“I guess Corey told him—” Raymond breaks off, then says with sudden heat, “It’s in the past. It’s between the two of them.”

“Corey told him what?” I narrow my eyes. “What, Raymond?”

“What?” echoes Suze, and Raymond makes an angry, huffing sound.

“Corey had taken over the business side. Maybe he gave Brent the wrong impression. Told him the investors weren’t coming forward, told him it wasn’t developing commercially, told him it was going to be expensive to take it to the next level. So Brent sold out for…well. Pretty much nothing.”

I stare at Raymond in utter dismay.

“Corey conned Brent? He should go to prison!”

Into my head flashes an image of Corey’s Las Vegas palace, followed by Brent’s trailer. It’s so unfair. I can’t bear it.

“Corey didn’t break any law as far as I know,” Raymond replies stolidly. “He was right in some of what he said—it wasn’t a sure thing. It did need investment. Brent should have looked into it. Shoulda been smarter.”

“You know Brent’s been living in a trailer?” I say accusingly. “You know he’s been evicted from a trailer?”

“If Brent was fool enough to fall for Corey’s patter, that’s his problem,” returns Raymond aggressively. “I believe he attempted legal action, but the facts didn’t stack up strongly enough. Corey’s word against Brent’s, see.”

“But that’s so wrong! Brent helped invent it! It’s made millions!”

“Whatever.” Raymond’s face closes up even further, and I feel a surge of contempt for him.

“You just don’t want to know, do you?” I say scathingly. “No wonder you hide yourself away from the world.”

“If Brent’s so talented,” puts in Suze, “why didn’t he make something of himself anyway?”

“Brent was never the strongest character,” says Raymond. “I think it ate him up, seeing Corey succeed. He drank, married too many times—that’ll burn through your money.”

“No wonder it ate him up!” I almost yell. “It would eat anyone up! So, you think this is OK, do you? One of your friends conned the other and you don’t want to do anything about it?”

“I don’t get involved,” says Raymond, his face expressionless. “We lost touch.”

“But you still take the money,” I say pointedly.

“So does your dad,” returns Raymond, equally pointedly. “He still gets his dividend, as far as I know.”

My racing thoughts are brought up short. My dad. The money. The dividend. Why did he never tell us about this? He told us everything else about that holiday, over and over. Why did he leave out the best bit?

I’m sure Mum doesn’t know any of this. She would have said. Which means…He’s been keeping it secret, all these years?

I feel a bit hot. My dad is the most open, straightforward person in the world. Why would he keep a massive great secret like this?

“Bex, didn’t you know anything about it?” says Suze in a low voice.

“Nothing.”

“Why would your dad hide something like that?”

“I have no idea. It’s weird.”