Larissa Judson and Haskell Palmer novel Chapter 616

He looked at Haskell, his voice filled with remorse. “If what you said is true—that you were willing to cripple Thatch to find me—then you wouldn’t be protecting him now. That person lied to us.”

Sire, too, began to sign: [I apologize. But when it comes to my savior, I have to be cautious. Even though you are her son and Rigby’s brother, I couldn’t trust you completely right away.]

“It’s fine,” Haskell said with an easy smile. “The important thing is that we’ve cleared the air. Someone in the Palmer family must have found out about your identity and is trying to drive a wedge between us. As for my mother’s death, my grandfather had it thoroughly investigated at the time. It was a tragic accident, not something Thatch planned.”

“Whether he planned it or not, she died because of him,” Rigby said, his voice hard. “She was looking for me when she crashed. I will never forgive him.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll have my men find him,” Haskell said calmly. “All you and Sire need to do is wait. Don’t act on your own and let yourselves be used.”

Rigby nodded. “I understand.”

“Rigby,” Larissa added, “instead of doubting your brother, you should be focused on your role as Jermaine in ‘Heaven’s Will’. I chose you for a reason. Don’t make me regret it. The whole internet is watching to see who gets cast.”

Rigby’s expression turned serious. “Ms. Judson, I won’t let you down.”

Larissa smiled back. “You have a point. With his new status, a healthy dose of paranoia is probably for the best.” She paused. “So, what’s your next move?”

Haskell’s eyes gleamed. “I’ll play their game. Just as you predicted, Larissa, whether it’s Solomon or Fraser behind this, their goal is to make my brother and Sire believe my grandfather killed my mother. They want them to use me to get close to him and take revenge.”

“So, I’ll let them think their plan is working perfectly. They think they have a foolproof plan to destroy me. But what they don’t realize is that this works both ways. When their plan fails, they’ll have nothing left. They’ll never get another chance.”