Chapter 10 - The Brother He Raised to Replace Me|
The next time I saw Trevor, he wasn't wearing a tuxedo or standing behind our father's expensive car.
He was sitting alone in a small coffee shop outside Washington, wearing jeans and a faded college sweatshirt.
His hair was uncombed, and dark circles shadowed his eyes.
For the first time, he looked like someone who hadn't slept because money couldn't solve his problems.
I had agreed to meet him on one condition.
We would talk about our family, not the evidence under investigation.
He stood when I approached.
"Thanks for coming."
I sat opposite him.
"You sounded like you needed someone."
He laughed bitterly.
"Funny, considering how I've treated you."
I didn't disagree.
A waitress brought coffee, and we sat in silence until she left.
Trevor stared into his cup.
"Did you ever wonder what happened after you left?"
"Sometimes."
"Dad talked about you constantly."
I looked up.
"Really?"
"Not in a good way."
He gave a weak smile.
"Every time I disappointed him, he'd tell me I was turning into Katherine."
I studied my stepbrother.
"When did that start?"
"When I was about eleven."
My chest tightened.
I had known Trevor as a spoiled child who followed Evelyn through the Mercer mansion.
I hadn't understood what growing up in that house had meant for him.
"He told me you were weak," Trevor continued.
"He said you'd run away because you couldn't handle responsibility."
He swallowed.
"So I spent my entire life trying to be the opposite of you."
"And how did that work?"
He looked at me.
"Not very well."
For the first time, I saw the exhausted man beneath the arrogance.
Trevor had inherited every advantage Arthur could purchase.
But he'd also inherited a set of expectations that left almost no room for his own decisions.
He told me he had wanted to study architecture.
Arthur had dismissed it as a hobby.
He had wanted to work in a smaller engineering firm after college.
Arthur had called that an insult to the family name.
Eventually, Trevor stopped arguing.
He joined Mercer Defense Tech, accepted increasingly important titles, and learned that pleasing our father was easier than questioning him.
"Until now," I said.
He nodded.
"I've retained my own attorney."
"Good."
"And I'm cooperating with the proper authorities."
I kept my expression neutral.
"Then let them guide you through that process."
Trevor rubbed his forehead.
"Mom says I'm betraying the family."
"Do you believe that?"
"I don't know what I believe anymore."
I considered my answer carefully.
"There's a difference between protecting your family and protecting every decision your family makes."
He stared at me.
"Dad says everything he did was for us."
"Then he should have been willing to listen to us."
Trevor looked away.
I could see how close he was to tears.
"You know what's strange?" he asked.
"What?"
"When General Vance saluted you, I was angry."
I raised an eyebrow.
"Angry?"
"Not because you were successful."
He swallowed.
"Because I realized you had built something Dad couldn't take away."
I thought about that.
My father had controlled nearly every part of Trevor's adult life through salaries, promotions, promises, and threats.
Meanwhile, I had spent years believing that being disowned meant I had lost everything.
We had lived in opposite worlds and somehow suffered from the same man's need for control.
Trevor looked at me again.
"Kate, I owe you an apology."
I waited.
"I was cruel to you outside the White House."
"Yes, you were."
He winced.
"I barely knew you, but I acted like you were beneath me."
"Yes."
He gave a small, embarrassed laugh.
"You're not going to make this easy, are you?"
"No."
For a moment, we smiled at each other.
Then I leaned forward.
"But I appreciate the apology."
He nodded.
"I don't expect us to become a family overnight."
"Neither do I."
"Could we at least start with coffee?"
I glanced at the empty cup between us.
"Apparently we already have."
He laughed, and for the first time the sound felt genuine.
As we stood to leave, Trevor hesitated.
"Kate, one more question."
"Go ahead."
"Were you ever afraid when you walked away from Dad?"
I remembered standing outside the Mercer mansion with two suitcases and no idea whether my father would ever forgive me.
"Terrified."
Trevor stared at me.
"But you still left."
I nodded.
"Being afraid doesn't mean you have to surrender."
His eyes filled.
He looked down quickly, embarrassed.
Then he extended his hand.
I ignored it and hugged him instead.
For several seconds, he stood completely still.
Then his arms tightened around me.
When we separated, he wiped his face with his sleeve.
"Dad always said you weren't a Mercer anymore."
I looked at him.
"Arthur doesn't get to decide what kind of person I am."
Trevor nodded slowly.
May you like
Then he spoke with a determination I had never heard in his voice before.
"I think it's time I stopped letting him decide what kind of person I am too."
