Read Bodyguard: Ransom (Book 2) for Free Online Page B

Only when he’d secured the door behind him did he feel safe in his domain.
    Turning to his desk, Harry almost jumped out of his skin when he discovered a man in a grey suit sitting in his chair.
    ‘M-my secretary didn’t mention any meetings this morning,’ he blustered.
    ‘She doesn’t know of
this
meeting,’ replied the man. ‘No one does.’
    The uninvited guest did not get up or introduce himself. He just studied Harry with unblinking eyes that seemed chiselled from ice.
    ‘Who are you?’ Harry demanded, gathering his wits and now becoming angry. ‘Are you a reporter? Get out of my chair!’
    The man was indifferent to Harry’s outrage. ‘I represent a certain investor.’
    ‘And who might that be?’ Harry challenged.
    ‘Your primary investor.’
    ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ said Harry. He felt himself becoming flustered. There was something deeply unsettling about this man. Like a spider crawling across his skin, Harry wanted him gone. ‘If you don’t leave right now, I’ll call security.’
    ‘I’d advise against that.’
    ‘Are you threatening me?’
    The man sat as still as a block of stone, his silence more unnerving than any reply. Then he said, ‘Equilibrium.’
    ‘What?’ snapped Harry, frowning in disbelief.
    ‘You heard me.’
    ‘Ahh,’ said Harry, relaxing slightly. This man
had
to be from his key investor. There could be no other way he’d have known of the organization’s name. It had taken Harry weeks to discover it for himself – Equilibrium, the parent investor behind all those false ‘shell’ companies who’d invested in the mining rights.
    Feeling once more in charge of the situation, Harry strode over and dropped the thick binder on to his desk.
    ‘I’m dealing with the problem,’ he said, waving a dismissive hand in the man’s direction. ‘Equilibrium need not be concerned. Neither their existence nor their involvement will be revealed. Plans are in place to handle Mr Sterling and his prying newspaper.’
    ‘But
you’re
familiar with Equilibrium.’
    ‘Of course,’ said Harry. ‘I was
thorough
in selecting my investors.’
    ‘And are they fully protected from the current crisis?’
    ‘Oh yes,’ Harry assured. ‘I’ve erased all evidence from my computer records.’
    ‘So have I,’ said the man, pulling a tiny USB drive from the back of Harry’s computer. ‘A malware virus has just wiped your hard drive.’
    ‘You can’t do that!’ exclaimed Harry.
    ‘And what about those files there?’ asked the man, ignoring Harry’s protest and nodding at the thick wad of documents on his desk.
    ‘These? They’re just an insurance policy.’
    ‘Hmm, that’s the problem,’ said the man, adjusting the crisp white cuffs of his shirt. ‘Not only do you know Equilibrium’s name but you possess evidence of its existence.’
    ‘I … I’m not going to expose Equilibrium’s involvement in this. The file is just for my own protection from the other parties. They know nothing about Equilibrium,’ said Harry, suddenly feeling a chill run down his spine from the man’s sinister casualness. ‘Trust me. I’m a man of my word.’
    ‘You’re a politician,’ the other corrected sharply, his ice-pick eyes fixing him with a contemptuous look. ‘But I’ll take your word … for what it’s worth.’
    Without further discussion, the man stood and left. Once the door closed on him, the room seemed to breathe again.
    Harry opened his desk drawer and pulled out his silver hip flask. With an unsteady hand, he removed the stopper and took a swig to calm himself. As the whisky delivered its familiar warming kick, the burn continued down his throat, into his stomach … and kept spreading.
    His chest began to tighten, his throat constricted, his breath became short and pained.
    Harry hunted for his tablets. He fumbled with the lid, scattering beta blockers across the desk as his heart was seized in a vice-like grip. Harry rolled from his