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Avery hesitated, her mind reeling. The sound of the string quartet was getting louder, the music swelling to a crescendo that made her head throb. She wanted to believe him, but she knew her judgment was clouded. She needed time to think, to figure out what to do next.
Time to decide whether Ryan was telling the truth or not.
“I’m glad you want to fix this mess,” she said, her voice neutral. “I’ll get back to you.”
She turned to leave, but Ryan grabbed her arm again, his grip like a vise. “Hurry,” he said, his voice cracking with desperation. “If we don’t take Stenberg down soon, I’m as good as dead.”
Like those mechanics? And the bookkeeper? She bit her tongue. No point in antagonizing him when she was defenseless.
He pulled out a phone, fingers shaking as he texted. “I just sent you a text. It’s a burner phone. Call me anytime,” Ryan said, his eyes boring into hers. “But make it soon.”
“Sure.” Maybe. She pushed past him. The click of her heels on the marble floor echoed through the hallway, a sharp staccato that seemed to mock her with every step.
She had no idea what to do next, but one thing was for sure: she needed to find Mason. If Ryan was telling the truth, they’d have Rain Bay shut down in a matter of hours.
And if he was lying? Then all bets were off.
36
“Take the little green one,”Tai urged Mason as he proffered the tray of hors d’oeuvres.
Mason wrinkled his nose, but complied. Thai shrimp on stale crostini with a pesto smear. He wasn’t much of a fusion cuisine fan. The decidedly average tidbit didn’t change his mind. “Meh,” he said to Tai’s back as his friend walked away.
He scanned the ballroom. If Avery didn’t return in the next thirty seconds, he was heading after her.
But just then, she appeared at the top of the stairs. She was a vision in that stunning green dress, the fabric clinging to her curves like a second skin. But as she got closer, he noticed the paleness of her face, the troubled look in her eyes. Someone had put that look there. Whoever it was needed a serious butt-kicking.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, his voice low and gruff as she reached him.
Avery shook her head, her hands trembling slightly as she grabbed his arm. “Ryan. He’s dirty. Working with Stenberg. He’s terrified. Says he wants to help us take Rain Bay down.”
Rage surged through him, hot and fierce. He should have known.
“Where is he?” he growled, his hands clenching into fists at his sides.
“No, Mason, wait,” Avery said, her grip on his arm tightening. “We can’t just grab him. We need to think this through.”
“Yeah, we can.”
“She’s right,” Paige’s voice crackled over the comlink in his ear. “We need the charges to stick. We need to be smart about this.”
Mason gritted his teeth, the muscles in his jaw working as he tried to rein in his anger. They were right.
“Fine,” he said, his voice tight with barely contained fury. “But I want everything on Goshiro. Every dirty little secret.”
“Already on it,” Paige said, her fingers flying over her laptop’s keyboard.
Just then, a voice came over the loudspeaker, announcing the auction winners.
“The winning bid for the Lightner landscape goes to … Mr. Mason Ortiz, for the sum of thirty thousand dollars!”
Mason blinked, his mind taking a moment to process what he’d just heard. He’d won the auction? For a painting he didn’t even want? Thirty thousand to impress a lady he’d never see again in a couple days.
“Well, look at that,” Tai said, his voice dripping with sarcasm over the comlink. “Our Mason’s an art collector. Who knew?”
“Shut up, Tai,” Mason grumbled, his face heating with embarrassment. “It was for the mission. I had to bid on something to blend in.”
“Sure, sure,” Tai said, his voice still teasing. “Whatever you say, Picasso.”