North America is a secondary market. Here we mostly stick to New York City. I have been to Boston and Chicago, and once to Florida, but that was a vacation.
Miamis a fun town. She was guessing. Shed only ever seen it on television, but it seemed like a good bet.
She kept watch on Quentin, poised to interrupt as soon as she had a chance. Shed decided to downplay her interest in Annabelle tonight. A party girl wouldnt be fixated on a babys welfare. But she was growing impatient. Quentin was getting rapidly drunk, so who was with the baby?
The Keys, Brody said beside her.
What keys? she asked.
The Florida Keys.
Oh. Kate told herself to focus and try to use the conversation productively. Shed track Annabelle down as soon as she could. How long have you known Quentin?
Ive been in LA for a few weeks, Brody replied. But Ive known of him for quite a bit longer.
She leaned casually against a rail that overlooked the sweeping lights of the city, keeping Quentin in her peripheral vision while the breeze blew her newly short hair back from her face. And what do you think of him?
Brody turned to face her. In what sense?
Ive seen the news reports, and I wonder how much of it is true.
He took in her outfit, and she was reminded of her heavy makeup, tight dress and the funky hair. She wasnt exactly comfortable with the impression she must be making, but she had to see this through.
He knows how to have a good time, said Brody.
Kate gave her head a little toss and tried to look like a woman who was very much interested in having a good time. She glanced pointedly around the party, the pretty people, the exotic clothes, the expensive food and liquor. This is definitely a good time.
There was an unfathomable expression in his eyes that could have been sarcasm or resignation. Isnt it just.
The odd reaction made her curious. You must be used to parties in your line of work.
Ive been to parties of all kinds.
Wild ones? she asked, striving to look intrigued and excited at the possibility.
Some. He gave her a warm smile.
Sounds terrific. She half expected him to toss out an invitation, at least a generic one: maybe Ill take you sometime, baby...
Shed refuse of course, politely. She wasnt here looking for dates. She was here for Annabelle and nothing else. But he didnt ask, and she found herself wondering if the purple highlights werent working for her.
Just then Quentin left his conversation partner, and she spotted her opening. She made a quick move toward him, but her heel caught on a concrete seam, and she stumbled, sloshing her champagne.
Brody grasped her elbow, stabilizing her.
Sorry. She quickly apologized for her clumsiness, hoping she hadnt splashed anything on his clothes.
You all right? he asked, still holding on to her.
I tripped.
You were in a pretty big hurry.
I was She hesitated over her words. Im hoping to catch Quentin.
Brody glanced past her. Someone beat you to him.
She turned to see two new women laughing with him. She cursed under her breath.
He was just with your sister. There was censure in Brodys tone, and she looked up to see his gaze had hardened.
Its not that. It was clear from his frown that he didnt believe her. Im not here to make a play for Quentin.
You nearly injured yourself trying to get over there to chat him up.
Not for that.
Listen, its not really any of my business.
Youre right. Its not. But Im going to tell you anyway. Im not romantically interested in Quentin.
She couldnt imagine any circumstance where shed be romantically interested in a man like Quentin Roo.
Brodys gaze took a leisurely tour of her outfit. Good news, Kate. Romance is not at all what youre projecting.
Despite the fact that shed done so on purpose, she was offended by his implication that shed dressed provocatively. Im not after Quentin in any way, shape or form.
Of course youre not.
She didnt care what this Brody person thought. At least she shouldnt care about his opinion. But for some stupid reason, she did care.
It was on the tip of her tongue to explain that this was all about her niece. She was playacting here, making sure Annabelle was going to be okay. But she stopped herself just in time. Instead, she looked up at him and gave her highlighted hair another defiant toss. Im here for a good time.
His eyes reminded her of flints. Arent we all.
* * *
Brody watched the fleet of tiny electronic spaceships blast their way through an asteroid field on the wall-mounted wide screen. The ships changed colors, using different weapons, all jockeying for position while trying to avoid being annihilated by other players.
See that? Right there, said Will Finlay, the head programmer from Shetland Tech. The organics on the planet surface.
All I see are a bunch of things exploding.
Its the way theyre exploding, said Will. Or rather, the way theyve changed the way theyre exploding.
If you say so. Brody wasnt a software engineer, and he wouldnt pretend to come close to Wills technical understanding.
This is the best evidence yet. Ive checked with a few contacts at MIT, and they agree Shetland Tech has been ripped off.
Can we prove it with this? Brody asked.
Will had managed to get his hands on a prototype of the Beast Blue Designs new game, Blue Strata Combat.
Not without the source code, Will said. We can prove theyre using advanced algorithms that trigger object evolution within an AI environment, but we cant prove they stole it from Shetland.
But they did, said Brody.
They did.
If we move now?
Im told that if we make a move based on the evidence we have right now well be tied up in litigation for a few decades. And after that well probably lose.
Brody sat back in the burgundy leather armchair that was positioned in the living area of his hotel suite at the Diamond Pier Towers. Hed been away from home for over a month now, and he was growing impatient.
Back in Scotland, his brother Blane had too much to worry about already. Suffering from the neuromuscular disease Newis Bar Syndrome, Blane tired more easily than most people. But as eldest son, the Viscount and the future Earl of Calder, the responsibilities for the family seat fell to him. Brody had to at least take the money trouble out of the equation.
We need to get inside their facility, Will said. Proving our case still hinges on accessing their resident servers and finding our proprietary code.
We already tried that.
The attempt had been a dismal failure. The technical security was impenetrable, and the server room was on lockdown twenty-four hours a day. The private detective theyd hired to go undercover as a technician was caught trying to gain unauthorized access and was summarily fired.
Do you think Quentin might confess something? Will asked.
To me?
To anybody.
Brody found his thoughts moving to Kate. If he looked like Kate he might be able to get Quentin to spill his darkest secrets. But he didnt look like Kate, and so far Quentin didnt want to talk business with outsiders.
To me?
To anybody.
Brody found his thoughts moving to Kate. If he looked like Kate he might be able to get Quentin to spill his darkest secrets. But he didnt look like Kate, and so far Quentin didnt want to talk business with outsiders.
I need to find an opportunity to search his house, Brody said. If we cant get into their corporate headquarters, Quentins house is the next best bet.
You get caught snooping around? Well, I have to say, those security guys hes hired seem very serious.
Ill be careful.
They have Russian accents.
I know.
Brody had heard rumors about Quentins financial backers, that they had shady backgrounds and even shadier connections to overseas criminal organizations.
I dont see we have any choice, he said.
Theres always a choice, Will said.
You mean I can make the decision to bankrupt my family?
Its better than being shot.
Marginally, Brody said.
Quite frankly, hed rather take a bullet than be responsible for losing the Calder estate. The earldom had been in his family for twenty-two generations. Theyd had ups and downs over the years. The land had been mortgaged before, but the family had always made it back to better times.
Five years ago, their financial position had become particularly precarious, and Brody knew they needed to modernize. His brother Blane, the viscount and eldest son of the earl, wanted to develop tourism infrastructure on the estate, starting with a hotel. But Brody worried about the high investment and slow rate of return that were part of Blanes plan. He knew they needed something faster, so hed convinced his father to buy Wills start-up company and go into high-end gaming technology.
At first, it had worked brilliantly. Theyd paid down their debt and were looking forward to moving into the tourism sector. But then Brody got overconfident. Hed borrowed again, borrowed more, and plowed the money into expanding Shetland Tech, creating a new game that he and Will were sure would revolutionize the industry.
Their logic was solid. So was their research. It should have been a success. It would have been a success. But then Beast Blue Designs had stolen their code and stood a frightening chance of beating them to market.
If Beast Blue succeeded, it would be impossible to recoup Shetland Techs sunk costs, and the company would most certainly go bankrupt. The Calder estate and the castle on the banks of the River Tay would be lost to the family forever.
Im serious, Will said, setting down the controller. You cant mess with those guys.
They already messed with me.
Will uttered an exclamation of disgust. Youre going to get all macho about it?
Im not getting macho. What Im getting is smart. If we cant infiltrate the company, then well come at it from another angle, through Quentin. The man drinks and parties to excess. Hes not as sharp as he should be, and Ive succeeded in becoming his new pal.
Thats because youre pretending to be exciting and likable.
I like to think Im generally both, Brody said with a straight face.
Will flashed a grin. Right. Sure. Lets call you that. But you cant expect to meet Quentin Roos standards.
Im definitely not the life of some parties, Brody said. He had absolutely no desire to be the life of Quentins parties.
His phone buzzed on the low table in front of him.
Will stayed silent while he picked it up.
Blane, he answered warmly. He didnt have any good news for his brother, but he was still glad to hear from him.
Blane coughed into the phone. Hi, Brody.
Brody was immediately concerned. Whats wrong? Are you ill?
Im fine.
Youre sure?
Blane coughed again. Its nothing. Mother has me steaming in the bathroom.
Brody relaxed a little, since he knew that at the first sign of a problem their mother would hover over Blane. He glanced at his watch. Its late there.
Have you signed up to be my nanny?
If youre sick
A tickle in my chest is not sick. Im humoring her. I dont need to humor you.
Okay.
Oliver Masterson came by today.
The information gave Brody pause. Oliver Masterson was the head architect on the familys hotel development project. Oliver shouldnt have much to do at the moment, because it was a long-term plan, with nothing substantive happening for years down the road. Brody thought they were all clear on the timing.
He spoke to his brother in a cautious tone. Were only looking for preliminary drawings right now.
We were. We are, said Blane. He only wanted to see the site. He likes the view of the lake.
Who wouldnt?
The east meadow was one of Brodys favorite spots on the entire three-hundred-acre estate. If hed had his way, theyd have built a house there and turned the castle into a hotel. But his mother wouldnt hear of moving from the familys traditional home.
He wants the building to go higher, said Blane.
Higher than three stories?
I know that puts us into a whole new category of construction. But we need to think of the long term, our childrens children and beyond. The high-end market provides the best return on investment.
Youve been talking to the town council again. A large, five-star hotel on the Calder lands would have spin-off effects to any number of local businesses.
Blane coughed again. You know theyre right.
I understand where youre coming from, Blane.
And you agree with me.
Brody did agree. Like their ancestors before them, they had an obligation to support the surrounding community. He agreed there was growth potential in luxury tourism. The only problem he had was cash flow. They needed significant cash to flow in order to underwrite his brothers dream. Right now, they didnt have it.
Dont sign anything today, he said.
I wont. Are you close? Blane knew only the broad strokes of the problem with Beast Blue Designs. He didnt know how precarious their financial situation had become.
Getting closer, said Brody, knowing he was going to have to make something happen soon or confess to his family the full extent of their problems.
Let me know how it goes. Blanes coughing started again.
I will. Get better.
Blane wheezed out a laugh. Im in good hands.
Brody couldnt help but smile as he set down the phone. Their mother the countess was a force of nature.
Problem? asked Will.
They want to make the hotel bigger.
Let me guess. They accomplish that by spending more money.
I knew you werent just a pretty face. Brody suddenly felt tired and momentarily defeated. Its always about more money. We need to win this thing, Will. And we need to do it soon.
Okay, said Will, squaring his shoulders. Lets hope Quentin is the kind of guy who brings his work home with him. If you can get in front of his home computer, I can tell you what to look for. But dont get caught, and whatever you do dont get shot by the Russian bodyguards.
Brody frowned. I have no intention of getting shot.