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“It’s not your fault.”
“Of course it’s my fault, I’m CEO! I’m responsible for them!”
My heart ached. I knew she meant it. Just like in Poland, she cared about every employee.
“I’ve destroyed everything he built,” she said bitterly. She was silent for a moment. “You know I’m pretty sure he got his mistress in Poland pregnant? My whole life, I idolized him. Now I feel like I didn’t know him at all.”
“We all do things we regret,” I said slowly. “Doesn’t mean he was a bad guy.”
She slowly turned to me. I stared into her eyes and hoped she knew I wasn’t just talking about Russ.
She looked away. “I’m not the right person for this. I don’t know what to do.”
I knew what she was going through. I knew what it was like to be the leader, to have everyone looking to you. All I wanted to do was hug her, but I couldn’t: once I touched her, there’d be no stopping. And I couldn’t fight this for her. All I could do was support her, just like Danny always supported me. “Your dad picked you for a reason,” I began.
“My dad picked me because Miles had a drug problem!” she said savagely.
I waited a few seconds, letting her calm a little. Then I spoke slowly, my voice like iron. “That’s not true. He could have left it all to some executive he trusted. He chose you. He had faith in you. And I have faith in you.” I lowered my voice. “You can do this.”
I reached out and took her hand. Nothing happened. She just sat there, broken and miserable.
But I wasn’t going anywhere. I sat there in the darkness, just letting her know that.
And at last, her hand moved in mine…and then squeezed, and I squeezed back.
I felt her steeling herself, building herself back up. Then she drew in a long, shuddering breath, sniffed and lifted her head. I could tell she was thinking: she looked like Russ, when she was deep in thought. Finally, she stood up.
“I have to go see him,” she said firmly. “I have to go see Van der Meer.”
40
JD
I gaped up at her, then climbed to my feet. “I’m trying to keep you safe,” I told her. “You’re talking about walking right into the lion’s den.”
“He isn’t going to murder me himself, in front of witnesses,” she countered.
“We don’t know what he’ll do. Why would you want to go to him?”
“He did this,” said Lorna. “He’s the only one with the power to undo it. Maybe I can persuade him, if I do it face to face.”
I narrowed my eyes. I wasn’t that dumb. That bastard wasn’t going to change his mind just because she asked nicely. She had something up her sleeve. Well, fine. I didn’t need to know every damn detail. I just had to protect her. “That son-of-a-bitch tries anything…” I warned.
Lorna made the call on our way upstairs. I scowled as I heard Van der Meer’s sneering voice. “I’m on my yacht, off the coast. I’ll send you our position.”
In the penthouse, I called in the whole team, even the ones who were resting at the hotel, and explained the plan. Everyone grabbed their gear…and then I frowned because I saw Paige pulling on her jacket. “You’re not coming,” I told her. “This could be dangerous.”
Paige grabbed me by the sleeve and dragged me off to the kitchen. “Now listen,’ she told me. “I know you have to protect her. And I know why you have to protect her.” I felt myself flush down to my collar. “But I’m her friend. She’s in pieces right now and she needs some moral support, not just guys with guns and the man who just broke her heart. If that prick says no to her deal, she’s going to lose everything and if that happens I’m not going to be hundreds of miles away!”
I nodded, chastened. She was right: women need their besties.
We all trooped out to the chopper. It was a gorgeous day, the sun warm on our faces and the sky a deep, flawless blue. Bradan was next to me and he seemed different: a little lighter, like a weight had been lifted. That talk with Cal had worked.
We opened the rear door of the shining, blue-and-white chopper. “Wipe your feet!” yelled Gina over the roar of the rotor blades. “Colton, no eating!”
We flew out to sea and over the endless blue ocean for more than a half hour. Then the yacht crept into view on the horizon. Gina whistled and we all pressed our noses to the glass to look. It was huge, a floating palace five decks high with a helicopter pad and a hot tub.
Gina brought us down on the pad and we were met by Van der Meer’s own bodyguards, sour-faced men in suits. They led us to where Van der Meer lounged on a couch, his cream suit dazzling in the sun. I felt the anger flash through me, tightening my muscles and heating my face. It took everything I had to keep from punching him.
