Page 84 of A Vineyard for Two

‘Harper knows, don’t you?’

She nodded.

‘The meddling bitch almost ruined everything,’ he said.

‘Just doing my job.’

‘You need to be careful who you mess with. Not everyone is as good at keeping secrets as you are. People talk, gossip spreads, and eventually, the snippets of information add up to a lot of truth.’

‘Harper will give you what you want, and then you’ll walk out that door and never come back,’ Brookes said.

David smiled, but there was no warmth in it.

Harper’s gaze shifted towards the door, just past David’s shoulder. Where the hell was Leo?

‘Your brother won’t be joining us.’ He said as if reading her mind.

‘What the hell did you do to him?’

‘If you do what you’re told, then you can go to him. He’s at the bottom of the vineyard. Hopefully, the snakes won’t get him before you have a chance.’

‘You repulsive bastard.’

‘You didn’t think I was that repulsive when you were screwing my brains out?’

Brookes’ jaw clenched at the same time as his fists. Harper just hoped he wasn’t going to do anything stupid. David wouldn’t hesitate to shoot. The things she’d discovered about him may have been numerical, but the people that he was associated with were dangerous, and that made him dangerous, too. They couldn’t underestimate him, not for a second. She should have known better.

‘Don’t even think about it, tough guy. I’m sure Harper here doesn’t want to clean out your blood from this lovely carpet.’

‘What do you want me to do?’

‘Wipe it all.’

‘I can’t do that.’ If she wiped everything off from the system, she would lose her job. The investigation would be all over, her reputation ruined, and men like David would continue to abuse the system, but the alternative was much worse; they’d both be dead.

‘Sure you can.’

‘People will ask questions.’

‘You’re smart enough to shut them down,’ he said. ‘Now be a good girl and grab your laptop. Think about doing anything stupid and I won’t hesitate to put a bullet through his head.’

‘It’s in my room.’

‘I suggest you move. You,’ he said to Brookes. ‘Follow and behave. Believe me, shooting you in the back of the head won’t be an issue.’

FORTY

‘Keep your hands where I can see them.’

Sweat gripped her skin as her hands shook and stomach churned as the gun hovered in front of them. Brookes stiffened beside her. Harper considered her options, but the only thing she could do was exactly as David ordered.

‘You should have minded your own business.’

‘I had a job to do.’ Whatever happened, she was under no delusion that David was going to let them go. She knew too much. Now Brookes knew too, and that meant they both were a liability. She didn’t want to believe David was capable of murder, but she didn’t really know him all that well. She shouldn’t have come back here; she shouldn’t have put her family in danger.

Harper clicked a few buttons on her laptop. Everything was password protected and required her fingerprint. She’d gone to extra lengths to ensure her work was secure. But that didn’t mean someone couldn’t access it from the inside. ‘I can’t access the files here.’

‘Stop the bullshit.’