a Schmi

l records?" I asked, keeping my voice level a

h the receiver. "When a premier athletic franchise identifies an indispensable asse

all e

ly past the morning commuters bust

s entrance of the Blue Bo

of roasted espresso beans and steamed oa

nguished man in his late forties wearing a charcoal

It is an absol

eather bench opposite him, placing my col

id, cutting straight through the corporate pleasantries. "In exchange, Vanguard r

look offended i

ouched his lips as he opened a thick,

ring a temporary licensing deal. We are offering you the position of Senior Vice President of

own at the

cted performance-linked stock options, and an absolute veto over the entire medi

had earned from all those years working fo

e years locked in a regional testing facility in Montreal. Fitzgerald ensu

reads raw mathematical telemetry," Gerardo said,

r ow

r Vill

uck me like

Villa

ton Vanguard, and the sole heir to the multi-billion-dollar Villarreal sports em

magazines.With someone like me, I never ima

critical issue. There was no denying that he was a famous hockey star. But I had never heard that he had retired to t

g a Montblanc pen against the table. "'Bring Isabella Schmitt home, give

ed by the phrasing. "Mr. V

eveal. Then he set the pen down and leaned b

entire initiative came directly from the Villarreal family patriarch. The instructions were explicit. And Hunter-as

ld, clinic

asset the patriarch had selected, handed to his heir as a proving ground. Hunter wasn't helping me out of kin

have stung

al helicopter was real. The Swiss medication was real. The one-mil

my posture straighten

ch Mr. Hunter Villarreal's test

is lips. He turned his head slightly and snapped his finger

y tapped a sequence on a

utes later, my phon

rust has been received and cleared. Patient Brenda Schmitt's surgical schedule has been confirmed for 08:00 AM. The patient will rec

und my ribcage for the last twenty

o the final signature page, and signed "

ve condition," I said, h

me

ically collect and stamp my official separation receipt. Their HR department ne

l counsel to accompan

ifting with cold determination. "Dealing with sma

rdo

e door before pulling my

single-digi

voice low. "She signed the SVP agreem

nt and dark with intense authori

e? Did they

t the Beacon Hill residence confirmed that David's illegitimate child struck her w

other end of the line-the sound of fine b

vid Sports Group," the voice growled, cold enough to freeze blood. "And tell our tra

stood,

is sh

id Tower to collect her

llowed, heavy with

front," Hunter Villarreal orde