Page 111 of Storm Warning

“Yes, sir.”

“Anything else besides the deep searches of Aldana, Garcia, and Mendoza?”

She remained silent for a couple of beats. “Have you ever dealt with betrayal on a personal level?”

“Yeah, Riley, I have. It was tough to work past the betrayal.”

“How did you put it behind you?”

“I had a few sessions with Marcus Lang.”

“That’s all you did to cope?”

“That, and I made a character in my video game who had Brent’s characteristics and did all kinds of hideous things to his character. Killing him over and over was quite satisfying.”

Stunned, Riley remained speechless for a moment. “Brent Maddox betrayed you?”

“It’s a long story, Riley. You and Andre come to dinner when this mission is over, and I’ll tell you about it.”

“Deal.”

“Think about calling Marcus. He’s a good man to talk to.”

“I will. Thanks, Zane.” When she ended the call, Riley shook her head. She couldn’t imagine a situation ending with that much enmity between Brent and his right-hand man. No wonderZane killed Brent’s created character over and over in a video game.

She smiled. Maybe she should ask Z to create characters like Berkley and Cowan so she could kill them off, too.

As Riley pivoted to return to the suite, Andre stepped onto the balcony.

“Are you okay?”

She nodded. “I asked Zane to contact Veronica. I need to talk to her again.”

“Why?”

“She might have a source who knows where Obsidian Storm’s lab is located.”

“Good idea.” He held out his hand and drew her into his embrace. “Are you sure you’re all right?”

“Why?”

“You seem upset.”

Once again, Andre’s ability to really see her came to the forefront. “I’ll never be able to keep secrets from you, will I?”

“Do you want to?”

“It might be nice when I want to throw you a surprise birthday party.”

He chuckled. “In that case, you can tell me not to ask questions, but you’re fine.”

Riley narrowed her eyes. “If that’s the only reason I can decline to answer, you still won’t be surprised.”

Andre shrugged. “I’m not a big fan of surprises. In our business, surprises bite you when you least expect it.”

Well, she couldn’t fault him there. She wasn’t a fan of surprises either.

“Come on.” Andre turned her toward the French doors. “Seth is giving me The Look.” They returned to the suite.