Harrison said nothing to that. Which meant, to Jayda, that HB was probably telling the truth.
“Thank God you’re cancer-free,” Harrison said to his father instead. “That’s all that matters.”
HB considered Harrison. “You’re the only one,” he said.
“I’m the only one what?” asked Harrison.
“You’re the only one that ever gave a damn about me.”
Jayda was startled to hear such a thing. So was Harrison.
But then HB added: “But that doesn’t give you any advantage over Felix. I will make my decision of who will lead Bainbridge Oil based on the best man for the job. Nothing else.”
“As you should,” said Harrison without hesitation.
“I still might disqualify you for your attempt at subversiveness with that fake fiancée nonsense,” HB also said.
“Just so we’re clear,” said Harrison. “She’s not a fake fiancée. She’s my real fiancée.”
“So you say,” said HB. “But you were willing to say just the opposite a few days ago, yes?”
Harrison hated to admit it. “Yes.”
“And it really had nothing to do with your love for Bainbridge Oil. You need Bainbridge Oil to keep BCT afloat. Yes?”
Harrison had to admit that truth as well. “Yes,” he said.
“So you see there’s very little difference between you and Felix. Felix doesn’t try to hide his greed. You are the master at hiding yours.”
Both father and son stared at each other. It was a stinging indictment against Harrison to Jayda, but even she knew his father wasn’t wrong. Harrison was ruthless. In business, he was no shrinking violet. She knew who she was getting in bed with.
And Harrison was about to agree with his father when they all suddenly heard the front driver side window crash. Desmond was struck with a bullet to the side of his head thatimmediately caused him to fall sideways unconscious. And immediately thereafter, Vincent, who was attempting to pull out his gun, was struck by gunfire and fell over too. And even as Vincent was falling, they could hear gunfire erupting behind them, as if the gunmen were trying to take out the security people first.
“Get down and stay down!” Harrison yelled at HB and Jayda as he tossed Desmond on top of Vincent and got behind the wheel of the now out of control limo. And he sped away from the others.
“Where’s it coming from?” HB was asking as he and Jayda got down to the floor.
“I have no idea!” Harrison responded as he was looking behind him and beside him for any signs of the gunmen.
But it wasn’t until Jayda looked behind her and slightly upward was she able to see the culprit.
And it frightened her even more. “It’s coming from a helicopter,” she yelled at Harrison. “There’s a helicopter just behind us trying to take out HB’s security detail!”
“Good Lord,” Harrison said, because he knew he couldn’t outrun a chopper.
And Jayda knew it too. That was why she quickly reached in front, trying to pull out the gun Vincent had attempt to retrieve before he was shot down.
Harrison was too busy trying to get as much real estate between his limo and the security detail behind them in that SUV and the other limos behind them. He prayed the others were okay, but he knew his job was to get Jayda and his father out of harm’s way no matter what. He was flooring that limousine.
That was why he didn’t realize Jayda wasn’t down on the floor anymore, but was reaching for Vincent’s gun, until she had that gun in her hand.
“What are you doing?” Harrison yelled at her. “Didn’t I tell you to get down? Get your ass down and stay down, Jayda!”
But Jayda knew as soon as the helicopter finished off the men in that SUV, it was coming for their limousine. And somebody had to stop it.
Her father taught her how to shoot a gun when she was a little girl, but that was years ago. But she was hoping it was like riding a bike: it always came back to you.
And when she saw that chopper cause the security SUV to lose control, run off the road, and flip so hard that it was tearing apart, she got on her back on that floor and shot out the back windshield. And as that chopper began flying toward them, she began shooting at that chopper, which caused it to swerve to the side of the limo rather than taking direct aim from the back.
