William clenched his jaw tightly. He wanted to snap back, to tell Norah that not everything that happened in this family was his fault, but he swallowed his pride.
He couldn't afford to upset anyone. Not when every vote counted.
"I'm… sorry," he said, forcing out the words like bitter medicine. "I didn't mean for things to get this messy."
Jason and Norah exchanged a look and promptly ignored him.
"Joseph," Jason said, turning to the man sitting opposite him. "Can we start the meeting now? I believe everyone's here, right?"
Joseph leaned back casually, flipping through a few papers before glancing at the clock.
"Not yet," he replied calmly. "We've still got five minutes. One seat's still empty."
"Ah, so we wait... Okay.. Okay..." Jason Walters nods.
William frowned.
"What do you mean by 'empty'? We're complete now," he said, his tone turning confused. "Unless... you forgot, Maddy's been dead for years; she won't be attending."
