“We need your help.”
At that, a bubble of laughter rose in Winter and emerged like a bark. “Okay. That’s great.” He shook his head. “If this is one of Claire’s pranks, I’m firing her the instant I get out of this car.”
The woman didn’t laugh. Somehow, something in her expression made Winter’s smile fade. There was an authenticity to her that he couldn’t quite shake.
“You’re Winter Young,” she said.
“Yes. Impressive espionage work.”
“As you’re well aware, you’re one of the most famous superstars in the world, with quite a wide range of fans.” She crossed her arms. “And we are interested in one of those fans.”
Winter crossed his arms. “Is that so?”
“For the last few years, we’ve been tracking the activities of Eli Morrison. Do you know who that is?”
The name sounded vaguely familiar. “Not quite,” Winter said.
“Eli Morrison is one of the world’s richest men,” Sauda explained. “Thanks to his shipping empire, he’s worth thirty-seven billion. The CIA has attempted to arrest him in the past, with little success.”
“I didn’t know shipping things was illegal.”
“Shipping some things is. Like drugs. And people. And weapons.” Her smile looked grimmer. “We prefer to call that trafficking.”
“What the hell does that have to do with me?”
Sauda looked unfazed. “Morrison’s daughter, his only child and the apple of his eye, is turning nineteen soon. Her father is planning amultiday celebration that will—pardon the accuracy of my quote—‘beat the shit out of any birthday party that anyone has ever had.’” She nodded at him. “And she’s your biggest fan.”
Winter felt a weight drop in his chest. “I get that a lot,” he muttered.
“I think this one might actually mean it,” she said. “In about eight hours, Morrison’s people are going to be reaching out to you and your manager. They are going to offer to hire you to put on a private concert for the celebration.”
Performing for the daughter of a criminal tycoon. Well, this was new. “Where?” he asked. His throat felt dry. “When?”
“In a month,” she explained, “in London. He is having ten thousand guests flown in, all on a fleet of private planes.”
“Holy shit.”
“I told you it was a big party.” She shrugged. “Security for the week, as you can imagine, will be extremely tight.”
He looked back and forth between her and Niall. “You want me as your in?”
“We want you as our in,” she confirmed. “You would attend this week of exclusive events.”
“In order to do what?”
“To help us get a crucial piece of evidence that we need to arrest Eli Morrison.”
Winter raised an eyebrow at her. “Is that all?”
She smiled a little. “You won’t just be any guest, Winter—you’ll be the personal invite of Eli Morrison’s daughter, the most precious person in the world to him. You’ll likely be seated beside her and her father at dinner every night and invited to every private party after the main events. That kind of opportunity doesn’t come around every day.”
Winter leaned back against the seat. “No, thanks,” he said.
The woman narrowed her eyes at him. “Mr. Young, I am asking you to think this through.”
“Iamthinking it through, and now I have finished thinking it through. The answer is still no.”
“Mr. Young—”
