“I see you’ve reviewed Anneliese’s work, but I don’t see our contract.”
“You won’t, and you know why, Gunter.”
His right eye twitches when I address him by his first name since he used an honorific and my last name. He’s probably thinking I’m a presumptuous little fuck.
“Please explain since I want to be certain I understand.”
I point to the camera on the wall beside the projection screen. It looks like it’s the switch to raise and lower the screen, but I’ve installed enough cameras to know what I see. I cock my left eyebrow as I stare at Gunter. Anneliese shifts next to me. I want to look at her, but I can’t. I have to maintain my focus on her father.
“Jorge, does your uncle know your decision?”
I flash a smile that makes him narrow his eyes even more at me. They’re practically slits now.
“TíoMatáis is in Tokyo. He woke me to tell me what happened. Neither he nor I enjoyed wakingTíoEnrique to bring him up to speed. Both of my uncles agreed without hesitation when I told them we’re withdrawing from the deal.”
Fuck him for treating me like a kid who ran to tattle.
This isn’t an “I’m taking my toys and going home” move.
This is “there’s not a fucking chance in hell we’ll do business with a company engaged in corporate espionage.” At least not a company that isn’t engaging in it on our behalf.
“You may not get Heidemann BioTech, but you can still invest in Heidemann Labs. Kutsenko Partners no longer owns either, so they won’t be an impediment.”
The VP of Development looks entirely too hopeful as he speaks to me from across the table. I can’t even remember the man’s name, but he looks at me like a beagle hoping I’ll take him for a walk around the block.
“We’re no longer interested.”Please take us off the list.
I feel like I’m speaking to a telemarketer. We’ve gone off script, and he doesn’t know what to do short of begging to close the deal.
“I seriously hope you will reconsider this decision since we can continue just as originally planned.”
Gunter doesn’t sound desperate, but I recognize the look in his eyes. I’ve seen it on hundreds of men. I don’t exaggerate. Between photos from the past, interviews—if you will—I’ve conducted on my own, and the general appearance so many men have when they see or hear aboutLos Diazanywhere in the world, I know what desperation looks like.
I cock an eyebrow rather than respond with words. Anneliese shifts next to me, and I swing my gaze toward her.
“Mr. Diaz, we will investigate what happened. We take the integrity of our firm seriously. We do not condone any breaches in our security.”
As I watch her, her forthright gaze tempts me to believe she’s innocent. As much as I want to look back at her father to see his reaction, I keep her pinned in place, assessing her body language as I continue to observe her. She doesn’t flinch or withdraw. She doesn’t become defensive. She remains assertive. Finally, I look away and refocus on Gunter. It wouldn’t surprise me in the least if he’s the leak. I skim my gaze over the other three executives in the conference room with us.
“I’ll be in touch.”
That’s as much as I offer before walking out, dismissing them just like I did yesterday. I make my way directly to the town car waiting for me. As soon as I’ve given my driver instructions to take me back to the hotel, I slip inside. Since the privacy glass is up, I once again search the vehicle for any bugs. This isn’t one of our private vehicles in our fleet back home. When I’m certain no one can listen, I callTíoEnrique andTíoMatáis.
“What did you discover?”
TíoMatáis is usually pretty easygoing, but he’s pissed this deal blew up. He rarely lets things bother him except for business. Anyone who stands in his way or fucks around withour family soon finds out just how unforgiving he is. Just because he works in an office now doesn’t mean he has any less training than the rest of us.
He earned his position as one ofTíoEnrique’s most trusted advisors when they were still in college. That’s when he metTíaCatalina. His family has been connected to mine in Colombia for a few generations. He grew up in a Cartel family, but no one else in his family ever became part of thejefe’smost inner circle.
It was his business acumen and his propensity to be overprotective ofTíaCatalina that caught my abuelo’s attention. While they were only dating, he made sure some men who went to university with mytíaunderstood how untouchable she was—is. It proved how much mytíameant to him. It was the first step to him gaining my family’s trust.
OnceTíoEnrique andTíoLuis spent more time with him, they realized he’s an asset to our family. They also discoveredTíoMatáis’s father trained him to be ruthless. While he doesn’t go on missions with us often, he does when he has to. He never has to be asked twice.
“Jorge, who else is available to us?”
I knowTíoMatáis means what other investment firms could we work with. I rattle off a list of five other names. They’re companies in Berlin, Zurich, and Geneva. There are plenty here in Frankfurt I can check too. We want to expand our holdings anyway and make more legal inroads here in Europe.
“Since I’m already over here, it would be easy for me to meet with any of them,Tío. Do we continue to target the Kutsenkos, or do we find businesses that are unaffiliated?”
