Read Online House of Steel by Raen Smith - Free Book Online Page B

sides with ease.
The snowplows had emerged from their sheds, clad with their salt
and large blades, moving the snow off the freeway and piling it
high in the ditches below. The salt and warm sun worked to melt the
remaining snow that covered the roads.
    “Please tell me that was enough to convince
you that the Civic has to go,” Mark said with his eyes still
focused on the road ahead. Delaney smiled. Her lips felt stiff,
almost cruel in their gesture. She didn’t expect anything different
from Mark. Michael Jones would say the same.
    “Joe’s getting it out of the ditch. It still
could be in good shape,” she said. She couldn’t wrap her mind
around how she could possibly tell Mark what she had witnessed. “By
the way, Joe has some ties with your new employer, Holston
Parker.”
    “Good shape, huh?” He laughed before looking
down at her in the passenger seat. “And Parker Enterprises is
everywhere. Wisconsin. The Midwest. Even the East Coast now. You
realize his net worth is over a billion dollars, right?”
    “Yeah, I realize he shits money, but don’t
you think it’s strange that he is connected to a redneck auto shop
in the sticks? Why would Parker be connected to such a small shop?”
she asked, turning to look outside the window at the flat
landscape, its redundancy lulling her eyes.
    “Did you go through his stuff, Delaney?” he
prompted, accusing her from beneath his sunglasses.
    “No,” she replied, thinking about the key
underneath the stone. “His signature is everywhere. A stack of
invoices are sitting on the desk with the header of Parker
Enterprises, as if the shop is owned by Parker. The shop itself was
located on Parker Drive, as you obviously saw. Even the cat is
named Parker.” Her voice rose as she finished the details, unable
to even process the words coming from her mouth. She didn’t care
about Holston Parker.
    “So, obviously Parker Enterprises owns Joe’s
shop. Maybe he’s a longtime friend and helped him get started. I’ll
check it out. He owns a conglomerate, Delaney. That’s what makes
him a billionaire. He’s not working on the floor at the brewery.
He’s out investing and growing businesses,” he replied, looking
back at Delaney who was leaning forward in her seat, pushing her
hand against the dash.
    “Low blow to dad,” she shot back. “I see how
it is. New job. New status.”
    She was edgy, but the topic of their
father’s profession was always a sensitive one. She had spent most
of her adolescence defending her father’s job to the wealthy
students of Xavier Academy - the private school just blocks from
their house - whose pedigrees often included a long line of
doctors, lawyers, and independent business owners. When Mark had
turned fifteen and been accepted to the prestigious school, with no
financial assistance, Ann and Michael had poured most all of their
middle-class earnings and savings into his education because, as
their father had once said, “None of you damned kids will be blue
collar, not if I can help it.” They had hoped tuition would stretch
to the remaining two children, but they never had to stretch or
make a decision about whether Delaney or Ben would attend the
academy. One month prior to Delaney’s first day of school, they had
received a stamped letterhead from Xavier Academy’s Admission Board
and Foundation stating that, “They were pleased to extend a full
scholarship through a private donation to such a remarkable young
girl full of promises for a strong future.” The family had rejoiced
in the fact that they could now send all three of their children to
the academy.
    “I just mean it as a frame of reference,
Delaney. Holston Parker is not you or me or ninety-nine point nine
percent of the rest of society, for that matter.” He moved his hand
off the steering wheel for emphasis. The hum of the road hung in
the air.
    “By the way, you could have warned me about
the massive snow storm that was looming.” She was blaming