Wired (Buchanan-Renard #13)(58)

“No, I have to work here.”

“Why?” Charlotte asked.

Allison felt like groaning. Her sister wasn’t going to give up. “Because I gave my word, and I’m going to sign a contract.”

More questions resulted from that bit of honesty, and Liam watched Allison bob and weave like a pro, sometimes giving only half answers. After five more questions were asked and partially answered, he decided Charlotte could work for the CIA. She was tenacious with her inquisition.

A break came when the waiter reappeared. While Oliver and Charlotte talked to him, Liam leaned down and whispered, “I’m getting the idea you don’t want your sister to know you helped your cousin.”

“You promised not to say a word,” Allison whispered back with a warning glance.

“Promise what?” Charlotte asked.

She didn’t just have the persistence of a honey badger; she had the hearing of a bat, too. Allison decided she was tired of being the center of attention and was determined to get the upper hand. Liam ordered another club soda, and she said she’d like one, too. Then she sat back, smiled at her sister, and said, “Liam’s from Australia.” She waved her hand in the air. “Discuss.”

Allison was sure Charlotte would have a hundred questions. She didn’t have a single one. Still determined to find out every detail in Allison’s contract, she persevered.

“Will you please let it go?” Allison pleaded in exasperation.

“Just help me understand why you would want to sign a contract. Have you forgotten your plan to move to California?”

Oliver’s cell phone interrupted. “I’ve got to take this,” he said. “I’ll be right back.”

Allison waited until he’d left the bar, then said, “Oliver looks rested.” She was hoping to turn Charlotte’s attention yet again. “He must like his job.”

It didn’t work. “I can’t understand why you would waste six months working here when you could start your career and be closer to Oliver and me.”

The argument ceased while the waiter placed the drinks on the table, but as soon as he stepped away Allison said, “You make me want to bang my head against a wall, Charlotte. How about I put you on the defensive and question your every decision?”

It was a great plan without a follow-through. She couldn’t think of anything to ask, and while Charlotte dug through her purse looking for only God knew what, Allison whispered to Liam, “Could you put her on the defensive for me?”

He shook his head and tried not to laugh. He was fascinated by the way the sisters argued with each other. Their squabble was intense but never mean or angry, the way only two siblings who loved each other could fight. They were so comfortable with each other, there was no hint of hurt feelings. Despite their bickering, their deep affection and unbreakable bond were apparent. Oliver hurried back to the table, apologized profusely for having to take the call, and sat.

“Liam, you work for a computer company or the government?” Oliver asked, trying to understand his relationship to Allison.

Before Liam could answer, Charlotte blurted, “Maybe Oliver and I should look over the contract.”

Allison let out a frustrated sigh. “Will you please let it go, you maniac?”

Liam did laugh then. So did Oliver. “Liam works for the FBI,” Allison said. “Want to discuss that, Charlotte, or do you want to continue to obsess about the contract?”

Charlotte put her hands up. “Okay, I’ll stop nagging you.”

Allison couldn’t have been happier. She reached for her drink and saw that it was empty. She held the glass up. “Did I . . . ?”

Liam nodded. “You didn’t swallow the ice this time,” he said cheerfully.

Oliver stopped his wife from continuing to grill Liam when he said, “Sweetheart, why don’t you share your news with Allison now before dinner? That way she can think about it, and if she has any questions, there’s still time to discuss it.”

Charlotte nodded. “I guess I should probably fill Liam in, since he’s here and he’s apparently Allison’s boyfriend . . . which I might add, she didn’t tell us about. . . .”

“Oh my God, will you stop?” Allison demanded. She glanced over at Liam, who offered no denial. Instead he sat calmly smiling at her sister without comment, and she wondered what was going through his head. Probably wondering if lunacy ran in her family, she thought.

Ignoring Allison, Charlotte turned to Liam and said, “Our father took out a five-hundred-thousand-dollar life insurance policy, and Allison and I were the beneficiaries. When he and our mother died, our aunt Jane and uncle Russell found out about the money and crawled out of the woodwork like roaches and petitioned the court to become our guardians. The judge agreed but with stipulations.”

“What stipulations?” Allison asked

“Once a year they were required to list the expenses and the money they spent on us.”

“They only sent in one report,” Oliver interjected.

“And it was bogus,” Charlotte added.

“How so?” Allison asked.

“They had a huge expense listed for tuition at Vuillard Academy. It’s the most expensive school in Boston,” Oliver explained.

“We didn’t go to Vuillard Academy,” Charlotte told Liam.