Angela was the level-headed and sensible one now? The world might be coming to an end.
“I told you what he did to me in high school,” Mary argued. “And he wouldn’t be seen with me in public but he was hanging out with all the cheerleader chicks.”
“That could have been to keep his uncle from finding out. His uncle had a lot more power then, right? And his uncle was a dick when he found out Jarrod was seeing you, right?”
“It wouldn’t explain why he stood me up at the restaurant and vanished without a word of explanation. That wasn’t just him changing his mind and moving on; that was him being deliberately cruel, and totally out of the blue. I never saw it coming, which makes it hard to ever trust him again. And he’s dumped all those other women. I’m just really afraid that he’s one of those guys who only wants a woman until he’s got her. He just wants me now because I’m still resisting. Mostly,” she added defensively at Angela’s amused look and arched eyebrow. “And when I asked him about it, he immediately changed the subject.”
“Him and Craig went to high school together,” Angela mused. “I could ask Craig about it.”
“Like Craig’s going to say anything bad about his best friend,” Mary said, shaking her head.
“Hey, I found something,” Regina interrupted them. She’d pulled her headphones off and swiveled around to face them.
“Found what?” Mary looked at her curiously.
“I found something weird in the pack’s finances,” Regina said, looking at her computer screen.
“Whoa, whoa, hold the phone,” Mary said, hurrying to look over her shoulder. “How did you know how to get into their bank accounts? And why are you doing it? And how did you get good at computers? I thought you were sitting there checking your Facebook, for God’s sake.”
“Facebook’s for old people like you. I’m on Tumblr,” Regina said, rolling her eyes. “And I’ve always been good at computers, but I don’t tell anyone because Daddy says guys don’t like women who are good at computers.”
“Okay. So why are you hacking into the pack’s bank records?”
“There’s something weird going on at the hospital with Petra,” Regina said. “Right? And I’m a member of the Disappointing My Parents Club. You said,” she added to Angela.
“We are charter members of the club.” Angela nodded vigorously. “I got her to eat half a muffin today.”
“So I started investigating. My daddy always says to follow the money, so I started looking into the pack’s bank accounts. What better way to disappoint my parents than by being a computer hacker?”
“Oh, she’s come so far, so fast. I’ve never been prouder,” Angela said, pretending to wipe away a tear.
“Regina, I really don’t think you should be rooting around in the pack’s bank accounts,” Mary said uneasily.
“So you don’t want to know what I found out?”
“I didn’t say that.” Mary plopped down in the chair next to her. “What did you find out?”
“Earvin and Petra both have secret bank accounts and they’re siphoning a lot of money away from the pack. I can see how much has been deposited, but I haven’t been able to access their accounts yet. However, I can see that Earvin’s sending large amounts of money to an account in Eastern Europe a few times a year. I mean, like hundreds of thousands.”
Mary peered intently at the computer screen.
“Should you tell Jarrod?” Angela wondered.
Mary considered that. “Not yet. Let me mention it to Constance. She’s the pack secretary, she might be able to start looking into it.”
Before she could say anything else, Jarrod flung the door open, and Regina quickly turned her computer off.
“Mary, I need to talk to you,” Jarrod called out, his face grim. “It’s Briony. She just went crazy and ripped a nurse’s throat out.”
Chapter Seventeen
Mary paced the floor of the foyer, her food curdling in her stomach. Jarrod was talking to
“I told you what he did to me in high school,” Mary argued. “And he wouldn’t be seen with me in public but he was hanging out with all the cheerleader chicks.”
“That could have been to keep his uncle from finding out. His uncle had a lot more power then, right? And his uncle was a dick when he found out Jarrod was seeing you, right?”
“It wouldn’t explain why he stood me up at the restaurant and vanished without a word of explanation. That wasn’t just him changing his mind and moving on; that was him being deliberately cruel, and totally out of the blue. I never saw it coming, which makes it hard to ever trust him again. And he’s dumped all those other women. I’m just really afraid that he’s one of those guys who only wants a woman until he’s got her. He just wants me now because I’m still resisting. Mostly,” she added defensively at Angela’s amused look and arched eyebrow. “And when I asked him about it, he immediately changed the subject.”
“Him and Craig went to high school together,” Angela mused. “I could ask Craig about it.”
“Like Craig’s going to say anything bad about his best friend,” Mary said, shaking her head.
“Hey, I found something,” Regina interrupted them. She’d pulled her headphones off and swiveled around to face them.
“Found what?” Mary looked at her curiously.
“I found something weird in the pack’s finances,” Regina said, looking at her computer screen.
“Whoa, whoa, hold the phone,” Mary said, hurrying to look over her shoulder. “How did you know how to get into their bank accounts? And why are you doing it? And how did you get good at computers? I thought you were sitting there checking your Facebook, for God’s sake.”
“Facebook’s for old people like you. I’m on Tumblr,” Regina said, rolling her eyes. “And I’ve always been good at computers, but I don’t tell anyone because Daddy says guys don’t like women who are good at computers.”
“Okay. So why are you hacking into the pack’s bank records?”
“There’s something weird going on at the hospital with Petra,” Regina said. “Right? And I’m a member of the Disappointing My Parents Club. You said,” she added to Angela.
“We are charter members of the club.” Angela nodded vigorously. “I got her to eat half a muffin today.”
“So I started investigating. My daddy always says to follow the money, so I started looking into the pack’s bank accounts. What better way to disappoint my parents than by being a computer hacker?”
“Oh, she’s come so far, so fast. I’ve never been prouder,” Angela said, pretending to wipe away a tear.
“Regina, I really don’t think you should be rooting around in the pack’s bank accounts,” Mary said uneasily.
“So you don’t want to know what I found out?”
“I didn’t say that.” Mary plopped down in the chair next to her. “What did you find out?”
“Earvin and Petra both have secret bank accounts and they’re siphoning a lot of money away from the pack. I can see how much has been deposited, but I haven’t been able to access their accounts yet. However, I can see that Earvin’s sending large amounts of money to an account in Eastern Europe a few times a year. I mean, like hundreds of thousands.”
Mary peered intently at the computer screen.
“Should you tell Jarrod?” Angela wondered.
Mary considered that. “Not yet. Let me mention it to Constance. She’s the pack secretary, she might be able to start looking into it.”
Before she could say anything else, Jarrod flung the door open, and Regina quickly turned her computer off.
“Mary, I need to talk to you,” Jarrod called out, his face grim. “It’s Briony. She just went crazy and ripped a nurse’s throat out.”
Chapter Seventeen
Mary paced the floor of the foyer, her food curdling in her stomach. Jarrod was talking to
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