“One week in Sweden every month.”
Dizzie tilted her head and stared at the other woman. “You seem to think that you get a say in this negotiation. You don’t. One visit, here in Seattle, for every month that Portia and I receive proof of life. Maybe, just maybe, if you clean up your act and stop treating me like an object and start treating me like a person, you’ll get that visit in Sweden. But I’m not making any promises.”
When Mr. and Mrs. Solveig turned away to discuss Dizzie’s offer, Portia looked at her sister. “Are you sure? You don’t have to do this.”
“I know,” Dizzie said. “But what kind of sister would I be if I let you bear this burden alone. I had the power to save him, so I did.”
“He won’t thank you,” Portia felt compelled to remind her.
Dizzie was sanguine. “He won’t, but you will, right?”
“Yes. Thank you. Really.” This was more than she’d ever expected.
The Solveigs turned back to them. “Very well. We accept. You’ll need to prove that you’re delivering Phillip Tremaine to us.”
“Of course,” Portia said. “Ash, if you please.”
Chapter55
The roomdimmed and the video screen sprang to life. It was controlled offsite by Ash. She and Ash had coordinated this move.
The time stamp was current and showed a plane landing. The video zoomed in, revealing closeups of the Solveig Consortium headquarters in the background.
On the other side of the table, the Solveigs gasped.
The plane door opened and two Tremaine Security personnel stepped out. They were joined by a third man. He looked worse for wear—his hair was disheveled and his face looked haggard. His hands were clasped in front of him, a jacket draped over them.
Beneath the jacket, his hands were shackled together. Portia, Dizzie, and Taryn had agreed that they couldn’t take any chances. Phillip Tremaine was a slippery bastard.
One of the guards pulled out a phone. Seconds later, her phone rang.
She answered, then put it on speaker. “This is Portia Tremaine.”
“Ms. Tremaine? This is Landry. We’ve just landed at the airport with Mr. Tremaine, but there’s no one here to meet us.”
“I’m working on the transfer as we speak. I’m putting you on hold.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
She pressed the mute button, restricting the conversation to those in the room. “Would you please send someone to pick him up?”
Both Solveigs stared wide-eyed at Portia and Dizzie. Finally, Mr. Solveig picked up his phone. He spoke quickly and angrily in Swedish to whomever answered.
Portia caught the wordTremaine, but that was all she could understand. “Translation, now.” She wasn’t going to let a little thing like a language barrier tank this agreement. Her gaze caught Aleks’s across the room.
Aleks circled the table to stand behind Portia and Dizzie. “He’s demanding that a car with a security team get to the tarmac now. He wants them to prove that it really is Tremaine on the plane.” His fingers brushed her shoulder and she shivered.
“How does he plan to prove it?” she asked.
“Fingerprints, I think. I expect they won’t try DNA until he’s back at headquarters.”
“They have his DNA?”
She felt Aleks’s gaze on her neck.
“Right. Stupid question. He’s their mortal enemy.”
“Exactly.”
