“Where else? He thinks he has leverage over you. He thinks you’re trapped and desperate and willing to betray us to save yourself.” Donovan’s voice is flat. “He’s wrong, and he’s about to learn exactly how wrong.”
“When?” My voice comes out smaller than I intended.
“Tomorrow. We need to move quickly before he realizes you’re not responding on your own.” Grant pulls out my phone, which they’ve apparently been monitoring. “You’re going to tell him you have what he needs, but you’re scared to meet at the main resort again. You’ll suggest somewhere more private. Somewhere on the estate.”
“And then what happens?”
“Then we handle it.” Grant’s tone makes it clear that “handle it” means something final and irreversible. “But we need you to make that call. He won’t believe it coming from anyone else.”
I look at Kai, who nods slightly. “Trust them,” he says quietly. “Let them protect you.”
I take the phone from Grant with shaking hands. “What exactly do I say?”
Grant and Donovan spend the next twenty minutes coaching me through the message, crafting something that sounds desperate and genuine without being obvious. When we’re satisfied, I hit send and watch the message disappear into the digital void.
Robert responds within minutes.Tomorrow at 2 PM. Send me the location.
“He took the bait,” Donovan says, reading over my shoulder.
“Of course he did.” Grant pockets my phone. “He’s greedy and overconfident. He thinks he’s already won.”
“What’s going to happen to him?” I ask, not sure I want the answer.
Grant looks at me with eyes that have gone completely cold. “Justice.”
37
GRANT
It’s Tuesday afternoon,and I’m standing in the private meeting room of my lodge watching snow fall outside the window.
Samantha made the call to Robert on Saturday. He confirmed he’d be here today at two o’clock, and according to the text I just received from security, he’s walking from his resort suite to the checkpoint right now.
“He’s on his way,” I tell Donovan, who’s arranging documents on the conference table with the kind of precision that means he’s ready to tear someone apart.
Samantha sits in the leather chair closest to the fireplace, hands folded in her lap. She’s wearing a burgundy sweater and dark jeans, hair pulled back, and she looks calmer than she did this morning when she barely touched her breakfast.
“You can still leave,” I tell her. “You don’t have to watch this.”
“I’m staying.” Her voice is steady. “He lied to me for years. Used my mother’s memory as a weapon. I need to see his face when you destroy him.”
I move to the table and dial Kai’s number on my phone. He answers immediately, propped up against pillows in the medical wing with color finally returning to his face.
“About time,” he says. “I’ve been waiting all morning.”
“Doctor says you need rest,” I remind him.
“I’ll rest when Robert’s gone.” He shifts against the pillows. “Is he there yet?”
“Security’s checking him in now.” I prop the phone against a stack of files on the table, angling it so Kai has a clear view of the room. “You’ll see everything.”
My phone buzzes with another text from security. Robert cleared the checkpoint and is being escorted to the lodge by Marcus, one of my most trusted staff members. They’ll be here in five minutes.
I move back to the window and watch the path that leads from the main resort building to the private lodge. It’s barely a quarter mile, winding through snow-covered pines and past the heated outdoor pool that’s steaming in the cold air. Through the trees, I see two figures approaching. Marcus, in his dark security uniform, and Robert, in an expensive charcoal suit, carrying a leather briefcase.
Robert’s walking with confidence, chin up, shoulders back. He thinks he’s about to get exactly what he wants.
He has no idea what’s waiting for him inside this room.
