**Chapter 25**
“Betty, could you give us a minute?” I asked.
She had sat right next to me even though an entire couch was free. She looked at me with clear curiosity, but after a short pause she nodded and stood up.
“Alright. I’ll be outside.”
She left the room, closing the door behind her. Steve watched her go, then turned his attention fully to me.
“Sounds serious,” he said.
“It is. uh…”
“Steve. You can call me Steve.”
I nodded. “Alright, Steve. I’m here about what happened before you arrived.”
“Ah, yes. Betty told me how you handled the police and kept the real issue quiet. You have my thanks for that.”
I waved it off. “Are you aware that some of your daughter’s business shares are currently held by paper companies?”
“I am.”
That was all. Just awareness. He hadn’t managed to dig out who was behind them. I smiled slightly.
“What if I told you I already know who it is?”
Steve’s eyes sharpened. He clearly hadn’t expected me to catch that much from such a short answer.
“And who would that be?”
“My aunt’s husband. Tom. I’m sure you know him.”
He nodded slowly. “Tom. He’s always seemed like a decent man. Hard to imagine him doing something like that.”
“There’s no harm in checking, is there?”
“Indeed.” He studied me for a moment. “But who said I planned to take any action about it?”
I almost laughed. The old man had just received the information and was already trying to downplay its value. If I had been naïve, I would have handed him everything first and then asked for something in return. I wasn’t that naïve. I hadn’t come here looking for payment. If it had been anyone else, I would have squeezed every last advantage out of the situation. But this was Betty’s family. Even I had lines I wouldn’t cross.
Still, I didn’t appreciate the attempt to take advantage of me.
“I’ve said what I came to say. We’re done here.”
I stood up. Steve chuckled.
“Young indeed. So impatient.”
If he knew the full picture, he wouldn’t be saying that.
“Sit back down. Now I’m curious.”
I stayed on my feet and looked at him. He smiled, reading the silent message clearly.
“Not so stupid after all. Very well. I’ll consider this a deal.”
Only then did I sit again.
Steve leaned back slightly. “Why blow the whistle on your own uncle?”
“He’s ambitious, and lately he’s set his eyes on me. If I push him myself, things get messy. If you do it, he can’t complain to the family without exposing himself. On the surface, everything stays clean.”
Steve was quiet for a while. He could tell there was more, but the truth was simpler than he expected. Going after Tom from Los Angeles would create distance problems and risk my relationship with Aunt Elise’s side of the family. I didn’t want that.
Steve, on the other hand, wouldn’t need to attack Tom directly. He only had to go after the paper company holding the shares. If Tom tried to fight it, he would have to admit his involvement—something he could not afford with an attempted murder case already in the mix.
“Let’s say I believe you,” Steve said. “What do you gain if I destroy your uncle?”
I couldn’t help laughing.
“He’s not small enough for you to just destroy. Even taking those shares back will cost you effort. If the gain didn’t outweigh the loss, you might have considered writing them off already. He’s not weak here in Pittsburgh.”
Steve looked mildly surprised that his bluff had been called so cleanly. From every angle, I was the one doing him a favor. The Miller name might not match the Haller name nationally, but in this city it still carried weight. He knew that. Trying to downplay the favor was just an attempt to keep any future spoils to himself. I didn’t mind.
“It seems my impression of you was wrong,” he said at last.
I didn’t care whether it was a compliment or not. I had nothing to gain from this exchange. Everything I was doing came from a simple decision to help Betty.
“Well then,” I said, standing for real this time, “I’ll take my leave.”
He nodded and made no move to stop me.
Outside the living room, Betty was walking toward me with a tray holding two glasses of orange juice.
“Hey,” she called. “Where’re you going?”
“Back.”
“Not right now, you’re not, mister.” She handed me one glass, kept the other, set the tray down on a nearby table, then took my free hand. “Come on. We have a lot to talk about.”
I didn’t resist. She led me straight to her room. Inside, almost nothing had changed. Still mostly pink with touches of white—nothing like the wild image her usual clothes suggested.
“You haven’t changed much, huh?” I said.
“Yep.” She dropped onto the bed. “Same old me.”
“I wouldn’t say the same. You’ve definitely grown.”
She laughed. “You perv. Quit checking me out.”
“No can do.”
Her laughter softened. She looked at me with warmer eyes.
“Seriously, Tyler… thanks.”
“For what?”
“You showed up, and all my problems just… went away. Poof.”
I smiled. She wasn’t wrong, but I couldn’t exactly tell her how true that statement was.
“Hmmm…”
“What?” she asked, a little concerned.
“Thanking me with just words feels a little empty, don’t you think?”
She raised an eyebrow. “Oh really?”
“Yep.”
She knew I was messing around. I was only trying to lighten the mood. The serious, grateful version of Betty didn’t suit her. I preferred the one who joked and pushed back.
“Hmmm…” I dragged the sound out longer this time. “If only there was something you could do for these sore eyes. Something… visual, maybe.”
Betty stared at me for a second, then shook her head with an incredulous smile. She stood up, walked to her wardrobe, and pulled something out without letting me see it.
“Turn around,” she said, glancing over her shoulder. “And don’t you dare peek.”
I blinked.
Maybe she wasn’t just playing along after all.