The Other Side of Greed by Lily Zante

Chapter Thirty-Two

BRANDON

“Where are we with this, Brandon?”

I wish I hadn’t taken this call. Neville's been calling me a lot lately, busting my balls about Greenways. He doesn’t have to spell it out. I know what he’s referring to. “I’m still taking care of things.”

“You've got a lot going on, with Emma in the hospital. You don't need to do this. Your time would be better served here. The company needs you, Brandon.”

“I'm doing my best.”

“You don't need to continue with this farce,” he insists. “We're still working on the eminent domain. We can still seize the land through other means.”

I grit my teeth. “I told you to hold off.”

“You were all pumped up at the start. What's the holdup?”

“There is no holdup.”

“Doesn’t seem to me that you’ve made any progress,” Neville growls back.

Things have become complicated. It’s no longer just a black and white matter. Not now when feelings are involved. Try as I do, I can’t let them go. Kyra has a hold on me that is hard to shake. “Give me time. Didn't you say that if you have to use eminent domain to take the land then you'd have to explain what the new project is?”

“Well, yes.”

“Wouldn't that expose me? Wouldn't I have to take part in the public hearings? Why the fuck would I want that? I want to avoid there being a big public hearing so that Kyra doesn't figure out who I am.”

A grunt of displeasure comes across the line. “Okay, we'll do it your way, but Stagg can only wait on us a little while longer.”

“Like I told you, we might not need Stagg or any government intervention. No eminent domain bullshit. That's purely a backup. I've got this, Neville. I'm working on her.” He doesn’t need to hear the truth, I just want him off the phone, and off my back.

“Did you find anything on her?” he asks.

“What?”

“Dirt? Did you find any?”

I coach myself not to curse. “No.”

“I know her accountant. I can fix her books. Embezzlement from a nonprofit is a major felony offense.”

“You stay the hell away from her.”

I hang up.