“Fournier’s right-hand man, and his… let’s say ‘enforcer.’” His head tilts. “But you know that already, don’t you?”
“He’sa murderer.”
Alex smiles. “Can you prove it?”
I hesitate. “I suppose not, officially. But within my heart, with what I know… I believe itstrongly.”
“That’s good enough for me,” he says.
It means everything to hear those words from him.
My head feels heavy, and my mind isn’t as fast as it usually is, but there are still things I want to know.
“This flight… this jet. The bags. You had it ready, didn’t you?”
“I did.”
“So what happened? Why tonight? Why the coincidence of timing?”
He smiles again, like he’s proud of me. And that’s Alex: possessive and proprietary, flaws and merits both.
“How have you been getting on investigating that construction company?”
His segue takes me by surprise, and in my weakened state, I’m not fast enough to hide my reaction. But then I realize I don’t need to; somehow, he already knows.
“I’m not. I wasn’t. It was…”
“…A lie,” he finishes for me, and ‘that’s a spanking’ hangs in the air from his tone alone.
It makes me shiver, and not in a bad way.
And crap. He didn’t even say it; it’s all on me for thinking it.
Oh, whatever. I can’t worry about that right now. I’ll wait until he… ties me up again.
It takes a moment to refocus, but Alex is patient. “I’m sorry. You… caught me off guard when you asked me what I was investigating.”
“And were you investigating Northbridge?”
“Not really, no.”
“Van Wyk?”
“Yes, I was. A client asked me to look into Amelia.”
He nods. “He had an alert on the divorce docket. At least, I assume that’s what ‘Van Wyk v. Van Wyk’ referred to.” He tilts his head. “He’s divorcing Amelia?”
“It was Juliette, his late wife,” I say bitterly. “The one that killed herself four months after that divorce was discontinued. By stabbing herself in the throat.”
“Ah.” Alex takes that with characteristic calm, but I know he’s joined the same dots I have.
And then his words sink in. “Wait… an alert?”
“Yes. He knew you were digging into him.” Alex shifts in his seat. “I was asked to ensure you didn’t… uh…”
“Go too far?” My anger rises. “Disclose anything important? Find out anythingawkwardthat Van Wyk didn’t wantaired? Like a murder?” I take my hand back from his. “You werespyingon me?”
Alex raises the hand I just freed, trying to placate me. “I was already thinking of leaving before then. You mean more to me than the Company ever did.”
