A staff member was called to clean the floor. The meeting resumed.And then it didn't move.Milton reviewed the contract with the pace of a man who had no interest in the contract. He asked questions about clauses that had already been explained, circling back to terms Denise had covered clearly in the first twenty minutes, requiring full answers each time as if he was hearing them for the first time. He requested clarification on figures that were printed plainly on the page in front of him. He suggested minor adjustments, then withdrew them, then raised them again in slightly different language.Denise answered everything. Her voice stayed level and her explanations stayed clear.Milton leaned forward slightly. “Walk me through clause 7.4 again. I want to be sure I understand the liability transfer.”Denise kept her tone professional. “Clause 7.4 states that Synergy Corp assumes responsibility for any delays caused by our side, up to a maximum of fifteen percent of the contract valu

Ava hit the stairwell instead of the elevator and moved fast, her heels striking each step, one hand on the railing, her phone still pressed to her ear. The call connected to the second ring but she couldn't speak yet, not while she was still inside, not while any door on any floor could open and put her back in front of one of Milton's men.She pushed through the ground floor exit and came out into the car park at a fast walk, scanning left and right as she moved. Two of Milton's men were already outside, she could see them from thirty meters away, moving between the parked cars with the purposeful, sweeping attention of people conducting a search rather than people who happened to be in a car park.She turned immediately and moved in the opposite direction, keeping low between the rows, using the bodies of the vehicles as cover. Her car was three rows over and she reached it without being seen, got the key into the lock by touch, and pulled the door open and shut as quietly as the s

Ava pushed the car door open the moment she recognized him crossing the lot and she was out and moving before she had made a conscious decision to move.Logan caught her with both arms, steadying her, his hands checking her over quickly and efficiently the way they did when he needed to confirm something before anything else could happen.“Are you hurt?” His voice was low and direct.“No.” She pulled back just enough to look at his face. “I’m fine. I promise I’m fine.” She grabbed the front of his jacket. “But Denise is still in there, Logan. She’s been in there this whole time and I don’t know what they’ve done to her.” Her voice broke slightly on the last part and she pressed it back down. “We need to call the police. We need to do something right now because those men are not.”“I heard you.” He cupped her face with one hand, his thumb against her cheek, his eyes steady on hers. “I’m going to handle it.”“And Milton Bright, he’s not someone who…..” She stopped. Her eyes had moved p

Milton's head snapped toward it and the two bodyguards still standing moved instinctively, hands reaching, bodies turning. The man holding Denise's arms tightened his grip. The one against the wall with the ice pack straightened.Logan stepped through the doorway.Ava came in behind him and stopped just inside the frame.The room absorbed the new situation in silence for about two seconds. Then Milton's expression moved through surprise and settled into something that looked, on the surface, like amusement."Well." He leaned back in his chair and looked at Ava with a slow, satisfied smile. "You came back." He let his eyes travel over her with deliberate, insulting patience. "I wasn't sure you would."Ava said nothing. She was looking at Denise, at the blood on her face and the way she was being held, and the expression she was wearing was not one Logan had seen from her often.Milton's eyes moved to Logan. The amusement dimmed slightly. "And who is this?"Logan walked into the room wi

Milton's eyes moved around the room.He did it quickly, the scanning sweep of a man running an inventory of his remaining resources and not liking the numbers. The three bodyguards who had been holding Denise were on the floor and were not getting up. The two he had expected to step forward had stepped back instead. His glass was in pieces against the wall.Logan was crouched in front of him, close enough that Milton could see the patience in his eyes, and patience was the wrong thing to be seeing in the eyes of a man in this situation. Anger he could work with rage made people reckless and reckless people made mistakes. But this was not anger. This was something organized and deliberate that had decided how long it was going to take and was in no hurry at all.Milton's gaze moved past Logan's shoulder and found what it was looking for.In the far corner of the room, the bodyguard Denise had kicked in the corridor was still seated against the wall. His trousers were slightly disheve