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Alex smiled as he leaned back in his chair.
He certainly was a charmer, but he was a businessman first. As for his former military connections, he’d been in the perfect position to build his company with experienced men and women whose qualifications were a step or two above the norm for personal protective details. She had no doubt that he’d crossed paths with Graham a time or two in the past. They were cut from the same bolt of cloth, and they no doubt ran in the same circles.
The offices of DeSilva Securities were located in downtown D.C., not far from the hospital where Millie Gwinn worked on the ICU floor. Alex had fostered a lot of relationships in the area, and his firm had a stellar reputation when it came to security, whether personal or technological. The business had recently branched out to cybersecurity, which would almost certainly turn into his bread and butter.
“I thought for sure that the private sector would have softened you up,” Alex said with a shake of his head. His comment was enough to spur Sylvie into a small coughing fit, though she recovered quickly after Brook raised an eyebrow her way. “It’s been a while. In all seriousness, are you doing okay? I happened to catch the interview that you gave earlier this year.”
“I’m fine, thank you.” Brook had always been cautious when appropriating favors. She’d purposefully never mentioned her brother, and she wouldn’t do so now. When and how she utilized those contacts would be on her own terms and strictly on a need-to-know basis. “As you know, S&E Investigations prefer handling cold cases, but something local has landed in our lap that we can’t ignore. A client’s apartment was broken into last night, and she’s convinced that she is being followed by someone. I’m hoping that you have a team available for twenty-four-hour surveillance until we can ascertain the validity of her concerns.”
“Your partner has a regular contact over at Troughton & Associates.”
Alex had narrowed his gaze, monitoring Brook’s expressions as if there was a catch to her impromptu visit. He was also searching for any indication that the rumors regarding Troughton & Associates’ bankruptcy were true.
There was a bit of truth to the speculation that Troughton & Associates would be closing their doors, but the reason had nothing to do with money. Eric Troughton had recently been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, and his partner had decided to finally retire. Until both were ready to release a statement regarding their firm, it wasn’t Brook’s place to add grist to the mill.
Brookhadreached out to Graham, but she would have expected nothing less if the situation had been reversed. They both had a financial stake in S&E Investigations, and they had built relationships with outside firms when necessary. Graham had explained the situation with Troughton & Associates in confidence, and she wouldn’t betray his trust.
“Why me?” Alex asked directly, still waiting for a response. He pulled his chair in and rested his forearms on his desk. “Why choose DeSilva Securities?”
“Alex, if you don’t want S&E’s business, all you have to do is politely decline.”
While Brook had other options, both she and Graham had decided that Alex DeSilva and his firm were the wisest choices. She waited patiently for him to make a decision. He’d make the right choice, and he would do so for multiple reasons. First and foremost, he would want an inroad into Graham’s government connections that Alex hadn’t been able to procure himself.
“Here is our standard fee structure,” Alex said as he lifted the top manilla folder off the pile. “If you’re in agreement, I’ll have Tricia draw up our usual private subcontractor contract. I take it you need a detail for your client by this afternoon?”
Brook already had Bit look into the expense of DeSilva Securities, and she already had a counteroffer in mind.
Sylvie remained silent, almost as if she was enjoying the back-and-forth banter.
“We’d like a ten percent discount,” Brook replied as she casually perused the contents of the folder. She closed it before handing it back to him. “Your assistant can include an addendum that states S&E Investigations will solely utilize DeSilva Securities’ protective details for the next three years, with the caveat that we reserve the right to use our own subcontracted hostage and rescue team if there is a need for special weapons and tactics.”
Alex clicked the end of his pen repeatedly as he mulled over her offer. He was obviously curious about Brook’s provision for their own HRT group. It was a good business decision, and she’d purposefully left room to negotiate.
“Five percent. Five years.”
“Eight percent, and I’m not budging on the three-year commitment.”
“And HRT? Who did you have in mind? You do know that we have our own special weapons team, right?”
“You have no need to know that information. At least, for right now.”
Alex shifted his gaze from Brook to Sylvie, who simply shrugged as if to say it was the best deal that he was going to get from S&E Investigations. Usually, Brook would have conducted such a meeting on her own. However, it would have been pointless to drive back to their office building when this appointment wouldn’t take much time out of their morning.
“You drive a hard bargain, Sloane.” Alex pressed a button on the intercom and instructed his assistant to draw up the necessary paperwork. “Alright. Let’s get down to business. Name?”
“Millie Gwinn.”
“Age?”
“Thirty-nine.”
“Marital status?”
“Single.”
Brook continued to answer Alex’s questions, appreciating his thoroughness on the matter. In the middle of providing such details, the ringtone of her phone could be heard. She usually silenced her cell during meetings, but she wanted to be available should Theo run into any potential problems at the hospital.
She recognized the phone number on the display, and she weighed her decision on whether or not to answer.
