Succession (37 page)

Edson shakes her head. “Nobody ever intended to destroy it, Mr. Michaud. Well, Ms. Miller, perhaps, but nobody that the Argova family is associated with. You were overlooked. An error, as far as I’m concerned, and one that has been reconciled over the past few months. Wouldn’t you agree?”

“Was conspiring behind my back an error?” I demand.

“Mr. Michaud, I’ve chosen my side,” Edson reminds me. “My associates have chosen theirs as well. Aside from the industry arrangement, which will continue until a new one is established with the new Michaud & Torenze System, Torenze is out of the picture. Once you committed to working with the right people, there have been significant efforts taken to ensure that your project will be successful. My associates needed Torenze after he split from the Miller System. When he mentioned that he was working with someone new, you became of far more interest.”

“I hope it was a lot of interest, because there won’t be a Michaud & Torenze,” I counter. “I’m going solo.”

Edson smiles. “That’s even better. But I’m curious, what prompted your change of heart?”

“Torenze was the one who released that data,” Sascha informs her. He slides the tablet over, shows her a few of the communications. “He’s the one trying to destroy this.”

Edson frowns as she reviews it. “We need to remove him from this equation,” she decides. “How did you come into possession of this information?”

I’m silent for a moment. I don’t know if I can trust her with Sy’s safety, and handing him over means destroying not only him, but Sascha. I’m not sure whether I can risk it.

I don’t get to make that decision.

“I stole it while I visited his house today,” Sy informs the lawyer.

Sascha gives him a worried glare, and I just wait for the response. To her credit, Edson waits a moment before responding, looking from Sy, to Sascha, then to me. She sighs.

“Well, it has to be someone else who finds the data,” she decides. “Or someone who causes it to be found. It’s hard to find loyal help. We can’t place the crime on a slave.”

“Could we send someone an anonymous tip?” I suggest. “He’s interfering with a legal case, if nothing else. That could raise a few flags.”

Sascha shakes his head. “He’s too smart. He’ll find out before the authorities do. If he knows anyone is coming, he’ll destroy it all or turn it back on us. We have to do this right. We’ll only have one chance.”

“A raid on his house would provide a lovely cover,” Edson suggests. “It worked well in the past. I could see if there are any connections at that level, although it might take a while. It’s not guaranteed. This would require serious sway.”

Sascha pauses, thinking deeply about that statement. I see a glow in his eyes and I wait for him to share his plan with us. “But we know someone who has that. She did it to us without a problem.”

“My mother?” I shake my head. “We do not want to get involved with her. She’s more interesting in ruining me, anyway.”

Sascha shakes his head, leaning forward with a confident look on his face. “She was interested in stopping your research from getting out, but it’s out. All she wants now is to save her own ass—how many times has she requested that from you? Torenze has plenty of information that could ruin her, just like we do. Why do you think he’s been pushing us so hard to release it?”

I think about it for a moment, and everything starts to make sense. “Do you think he’s trying to push both of us out of the industry?”

“He was certainly trying to push Ms. Miller out,” Edson confirms. “I can’t go into details, but I assure you, he had help with that.”

The data analyst. The release of information about the Miller System. Edson had never seemed surprised by that. She had to have known all along that the Argova family facilitated it. She might even have been a part of it.

Sascha nods. “It makes perfect sense. He’s been using us, Cash. He lets you take the fall, he destroys Kristine, and then he swoops in as the ignorant third party who just wants to pick up where his experience left off—he was her right hand man for years, then your business partner. He would be the perfect candidate.”

Edson smiles. “He was the perfect candidate. But Cashiel Michaud is such a relatable public figure.”

I try not to show my distaste. I hate being played, but in this case, it’s working in my favor. This is what I wanted, after all. Success, ambition, wealth, a change to the system. I can have it; I just have to swallow a bit of my pride. I’ve done it with Oliver for years, and he’s only been interested in helping himself.

There’s a problem to this solution, though. “Do you really think my mother will help us?”

Sascha shrugs. “She’d be stupid not to. She’s evil, but she’s not stupid.”

I nod, knowing it’s true. Since her last attempt to destroy me failed, she’s been oddly passive. She’s asked for my help and I’ve been too busy turning her down to notice that she really did need it. For once, I can be the one in control.

“Get her to agree,” Edson advises. “You know her better than most. Use that to your advantage.”

“All right,” I agree. “But what about the rest of the case? You said there had been a development?”

Edson smiles. “Right. In case you question my dedication, this should come as a pleasant surprise. I’ve engaged in discussion with some of the prosecutors at the state attorney’s office. They aren’t pressing charges for the data that was just released. They say it’s old; it’s irrelevant under some statute of limitations. They don’t want to look like they ignored a threat all those years ago. They’re burying this and accusing the tabloid editors of spreading libelous, inflammatory lies.”

I give her a curious look. “Did that take some sort of threatening?”

Edson doesn’t answer. “You’re clear to proceed with your project, Mr. Michaud. Handle this Torenze issue and make sure nothing of the sort happens again. You’ve put on a show for the public for months. Convince your mother that you can be the son she always hoped for.”

“I’ll com and make my demands,” I agree.

Sascha shakes his head, stopping me. “Ask for her help,” he suggests. “It will go over better.”

I frown. This woman has tortured Sascha on numerous occasions, caused me to hurt him, got me put in prison twice now… and yet, I can see Sascha’s point. Edson nods her agreement.

“All right,” I agree, placing the call.

“Cash?” my mother answers, surprised.

“Hi,” I say, uncomfortable and wishing I wasn’t doing this. “I… I need your help with something.”

“Of course!” she replies.

I can hear the smile on her face; as usual, I’m glad I haven’t I allowed the video feed. I don’t think I’ve asked her for a favor since I was a teenager. After some of the things she did to me, I had promised myself I would never be at her mercy again.

I explain what happened with Torenze, the data we’ve found, the pieces that could be incriminating, both to her and to me. Sascha feeds me some information as I talk, sifting through what’s been decrypted from the tablet. To my surprise, Kristine listens quietly, refraining from condescending or interrupting like she usually does. I explain how we need a more valid source to discover the data, and I ask her for my favor. She needs to do to Torenze what she did to me.

“I’ll need to call in a few favors,” she informs me. “You’ve really limited my ability to conduct these sorts of searches, Cashi. I wish you would have come to me sooner.”

I sigh. “I wish you hadn’t had my slave molested and beaten, or had me put in prison again,” I remind her, sticking just to the most recent offenses. “I wasn’t planning on trusting you again. I’m still not sure, but you’re all that’s left.”

Kristine laughs, a sad, defeated sound that I don’t even recognize as coming from my mother. “I spent years trying to win this fight, Cash, but I’ve been out of it since your little pet released your data. I thought I could save my place in the world, but all I want to do now is save myself. We will take Oliver Torenze down. He will suffer for what he did, for what you did, and for what I did. I always knew I couldn’t trust that man.”

“Thank you,” I say, still unsettled.

“I know this doesn’t change things between us, Cash,” my mother admits. “But I hope it makes it a little better. Once this is over, you’ll be rid of me. I’ll retire, maybe focus on my garden—that sounds terrible—but I won’t antagonize you any longer. You’ll be rid of me, like you’ve always wanted.”

A part of me wants to protest out of some moral dilemma, but the part of me who has suffered under my mother’s hand for my entire life is nothing but relieved. “Thank you. I’ll keep your name out of everything as much as possible.

“Good bye, Cashiel,” my mother says, hanging up before I have a chance to do the same. It sounds strangely final.

Chapter 33
Touch

I watch my master’s face as he sits, silent for a few moments after hanging up with his mother.

“What did she say?” I ask finally, unable to wait for him to decide to share the information.

“She’s doing it,” Cash tells us, sounding surprised. “I’m not sure if I can believe it, but she is.”

“It’s in her best interest,” Edson reminds us. “She’s been in this business for many years. She knows she’s being pushed out of the industry. She’s making the smart decision. I’ll connect with a few contacts, see if anyone can help her make progress on this action.”

“Thank you,” Cash says, nodding. “I appreciate your help. I apologize if I was a little forward earlier.”

Edson shakes her head, dismissing him. “I was warned that you could be volatile at times. But I do hope that you’ve realized how important it is to work collaboratively. I see a long future for you, Mr. Michaud. You’ll be one of the biggest influences of the century. Make sure you remember who helped you to get there.”

“I don’t think I could possibly forget,” Cash replies.

I smile, because I know he doesn’t necessarily mean it in a good way. He must be aware, just as I am, of the risk we’re taking working with the Argova family. Our research project has taken us to far greater lengths than we ever anticipated.

Edson leaves, and we’re left alone. Cash is looking shocked, cautiously pleased. I feel the same way. We’ve both made so many sacrifices to get here. If it works, it will be worth it. If it doesn’t, we may be the next targets of the Argova family.

“My mother said she’ll stay out of our lives after this,” Cash says, almost in disbelief. “I guess if we play it right, we get rid of her and Oliver.”

I smile, pleased. Maybe I can settle down and be the pretty little pet I was always meant to be.

“My mother wants me to bring some of the data once it’s ready, just so her team knows what to look for. She’s going to say it was an anonymous tip, that her existing status with the Miller System authorizes her involvement. We’ll be clear of this soon.”

“Good,” I reply. “I can’t wait to be done with both of them. They’ve done too much to us, too many times. I just hope we’re not worse off with the Argova family.”

“We don’t have much of a choice,” Cash reminds us. “At least we had the option to pull away from Oliver. Even my mother could be ignored when things were going well. These people are everywhere. They got to me in prison, they have some sort of governmental ties… if things go badly, we’re not just out of business or in prison, we’re likely dead.”

Sy smiles. “From what I recall, they focus on business. Stay on the right side of business, you stay on the right side of them.”

It seems so easy for Sy. Then again, from what he’s told me, he’s always been the good soldier, following orders and shifting loyalties wherever he’s assigned. I’ve never been so good at that, and neither has Cash. “At least they haven’t resorted to threatening us, yet.”

“We’re playing by their rules,” my master nods at me. “I think we’re stuck with them. We’ll make it work, for the project.”

I never thought our little project would get this far. As much as Cash and I are committed to it, I know there’s more to our cooperation with the Argova family than our research. With everything else at stake, it can very well be our lives as well.

Sy reaches across the table and takes my hand, gentle, like he’s afraid he’ll break me. “Besides, you’re stuck with both of us,” he teases.

I laugh. It’s true; the two of them are committed to me, and I love it. I never thought I’d experience this from even one person, much less two. I never saw this coming, but I’m glad I did.

“Can I take both of you to bed, then?” I suggest, giving them both a hopeful look. “I’m tired, and I miss touching both of you. It didn’t occur to me that if something happened between the two of you it would fuck things up with both of you.”

Sy blushes, but he nods. I know he’ll give me anything I want; I just need to figure out how not to take advantage of that. Cash gets up and comes over to me, reaching his hand around the back of my neck and putting pressure on me, not hurting me, but squeezing as he pulls me to my feet. I feel my heart race at the possessive move and I comply, standing up and staring into his eyes. He leans down and kisses me, rough and demanding, and I don’t care that my lips are already sore from the hours of abuse my mouth was subject to earlier, I just want more of him.

“Have I ever turned down an opportunity to be with you?” he asks when he finally pulls away.

I smile, because I don’t think he has. I also notice the way he phrases it; he never hesitates to tell me he’s going to fuck me, but I’m guessing he knows that’s unlikely tonight.

“I’m pretty sore. And while I would love to feel you both fucking me, I think it might end badly. But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to feel you doing other things. Maybe you can even entertain each other.”

Cash gives Sy a playful smile, and Sy seems to consider it. He gets up, joining us as we walk to the bedroom. “Seems our master isn’t the only voyeur in the house,” he teases.

Cash huffs. “Haven’t I told you not to call me that in bed?”

Sy just laughs. “You haven’t gotten me in bed, yet.”

“That can be fixed,” Cash replies, rising to the challenge.

As we enter the bedroom, Cash pushes me down on the bed without a fight. I watch as he and Sy face each other. In the past, Sy has seemed nervous, reserved, but he’s playful today, and he’s the first one to strip off his clothes, keeping his eyes fixed on Cash as he does. Cash is quick to respond, pulling his own clothes off just as rapidly and tossing them aside. It’s strange to be the only one clothed in the room.