“Timeline?” he asked.
Mr. Solveig looked at his wife. Whatever unspoken conversation they had ended with her pinched smile and sharp nod. “Sooner is better than later,” he said.
Well, that was no help. Aleks considered his words carefully. “It will take time if you don’t want this traced back to you.”
“I don’t care,” Mrs. Solveig snarled. “They must pay for taking our daughter from us.”
Mr. Solveig placed his hand over hers, a loving gesture Aleks had witnessed countless times before. Tonight was the first time it chilled his blood.
Who were these people? Was the loss of their daughter driving them to these new depths? Or had he just been blinded by gratitude when they gave him a purpose after his dreams had been ripped away?
“I’ve been seen with Portia Tremaine and would be the obvious suspect. St. John and the other investors could link any action to the consortium.” Aleks tried to thread the needle, without outright countering their orders.
Another one of those silent, married-people conversations. “An accident would be better. Our granddaughter will be able to take over more easily,” Mrs. Solveig said.
“But don’t make us wait too long, Aleks. Justice has been egregiously delayed,” her husband added.
“Of course.” Aleks nodded.
“We’re counting on you, Aleks. Don’t let us down.” With that, the screen went dark.
He dropped his phone next to him on the couch and grabbed his head with both hands. Once those words would have filled him with pride. Tonight, they sounded like a threat.
He’d known that his employers had unresolved issues with Phillip Tremaine. Anyone who worked for the Solveig Consortium knew that they held him responsible for their daughter’s death. Aleks knew they wanted revenge—he’d even hinted at it with Portia and St. John. But he’d never suspected that they would want an-eye-for-an-eye revenge.
Aleks had his instructions. His brain had already started working on the problem of eliminating Portia. Imagining the vibrant woman who was slowly coming back to life dead turned his stomach.
There had to be a way to subvert his orders. To find it, he would need to study every possible option. His head already hurt from using that much processing power... and it was only going to get worse.
Aleks lay on his back and closed his eyes, praying that he could find another way.
Chapter15
When her intercom buzzed,Portia was grateful for the interruption. She’d been staring blankly at her computer screen for—she glanced at her watch and blanched when she saw it was almost lunch time. She’d been staring at the screen for almost three hours and she hadn’t gotten a thing done.
She blamed Aleks. No, that wasn’t quite fair. She blamed the Solveig Consortium. They’d sent Aleks to Seattle to cause problems and he’d certainly done his job. She’d left his hotel suite angry and turned on. Running an additional hour hadn’t settled her nerves any and she’d tossed and turned all night. Here she was the next morning, not getting a thing done. At this rate, she’d be handing the company over to them.
She laughed. No, hell would freeze over before that happened.
“Yes?”
“Ms. Tremaine, your, um, your sss—” There was a crackle of sound and her assistant’s voice broke off.
Portia caught the faint murmur of voices on the other end. Lips pursed, she glared at the intercom. “Yes?” she repeated, annoyance coloring her voice.
“Um, Ms. Dizzie is here to see you, Ms. Tremaine.”
Of course she was. Portia dropped her head to her desk. What she wouldn’t give for a day without problems.
“Um, Ms. Tremaine?” Her assistant sounded flustered.
Portia straightened and smiled. It was nice to at least have someone fear her like they used to. God, she was such a bitch.
She swiveled to stare out the windows. It had been cold this morning when she arrived, but at least the sun was shining now. Portia took a moment to center herself. Dealing with Dizzie dredged up a lot of intense emotions. Grief. Anger. A driving need for revenge.
A bitter laugh escaped. That one she had at least mostly dealt with.
Pulling her armor into place, she spoke to her assistant. “Send her in.”
