Page 10 of Sacked
Lifting his glass, he drained the rest of his drink. “Suit yourself.” Clark lifted his hand garnering the bartender’s attention. “Another double.”
When the bartender looked at me, I asked for a glass of water.
An uncomfortable silence hung heavily in the air. It wasn’t until our new drinks were delivered that I asked, “Why do you think Vee is in trouble? What do you think is in the works?”
Clark sat forward, leaning over the table. “Reid was walking a fucking tightrope, one Vee doesn’t know even exists. On one side was Vee, on the other fucking demons ready to pounce.”
“You’re not making sense.”
“There was a shift,” Clark said, “after last season.”
“Football season?” I clarified.
“Yeah. The Coopers spent $38.4 million on Dennison with a fifth-year option.”
That amount was public record. “Kinda makes my contract renegotiation seem like chump change.”
“There was a lot of inner fighting about making that big of a spend. Vee could tell you. She heard it, but she wasn’t in the throes of the battles.”
“The Marshes?”
Clark nodded and took another drink, smaller this time. “I saw today’s announcement.”
“About Rachel Marsh as CEO?” The breaking news came across my phone earlier. And then, the offensive text string lit up.
“Yeah. Rachel wasn’t the decision Darin or Grant wanted.”
My neck straightened. “The decision wasn’t theirs to make.”
“It was supposed to be.”
“What do you mean?”
His nostrils flared and his voice lowered. “Reid was supposed to sign the new will. Fuck, Eads was supposed to claim he signed the new will. That would have given Darin power. Granted, it was only thirty-nine percent, but it was something. He and Grant had the whole takeover planned. They thought they could push their percentage and convince Vee she wasn’t up to the task. It was part of the reason they were upset that Vee was broadening her knowledge.”
That was a loaded statement. “They didn’t want her to learn about the football operations.”
“No. The less she knew, the more they could manipulate her when the time came.”
It was my turn to narrow my eyes. “They knew Reid was going to die?”
Clark sat straight and scanned the interior of the tavern before his eyes landed back on me. “They didn’t come out and say it, but the thought was there. Let me just say, I wasn’t as surprised to hear the news as I was certain they’d carried out their plan.”
“Were they working with Bre Stanton?”
He wrinkled his brow. “Who?”
“Mr. Hubbard’s assistant. She was arrested yesterday at the celebration of life. The police said she was being charged with Reid’s murder.”
“Fuck,” he said under his breath. “My money says she’s innocent. She’s the poor schmuck they decided to pin it on—the fall guy, so to speak.” He inhaled. “I was fucking afraid it would be Vee.”
“They. You keep saying they. They who?”
“Do you know why Carroll Hubbard didn’t leave any of the team to his daughter?”
“Misogyny would be my guess,” I answered.
“It’s the easiest answer.” He swirled his large ice cube. “My father is thorough. When Vee and I became serious, he instructed his fixer to do a deep dive on the Hubbards. Needless to say, Dad wasn’t impressed with their lack of generational wealth.”
