Page 154 of Pieces of Her (Andrea Oliver 1)

“Tell me.”

“Everything you said is true. Father’s academic bullshit was jeopardizing our valuation on the Stock Exchange. We were going to lose millions. Our investors wanted him to go, but he was refusing.”

“So you thought the dye packs would do the trick.”

“There’s no trick to this, Jinx. These are very, very wealthy men we’re dealing with. They will be very pissed off if they lose their money because of a spoiled little bitch who can’t keep her mouth shut.”

“I’m going to prison, Jasper.” Hearing the words out loud didn’t scare her as much as she thought they would. “I’m going to tell the FBI everything we did. I don’t care about the collateral damage. The only way to atone for our atrocities is to stand up and tell the truth.”

“Are you really so stupid that you think they can’t kill us in prison?”

“They?”

“The investors.” He looked at her as if she was a stubborn child to be dealt with. “I know too much. It’s not just the fraud. You have no idea what kind of crooked shit Father was doing to inflate the numbers. I won’t make it to lock-up, Jinx. They can’t risk me making a deal to save my ass. They’ll kill me, and then they’ll kill you.”

“They’re wealthy men, not thugs.”

“We are wealthy, Jinx. Look at what Father did to Robert Juneau. Look at what all three of us did to him.” He lowered his voice. “Do you really think we’re the only family in the world that is capable of conspiring to murder our enemies in cold blood?”

He was hovering over her.

Jane stood up to make him back away.

He said, “You will be signing your death warrant if you say one word against them.” He jabbed his finger into her chest. “They’ll chase you down and put a bullet in your head.”

Jane’s hand fluttered to her stomach.

Trade him.

“I’m not fucking around,” Jasper said.

“Do you think I am? It’s not just me I have to think about.”

Jasper glanced down at her stomach. He had figured it out, too. “That’s why you need to carefully consider what you’re doing. They don’t have daycare in prison.”

Trade all of them.

He said, “These men, they’ve got long fucking memories. If you go against them—”

“What time is it?”

“What?”

She turned his hand so she could see his watch: 3:09 a.m. “Is this Chicago time?”

“You know I always change it when I land.”

She dropped his hand. “You need to go home, Jasper. I never want to see you again.”

He looked stunned.

“Live your corrupt life. Fuck over whoever you want. Keep your dangerous men happy, but remember I have those papers, and I can blow up your life, and their lives, anytime I please.”

“Don’t do this.”

“What I do is no longer your business. I don’t need you to save me. I’m saving myself.”

He laughed, then he saw she was serious. “I hope you’re right, Jinx, because if any of your shit blows back on me, I will not hesitate to tell them how to find you. You made your choice.”

“You’re damn right I did,” Jane told him. “And if anybody comes looking for me, I’ll use those papers to make sure you go down right beside me.”

Jane pulled back the privacy curtain. She slid open the glass door.

The cop had already turned around. His hand was on his gun.

She told him, “Tell the FBI they’ve got less than three hours to offer me a deal or there’s going to be a massive explosion in New York City.”