He marshaled his face into expressionless disinterest when the door opened. Back to being a shadow, unnoticeable.
“Katrina!” The older man swept past Mona and came barreling into the room.
It was hard for Jas not to sneer. Thomas was still handsome, his blond hair now a pure silver. He’d given his daughter a solid bone structure and frame, as well as his sharp cheekbones, but his piercing blue eyes held a cynical coldness Katrina’s brown gaze lacked. His delight to see her felt like a thinly applied mask.
Jas emerged out of the shadows. Thomas faltered at spotting Jas and the dog, but his face grew annoyed when Jas approached him and gestured for him to spread his arms. “Is this really necessary?” Thomas barked.
“It is if you want to see her,” Jas replied, before Katrina could speak. He didn’t really expect the guy to be packing a weapon, but this was his job, even if Katrina had tried to hamstring him.
Plus, he bet it would be galling for Thomas to be searched by the help.
Thomas grumbled, but he let the pat-down commence. Jas pulled a pen knife out of Thomas’s pocket. It was a harmless small blade that wouldn’t do much damage, but Jas kept it out of sheer pettiness. He stepped away.
Thomas opened his mouth, but something in Jas’s expression must have been forbidding enough to shut him up.
Katrina gestured at the seat across from her at Mona’s desk. “Sit, please.”
Thomas shot Jas another wary look.
Now that the man was seated, Jas felt free to melt back into the shadows. All he wanted to do was run Thomas out of the room and take Katrina home, where she could be safe. He clenched his fists. How could she not tell him about this?
“It was so good to hear from you,” Thomas gushed. He glanced around the office and Jas had to fight not to tackle the man over the avariciousness in his gaze. “What a lovely city. And an expensive one. Did your husband leave you a home here?”
“No.” Katrina didn’t elaborate.
Thomas rallied. “Well, good for you, buying a place for yourself. Seems like the little nest egg I put together from your career really paid off.”
Her smile was thin. “The nest egg wasn’t that great once you’d skimmed your take off the top.”
He gave a wounded pout. “I only took my fair share as your manager, Katrina.”
Katrina ran her tongue over her teeth. “Look, why don’t we get this over with? No need to waste time on pleasantries neither of us means.”
The mask slipped. “You summoned me here.”
Katrina crossed her arms over the table. “Because you tried to blackmail me. I simply wanted to make sure you got your money.”
THERE WERE FEW things Katrina had ever found more satisfying than catching her father off guard, she decided. Blunt truth was the best weapon she could possibly ever use against this lying snake of a man.
A quickly cut-off growl caught her attention, and she spared a look at Doodle, but maybe Jas had made that noise? His fists were clenched, his eyes glittering as they regarded Thomas. Those were the only signs of his disquiet. Otherwise, he was still and emotionless.
“Blackmail’s an ugly word.”
“It’s an accurate one.” She paused. She’d spent years rehearsing how this meeting would go, but now the path seemed clear, she knew exactly what she wanted to say.
She tapped her pen on the desk. Her father’s gaze went straight to it, and she didn’t stop the rhythmic noise. She hated sounds like this when she was working, but she was well aware he hated them all the time. “Congratulations. You’ve made a nice little life for yourself in Vancouver. A house, a community, friends you go to the track with. You even have a girlfriend, Lord help her.”
“Are you spying on me?”
“I’ve kept tabs all these years. In case you decided to come crawling back, hunting for more money. That’s why you’re here now, right?”
“I—”
Katrina gestured at the checks spread in front of her. Like Jas, she’d shoved a great deal of her rage and bitterness down over the years, but she welcomed it now. “Do you remember this game? You used to play it with me, only it was food back then. You’d take a plate away if I refused to do whatever you wanted. Auditions, voice lessons, piano, photo shoots. If I behaved, then I got rewarded with the basic fucking thing you were legally obligated to give me.”
If I can go to ten places, then I can date someone.
She blinked. Whoa, now was not the time to have a therapeutic breakthrough, but Jesus. She was still motivating herself in that absurd, if-I-do-x, then-I-get-y mind-set, wasn’t she?
She made a mental note to talk the implications of all that through with Andy later. For now . . .
She touched the check on the far left. “Ten million dollars. That’s what that ransom was for, right?” She touched the paper on the far right. “Over here, one million dollars.” She sat back. “I will pay you if you admit you tried to blackmail me yesterday.” She tapped her phone, and the recording icon lit up. She made sure he could see it.
Sweat had broken out on Thomas’s brow. “There’s nothing to admit!”
Doodle’s deep bark caught everyone’s attention. The pup came to her feet and took a menacing step, teeth bared, a growl rumbling in her throat. For the first time, Katrina could see why some people may be startled by her dog’s size. “D—”
“Death, heel.” Jas’s sharp command cut through the dog’s growl.
Death. Katrina hid her smile, but Doodle did heel despite the strange name. She supposed Doodle wasn’t very intimidating.
“Don’t raise your voice to Katrina again,” Jas said coolly. “Death doesn’t like it, and neither do I.”
Katrina cleared her throat, delighted despite the tense atmosphere. “Where were we? Ah yes. Confess to the blackmail, and you can take the money and go. You never contact me again. You don’t tell anyone anything about me. My name never so much as passes your lips. If it does . . . well, I make sure that everyone in the world knows what a piece of shit you are.” Katrina’s eyes widened. “Imagine that. People discovering that CuteCafeGirl is a former cover model who disappeared would be titillating, but finding out her sordid history, how awful her father was? How he manipulated and controlled her for years? How he blackmailed her?” She tsked. “Have you ever gone viral? It’s not everything it’s cracked up to be. You can avoid that, though. Admit that you’re blackmailing me.”
“I will not.”
“Cool. I take a million away for every second you waste my time.”
“This is preposterous,” Thomas spluttered.
She picked up the ten-million-dollar check and ripped it in half. “Nine million left. Don’t worry, the millions you lose will be donated to charity,” she added, almost as an afterthought. “I’m not a monster.”
“I’m not incriminating myself on tape.”
Another check ripped. “Eight million.”
Thomas scrubbed his face. “How can I trust you won’t go to the police with that recording?”
“You can’t.” Another rip. “Seven million.”
Another check bit the dust. “Six million.” This was so satisfying. “Five million.”