dad having some of the same thoughts as me didn’t sit well with me, but I refused to give him the satisfaction. Since he was still technically in charge of The Bloodline and my dad it was his right to voice his concerns. Straightening my spine, I set the folders on the desk and stared him in the eye.
“I can handle Cashlynn. There’s no need to worry.”
“And how do you know that?”
“Because I know what I’m doing. When you demanded I get married, you never said my wife had to meet a certain criterion. I found someone that I saw would match me and just because you don’t approve doesn’t mean I’m going to get rid of her.”
Dad’s eyes hardened and narrowed. “You better know what you’re doing, Nazai. I’m not passing my legacy down to you just for you to fuck it all up because you chose a piss poor bride.”
“I never wanted a bride in the first place.” My voice elevated. “So now you have to deal with the one I chose. She will become a Tavarez and you will respect it and her,” I made clear.
There was no one on this Earth I respected more than my father, but at the same time he needed to learn to trust my judgment and allow me to lead how I saw fit.
“Careful, hijo. I’m still the head of this family and your father. Until I officially hand things over. So I advise you to fix your tone.” His voice was laced with warning.
It took a few seconds for the tension in the room to settle. I had to take a couple of breaths and remind myself that soon everything would be mine and I wouldn’t have to answer to anyone else.
“Now tell me it’s time to talk business. There are some things I want you to be aware of once you become in charge.”
Emmet ended up leaving during the sit down. His part of being called here was taken care of anyway. I was still on edge about my dad’s accusations. They were nagging me in the back of my mind.
