Page 54 of Koroleva

"Well, I think they do help. They help ensure no one else takes your shit. That families don't cry over another loved one because you keep publishing false reports about the drug. Do you intend to silence me by claiming you don't know who's playing you? That won't work."

"Not just with that," he conceded. "We promise you an exclusive as soon as we find the truth, the person who wants to destroy my wife's and her family's reputation." The journalist stroked his chin. Romeo was being very assertive. "Think about it, you would be the only one who has the name of the person who betrayed us. We're going to get to the bottom of this; neither my wife nor I are willing to let the name of this pharmaceutical company be tainted."

"What do you want me to say, Mr. Capulet? All this sounds suspect. Why should I trust you?"

As much as I despised Sánchez, he was a widely listened to journalist, especially because, according to some, he had a certain ethic that many lacked. I weighed the strategy my husband was taking and decided it was the smartest. We needed Sánchez on our side. If we could sow enough doubt in the journalist, we might calm some of the more turbulent waters.

"Because Romeo's son's mother also died from Mentium and we owe our son the truth," I interjected, capturing Jonás's attention. My husband tightened his expression without saying anything. Okay, perhaps that was an indiscretion and too bold using the term 'son', but I needed a dramatic impact. Fortunately, Romeo did not challenge me. "Believe me, we want to find the person more than you do. I'll open the doors to the laboratory for you, let you probe the official tests, see what I saw when I took over the company, that the drug was no more lethal than any other of its kind. In no case enough to justify this virulent outbreak of suicides. And I'll do it now, without making calls you might think could corrupt the information. You will have carte blanche over any document you request."

"I don't know..." he hesitated. I had him, I knew I had him, just a little more and he'd be mine.

"I'm offering you something no one else has. I won't repeat the offer. You know that with my money and influence I could make sure you never work in media again, yet I'm giving you the chance to stir up that truth you so claim to care about, isn't that what you're interested in?"

"If this is a trick..."

"It's no trick, it's a deal. If you've researched as much as you claim, you'll know I'm a woman of my word. Deal?" I extended my hand. He exhaled and finally sealed the deal with a handshake.

"Deal, but if you play me, I warn you, sooner or later I will destroy you."

I offered a smile.

"I love men who can challenge me. Shall we go inside?" I motioned toward the entrance door.

"Of course."

23

Govnó!

We didn't get home until nightfall.

I was exhausted and my neck hurt.

This time, I really needed to hire a masseur, but a real one.

We spent the entire day satisfying Sánchez's thirst for information. Romeo's attitude had me on edge. He didn't seem nervous; on the contrary, he was full of ideas on how to find the culprit, as if he didn't know it was him.

What was his game? Did he really think he was smart enough to divert my attention?

We sat in my office and the first thing we did was to devise a search plan.

Request a report on all workers who had access to the laboratory area. Look into any recent hires. Workers who had shown discontent with the company. The possibility of having someone on the team with a mental disorder.

We considered many hypotheses. For some, we had to call the HR manager, who immediately got to work with the lists.

On another front, we also alerted the laboratory chief, after Sánchez suggested, in addition to reviewing the reports, that we check the security videos to see if we could catch anything unusual in the last six months.

It was hard to pinpoint that "something" without knowing what might look out of place in a laboratory. We had many days of work ahead.

Romeo kept giving me hungry looks, and my damn need grew exponentially. Either I would have sex or my sanity was in jeopardy.

I could have masturbated to alleviate the itch growing between my legs, I would have done it if I hadn't known that a simple hand job wouldn't be enough relief. I wanted much more than that.

Despite how exhausted I was when I arrived, my intention to go to La Marca was still on.

As soon as I set foot in the house, I went up for a quick shower and change. It was past eleven-thirty; I didn’t want and couldn’t afford to waste more time. I put on one of my "it’s happening tonight" dresses and headed for the stairs. I would have reached the garage if I hadn't encountered Romeo on the last step, shaking bags with what appeared to be the logo of a Chinese restaurant.

"Dinner," he announced, with a mischievous smile. "You need to fuel up if you plan to go out and perform. You’ve barely eaten today."

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