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“You realize I have some very unsavory friends, don’t you? If I press this button, I can have people come in here who ensure you two never walk out of here alive, that you are never found. What then? What does any of this matter if you never get to show it to anyone?” He stood and slammed his palm on the desk, hitting the papers in the open file. “You have aimed far too high here.”
I didn’t smile, instead staying in my role. “Have I? Do you really think I would come here without a plan? That I would show you this unless I was sure I could walk out of it?” Itsk’dsoftly to show my disappointment in his short-sighted assessment.
“What I think is that you walked in here with one little girl by your side. You’ve stepped way too far out on a ledge without a safety line. I’d suggest you thinkverycarefully about your future before you consider threatening someone like me again. You are just some rich asshole who thinks that because you’ve made some money in the stock market, you have power. No, trust me,Ihave real power.”
I waited for him to wear himself out in his little tirade, enjoying how he puffed his chest out. When he finished, I waited a long, silent moment before responding. “That is where you’re wrong. My name isn’t Jake Ulysses. The company I run doesn’t exist. You saw what you wanted to see and didn’t look any deeper, didn’t figure out none of it was real.”
“So who are you?”
“That doesn’t matter. All that matters is what I want. If you want this to stay quiet, you will transfer this amount into this account by six o’clock tonight.” I pulled a card out of the chest pocket of my suit jacket and tossed it onto the desk beside his hand. Even still, I didn’t rise from my seat.
No, it was better for me to appear unconcerned about him and his ranting, to make it seem all his threats didn’t bother me at all.
And they didn’t, to be honest.
He picked up the card, his eyes widening for a moment at the amount. “This…” he said, but pressed his lips together before voicing what no doubt he’d figured out.
“That’s right. It is rather simple. Do that, and this information never sees the light of day.”
“And what keeps me from calling in those friends I mentioned?”
I gestured at Kenz. “Her.”
Mr. James looked over at Kenz, seeming to take real notice of her for the first time. “Forgive me, but I don’t see anything about her that would stop me.”
“That’s because, yet again, you fail to take notice of the most important things. My associate here isn’t a secretary. She is, in fact, a journalism student who is interning at a local news station.”
Color drained from Mr. James’ face, a sure sign he’d recognized how he’d ended up out maneuvered.
“She’s left the information at the news station. If anything happens to her, if she doesn’t return, that information will already be in the hands of those who can properly spread it. Basically? If you hurt us or try to stop us from leaving, all this and more will come out. Also, our disappearance will sit right at your door for the police to investigate.”
Mr. James collapsed into his seat. He looked over at Kenz, his gaze wild, a bad sign. It wasnevergood when someone got to that point, when they struggled that last bit, because they could make horrible choices that were harder to predict. “Why don’t we make a deal, Miss? If you have the information, then only you need to walk out of here. What if I pay you half this amount, and in exchange, your friend here is mine? You turn over that information to me and I can assure you, I’ll make it worth your time. I mean, you’re just a pawn to this guy, right? Whatever he promised you—I’ll give you more.”
I almost chuckled at his attempt. It wasn’t a bad move, and the fact he could surprise me was amusing. Rarely did people manage to make a move I hadn’t expected, that I hadn’t prepared for. It might have even worked if Kenz really were some journalist student who I’d brought along as simple insurance.
I glanced to the side, to Kenz, who sat up straight and stared right back at Mr. James. A moment of worry crossed my mind.
Mr. James had surprised me—could Kenz?
No. She’d never.It wasn’t that I thought she wouldn’t because she cared about me, but rather because Mr. James couldn’t offer her anything worthwhile. She had access to money, so why would she help him?
“I’m just a man in a hard place,” Mr. James pressed. “Yes, I have a mistress, but do you know why? My wife sleeps with other men all the time, thinking that because her family has money, she can do what she wants. So, yes, I found someone who loves me, and I paid it out of the corporate money because otherwise, my wife would find out. However, I also didn’t accept any yearly bonuses the last five years! That means it works out. Are you really going to let this conman blackmail me like this? I may not be perfect, but is he any better? Using that to extort millions from me?”
The certainty I’d had before wasfarless certain now. The asshole had managed to hit the spot Kenz was weak, to play the victim to a woman who had a heart way too big for her own good.
I fought my own expression, keeping my mask in place perfectly, playing the part to keep myself calm. Had I made a mistake? Had I screwed this up? If so, why? Was it Kenz? Did she throw me off this bad?
Kenz stood, her back straight, looking nothing like the nervous intern she had earlier. How she flipped that switch so perfectly, I had no idea, especially because she did it naturally, not as part of a game. “No, thank you.”
“Why not? He’s some criminal, and I can tell by the look on your face that you aren’t.”
I wanted to hear her say that she trusted me, that I wasn’t who this man claimed I was—even if I knew he wasn’t wrong. I wanted her to stand up for me, to defend me, no matter how pointless that was.
Except, when she spoke, they weren’t the words I’d wanted to hear.
“You’re right—I’m not a criminal. I’d suggest you do as he asks, because trust me, he’ll follow through on his threats.” Her words came out strong but flat, as if she knew their truth even if she didn’t like it much.
The final snap as Mr. James accepted his place said we’d won, but Kenz’s expression didn’t make me feel much like a winner.
