“The one that starts with your father locked in one of her cells downstairs?”
Portia pinched the bridge of her nose. “Yes. That one.”
“Hmm.” His tone turned speculative. “What systems do you need to access?”
“Security cameras, surveillance, that kind of thing. Air traffic control access would probably be useful.”
“What?” That one had surprised him.
She held the phone away from her ear. “I said ‘useful.’ Not that I was definitely going to use it.”
“When do you need it?”
Portia stopped in front of Tremaine headquarters. She’d walked again today, needing the distraction from her fight with Aleks. She didn’t want to have this conversation in the lobby. Or really, anywhere inside headquarters.
“Two days from now.”
“You realize this could be a total shitshow.”
“Yep.” She was going to do her damnedest to prevent that.
“I love shitshows! Count me in! I’ll let you know when I’m into their system.”
“Thanks, Ash,” she said, but she was talking to a dead connection.
The pieces were all coming together. Dizzie and Killian would arrange for the plane and coordinate the timing with the Jack. Ash would get them into the system. And Aleks would set the meeting with Solveigs.
Fingers crossed they could make this work.
Chapter50
Portia’snext order of business was dealing with the scientists and their memories. She held back a shudder as she walked past the holding cell where she’d been shot. She couldn’t wait until she didn’t have to come down here anymore.
She smiled at the guards and reassured them that she would be fine. Then she stepped into the scientists’ cell. They were looking more rumpled than the day before and tension was riding high in the room. Were they turning on each other? That would be useful.
“Sleep well, gentlemen?” She didn’t bother sitting this time. She wouldn’t be here that long.
They peered at her with bleary eyes. “Not really,” Vance said.
Good.
She didn’t say that, of course. “Guilty conscience?”
“We didn’t do anything wrong,” Johnson whined.
“I beg to differ,” Portia said. “You took proprietary Tremaine Corporation research and used it for your own gain.” She ignored the whole “drugs are bad” argument with these two. She had to describe the extent of their crimes in terms they would understand. “That’s intellectual property theft, and it’s just the start of your problems.”
“Pfft. Your dad is the one who approved the project.”
Portia studied them and smiled sweetly. “Do you have proof of that?” She doubted it. Surely one of them would have tried to leverage it for a deal if they could prove her father had been involved.
They both blinked and looked away. “No,” Vance muttered.
“That’s what I thought.” She hardened her voice. “Now I need to decide what to do with you. You both know the formula for Vyne and that’s a problem for me. So, I’ve decided that the only way to keep my proprietary research, well, proprietary is to keep you down here. Indefinitely.”
“You can’t do that,” they screeched in near harmony. In the cell next door, the street cookers looked startled.
“Can’t I?” Portia said. “I think you forget who you’re talking to.” Her smile was cold and cruel.
