“Lior.”
“Pierce, can you come to my office? Now?”
“Be there in a minute.”
The line goes dead, leaving me staring at my phone. I straighten automatically as I prepare for whatever crisis awaits… When I glance up, Thatcher is watching me with concern clear across his features.
I put my suit jacket on and leave the office. My eyes meet Thatcher’s as I walk past his desk, and he gives me a quick smile.
Ignoring the urge to kiss him, I keep moving my feet.
Lior’s office feels different today, like it’s charged with the kind of tension that comes before a major corporate battle.He’s standing at his window when I enter, but there’s nothing relaxed about his posture.
“Close the door,” he says without turning around.
I do, then take my usual seat. “How did it go?”
“Perfectly.” Lior turns, and his smile has a sharp edge I recognize from our college days when he was about to demolish someone in a debate. “The leak is Richard Thornton.”
I run my hands through my hair. “It makes sense. He pushed the contract with Dellcourt a little too hard.”
“That bastard. He’s been questioning your decisions in every board meeting, undermining confidence…”
“He’s been setting me up to take the fall when the partnerships collapse,” I say. “James gets what he wants, Thornton gets a position in the merged company, and I’m the scapegoat who let it all happen.”
Lior nods. “It could have worked, but he took the bait. Security footage shows him in your office at seven forty-seven p.m. on Friday, going through the documents we left in your unlocked drawer.”
“He waited for the day when a lot of people leave early. The office would have been empty then, but it wasn’t late enough to arouse suspicion about him still being around.”
“Precisely.”
Relief floods through me, followed immediately by anticipation. “So now we wait for James to make his move.”
“We won’t have to wait long. If I know your brother, he’ll?—”
The phone on Lior’s desk buzzes. Tina’s voice comes through the intercom. “Mr. Van Stern? James Dellcourt is on line one. Says it’s urgent.”
Lior and I exchange a look. “Right on schedule,” hemurmurs, then speaks toward the intercom. “Put him through, Tina.”
I settle back in my chair, staying silent. James can’t know I’m here.
“James,” Lior says, his voice perfectly neutral as he activates the speaker. “What can I do for you?”
“Lior, I’m glad I caught you.” James’s voice fills the room, carrying that particular tone of false concern I know too well. “I’ve been reviewing some market analysis, and I’m worried about VSE’s position.”
“Oh?” Lior leans back in his chair, the picture of casual interest.
“Cash-flow projections, debt-to-equity ratios…some concerning trends.” James pauses for effect. “I think we need to accelerate our merger discussions. VSE needs a stronger financial partner now more than ever.”
I have to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from reacting. The fake documents are working exactly as intended.
“That’s quite a leap, James,” Lior says mildly. “VSE’s financials are solid.”
“Are they?” James’s voice carries false sympathy now. “Because the information I’m seeing suggests otherwise. Look, I don’t want to embarrass you, but if VSE is struggling, Dellcourt can help. We can structure this merger to look like a partnership rather than… Well, rather than what it actually is.”
The condescension in his voice makes my hands clench into fists. Lior notices, raising a calming hand in my direction.
“What are you proposing?” Lior asks.
