Family Man

the corner of her eye Katy saw Eden start to cry. She concentrated on Nate. “You're wrong.”
    “The hell I am. I know his history, and I know Gilchrists. Luke Gilchrist is either going to destroy the company outright to punish Justine and everyone else in the family or to take it over completely and cut them all off. My personal guess is that he'll crush the business and leave the family with the remains. I have to admit it won't break my heart. But I intend to get a little more money out of it before it goes under.”
    “Not another dime, Nate,” Katy said softly. “Luke will stop you. He won't allow you to blackmail a member of the family.” Katy glanced at Eden. “Let's go.”
    “Go on, get out of here,” Nate muttered. He waited until Eden had walked into the outer office. “Katy?”
    Surprised by something in his voice, Katy turned back. “What is it?”
    “You're wasting your time trying to save them all. Let them go to hell. They deserve it.”
    “I can't do that. I owe Justine. You know that.”
    “You don't owe her a damn thing. Dump the Gilchrists and get on with your life.”
    “Since when did you start caring about what I did with my life?” Katy asked. She walked out the door before Nate could answer.
    Eden said nothing until they were both in the elevator.
    “It didn't work,” Eden said, gazing straight ahead at the closed doors.
    “No.”
    “I knew it wouldn't. What are we going to do now?”
    “We have no choice,” Katy said grimly. “Nate called my bluff. That means I have to make good on the threat.”
    Eden looked even more horrified than she had earlier. “Go to Luke? Ask him for help? You can't do that.”
    “I don't have any choice. Stop worrying, Eden. Luke isn't going to be thrilled when he finds out what's going on, but he'll take care of the problem for you.”
    “No, he won't,” Eden said in a voice dazed with shock. “He'll use it to get his revenge. My God, I've ruined everything. Mother and Dad will suffer for my mistakes. And poor Darren. There's no telling what Justine will do to him. She'll probably fire him.”
    Katy had had enough drama for the day. “You've got to have a little faith in family ties, Eden.”
    “Family ties? Are you nuts? We're talking about the Gilchrist family.”
    “You've got a point.”
    Her next move would have to be made with great care, Katy reflected. She needed time to think.
    She needed a good swim.

CHAPTER

THIRTEEN
    A t ten o'clock that evening Katy resorted to the one form of stress release that she had come to depend upon during the past few years. She decided to take a swim in the mansion pool. She had not gotten back from Seattle until quite late. Instead of going directly home she had gone to the Dragon Bay Library to sit and think for a while.
    It was Friday night. Her brother would not be home until twelve. She had the entire evening to herself, and thus far she had spent it pondering the right approach to take with Luke.
    He was going to explode when she told him about Eden's situation. Being a Gilchrist, the explosion would not be a wimpy little sputter and shower of sparks. Luke would undoubtedly reach critical mass the instant she tried to explain.
    She noticed there were no lights on in his cottage as she walked past on her way up to the mansion. Just as well. She wasn't ready to face him quite yet.
    Katy did not bother to turn on the lights in the old conservatory as she let herself in with her key. The eerie blue glow of the underwater illumination was all she needed. She made her way through the jungle of palms and ferns. When she reached the pool she dropped her towel and robe on a lounge chair and slipped into the water.
    She launched herself toward the far end of the pool with a sense of relief. As always, there was a blessed feeling of freedom to be found in the water. She stroked strongly and cleanly through the rippling blue world and forced herself to think about what she would say to Luke.
    It was true he had come through in Darren's case, but that was a much simpler sort of disaster. Darren had been the victim of a con. Blackmail and deliberate embezzlement, on the other hand, constituted a slightly more difficult problem. Katy understood that. But it was, nevertheless, a family problem.
    She had to make Luke understand that the matter had to be dealt with tactfully. Eden had certainly never intended to hurt Gilchrist, Inc. or the family. She had been trying to protect people. There had to be a