Chương 8
His eyes stayed on mine.
There it was.
A mistake.
Small, but real.
He had asked what I told them, not why I was here.
I did not answer.
Florent looked at my face for too long.
Then he exhaled.
“You heard something.”
Nobody moved.
He smiled again, but this time it was exhausted rather than charming.
“Of course.”
Captain Laurent said, “Mr. Delorme.”
Florent ignored him.
“How much?”
I said nothing.
He took one step toward me.
Elias moved too.
Laurent’s voice sharpened.
“Stop.”
Florent stopped.
His expression flickered with disbelief.
“You think I’m going to attack my wife on the bridge?”
“I think you are agitated.”
“My wife is being held here by strangers.”
“I’m not being held,” I said.
He looked at me.
“Then come with me.”
“No.”
His nostrils flared.
“You see?”
He pointed at me as though presenting evidence.
“She’s not herself.”
Captain Laurent said, “That appears to be true.”
Florent turned on him.
“Exactly.”
“Which is why she stays.”
“You have no authority to separate me from my wife.”
Laurent’s gaze hardened.
“On my vessel, I have considerable authority regarding immediate safety.”
“It’s not your vessel.”
“It is while I command it.”
Florent laughed without humor.
“You work for her family.”
“Yes.”
“That can change.”
Laurent looked almost bored.
“So can weather.”
A gust hit the yacht hard enough to rattle something against the exterior.
The deck shifted under us.
I grabbed the edge of the console.
Florent reached instinctively toward me.
I recoiled.
That hurt him.
I saw it.
For one irrational second, guilt moved through me.
The feeling disgusted me.
Then I understood something worse.
His hurt might be real.
He could plan to kill me and still feel wounded when I rejected his hand.
People were not clean enough to be only one thing.
Florent lowered his arm.
“You think I want to hurt you.”
I stared at him.
He said it quietly.
Not as a question.
Captain Laurent stepped closer.
“Mr. Delorme, I need you to leave the bridge.”
Florent looked at him.
“No.”
“That was not a request.”
“You’re making a serious mistake.”
“Possibly.”
Laurent nodded toward the door.
“Leave.”
Florent did not move.
Elias shifted behind him.
My husband noticed.
His eyes flicked from Elias to Laurent and back to me.
Then he laughed softly.
“This is unbelievable.”
He turned toward the door.
My body began to unclench.
He stopped with his hand on the handle.
Without looking back, he said, “You should ask her why she signed the power of attorney voluntarily.”
My mouth went dry.
He turned.
“Ask her why she changed the beneficiary structure in May.”
I stared at him.
“What?”
Florent’s eyes sharpened.
“There.”
He pointed at me.
“She doesn’t even remember.”
“I never changed anything.”
“You signed it.”
“The general power of attorney.”
“No.”
He shook his head.
“The succession amendment.”
I looked at Laurent.
His expression had changed.
Not belief.
Concern.
Florent saw it.
“Exactly.”
He opened the door.
“Before you decide I’m a murderer, perhaps ask whether my wife knows what she has been signing for the last six months.”
Then he left.
The door closed behind him.
For several seconds, none of us spoke.
Elias finally said, “What the hell was that?”
“I don’t know.”
Laurent turned to me.
“Did you sign an amendment?”
“No.”
“Could you have?”
“I sign documents all the time.”
“What kind?”
“Foundation approvals, investment consents, holding-company resolutions.”
“And personal estate documents?”
“No.”
I hesitated.
Laurent saw it.
“What?”
“Florent brought papers to me before the wedding.”
“What papers?”
“I thought they were related to the marriage.”
“You thought?”
“He explained them.”
Elias rubbed his forehead.
“This is not helping.”
“I trusted him.”
The words came out sharper than I intended.
Elias stopped.
I looked away.
“I didn’t read every page.”
Laurent asked, “Did you have independent counsel?”
“Yes.”
“Were they present?”
“No.”
His face tightened.
“Why not?”
“Because I was getting married, not negotiating a merger.”
The sentence sounded foolish as soon as I said it.
I hated that.
I hated Florent for making every trusting thing I had done look stupid in retrospect.
Laurent picked up the satellite handset again.
“We need legal confirmation.”
“My father’s office can provide it.”
“If he has seen your message.”
“He will.”
“You’re certain?”
“No.”
I reached for my phone.
The maintenance network was gone.
Laurent said, “Do not reconnect.”
“Why?”
“Because Florent may check the guest network logs.”
“He can do that?”
“Not directly.”
Elias said, “But if he asks the right crew member, maybe.”
Laurent gave him a look.
Elias shrugged.
“I’m trying to be realistic.”
The captain turned to me.
“We keep you here until I receive instructions or assistance.”
“And my in-laws?”
“Where are they?”
“I don’t know.”
Elias moved to the security displays.
He changed camera feeds.
The aft lounge was empty.
The dining area was empty.
The main salon showed Florence seated alone with a glass of wine.
Antoine was not visible.
Then another camera showed him in the starboard corridor near the guest cabins.
He stood outside my suite.
My breath caught.
Antoine tried the door.
It opened.
He went inside.
“Why is he in my room?”
Laurent reached for the internal phone.
I grabbed his wrist.
“Wait.”
He looked at me.
“If you call him, he’ll know we’re watching.”
Laurent lowered the receiver.
Elias changed the feed.
The camera did not show inside the cabin.
For nearly two minutes, nothing happened.
Then Antoine emerged.
He carried something small in his right hand.
White tissue.
My stomach dropped.
“My shoe.”
Elias looked at me.
“The pills.”
Antoine unfolded the tissue while walking.
He glanced down at it.
Then his head snapped up.
He turned around and went back into my cabin.
Laurent swore.
A moment later Antoine came out again.
This time he was moving quickly.
He pulled out his phone.
Elias said, “He found the missing tablets.”
May you like
My pulse began hammering again.
The captain reached for the bridge lock control.
