“That should be part of our play,” Xavier says, his eyes lighting up.
Sawyer nods. “We can set it up so that the tapes are revealed just after the vote goes against your father,” he says, and I can almost see the wheels turning in his head. “We can make it look like it was your father’s ‘insurance’ in case the vote went against him.”
“That is fucking perfect!” Excitement bubbles up my throat. “Because that’s exactly his M.O. No one would stop to question that it wasn’t his work.” Every nerve ending in my body is heightened, and I wish we could fucking get to work right now. I’m itching to set this in motion.
“It’s a good plan,” Kai agrees. “But it all hinges on finding those recordings. Do you know where he keeps them?” Kai looks at Drew. “Because this won’t work if they are as well-hidden as the evidence your mom found.”
“I know where they are,” Drew says, his face turning to stone. “They are in the vault in the dungeon. He likes to bring his victims in there and watch the blood drain from their face as he shows them the footage on a big screen.”
“I love it when a plan comes together.” Xavier rubs his hands with glee. “Why didn’t you think of this before?” he questions Drew.
“There were a few reasons. One, the vault is protected by a top of the line security system and armed bodyguards. It’s virtually impenetrable. Two, I have no clue where he keeps the backup files, assuming he duplicates them, but as Abby has outlined, that’s no longer a concern. And three,” he looks pointedly at me. “I was focusing on another angle.”
“Manning Motors?”
Looking at the floor, he bobs his head.
“Well, that one is pretty easy to lock up tight now we both have access to our shares when we turn eighteen,” I say.
He lifts his chin, nodding. “I’ll get working on that straightaway. I’ll set up secret meetings with the board members, beginning with those I can trust not to run to Father. I’ve already built up good relationships with most of them. And I know a few of them regard you highly after your internship that summer, but to most, you’re an unknown, and that might make a few of them nervous. We need to present a strong case, Abby, if we are to get them to support our position and vote the bastard off the board.”
“I’m sure we can present an attractive proposition, and if not, I’ll find dirt we can use to blackmail them.”
Jackson chuckles, and Drew arches a brow. I sigh. “I know, D. And it’s not the way I want to play it, but this is war, and it means we need to use whatever tactics are in our arsenal. I don’t like playing dirty, but if we have to, I’m not going to lose sleep over it. The objective is to stop that bastard, and that’s all that counts.”
“I know we need to be smarter than him. I just hate seeing you with your hands dirty.”
“We all know who Abby is,” Kai says, winding his fingers through my hair. “And while it’s not what I want for her either, the means will justify the end.”
“Thanks, baby.” I press my lips to his, hoping he still feels this way when he discovers exactly what I’m going to have to do to pull this off. “The other area we need to investigate is his background. Father’s kept that hidden for a reason.”
“Xavier and I have already started digging, but the records have been buried,” Sawyer confirms.
“Not that that will stop us,” Xavier says, biting heartily into a green apple. Little bits of juice spray around his mouth, and Sawyer looks at him like he wants to grab his face and dunk it into a sink full of water. “Batman and Robin are on the case,” he adds, winking at me. “Have faith.”
“I better be fucking Batman in that equation,” Sawyer deadpans, glaring at Xavier for even bringing it up.
“There’s only one Batman in this equation, and it’snotyou.” Xavier grins before taking a massive chunk out of his apple. “I’ve got the leather getup to prove it,” he adds, winking. “But don’t worry,” he mumbles while he chews, “I’ll buy you some leggings.” He flicks his eyes up and down Sawyer’s legs, smirking as he savagely bites into his apple, spraying more juice over his face.
“Do you have to be so messy?” Sawyer looks personally insulted.
“Messy is good, dude.” Xavier tosses the apple core into the trash can by Kai’s bed. His tongue darts out, playing with his lip ring. “And I like to get messy.” His eyes stick to Sawyer’s. “A lot.”
Jackson chuckles, and Sawyer glares at him. “Quit flirting,” he hisses at Xavier. “And save your innuendos because they’re fucking wasted on me.”
“I’ve no clue what you’re talking about,” Xavier says. “I was only discussing my eating habits. What were you referencing?”
Drew rolls his eyes. “Enough. We have a lot to discuss, and Abby can’t stay out all night.”
I hate that he’s right, and I’ve no clue how I’m going to wrench myself away from Kai when it’s time to leave. “We’re going to need more hands on deck, because we’ve a lot to do between now and the vote. I’m going to meet Chad and get him to reconvene the group I used to unearth the secrets on the students at school.” I turn my head to Drew. “Can you compile a list of members Father is blackmailing and a list of board members too?”
“The board is fine, but I don’t know all the names of the elite Father is blackmailing. I suspect he’s been doing it for years, but he’s only let me sit in on sessions this past year as I’ve been training to take over more responsibility.”
“We don’t need to knowallthe names. We just need some to work with so the team can start digging into their backgrounds. If Father has been doing this for years, the list is probably too long to approach every single person anyway. And we might not be able to get at that many tapes, so we need to find a few juicy candidates and target them.”
Kai rubs his hand up and down my arm, and delicious tingles skate across my skin.
“If we can find the most powerful elite among that bunch and approach them, they should be able to get the others on our side. You said most of them don’t know the blackmail is large scale because they are too embarrassed or terrorized to discuss it?” I ask, and Drew nods. “So, we make it known he is doing this to more than just them. There is strength in numbers. We need to get them to rally against him to stop the vote.”
