Chapter 23

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

" Y ou ready for this?" Jackson asked the following morning.

"As ready as I'm going to be."

He gave my thigh a squeeze. "It's over now. Okay?"

I rolled my lips between my teeth and nodded. Jackson had told me that the culprit had been apprehended but that he was waiting on details. We both were. I was relieved they'd caught the person behind the threats, but I dreaded finding out their identity and the reasons behind the notes.

"He can't hurt you anymore. I won't let anyone hurt you."

I'd needed that reassurance, more than I'd realized. Jackson always knew what I needed to hear.

I took a breath and pressed the button to connect the video conference. The LA boardroom came into view, the table surrounded by members of the board, a team from Hudson, and my brothers. Graham was sitting at the head of the table, flanked by Nate and Knox. Jasper joined us on the screen from London.

"Hey, Knox. Nate." I smiled at them, trying to project a calmness I didn't feel. Knox and Nate rarely attended board meetings. "This is a nice surprise."

"Hey, Sloan." Knox smiled. "We asked to be kept in the loop." Instead of being annoyed like I might have been in the past, I was grateful. It was nice to know my family cared.

Sure, they could sometimes take things too far. But maybe I could keep more of an open mind regarding their suggestions in the future.

I greeted the board members and introduced Jackson before Hudson made their own introductions. When Jackson's boss, Vaughn, stated his name, I tried to maintain a neutral expression. I didn't want to do anything to call attention to my relationship with Jackson.

When we finally settled into the reason for the call, it was Vaughn who addressed everyone. "I'm happy to report that Hudson caught and apprehended the culprit." A rumble of interest went through the room. "It was an employee named Sheldon Lansberger."

I furrowed my brow. "One of the butlers?" I couldn't believe he was behind the notes. Sheldon had been at the Huxley Grand London for years. I hadn't known him well, but he'd always been polite. Professional. "You're sure?"

"Our team caught him on camera then handed him over to the authorities."

I chewed on my lip. "Do you… Did he say why?"

Jackson took my hand in his out of view of the camera. His touch was reassuring, and it grounded me.

Even though I'd been scared to ask, I wanted to know. I needed to understand why Sheldon had felt compelled to send me such nasty, terrifying notes. Maybe then I'd finally be able to put the matter to rest.

I doubted it, but I wanted to try.

"Sheldon's aunt used to work in housekeeping," Vaughn said. "When the Huxley brand changed the cleaning schedule after the pandemic, Sheldon claims it promoted an unsafe working environment. He believes it pushed housekeeping to complete too many tasks and too many rooms in too short of a time. And that led to a fall that broke her hip."

"That's terrible," I said. "Is she okay?"

"She is. Or rather, she was. She's since died, but she stopped working after the fall."

I furrowed my brow. "Because of her injury?"

"Because of the time it took to heal, and the fact that she was no longer able to perform the tasks required for the role."

"But surely we would've found an alternate position that would've accommodated her needs. The Huxley Hotels are a family. We don't just—" I waved a hand through the air "—kick someone out, especially if they've been a loyal employee."

Graham nodded. "I looked it up. She was offered another position, but she turned it down. During her treatment from the fall, the doctors discovered that she had Stage 4 cancer. She died a few months later."

"Oh my gosh. That's terrible." My heart ached for this family and the suffering they'd endured. "But what does that have to do with Huxley and Sheldon's threats?"

It was Vaughn who responded. "Sheldon believes the cleaning products used by Huxley employees were responsible for his aunt's cancer and subsequent death."

Suddenly, the threats made a lot more sense. Toxic Bitch. Poison. The skull and crossbones even looked like the ones you might find on a cleaning label.

"Is there any truth to that claim?" I asked, hoping like hell there wasn't. Not just for the sake of limiting the brand's liability, but for the well-being of our employees.

Graham shook his head. "Absolutely none. We use the best nontoxic cleaning products available, and we train our employees to use them safely."

"He's right," one of the board members chimed in. "I've read studies and spoken to a number of top health officials."

That was a relief, but still… "So why did Sheldon threaten me? What did he want?"

"He was clearly angry and grieving," Jasper said with a meaningful look. We all knew what that felt like, and we could definitely relate. But still, my siblings and I had never sent anyone death threats regarding our parents' deaths or our grandparents'.

"He claims she spent hours in pain on the floor of the hotel bathroom waiting for help when she broke her hip," Vaughn said.

"What did the accident report say?" I asked. We always performed an internal investigation in cases like these—whether an employee or a guest was injured, not that it occurred frequently. But despite all our best efforts, accidents did happen.

It was Graham who answered. "She was lying there for an hour."

"Why so long?" I asked. Housekeeping staff weren't allowed to carry their personal devices, but they were issued radios each shift. "Did she use her radio to call for help?"

"It was hooked to her cart in the hall."

I frowned. That went against protocol, and it was clearly something we should remind all housekeeping employees to keep on their person. "Did no one hear her call for help?"

Assuming she'd followed other protocol, her cleaning cart should've been parked in front of the room, blocking the door. But the door would've been open.

"Apparently not," Graham said. "She was working a room at the end of a hall during the middle of the day when most people would be out."

Everyone on the screen wore somber expressions that I knew matched my own.

"And he somehow thought I was responsible?" I asked.

Of course I was responsible for the care of my employees and their safety. And we'd definitely revisit training and protocol. But there wasn't much I could do about an accident.

"He wasn't thinking rationally," Vaughn said. "He wanted someone to blame."

I could understand that. But still, it felt personal. Like an attack on me specifically. Because it was.

I sighed, feeling heavy from all these revelations. I felt bad for Sheldon and his loss. And I felt bad for his aunt and what she'd endured. "What will happen to him now?"

"The team from Hudson handed him over to the authorities. He'll be sent to trial, and you might be asked to testify."

Great. Just when I'd thought this nightmare was finally over. Still, it was a huge relief to know he'd been caught.

"And you think that's the end of it, right?" I asked.

"Correct," Vaughn said. "But we will continue to investigate. Regardless, I'd still recommend a bodyguard."

The rest of the call went fairly quickly, and Graham dismissed the board and the team from Hudson. Everyone filed out of the room, leaving Jackson and me alone with Graham, Knox, Nate, and Jasper.

"Should I—?" Jackson moved as if to leave.

"No. Stay." I placed my hand on his arm. "Please?"

A look passed between us. "Of course."

When I returned my attention to the screen, Nate was watching us with a bemused smile. And Graham's lips were set in a firm line, though there was nothing new about that. It was his typical RBF, or "resting brooding face," as Jasper liked to joke.

"How do you feel?" Knox asked, breaking the silence.

"Conflicted," I said. "Relieved that it's over, but also…sad."

"Sad about the situation that led to the threats?" Nate asked, always reading me so well.

Jackson placed his hand on my back, rubbing circles in a calming motion. Jasper arched his brow at that, as did Graham. I ignored their curious looks, hoping they'd assume Jackson was my friend who was comforting me.

"It's just a sad story," I said. "And it's unnerving, to think that a trusted employee could turn like that."

"His actions have nothing to do with you, Sloan," Jackson said. "You know what grief is like. How it can…skew the way you think." I nodded, feeling my family's eyes on us. Watching us intently. "He needed someone to blame, and you were a convenient target. That's all."

I could understand that, but Sheldon was so angry. I'd been devastated when my grandparents had died, but I'd leaned on my brothers. On Greer. I wondered who was there for Sheldon. Maybe no one.

"Can you give us a minute, Jackson?" Graham said to him.

I kept my attention on the screen. "Jackson's staying."

"Are you—" Jackson started to ask, but I squeezed his hand. He fell silent.

Graham and I had a wordless staring contest in which he told me to get rid of Jackson and I told him that Jackson wasn't going anywhere. Normally, Graham would've dug in his heels. And eventually, I might have let it go, backed down. But perhaps Graham sensed that I wasn't going to budge.

"Fine." He pinched the bridge of his nose then glared at Jackson. "He has an NDA, and I have other ways of silencing someone."

"Graham," I hissed, annoyed by his threats. I took a deep breath and opened my mouth to speak.

"Sloan," Graham cut me off. "I know you hate it when we step in—or rather, when we overstep. But I'm your big brother, and I love you. It's my job to protect you."

I gaped at him. I couldn't remember the last time he'd said those words. Sure, they were there, always beneath the surface, but it was nice to hear them all the same. And maybe I'd been a little too harsh, a little too stubborn.

"I was going to say thank you." I smiled, appreciating both his acknowledgment of the fact that they had a tendency to overstep and shocked that he'd told me he loved me. "And I love you too."

Even Graham seemed surprised, though it barely registered on his face before it was gone.

"I'd still like to have HR review our sick leave policies as well as our housekeeping procedures." It was easier to focus on a path forward, on something to do.

"Agreed," Graham said.

"And Jasper," I said, "when I get back, I want to sit down with you to brainstorm some ideas on how to improve the employee experience."

"Of course," he said. "I'll let Halle know."

"Thanks."

We ended the call, and I stood and stretched. I turned to Jackson, wrapping my arms around his neck.

"You okay?" he asked.

I considered it a moment. "Surprisingly, yes."

The situation with Sheldon was disappointing, but it reminded me how fortunate I was to have so many people in my life who loved me. I had my family and Greer. My health. I had Jackson. Those were the things that mattered.