A payout? Apparently Cordie hadn’t convinced Simone she wasn’t here to blackmail her. Of course Simone would think she wanted money. That was all she cared about. Cordie’s answer was emphatic. “No.”
“You came here to make trouble, didn’t you? To stir it all up. We can’t let you do that.”
“We?”
“I’ve got a message for you.”
“Who is the message from?” she asked, wondering if he would tell her.
“You don’t know what you’re getting into.”
“What’s the message?”
“Keep your mouth shut. If you tell anyone, if you even suggest . . .”
“Yes . . . ?” She deliberately drew out the word to irritate him.
“I’ll feed you to the crocodiles. I’ll put a bullet in the back of your head.”
“Which is it?” she asked. “Feed me to the crocodiles or put a bullet in my head? Make up your mind.” She slammed the phone down. When she turned around, she was shocked to see Aiden standing behind her. “What are you? A ninja? How long have you been standing there?”
He didn’t think the question needed an answer. “Who was on the phone? Who the—” He stopped himself before he said a foul word. “Who was threatening you?”
“I—”
The phone rang again. “Don’t answer it. I’ll get it.” He frowned at Cordie while he listened to the caller. “No, we’re both awake. Come on up.”
Come on up? The second he ended the call she demanded to know who was visiting at this hour.
“Liam.”
“Oh God. I’m naked, Aiden.”
“No, you’re wearing a robe,” he replied. “But yeah, you should probably put on some clothes.” He was talking to air. Cordie had disappeared into her bedroom and shut the door.
“Who was on the damn phone?” he shouted through the door as he put on his T-shirt.
The bell sounded for the elevator. The door opened and Liam walked into the foyer.
Aiden greeted him with a question. “Did you go into the security room and look at the footage?”
“Yes,” he answered. “I listened to the audio, too.” He added, shaking his head, “They really thought they could drag her from the hotel.”
Cordie rushed out to join them. She’d put on jeans and a white blouse. She hadn’t taken the time to tuck it in, and she hadn’t bothered with shoes either. A quick brush through her hair had taken out the tangles. Aiden tried not to react. Every time he looked at her, she became more beautiful. Her face was flushed, and he thought he could see some slight scratches on her neck from his day’s growth of whiskers. For some inexplicable reason, he liked that.
“Hello, Liam,” Cordie said. She felt the color warming her cheeks and wondered if Liam could see what she was thinking or could tell what she and Aiden had been doing just minutes before. She was relieved when he didn’t seem to detect her embarrassment. He greeted her with a wide grin and a big hug.
Aiden felt a surge of possessiveness and thought it might be fun to throw Liam down the elevator shaft. It was crazy, his reaction. What was wrong with him? Fortunately, he was a master at keeping his emotions hidden. He’d done it most of his life.
“You’ve said hello. Now let go of her.”
“Would you like something to drink?” Cordie offered, stepping back.
“I could use a beer. I’ll get it,” Liam said, and headed to the bar.
Cordie was about to sit on the sofa when she noticed her black camisole. Mortified, she grabbed it and stuffed it behind the cushion a second before Liam sat down across from her.
Aiden stood over Cordie as he explained to Liam, “Someone called and threatened to kill her.”
“Not the first call,” she corrected.
“What?” Aiden was incredulous. “He’s called more than once?”
She nodded. “I recognized the voice. He called earlier today and asked to speak to my father.”
“Your father’s dead,” Aiden said.
Exasperated, she replied. “I know. I was at the funeral.”
“I meant to ask if you told him your father was dead,” Aiden clarified.
“No, I just told him he wasn’t here, and he said he would call back later.”
“And the second phone call?”
“He asked to speak to my father again, and then he threatened me. He said if I didn’t keep quiet he would feed me to the crocodiles and put a bullet in my head. He was making me mad, but I probably shouldn’t have taunted him.”
“How?” Liam asked.
“I asked him to make up his mind.”
Liam smiled. “Aren’t you going back to Chicago tomorrow? The last time I checked there weren’t any crocodiles in Lake Michigan.”
“Right,” she agreed. “So I guess it’s a bullet.”
“Don’t be flippant about this,” Aiden snapped.
“Will you settle someplace, please, and stop hovering over me?”
He dropped down beside her. “What did you find out about the men with Simone?” he asked Liam.
“They work as bodyguards, and both have squeaky-clean records. Never had a single complaint lodged against them, yet they tried to drag a woman out of a hotel lobby packed with people. Pretty damned gutsy for squeaky-clean bodyguards, wouldn’t you say?”
Aiden nodded. “Keep looking.”
“They had to have been hired by Simone. She couldn’t very well have asked her husband or her father,” Cordie said.
Liam put his beer on the table. “Let me tell you about the Taylor/Rayburn family and their little empire.” He leaned forward and braced his arms on his knees. “They’re pretty guarded about their personal lives and their business dealings, so it took some digging to get any information on them. Their wealth and power come from Merrick Enterprises, a company that was built by Simone’s grandfather, Howard Merrick. Some would say he was a ruthless businessman, but you don’t take over in business like he did without getting rid of your competition. He started out investing in real estate and branched out into other areas of construction and manufacturing from there. Estimates say the company’s worth hundreds of millions today.
“When Merrick died, the estate, including his business, went to his firstborn, Alice, who by then had married Julian Taylor. Alice had no interest in business and, by all accounts, was a rather weak, sickly woman. This left the door open for her husband, Julian, to take over. To this day, Julian runs the company. Merrick Enterprises was successful when he took charge, but he’s increased its value many times over. He controls everything and everyone with an iron fist. Simone seems to be intimidated by him. My guess is that she’s become so accustomed to her cushy life, she’s afraid of anything that will disrupt it.
“Simone’s husband, Craig Rayburn, is second-in-command at the company. Now, there’s an interesting guy. He grew up in a small town in Western Australia and came to Sydney right out of school. His first job at Merrick Enterprises was as an assistant to a regional manager, but he was ambitious. Most would say he was obsessed. Within a few years he had worked his way up to being head of one of Merrick’s real estate companies, and that’s when Julian took a personal interest. If there’s anything that turns Julian on, it’s ambition—that and the ability to take orders, and in Craig’s case, do what your father-in-law demands. Julian began to turn more and more responsibility over to Craig, and it became apparent to everyone that he was the chosen one. Marriage to Julian’s daughter cinched the deal. Craig’s landed in a pot of gold and he’s loving every minute of it. He has all the trappings: big mansion, yacht, vacation home on his own island. You name it. He’s become quite the mogul and is destined to take over when Julian steps down, though it’s a pretty good guess, as long as Julian’s alive, Craig will be his puppet.