Page 78 of The Mastermind

“More acquisitions to buy, Mr. Starke?” she asked.

“Always, but this is personal property, not business.”

She flicked me a curious look. “I’ve been wondering if you planned on living in this hotel forever. I mean, it’s a stunning suite with all the amenities, but it lacks . . . something. It’s not a home, Remi.”

“A home is who you share it with. You’re with me, so it doesn’t matter where I am. I am home wherever you are.”

“Since when did you become so poetic?”

“Since someone began calling me ‘Dangerous Line Segment’ and ‘Dangerously Loaded Smile.’”

She laughed, and her delightful voice filled my office.

“I just have to finish one last email, and we can get going. Ten minutes tops.”

I just received the recordings from Diane and needed to confirm receipt and thank her. Then I had to deal with another pressing family issue.

Audri’s phone rang as she hopped off my thighs and fished her phone from her back pocket. “It’s Michelle. Take your time, and just come out when you’re ready. I’ll be in the living room.”

She drew a smile in the air and blew it at me before leaving the office. I had been lingering in the dark until she lit up my world. More light surrounded me now, which allowed me to see and understand more things.

After discovering my stepmother and stepbrother had hired someone to kill me, my mind couldn’t stop thinking about them. Why did they want me dead? Was it money? Money was the root of many evils. Tigers didn’t change their stripes, and evil people were no different.

I conducted a search into my stepmother and father’s files and discovered that my name remained the largest recipient of Starke Financial, my dad’s company—the one he’d shared with my mom before she passed. Upon her death, I had inherited her portion of ownership.

Ever since my dad remarried, things had become trickier. If I died, my portion of ownership could go to my dad or his current wife and son. The will wasn’t clear. My mom hadn’t expected that he’d marry a crazed witch who had tried to seduce me at a young age.

Whatever their motives were back then, I couldn’t push away the idea that they had something planned now. Aside from that, another mystery boggled my mind. I didn’t buy the police report about Lawrence and Teresa dying in a car accident. Too convenient for me.

Maybe Lawrence and Teresa pissed someone off even more than they had infuriated me. That made more sense, but who wanted them dead?

* * *

Audriand I sat in Dr. Liz Finnegan’s cozy waiting room. I held Audri’s hand while we waited for someone to call her in.

Her phone pinged at an incoming text. She smiled and flashed the phone screen, showing a message from her mom.

Making wonton noodle soup on Saturday. Come home. Ask Remi to come too. I don’t have his number. Grayson isn’t around.

That was only days away. My stomach almost purred with hunger.

“Yes, please,” I said to Audri. “She must have sensed I craved that soup. I haven’t had any since the last time I came back.”

“I can make it for you whenever you like, but my mom makes it better.”

“Oh, yeah? I’ll take you up on that.”

“Then you can get me a whole platter of maple caramelized figs topped with smoky bacon and chilis. You know the hors d’oeuvres we ate at the charity?”

I nodded, remembering how her mouth had devoured it. “We’ll schedule an appetizer party just for the two of us soon.”

A woman with curly brown hair opened the door and smiled at us. “Dr. Finnegan is ready for you Audri. I’m Linda, her assistant.”

“Just relax, and it’ll be fine.” I squeezed Audri’s hand and gave her a kiss on the forehead. “I’ll be right out here.”

I watched her follow Linda into the room. When I had gone for my first session, nerves had wreaked havoc in my stomach, and I had wished someone had been with me. I couldn’t join Audri’s session. This was a private and personal process she needed to undergo on her own, but I’d be by her side to support her along the way.

I fished out my phone and reviewed the renovation plan for the parking garage at Starke Vision. The main garage needed an update, especially if I was going to park any of my cars there. I’d sent my plan to Howard the other day and hadn’t asked him for his opinion.

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