Page 71 of Bed of Thorns

“I am certain she is. Of course, you may offer that you’ve already been given a promotion, becoming even more important to the company. You can tell her that some guests are stockholders, which is correct. Tell her several clients will also be in attendance, which is also the truth. Both are acceptable. However, at no time are you to mention the Prism Group or what our work entails. That would breach our code of ethics and destroy your required loyalty. Is that understood?”

“Absolutely.” I had no idea what work they did, which continued to raise red flags, but damned if I wasn’t interested in learning more if for no other reason than edging closer to the truth.

He nodded, satisfied I’d given him the correct answer. Keeping my promise was something else altogether. “Then go. Enjoy this beautiful day. Your work is truly exceptional. Mercedes should be very proud of what you’ve accomplished in such a short period of time. Hopefully, one day, you’ll tell me that you’re getting married. I can tell she has a very beneficial influence on you. We all need someone special in our lives.”

“Yes, she is the light of my life.” My throat continued to remain tight, my stomach in knots. The carrot dangled was impressive, desirable.

“Remember, Edmond. Information is one of the most powerful things any man can hold. It’s how you use that information that shapes your life and those of others. Your life is about to change for the better. Markus wanted this for you very much. You were and are like a son to him.”

“Doesn’t he have family?”

He looked away, taking a deep breath. “I don’t want to speak for him, Edmond. His life has been difficult over the years. Rest assured that you mean quite a bit to him. Accept that as a gift.”

A gift.

With strings.

“When is he being released?”

“I’m happy to say within the year, perhaps earlier. We will be very excited to have him return to the fold.”

“One last question for now, Carl. What else will I be doing by joining this group?”

There was something almost maniacal about his laugh. “You’ll be making decisions that will affect the world.”

Why did I have a cold shiver running down my spine? “Thank you for believing in me.” It was difficult to find the right words, if they even existed. My father had gotten himself mixed up in an organization that had stripped away his resolve, rendering him the angry man he’d turned into. Perhaps this was a method of achieving all my goals.

“That makes me very happy to hear, Edmond. Call me tomorrow morning. If you agree to accepting my offer, I’ll have the appropriate paperwork for you to fill out, including an NDA. Then I’ll go over more of the specifics with you. Oh, I almost forgot to mention. It is black tie tomorrow night. May I suggest that you and Mercedes enjoy preparing for our celebration. You will find that it’s an extraordinary experience.”

He made it sound too good to be true, which my mother always told me to run far away from. However, my curiosity was piqued more than I cared to admit to anyone.

Mostly to myself.

Whatever decision I made would change my life with Mercedes. For the better? That I wasn’t certain of.

One thing was certain. By accepting the offer, I’d have signed a contract with the devil.

And one day, I would burn in hell.

* * *

Thunder rolled in the distance, the flash of another bolt of lightning illuminating the room, every shadow eerie. Every noise made me jump, every cracking sound booming in my eardrums. The darkness was foreboding, the limited light from the computer screen casting an ominous glow past my desk. I nervously darted glances toward the door, anticipating my drunken father to burst into the room at any second.

I’d stormed out of the house, determined to end this nightmare. I couldn’t handle his bullying and the suspicious innuendos he tossed out every day any longer. He’d turned into a ruthless man, but in doing so, he’d become careless, forgetting to secure the private drive I’d found only days before. I typed quickly, preparing to copy and download the specific file I’d come to retrieve.

Then I heard a noise.

A hard thump.

A strangled moan.

My heart racing, I snapped my head toward the door, wincing after another crack of thunder. My father’s office was down the hall. Then I heard my father’s slurred screech.

“Who the fuck are you?” Within seconds, I heard what sounded like a scuffle.

I hated my father with a passion for everything he’d done, destroying my life and forgetting about my mother during her time of need. However, the second he yelped as if in agony, I rose from my chair, running from the room. When I rushed into my father’s office, it took several seconds to understand what I was seeing.

My father was waving a gun, and a man I’d never seen before was smashing his fists into my father’s jaw, the force enough he dropped his weapon, the gun skittering across the floor.

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