Page 67 of Veiled Justice
He dropped his hand. ‘What did you want to know?’
‘Well, when we met, I didn’t realise you were part of the Katz PR empire!’
Katz smiled smugly. ‘I’m set to inherit the whole thing.’
‘That’s awesome! So, PR is the family business, but do you like working in PR?’
‘I do. I have a real flairfor it. A talent.’
‘I bet you do.’ I hesitated. ‘I’ve heard your dad’s a bit of a ball buster and that he’s still not given you any real responsibility, even though you’re already twenty-one!’
Katz frowned. ‘He’ll see.’
‘You need some sort of special project,’ I suggested. ‘Something to showcase how good you are at getting press coverage for your clients.’ I leaned forward. ‘You could even work withThe Mystic Informer. I heard they did a piece on the party murders.’
TheMystic Informerwas a new gossip rag that printed only Other news; it was protected with runes so that no one from the Common realm could read it. No one knew who ran it or how it was distributed. I had no idea if it had run a piece about the murders – actually that seemed quite unlikely because it wasn’t a slick operation. If I’d had to guess, I’d have said it was some sort of small, start-up press.
‘Really?’ Katz beamed. ‘I didn’t see that!’
‘Yes, it was great publicity for Quintos and Carnforth! You know what they say, no press is bad press!’
‘Absolutely,’ he enthused. ‘This is great.’ Looking chuffed, he rubbed his hands.
I kept my tone light. ‘You know, Caspian – I can call you Caspian, right?’
‘Sure thing, honey.’ He winked.
Ugh. I persevered. ‘You’d have been a natural choice for running PR for something like this. You’ve got the brains for it, the creativity. If it was me, I’d be pitching headlines like, "TragicDeaths Spark Calls for Change." Or even, "Mystery Murders Keep High Society on Edge." That’s the kind of thing you’re good at, isn’t it?’
He puffed out his chest. ‘Exactly. You get it. It’s all about controlling the narrative.’
I tilted my head. ‘Of course, it’s risky tying your name to something so messy. Not everyone can spin gold out of something dark like this. Most people couldn’t pull it off – the narrative could wobble.’
Katz smirked and leaned back in his chair. ‘Exactly. You have to be very skilled. But with the right angle and the right timing, you can make anything work.’
‘Timing is everything, isn’t it? Like those parties – Quintos’s fundraiser, Carnforth’s gala. Big events, lots of press, the perfect backdrop for ... well, anything, really.’
Katz’s complacency was suffocating. ‘Exactly. It’s like PR 101. The more eyes, the better.’
‘And you’re so good at making sure the right people notice, connecting the dots, pulling the strings.’ I lowered my voice slightly. ‘It’s almost like you were running the show.’
He snorted. ‘If I’d been running it, it would’ve been flawless.’
‘Would it?’ I kept my gaze fixed on him. ‘Flawless like orchestrating a killer to be at the right place at the right time? Making sure every piece of the puzzle fits together perfectly?’
I saw the exact moment that Katz realised that he was in dangerous waters. He shifted in his chair and his cocky façade cracked.
‘Hypothetically,’ I continued, ‘if someone like you were behind this, they’d need to be a genius at managing people.’ I kept my tone admiring. ‘Like hiring the dryad for Carnforth’s hit – smart move, by the way. A hired killer with no known ties to the person hiring them? That’s going to become a Katz signature move, isn’t it?’
‘Speaking strictlyhypothetically,’ he echoed, his voice more subdued now, ‘it would be pure genius.’ But his arrogance and the thrill of showing off were too much for him to resist. ‘Not just anyone could pull that off. You’d have to know how to handle both sides, get what you need without dirtying your own hands. Not to mention handling pushy clients who think they know best.’ He snorted derisively.
‘You’d have to be brilliant,’ I agreed. ‘I mean, it’s not like we’re sitting here becauseyoumade any mistakes, is it?’ I gave him a slow smile.
Realising too late that the trap was closing, Katz froze. ‘I didn’t—’
‘Didn’t what?’ I pressed, my voice sharp now. ‘Didn’t hire Einar for Quintos? It’s your signature on the contract, Caspian. Quintos played you.’ I shook my head sadly. ‘So close to perfection, but you should have got the clients to sign their own contracts. That was a real rookie error. You thought you were in control. You thought you were playing Quintos and Carnforth, but reallytheywere playingyou.’ I regarded him sympathetically.
He was starting to look nervous as reality hit and he pulled at the collar of his shirt. ‘I don’t know who this Einar is. Who are you talking about?’
