Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 97537 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 488(@200wpm)___ 390(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97537 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 488(@200wpm)___ 390(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
Juno’s throat works. “When?”
“Three months ago,” he says. “She came to my office. She said she’d keep quiet if I came clean to your mother and if I stopped pushing certain contracts.” He gives Etta another look. “It wasn’t just… personal. There were approvals. Nereus. Pass-throughs we use for… things.”
Etta lifts a brow. “You wanted flexibility in procurement. Nereus provides flexibility. It’s not illegal to hire a consultant.”
“It is when you hide it,” Juno bites out.
Bob ignores the jab, focused on telling his version before he loses the chance. “Arby said she was going to do an episode. Not about me by name. About the rot. About the way money moves. And she refused the HOLO-BURST deal. Said it was poison. Said she’d tell Juno to tell listeners to boycott.”
“And?” I press. “You could’ve resigned. You could’ve told Karen the truth. You could’ve stopped.”
He looks small for the first time. “I panicked. Etta introduced me to someone who… handles problems.”
Etta’s face stays blank. “I introduced you to a man who understands how to manage optics,” she says. “Coleman manages optics.”
The name is a hammer in the room.
“We asked for a scare,” Bob says quickly. “On my mother’s grave. We asked for a scare. Make her back off. Put the fear into her. I never said—” He can’t finish it.
“You’re sick,” Juno says, voice flat.
Bob shakes his head hard. “I didn’t know.” He swallows. “They told me it would be a live stunt. Embarrass her. She’d stop.”
“Stop breathing,” Juno says.
He stares at the floor.
Etta opens the leather folder and slides two papers out. “We are off-schedule,” she says. “Mr. Coleman is dealing with fallout from… recent events.” She means Merritt and Devin and doesn’t say their names. “Until he arrives, we will perform triage.”
“Here’s your triage,” I say. “Chloe Huxley knows you grabbed Juno today. She’s on her way.”
Etta’s mouth twitches. “Detective Huxley knows no such thing.”
“You won’t get away with this,” Juno says almost like a shout.
Etta’s eyes flatten. “I liked you better when you colored.”
Juno leans forward despite the zip ties. “You paid Devin through Nereus. You rewarded him for taking a deal you wanted Arby to take. When she refused, you arranged for the Five to silence her.”
“Not exactly,” Etta says. “The sponsor paid through Nereus. I structured the deal. Arby’s refusal created a gap. Filling the gap was not my line item.”
Bob looks sick. “Stop parsing,” he mutters at Etta.
I catch Juno’s eye. She’s scared. She’s also steady. I keep my words for her.
“We’re not dying on this boat,” I tell her.
She nods once. “Okay.”
Etta taps the folder. “We have two problems,” she says. “One: Merritt Voss. Two: Devin Pike. Both were sloppy. One was unfortunate. The other was stupid.” She doesn’t look at Juno when she says unfortunate. That omission is deliberate.
Bob looks at me. “You need to stop. Both of you. You need to stop the podcast episodes. Stop the meetings. Go quiet. We can make this go away—”
“Like you made Arby go away?” Juno says.
He flinches.
Etta holds up a hand. “This is not working. Mr. Finn, you’re in security. You understand leverage.” She meets my gaze. “If you care about her, you will convince her to stop.”
“I care about her,” I say. “That’s why I’m not helping you.”
One of the muscle guys shifts, obviously bored with our convo. The boat rocks as a small wake slaps the hull. I breathe, count the seconds the surge gives me, test the chair legs for play. The aft leg has a millimeter I can work with. The ceramic blade waits under my belt. I need ten seconds and a distraction.
Footsteps echo on the dock. Voices. Etta tilts her head, listening. “He’s here.”
The hatch opens. Stanley Coleman ducks into the cabin like he’s stepping into a meeting he’s already decided the outcome of. Onyx ring. Black watch. Same suit. He smells like money and a store that doesn’t have a sale section.
He assesses in one sweep. Me. Juno. Bob. Etta. The room.
“Quickly,” he says, like we’re wasting his afternoon. “What do they know?”
“Enough,” Etta says.
“Too much,” Bob mutters.
Juno looks him in the eye. “I know you finger-gunned a man like you were in middle school.”
He smiles at that. “I do love an inside joke.”
I speak before Juno says something that earns a backhand. “You’re late. The city’s moving faster than you are.”
He ignores me. He looks at Etta. “Is she recorded?”
“No,” Etta says. “We swept her when we brought her in.”
Coleman steps closer. He studies Juno like a purist studies a forgery. “You look like her,” he says. “Not as loud. Sharper.”
“Untie me,” Juno says. “Say that again.”
He laughs. He turns to Bob. “We told you to keep your home tidy,” he says, irritated. “Now we’re cleaning your kitchen and your street.”
Bob bristles. “I pay you.”
“A discount,” Coleman says. “You pay for discretion. You got greedy.”