Abby
“Pharma-Vitae's been complaining about harassment,” he continued. “Now her editors are telling her to back off, or they'll start pulling ad dollars and getting their industry partners to do the same. Worse than that, they're threatening lawsuits in court if she even makes a peep.”
“So, that's it, then?” Jackie asked, a frown pulling her mouth down at the corners. “More wine anyone?”
No, this wasn't how it was supposed to work. This wasn't the way that things were supposed to go down. They had the evidence, so why couldn't they just get it out? She'd be damned if she was going to be crucified in the court of public opinion on this. “We can go somewhere else,” Abby suggested. “Some other reporter, maybe? I mean, I'm the CEO, and we have the documents. Why can't I just blow the whistle myself?”
Jackie shook her head. “Think some other board would pick you up then? You might get out of this, but you'd never work for another pharmaceutical company in your life, and you know it. Who would hire a manager that's going to go running to the press the moment things look slightly off?”
“Then social media,” Abby suggested. “I could release all the work there and hope some bloggers pick it up?”
“They'll just think you're crazy,” Jackie said. “PV would spin it so hard it'd look like a vinyl record. Besides, it'd still be career suicide, Abbs. You'd be throwing your whole life away. And who would believe you, anyway? Stop being so arrogant!”
Abby sat back in surprise at her assistant's words. They were like a slap in the face. Arrogant? Was she really acting that way? She quickly thought back over her actions for the last week, starting with her board meeting with Mark. She'd thought her position as CEO was the final word, and that Letterman would bend to her will without question. Look where that had gotten her, though.
She'd believed she could just brush Zed away like a crumb from her jacket, a piece of lint that would just disappear with a flick or her finger. Boy, had she been wrong about that one!
She had thought she'd be quickly rescued from his clutches. Instead, here she was, sitting with him and her assistant, having deeper and more confused feelings than she'd ever had for any man.
Finally, she'd believed her spot was so secure at Pharma-Vitae and that they'd brought her in because they desperately needed someone with her talents. She'd convinced herself that she was too invaluable to lose. She was irreplaceable.
Jackie was right. Abby was being an arrogant bitch. And, if she wasn't careful, she'd bring them all down with her.
Her assistant spoke up when Abby didn't say anything for a long moment. “Abbs? I'm sorry, I didn't mean it that way.”
Abby shook her head. “You know what?” she asked. “You're right. You're completely right. I have been arrogant about all this, and I'm letting it get in the way of my decision making.”
Her friend smiled hesitantly at first, then more broadly. “I'm glad I didn't hurt your feelings.”
“No,” Abby said, laughing a little, “you did. But sometimes we have to hurt if we want to grow.”
# # #
Zed
Zed walked into the room, his head full of half-cooked, crazy plans. Abby was still his hostage, after all, wasn't she? Maybe he could use that to their advantage in this whole thing. Or not. He didn't know for sure, considering how everything was happening so quickly.
“Jackie?” Zed asked. “Do you mind if we're alone for a little while? We need to figure out our next move, and it'd probably be better if you weren't involved. If we do decide to do something, we don't want it to reflect poorly on you.”
“Yes,” Abby agreed. “It would probably be best if you weren't involved from here on out.”
Jackie looked back and forth between the two of them, shocked. “You guys can't just boot me out of the club now!”
Zed held up a hand. “We're not booting you out. We’re just protecting you.”
“Right,” Abby said. “Look, Jackie, I've got money set aside. I can take of myself, but you need this job and a good work history. If you get mixed up in all this, it won't look good for you. Like you said, no one's going to hire a whistle blower CEO. Same goes for a CEO's assistant, don't you think?”
Jackie sighed and looked away, then turned back to her water and finished it. “Fine, I'll go. But, just so you know, it's under protest. And, if you guys are going to completely destroy the company or something, could you at least give me a heads-up?”
Zed nodded. “Yeah, of course.”
“Jackie,” Abby said, “I wouldn't leave you out in the cold. You know that.”
She nodded. “Yeah,” she said, a little downcast. “I know.”
That done, Zed followed her back into the living room so she could get her purse, then he and Abby escorted her back to the front door to say their goodbyes.
When she was safely out the front door, Abby turned back to Zed. “What now?” she asked.
Zed's thoughts turned inwards, to the plans he'd been making as they were convincing Jackie she needed to leave. With Abby still in his hands, he had leverage. Lots of leverage, and more than one way to get the information out.
He could ask for the ransom money, just like he'd planned earlier.
No, that had been a dark path, one that he'd pushed aside in favor of working with her. And, up until now, that had seemed to be working. He thought back to her threat from the first day, about how he'd end up in a cell with Kai at the end of all this. If he kept going down this ill-conceived road of self-destruction, beside Kai was right where he'd end up.
But, on the other hand, this was the closest he'd come to helping his brother since the murders. His pursuit of vengeance, while not necessarily healthy, had gotten him this far. Hadn't it? He had the evidence in hand—proof of Pharma-Vitae's conspiracies.
At what cost, though? Besides just having a date with prison, what kind of man was he becoming? The drinking, the violence, the things he'd almost been willing to do to Jackie. All because of what? His desire for revenge?
He shook his head and, without saying a word, went back into Abby's study.
“Zed?” Abby asked in a concerned voice, as she followed behind him. “Are you okay?”
If he dropped this quest for justice, no matter how sick it was, it would be like he was abandoning Kai. Sure, Zed could probably walk away from this a free man. But what about his brother? He'd rot for another few years, until his appeals ran out, then he'd be in the gas chamber, or at the end of a needle.
He couldn't abandon him. Not his brother! He was the only one who'd ever stood by Zed through all these years. How could he even consider that?
No, he needed to hold onto Abby. And he needed to hold onto the evidence. If he had one, and not the other, he was just going to end up with a losing hand at the end of this bizarre game.
Yes, he'd have to keep her. She was still going to have to be his.
Besides, how could he abandon her, especially when they were so close to making a real breakthrough?
“Zed?” Abby asked again, gently touching his back. “Sir?”
His hand went down to his belt, and he began to unbuckle it. He slid it out of the loops, with a hiss of leather on wool.
“Sir?” she asked, her voice a trembling whisper as he turned around and looked down into her eyes. Her blue gaze held fear. Fear and . . . something else, Zed realized, as she bit her shaking lip.
It was anticipation.