“So, is this going to be another meeting where everyone has some top secret for-sure plan that’s going to finally end with Dad in prison?” Parker asked. “But then nothing ever gets done?”
“No,” Crawford sneered, sprawling on one of the chairs. “Because I’m here now, and this is the meeting where I give all of you an ultimatum that your plans better come to fruition within the next two weeks, or I’m calling up all of my people at my security firm, and we’re going to go clear out some roach nests.”
“I have carefully laid plans,” Garrett said in shock. “You can’t just come in here and stomp all over that.”
Crawford worked his jaw then spat, “Two weeks. Put up or shut up.”
“What plan did you honestly have, Garrett?” Mace demanded. “You’ve been saying for years that you have something in the works.”
Garrett smiled at him. “As it so happens, I just had the last bit of evidence come in from my secret weapon. It should be enough to get an FBI agent interested, I would think.”
“What did you do, send a robot out to Wyoming?” Crawford cut in. “How do you know our father didn’t see right through your plan?”
“Because I know his greatest weakness,” Garrett said triumphantly.
We all looked at him.
“It’s obvious. He likes women, specifically tall blond-haired ones. I just had to find the right candidate, send her to Wyoming, and out she comes with evidence.”
“That’s not enough to secure a warrant,” I countered, my mind spinning. “You and Blade are going after data or hard drives, and no prosecutor will be able to send him to jail for that, let alone convince a judge to grant them a warrant to retrieve whatever information you find.”
“We just need enough to helpfully point the FBI in the right direction. But first, I need to analyze whatever data your spy brought back, Garrett,” Blade said excitedly.
“We can use that algorithm we were developing for the defense department on it,” he told Weston. “I just need a bit of time to analyze it.”
“You have two weeks,” Crawford repeated.
“Did your spy say anything about our sisters?” Mace asked.
“She said she saw two small ones, but by my calculations, there should have been more.”
“I’ll take whoever I can get,” Crawford muttered.
Greg was looking between all of us. “Who was she?” he asked suddenly.
Garrett blinked at him.
“Who is your spy?”
“That’s my business.”
“I swear to God, Garrett,” Greg, said, his voice barely above a whisper.
I liked to give my half brother a hard time, but there was a reason Crawford had stayed away from Manhattan. Greg was mean on a good day. And when he felt you had crossed him, he could be downright evil.
“It was Belle, wasn’t it.” His voice was perfectly steady and dead quiet. It was unnerving.
“That’s not—”
“Wasn’t it.”
“I didn’t blackmail her or anything,” Garrett said loftily. “I simply proposed, and she accepted.”
“Stay away from her,” Greg said. His eyes were flecks of flint. I glanced warily between him and Garrett.
“You don’t control her, and in fact, you acted like an asshole to her.” Garrett stared down Greg. “Whereas I respect her.”
“You could have gotten her killed!” Greg finally shouted.
