Page 30 of Alistair

“Negotiate. I won’t do more than thirty percent.”

“Got it, boss,” he said, nodding at him. They heard the sounds of feet shuffling in the hallway, and both turned to see the sickly, ghost-like stick figure standing there.

“Raelynn, you’re supposed to be in bed resting,” said the man.

“I need another pill. Please. Just one,” she begged.

“You have to eat something first,” he said.

“You were the one that said I was eating too much! You said I was getting fat! I took the damn pills, and now I’m not fat. Stop trying to get me to eat.”

“Raelynn, if you don’t eat, you won’t live. You need nutrition. Just have some broth or something light. It won’t make you gain weight. I promise.”

“Then can I have another pill?”

“Yes. Have some broth, and then you can have another pill.” He nodded at the nurse behind her, and she led her toward the kitchen. He just shook his head.

“I guess we aren’t any closer to figuring out how we ween them off this shit, are we?” asked the other man.

“Nothing yet. Every time they try something, it only makes them ravenously hungry, and they end up overeating, getting sick, or getting back on the pills again. We’ll figure it out, and then we’ll own the market. Not the pharmaceutical companies.”

“You know me,” he smiled. “I’m along for the ride. You tell me what you need, and I’ll get it. Tell me where to be, and I’ll be there. We’re best friends, man. I’m here for you.”

“I know you are. For now, just make sure Raelynn eats. I need her to be well enough to appear in public with me.”

“What then?” asked the man.

“Then I’m going to find those fucking Marines and kill them all before they talk to someone.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

With the address of Dove in their hands the following day, the team of men drove the distance from D.C. to New York City to find the lush high rise apartment building. Finding a place to park in the city was an adventure all on its own. At a price of fifty to seventy-five dollars a day, it made all of them consider buying a building, tearing it down, and building a parking garage.

“It’s fucking highway robbery,” frowned Gator.

“I know,” smirked Alistair. “Let’s just see if we can get inside this building.”

Typical for the city, especially a building this elite, there was a doorman who let no one pass without approval of the resident. He asked the men to sign the register first, then asked what they needed.

“We’re here to see Dove,” said Alistair.

“I’m sorry. She’s not seeing anyone right now,” said the man.

“This is about the recent death of her friend,” said Garr. “She can either speak to us here or we can go to the authorities and tell them how she left her friend to die alone in a bar.”

The doorman straightened, looking at the group of men, then picked up the phone, whispering to the person on the other end of the line. A few moments later, two young men came down in the elevator, trying to make themselves look bigger and tougher than they really were.

“You here to see Dove?” asked one of the men.

“That’s right.”

“Sorry. As he said, she ain’t seein’ no one right now.”

Alistair smirked at the young man and looked at his friends. Leif and Dan both stepped closer to him as the bodyguard pulled his coat back to reveal a weapon, a cocky grin on his face. Both men laughed, lifting their own sweatshirts to reveal two weapons each.

“We don’t want to do this,” said Alistair, “and you damn sure don’t want to do this. She can either speak with us now, or we go to the press about her dead girlfriend.”

Nervously, the first man looked to the second, and he nodded.

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