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My father rose to his feet and shook hands with them. “Nice to see you, gentlemen.” When the guys all turned to look at me, my father made the introduction. “This is my daughter, Scarlett. She helps with the business. She’s going to sit in, if that’s okay.”
One of the guys sat across from me, grinning wide. “Oh, that’s more than fine.” A couple of his teeth were missing, and there was a gold shine from the deeper part of his mouth.
The other guys took a seat, one with a ponytail.
A long stretch of silence ensued.
They all stared at me.
My father cleared his throat. “I’ll cut straight to the chase.” He crossed his leg and rested his ankle on the opposite knee. “Ten percent is too high. Our counter is two and a half percent, in addition to your current compensation.”
None of the guys moved or reacted, as if they didn’t understand what my father said or had expected him to say those exact words.
The one who’d smiled at me finally gave a nod. “Two and a half percent…seems a little insulting.”
“That’s a lot of money, Christian,” my father said. “A lot.”
“But ten percent is a lot more money,” Christian said. “Money we deserve.”
My father stared at him, looking perfectly calm despite the rising tensions.
“You know, I was actually doing you a favor,” Christian said. “There’s nothing stopping us from selling our product directly to the European countries. Truth be told, we don’t even need you. So, if you aren’t going to pay us, then we’ll pay ourselves.”
“It’s a lot more complicated than you realize,” my father said. “We have the connections to deal with the regulations and border transport. That’s not something you’ll be able to replicate?—”
“It is if I take the business from you.”
Now the air in the room changed, going from warm to scalding hot like a pot of boiling water on the stove. I felt my breathing deepen, felt my heart pick up in speed, but I kept up my poker face. My eyes shifted from my father.
“Take it from me?” my father asked, smirking.
“Someone else did, right?” Christian cocked his head. “So what’s to stop me from taking it from all of you?”
“No one took it from me,” my father said calmly. “I partnered with a powerful man, and that’s why we’ve expanded our distribution?—”
“You’re going to lie to me?” Christian snapped. “You’re going to look right into my face and lie?”
A period of silence passed, feeling like an eternity. I couldn’t keep my breathing steady, not when I felt the danger like it was pressed right against the back of my neck. We had armed men on the property, but they were in the other room watching the chemists make the product.
“I don’t think we want to do business with a liar,” Christian said. “Not my preference.”
My pulse was so strong in my neck, I actually felt the vein twitch. As discreetly as I could, I reached for my phone in my pocket, and without thinking the plan through, I dropped my location to Axel then silenced my phone. If he called, it might draw attention to me, and I had no idea what these guys might do. If Axel called and I didn’t answer, he would assume something was wrong and come as quick as he could. I returned the phone to my pocket and watched the scene unfold.
“So, we can do this one of two ways,” Christian said. “You can yield and give me what I need to continue operations. Or we can do things the other way…”
How my father remained calm was a fucking mystery. “Or there’s option three.”
“I don’t think there’s an option three, Dante.”
“I’ll give you fifteen percent, and we forget this whole thing.”
Christian turned to his guys and laughed, loudly and obnoxiously. “You’re funny, Dante.”
“Fifteen percent is generous.”
“Come on, Dante,” Christian said. “We both know there’s no going back now. After I agree, you’ll just have me killed. So now, I have to kill you.” He gave a shrug. “I told you I was doing you a favor.”
My father took a long pause. “Even if I wanted to yield, I have two partners.”
“And you’ll tell me everything I need to know, and I’ll eliminate them,” Christian said. “Problem solved. So tell me what I want to know, and I’ll make it quick. I’ve never been into the whole pain and suffering thing.”
I should speak up and try to resolve this, but I was so fucking scared and out of my element here.
My father was quiet for a long time. “If you aren’t into pain and suffering, you’ll excuse my daughter from the room. No reason for her to be involved in this.”
“You involved her when you brought her here, Dante.”
“Let her go,” he said calmly. “Please.”
Christian shifted his gaze to me. “Wish I could, but she’s important to the next part of our plan. Bringing her is actually a huge help for us. Saved us a lot of time.” He looked at my father again. “We know she’s married to your partner, so she’s the key to ensuring his cooperation.”
