Ben
Lagoverde, Italy
Friday night
“Close the door,” Rook says as he leads me into a wood-paneled office. He heads straight for the decanter on the sideboard. “Drink?”
The door closes with a soft click that sounds a lot more final than it should. Halfway through my dessert, I caught Ramirez sending a look to Rook, and suddenly I was asked to follow him here. A breeze wafts in from the cracked French door. The scent of cypress and old stone mixes with something far more familiar—tension. It’s practically baked into the walls.
“I prefer the chocolate torte,” I answer as Rook gestures for me to sit as he pours himself a splash of something amber. I sit in the leather chair across from the desk. “Is there a problem?”
Rook sniffs his drink before taking a sip, then nods. “You had a chance to review Edmond’s holdings?”
I keep my expression neutral. Seth Jackson is the one who’s been reviewing Edmond’s account and feeding me the script I need to sell that I know what I’m talking about. “Some. Why?”
“You find anything... concerning?”
Not unless Seth missed something. A quick analysis showed Edmond cleaning house with his finances. Liquidating assets. I shrug, offering atidbit of intel Seth has fed me. “Some of his shell structures are outdated, but nothing that would jeopardize a transfer.” I pause, watching him. “Is there something I should be concerned about?”
Rook swirls his glass like it might hold answers. “I think there’s a chance Earl is second-guessing the deal. Maybe looking for a way out. The last couple of years he hasn’t been the same. I thought Sebastian might be enough to keep him focused, but it seems like he might have his own agenda—and that’s making Lorenzo nervous.”
I nod slowly. That tracks. Ramirez was wired tighter than a coiled spring earlier. Whatever happened with Edmond and Giancarlo had him distracted. Rattled. Paranoid. When I tried to show him the embedded files, he barely let me get past the login screen before brushing me off. Ending the only window I had to access his accounts. Strike two.
“Lorenzo won’t tolerate anyone compromising the deal, which is why he wants to make sure we have a backup plan. In case any unforeseen changes happen with the deal.”
Unforeseen changes? Backup plan? In the criminal dictionary, those words are synonymous withstart digging and don’t ask questions.
Before I can ask questions, I catch a flicker of movement out on the veranda. Just a rustle between trees, a shadow slipping past moonlight. Maybe it’s nothing. Maybe it’s paranoia. Or maybe it’s the growing dread twisting in my gut that everything about tonight—about this trip—is off.
“In Lorenzo’s line of work, he believes it’s best practice to eliminate issues before they become issues, wouldn’t you agree?”
I immediately think of Danny Morales and grind my molars. This is why I have to play my part, complete the mission, so I can eliminate the real issue—Ramirez. “Sure.”
“We’re wondering if someone close to Earl Edmond might have insight into his next move.”
I don’t like where this is going.
He leans forward. “It seems like Earl really respects his assistant. Almost admirably.”
Every muscle in my body tenses, but I don’t say a thing.
“And you two seem to have a... connection.”
My stomach drops, blood running cold. I’ve been careless. I’ve allowed old memories and renewed feelings to blur the lines, and it may have just compromised everything—including Cybil’s life.
I school my features into something neutral. “I grow my network to grow the bottom line. That’s not a connection. It’s a calculation.”
Rook studies me like he’s trying to weigh the truth of my words. He shrugs a shoulder. “Call it what you like, but we want you to find out what she knows. What Earl’s planning. If he’s out—or working some kind of side deal. We don’t need surprises.”
My spine straightens. “You want me to dig.”
“Casually,” Rook says. “Friendly. See what you can find out. We need to know if Edmond’s planning to cut Lorenzo out. Or sell access to someone else.”
And put Cybil dead center in Ramirez’s crosshairs.
Every part of me wants to tell him to back off. But I can’t. Not without blowing my cover. But is it possible that Ramirez’s suspicion of Edmond might be the very thing that saves Cybil? If Edmond’s out of the deal, so is Cybil’s proximity to any potential blowout.
I force a thoughtful frown. “If Earl Edmond is the variable, why not just exclude him from the deal?”
