Razor Edge: Razor Trilogy Three (Razor Thriller Romance Novella Book 3) Read online

  She slumped to the arm chair and gazed dully out of the hotel window.

  A thought entered her mind, a thought she never imagined she was capable of having. She thought of Joel dying and disappearing permanently from Daniel’s life. That would be a relief. That would be quite helpful.

  There was a knock at the door.

  She threw back her shoulders and flipped her long, blonde hair off her face. Daniel had arrived at last to apologize. He was going to have to do some serious grovelling. Anastasia settled her face into a look of sweet anguish and opened the door.

  Carsten Pullman stood in the hall.

  He did not look happy.

  *

  DANIEL MUST have used his key to get into the apartment. I was in the bathroom throwing up when he walked in on me.

  “What’s wrong with you?” he said in a voice that didn’t give a damn.

  “I think I caught something. Flu bug. I’ll be all right in a few hours.” I bent over the toilet bowl and heaved. Morning sickness was dragging into the afternoon. I wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. “What are you doing here?”

  “I live here. Where did you catch the flu?”

  “Well, I’m sure I don’t know, Mr. Razor. It was probably at the police station. Hand rails and door knobs are covered in germs. It was a wasted trip. Detective Lewis was unhelpful. He said as there was no crime to investigate, they wouldn’t be sending a team to search the mansion unless you specifically requested it.”

  He sat on the edge of the claw foot tub. Joel’s bathroom was spacious like every room in Joel’s apartment. “Why did you see Lewis when I told you I was going there this afternoon?”

  “Because I didn’t believe you would. And I wanted him to have all the facts.”

  When it felt safe to leave the toilet, I moved to the sink and ran the water until it was cold. I splashed water over my face and rinsed my mouth. “I guess you must have got there before me because he was distinctly unimpressed with my story of attempted murder. He said he’d investigate if you corroborated my story.” I reached for the mouthwash. “So did you?”

  “No.”

  If I didn’t have a mouth full of Listerine, I would have screamed. Instead, I spat in the sink and wiped my mouth on a hand towel. “Are you kidding me?”

  “Listen to me. We can’t have the police involved. If they get a report of attempted murder, it’s out of our hands; they’ll open an investigation. The trouble is we don’t know where Joel is or who has him or how they’ll react. We know he’s in danger but you said it yourself—Lewis hasn’t got a crime to investigate.”

  “But you showed him the journal! That must have changed his mind.”

  “I didn’t show him the journal. It was forged. The handwriting was Joel’s but that comment he made about my being in love with you—that wasn’t Joel. Joel didn’t track emotional changes in people. If I didn’t say it, then he wouldn’t comment on it. I had to tell my brother what I was feeling or Joel wouldn’t have a clue. Those were not his thoughts we read in that last entry. Someone instructed Joel to write those words.”

  I understood what he was saying. In my brain, I understood. In my heart, I was pretty crushed. Daniel wasn’t in love with me. Not a surprise, Charlotte. Joel didn’t write those words from his own knowledge. They weren’t written for Joel—but for Daniel. Whoever was with Joel (the woman in blue?) wanted Daniel to believe I was creating a problem between them. The logical step for Daniel to take would be to send me back to Susan’s to diffuse the situation for his brother. That made sense—but why?

  “Does Anastasia know about Tallulah?”

  Daniel raised an eyebrow. “How do you know about Tallulah?”

  “Some email correspondence came across my desk when I was still working at Razor Industries that had Tallulah in the subject line. Marlene said to forward them to Carsten Pullman which I did. After Joel went missing, I found a file on his computer named Tallulah.”

  “Did you look at it?”

  “Yes, but I didn’t understand it. Tallulah is a cement company in Seattle. That much I figured out.” There was no way I was going to tell him that Barry and Phil were my source for this information. “Joel seemed interested in the mix the company used for their cement. Did this have anything to do with the plans he was working on for the Razor office in Seattle?”

  Daniel stood up. “Let’s talk in the living room. I want to sit down on something softer than the edge of the tub.”

  We settled on the sofa. I tucked my legs under me, hugging the corner as far away from him as possible. Daniel didn’t seem to notice. He was very preoccupied.

  “Joel came across some anomalies when he started designing the new offices. He was sourcing materials, doing his usual research—Joel isn’t a normal guy—when he’s working on a project, he needs to see every component. He started looking into Tallulah Cement. We were embroiled in a takeover bid for the company on Carsten’s recommendation. The deal was set to be nailed down at the next board meeting when Joel came to me with his findings. Tallulah had made its profit by selling cement mix at an inferior ratio than industry standard. So far, there were no reported incidences of the cement breaking down, but in ten to twenty years, there would be. Joel and I kept this to ourselves but we were going to vote down the takeover bid at the meeting.”

  I didn’t say anything. So far I was following the conflict Joel had created for Razor Industries. Carsten Pullman was a pretty powerful force in the company. If he initiated the takeover, he would not be happy to see it squashed.

  “Carsten met with me to confirm he could count on Joel’s and my support. Carsten is like an uncle to us so it wasn’t easy to tell him we had reservations. I thought he would agree with me that we should back out of the deal. Instead, he told me that what happened ten years from now would be the stockholders’ problem. He’d make sure he got our shares out in time before the collapse.”

  I’m really stupid when it comes to business but I understood what Carsten was up to. “Razor Industries would acquire Tallulah Cement in Seattle in an aggressive takeover bid right before they announced construction of new offices in Seattle. A public offering of Tallulah stock would be issued. The value would climb because of the announced construction and then Carsten and the Razor brothers would sell their shares for a profit. Everyone else would lose their shirts when Tallulah went belly up due to cheap cement killing people.”

  “Joel wouldn’t go for it and I was going to vote it down because even if I got rich off the deal, Razor Industries could be in danger. The lawsuits could tank the company. Carsten said the two were separate corps and there was no way it could affect the rest of our holdings. I said it would only take one judge looking at news footage of a collapsed bridge to disagree and the company would be bankrupt. If it could be proved that we had prior knowledge of the faulty cement we could be held accountable and we had prior knowledge. Joel was our prior knowledge. He’s a majority shareholder. He doesn’t have a seat on the board but his objection to voting for the acquisition would carry a lot of weight.”

  “How did Carsten take the news?”

  “He wasn’t happy but he seemed to accept our decision. The board meets at the end of this month.”

  “That’s what—Thursday? Two days from now. Do you have enough to vote down the takeover bid without Joel’s proxy?”

  “Without Joel, I can’t prove his findings to make my case. And without his proxy, I don’t have a large enough voting block to defeat the bid.”

  I pounded the back of the sofa. “That’s it then! Carsten is behind Joel’s disappearance!” And then I saw he was not in the least surprised. “Wait—you knew all along, didn’t you? Why did you involve me if you knew all you had to do was confront Carsten?”

  “I don’t think that’s all I have to do.” Daniel’s eyes fixed on mine. “You’ve been both an employee at Razor Industries and an employee in my house. It’s hard to believe you’re not up to your neck in this somehow. Every time I thin
k I’m getting close, I find you at the end of the road. I go to the SFPD and find out you were already there. You knew about Tallulah. You claim you want to find Joel but you still haven’t told me why. Why is it so important to you to find my stepbrother?”

  Involuntarily, I covered my stomach. Nothing to see yet but I couldn’t help it. Daniel noticed the gesture.

  “What’s going on? Do you still feel sick?”

  “Don’t try and change the subject. Why is so important to you to have me here? You asked me to stay and help you find Joel. To be blunt, the only reason I’m here is because you said you would pay me to snoop on your friends at your engagement party. I needed the money. I’ll put up with being locked in the attic every night like some kind of criminal but I won’t put up with veiled accusations. Either you trust me or you don’t.”

  “I don’t trust you. Something is going on with you, I can feel it. You know something you aren’t telling me. I’ve shown you my hand, now show me yours. Lewis said you’ve been keeping a journal. If you have nothing to hide, then show it to me. Where is it?”

  “Are you insane? I’m not showing you my journal. What’s in there is none of your business. Don’t insult me. You still haven’t explained why Carsten is walking around free when he’s a menace. There’s more to this than you’re telling me.”

  He looked for a moment like he was going to share and then a cloud crossed his face and his dark eyes went blank. Whatever it was, Daniel was committed to keeping it to himself. “I’ve told you as much as I can trust you with. When you show me your journal, I’ll trust you with more.”

  I turned away from him in disgust. “Okay, new question—why was Joel’s closet ransacked on the day he went missing? Wilma said it was like that when she came to make the bed and Joel had done it, but that doesn’t sound like Joel. Why would he ransack his own closet?”

  “He wouldn’t.” His expression was solemn. “What else can you remember about the Tallulah emails?”

  “Not much. They were mostly reports from contractors, shareholder queries, that kind of thing. I forwarded them to Carsten’s secretary. She might still have them on file.”

  “I’ll get Rita on it.” Daniel nodded to the jeans I was wearing. “Where did you get those?”

  “I found them in Joel’s closet. Jackson delivered my suitcases but I only have designer clothes and I want to keep those in good condition for Europe. I will not crawl around secret passageways in Prada. I borrowed some of Joel’s things.”

  Daniel looked me over. “The jeans look good on you. Have your breasts always been that big?”

  I was wearing a white tee-shirt, short-sleeved, and very tight. “Stop it.” My face was hot.

  All of a sudden, I wasn’t conscious of anything except Daniel standing right behind me. It was like he absorbed me into his blood system whenever he looked at me with his dark eyes. I found him really hard to resist.

  “Have dinner with me tonight.” His deep voice rumbled through me.

  “I have to rehearse.”

  “Rehearse and then have dinner with me. What time do you finish?”

  “The group is meeting here at seven.”

  The smile he gave me was slow and a little worrying. “Great. I’ll see tonight in the main dining room after your rehearsal.”

  chapter three

  ♫

  CARSTEN SHOOK his head in disgust.

  “How could you let this happen? I thought you said moving into the mansion was a lock. The situation we have now is nowhere near a lock. You have no access to the very person I need to control. The board meets in less than two days and I find you in a hotel room, throwing a snit and pouting. How useful do you think you are to me right now?”

  “You were there,” Anastasia said. Her color rose and her voice shook. “You saw what he was like! What was I supposed to do—beg him to let me stay? He was drunk and obnoxious. I did what anyone would have done—I left.”

  “All right, all right,” said Carsten. “Calm down. Has he been in touch since then?”

  “No. When I heard the knock at the door, I thought it was him.”

  “My source tells me the violinist is still living there. Daniel didn’t spend the night in the loft but he was up there with her for a long time.” Carsten eyed her. “Apparently, there was an incident on the roof yesterday. The girl almost fell. According to my source, this morning she visited the police station but no further action has been taken. I’m guessing you wouldn’t know anything about that.”

  “It’s news to me.” Anastasia moved to the window. “I imagine Charlotte Dawson will be packing her violin case and moving out before the end of the day. These are dangerous times to be a friend to Daniel Razor.”

  “On the contrary, according to my source the girl is having dinner with your fiancé tonight. Her friends have been invited to rehearse at the mansion. If anything, Daniel and the violinist are getting closer. So I hope you’re getting a lot of satisfaction out of this battle you’ve picked because you are losing the war.”

  Anastasia slightly panicked at this news. “What am I supposed to do? You tell me—what am I supposed to do with a man like that? I have no influence over him.”

  “Well then, get some. I want you in that house and I don’t care what you have to do to make that happen. If this deal doesn’t go through, some powerful people are going to lose money and powerful people don’t like to lose money. You said you would help me with my problem if I helped you with yours. I’ve done my part—you’ve got an engagement ring on your finger and Joel Razor is out of your boyfriend’s life. So don’t fuck with me, sweetheart. Get Danny on board with Tallulah, keep that freak of a brother of his in line and get me that proxy before Thursday or I will blow you out of the water. Are we clear?”

  Anastasia nodded but her eyes had filled with tears. “I’m doing the best I can. Abducting Joel was more than I bargained for. You never warned me it would go this far. I agreed to play my part, but I didn’t expect to be taking these risks. Kidnapping is a Federal offense.”

  “What kidnapping?” Carsten shrugged his shoulders. “No one’s been kidnapped. There’s been no ransom demand. Joel has had a breakdown, that’s all. He’s always been a bit strange and now he’s seeing things. He ran away, so what? We don’t control that.”

  “You can’t keep Joel hidden in the mansion forever.”

  “I don’t have to. He just has to stay out of sight until the board votes and we acquire Tallulah. His proxy is hidden somewhere in his apartment. Joel can be induced to sign it if we can find it. The person I have working on the inside needs to get into the loft uninterrupted to do a search and apparently Daniel keeps the door locked. If there’s another way in, I want you to find it.”

  “How is this my problem? The whole point to luring Joel out of the apartment was to get the proxy. It’s your end that’s screwed up—not mine. Your handler, or whoever this person is, let him get away.”

  “All right, all right. You let me worry about Joel and you worry about getting into the loft. Daniel has the key so it shouldn’t be a problem. Call him, make up and move into the mansion. Let me know when you have it all worked out. You have twenty-four hours and then I tell Daniel everything.”

  Carsten Pullman did not get to where he was in life by letting people off the hook for what they owed him.

  After he left, Anastasia circled the room, thinking.

  How bad was his threat, really? What did Carsten have on her that he could take to Daniel? There was the letter threatening Joel’s life, but what other hard evidence did he have? Everything she did—posing as Alexandra, distracting Daniel, convincing him not to go to the police—Carsten couldn’t prove she was involved. She didn’t care if the board accepted or rejected Tallulah. Anastasia wasn’t interested in Razor Industries.

  She was interested in Charlotte Dawson.

  Instead pushing her off the roof, Anastasia should’ve offered her money to get her out of their lives. Seriously, with Joel out of the
picture, why was she still there? What did Daniel want with Charlotte Dawson? Was something going on between them that was more than just sex?

  *

  “I DON’T want to talk about it.” I eyed Phil, Susan and Myles. We were camped out in the library, taking a break. I couldn’t stop thinking about dinner with Daniel and they just wanted to talk about the case. Phil, as my de-facto lawyer, wanted details.

  “Someone pushed you off the roof. I think we’d better talk about it.”

  I regretted ever telling them about the attempt on my life—my friends had too many questions. Mainly, why did I come back to the mansion after seeing the police? A normal person would’ve gotten the hell out of there. There was not a lot ‘normal’ about my thinking anymore. I was beginning to understand agoraphobic Joel Razor a lot better. I only had to stick it out a little while longer. That’s what I told myself. Don’t choke now, not when you’re so close to getting everything you wanted.

  “I’m not sure what happened on the roof,” I lied, avoiding their eyes. “It felt like a push, but now that I think about it, I might’ve just lost my footing. I had no business being up there. I thought I saw someone in the hall and I chased him or her to the roof.”

  “Daniel Razor put you in the firing line,” Myles said. “You’re just the wage slave he’s using to flush out witnesses so he can eliminate them one at a time. What does he care if you have to take a bullet for him?”

  “Nobody shot at me. I’ve evaluated the risk and I’ve decided it’s worth it to find Joel.”

  Phil hunched forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “Let’s go over the evidence. What do we know so far?”

  “Daniel Razor said he went to the office,” Susan said thoughtfully. “That could be a lie. He was probably in the house all the time. I bet he has a panic room, or a bomb shelter. You name it—he had means and opportunity. We can’t eliminate him as a suspect.”