“Mr. Prince. Mr. Cornwell. Mr. Franklin is expecting you. Right this way.”
The receptionist led us to a conference room and as soon as I walked in, I almost left. I’d dealt with Franklin more than once. He was a true snake in the grass. I’d gone to college with him. Where he’d headed to law school, I’d chosen obtaining a master’s in business administration and marketing.
We’d once been close, almost like brothers.
No longer.
There was no such thing as a friendship in business and war. Something my father had instilled in me.
“Greg. I heard you were brought on board.” I threw out my arm for a handshake.
He seemed genuinely surprised at my reaction, hesitating before accepting the gesture. “Sin. Good to see you. Yeah, I got a call in the middle of the night, the Johnsons asking for help. Who was I to say no?”
“Of course not. We all need to make money plus things often change with the flip of a coin.” I unbuttoned my jacket, getting in the groove.
With a smile on my face, I shoved a hand into my pocket. There was no doubt by the expression on his face he noticed the outline of my shoulder holster.
“Very true,” he said cautiously. “Mr. Cornwell. Good to see you as well. Why don’t you gentlemen take a seat?”
“Actually, I thought it courteous to go ahead and come by since Jacques and I are headed to another meeting. We finally found the perfect piece of property for our project. I hate to do it, but we’re going to need to retract our offer. I know it’s last minute, but I wanted to stop you before any contracts were put together. I certainly don’t appreciate anyone wasting my time or playing me, so I thought I’d at least extend the courtesy in person. Now, I could be wrong, but Jacques mentioned the Johnsons might have another party interested?”
I threw the ball in his court. He would fuck himself if he threatened to sue.
The man was more uncomfortable than I’d seen him, uncertain what the hell to say. Which told me everything I needed to know.
He’d played his hand and lost whereas I’d yet to even turn my cards over. At least he was slick enough to recover.
But not before I noticed the nervous tic. Pressure had been placed on him. I doubted by the Johnsons. Granted, the older couple were close to being nothing but card sharks, but they were smart enough not to roll out a plan of attack on myself and my family.
No one did unless they had a death wish.
“Yes, they did receive a counteroffer.”
“Well then,” I said with as much joy as I could put into my tone as I clapped him on the arm. “Everything happens for a reason. Give me a call at the office sometime. Maybe we’ll grab a drink.”
“Sure. Why not?”
I’d left him dazed and confused. I buttoned my jacket before walking out, proud of what I’d been able to accomplish.
They’d been certain Greg could play me. Now it was left up to me to figure out why and how.
“Well, that was something,” Jacques said as soon as the elevator doors were closed.
“Just doing my job.” The entire situation stunk to high heaven. I was being played for a fool. That didn’t bode well with my personality. But I would bide my time. Cockroaches slithered out at night.
“As only you can do. Your father would be proud.”
My father. The patriarch of the family. He’d followed in his father’s footsteps, who’d done the same before. A long line of powerful man who’d refused to bow down to anyone. Men who’d taken ideas and brutality, mixing them with their strong leadership abilities to provide a legacy for those in the Prince family for generations to come.
Every one of them had been murdered before they could entire retirement, their younger brothers as well.
I leaned against the elevator wall, allowing thoughts of my father into my mind. I hadn’t done so since his funeral, the gothicceremony straight out of some New Orleans rulebook regarding funerals.
Because some members of our family believed in the afterlife.
Not me.
When your time was up, it was up. Period.
