Unspoken 3 Read Online Free Page B

hands behind his head, staring up at the ceiling. His partially bald head shone under the bright fluorescent lighting. I felt a little panicked. If Reese was this worried, maybe I should be too.
    “So you think this is Dylan, for sure?” I already knew the answer to my question, and my instincts told me the same thing. I just hadn’t had the nerve or been ready to have the discussion with Cain. “Reese, you don’t think he’d…”
    “No. I think he’s already hit you with his best shot, but you had better be careful. Don’t take any chances and stick with crowds until this is over with. You got me?”
    I didn’t argue, just nodded and answered my desk phone. “Thanks, Cynthia.” I hung up the phone and started gathering my things. “Okay, Reese, Dad wants to see us. He says to bring the employee profile results, too.” I grabbed my tablet. “I can just pull them up here.”
    We moved into the office next door and for the next hour we reviewed all of our findings and everything we currently knew about Vawter, the data breaches, Cain, and Dylan.
    The desk phone buzzed, letting us know that Cain had arrived. We headed to one of the smaller meeting rooms, where Cain was waiting for us. I noticed immediately how amazing he looked, his tailored white shirt fitting snuggly against his perfect body. I wondered what else he was wearing. I forced the ridiculous grin from my lips.
    I shared a measured smile and sat at the table with the rest of the gathering. It was only my father, Reese and Thomas McAleer, a senior attorney. Thomas was a nice guy, as far as I knew. Intelligent and studious, he was quiet—you wouldn’t know what he was thinking until he hit you with a question. I had seen him in action.
    We all gathered around the conference room table and Cain took the lead in the meeting.
    “Thank you for meeting me at such short notice. I know your firm has been investigating everything and really looking into the initial issues of the data breaches. As you are probably all aware, things have taken a turn.” Cain took a moment and paused, looking into each person’s eyes and holding their gaze. It was apparent he was in business mode; as his eyes met mine I sensed the levity of the situation.
    The group nodded their heads in agreement and Cain continued. “After speaking with each of you individually, and collectively, I decided that I—and Vawter—need a brief separation from Dylan. I’ve asked him to take a leave of absence until we have things sorted out and we’ve all had a chance to review everything going on.”
    “Was this strictly business, Mr. Parker, or was there a personal element to this as well?” Thomas already knew the answer and I was curious where he was going with all of this.
    “Yes. There was a personal element to this as well.” Cain avoided making eye contact with me, but I knew a part of his decision was due to Dylan’s hitting on me. “Dylan and I have been friends for a very long time—like brothers, so this was very personal—but I didn’t let that, and haven’t let that, cloud my judgment on how I run this business. It’s why I’m here.”
    Cain continued to describe the details of the break-in, the phone he found in his desk, the claim of extortion, everything.  His delivery was perfect. Honest. The team seemed satisfied with the information he presented.
    “Cain, it’s important that we have all of the facts, and I—we—know this is a tough situation, especially because it involves someone so close to you.” My father reflected on the statement. “Is there anything else we should know?”
    “Dylan.” Cain’s voice broke slightly as he glanced upward to the left, a sign he was digging deep into difficult memories. “We were close. He was close to my family, my dad. We got distant after he passed. I don’t know if it was because my father excluded him from his will, or something else. He would never talk to me about it.” Cain tried to remain strong and