have any friends, do you? Good-bye, Adrienne. Don't call this number again.'
Chantelle's face disappeared from the viewscreen. 'Goodbye, Chantelle,' said Adrienne. 'I do hope you have dysentery soon.'
She was debating whether to call Chantelle again, just to remind her that her choices in dress had always inspired projectile vomiting in anyone with a smattering of taste, when her viewscreen chimed, alerting her of an incoming call. For a moment Adrienne just sat there. No one had called her since she arrived here. Not least because most people weren't supposed to know where she was, and those who did were careful to contact her only in person. Adrienne drew herself up and accepted the call. Maybe she'd won the lottery. The viewscreen cleared to show Lord Gregor Shreck, head of Clan Shreck. A short, fat butterball of a man, with a bulging fleshy face and deep-set eyes, the Shreck was one of the most dangerous men in society, mostly because he never cared what his actions cost him as long as he got what he wanted.
'Dear Adrienne,' said Gregor, his voice oozing a charm that didn't reach his eyes. 'I have a proposition for you. A little give-and-take to our mutual advantage. Are you interested?'
'Depends,' said Adrienne in her most frosted voice. It didn't do to get chummy with Gregor. He took advantage. 'What do you want from me? As if I didn't know.'
'You never liked him, Adrienne, even if he was your husband. And you really haven't got anything else to bargain with that anyone wants. You don't have to do anything difficult. Just contact Finlay and persuade him to emerge from the underground at an agreed time and place, so we can be waiting for him. We'll take him away, and you can return to society, as though nothing had ever happened.'
'You don't have that much influence.'
'I will have once I have Finlay.'
'What makes him so important?'
'You don't need to know, dear.'
'What will happen to him?'
'What do you care? I'd suggest you make good use of this offer while it still stands. Finlay is currently very hot, and a lot of people want him. He's just killed Lord William Sr. John and has made a rather amazing escape.'
'Wait a minute,' said Adrienne. 'Hold everything. Finlay's killed someone?'
'Yes. I wouldn't have believed it myself if I hadn't seen the holo recordings. He's really quite an excellent swordsman. I can only assume he's been taking lessons in the underground. But not to worry. I'll have more than enough men standing by to handle him.'
'St. John's dead? The Empress's own personal attack dog?' Adrienne shrugged. 'Can't say I ever liked the man. Thought he was God's gift to women, and he had clammy hands. I had to hit him around the ear with a candlestick once.'
'That's as may be, Adrienne. Will you help us, or do I have to apply a little pressure? You have two very lovely children. Quite charming. Be a shame if anything were to happen to them.'
'You touch my babies, and I'll rip your balls off with my bare hands,' said Adrienne. Gregor continued as though she hadn't spoken.
'Robert isn't the only one with friends in the military. Think about it. And call me when you've made your decision. Don't take too long. If all else fails, I might decide to do terrible things to you, in the hope Finlay would come to rescue you. Rather a distant hope, I'll admit, but we could do all kinds of interesting and inventive things to you while we were waiting for your husband to show up.'
'I'd smack you right in the mouth, Shreck, if I wasn't afraid of catching something disgusting from you,' said Adrienne in a voice so cold she barely recognized it. 'Now, remove your loathsome presence from my viewscreen. My neighbors will think I've got a toilet overflowing in here. If I change my mind, I'll contact you. But don't hold your breath.'
Gregor Shreck just laughed. Adrienne hit the off switch, and a sudden echoing silence filled the room. She sniffed and stretched slowly to get the tensions out of her body. She must be losing her touch. She should have been able to handle a creep like the Shreck. There was a time she could goad a man into an impotent homicidal fury with just a few well-placed barbs. But this time Gregor held all the major cards, and he knew it. Worst of all, she was considering his offer. Finlay had never meant much to her, and she couldn't risk anything happening to her children. Robert had sworn he'd protect them, but when all was said and done, he was only a junior officer in the fleet. And if Finlay really was going around killing people… She bit her lip. If she allied herself with the Shreck, and Robert found out… Robert had been due to marry the Shreck's niece, Letitia, in an arranged marriage. They'd almost completed their wedding vows when Gregor killed her, rather than have her dishonor him. He'd strangled her with his bare hands while the Campbells held Robert back. He'd never forgiven the Shreck for that.
Adrienne's scowl deepened, if she was going to do this, Robert must never know. Which meant she'd have to shake off the people Robert had protecting her, before she could start making arrangements to contact the underground. She'd be putting herself at risk. Gregor wouldn't be the only one to think of using her as bait in a trap to catch Finlay. Not that he'd come anyway, the bastard. Finlay had never made any secret of his feelings, or rather lack of them, for her. They had absolutely nothing in common except the children, and on the few occasions they absolutely had to meet, they could hardly exchange a dozen words without sniping at each other. After a dozen words they tended to escalate rapidly to shouting invectives and throwing things.
It had been an arranged marriage, of course. Neither of them had had any say in the matter. Personally, she'd always thought Finlay was mentally disturbed, with his obsession over clothes and fashions, and his recent exploits only seemed to confirm that. But would he really stand by and do nothing while his wife was tortured to death? Would she, if the situation was reversed? Well, yes, probably. Adrienne had always known she was a hard bitch at heart. But Finlay had put his own life at risk to save hers when she was mortally wounded during the Wolfe hostile takeover. If he hadn't got her to the regeneration machine in time, she would have died. She could still feel the sword punching through her belly and out her back. Sometimes she dreamed about lying helpless on the gravity sled's desk, awash in her own blood, while Finlay strove desperately to shake off the pursuing Wolfe craft. She woke drenched in sweat and couldn't sleep again until the morning brought comforting light. Finlay had saved her life, when he didn't have to. But typical of the man, he had to do it in a way that insulted and humiliated her.
She hadn't known about Evangeline Shreck then. She'd known there was someone in his life, some other woman who mattered to him in a way she never had. But she hadn't known who till she woke up in the regeneration machine in Evangeline's apartment in Tower Shreck. Robert and his people were standing guard over her, but Finlay and Evangeline were long gone. Robert had got her to safety, Evangeline finally resurfaced, free of guilt or any connection to Finlay, and returned to her apartment. But Adrienne had never found the courage to call her.
Adrienne sighed and looked around her at her cramped quarters. It had started out life as Robert's bachelor pad, somewhere for him to crash and burn on his infrequent leaves, and hadn't improved since. It might almost be worth making a deal with Gregor, just to get out of this dump. She'd had Jacuzzis that were bigger. And it was strictly masculine territory, with no frills or fancies or real comforts. She itched to transform the place according to her tastes. But one, she didn't have the money, and two, Robert would have a fit. He actually liked it this way. Men. Probably washed his underwear in the hand basin, and clipped his toenails in the bidet. He let her have what money he could, but it wasn't much. Clan Wolfe now possessed all the old Campbell assets, bad cess to the bastards. She'd been selling what personal jewelry she'd been wearing on the day, piece by piece, to keep her head above water, but it was nearly all gone now. She hadn't got much for them. She was limited in where she could go. Old friends didn't want to know her, and businesses were afraid to make enemies of those in society who openly gloated over Adrienne's downfall. It appeared her big mouth had offended practically everyone at one time or another. Adrienne sniffed. Hell with them if they couldn't take a joke.
If she were to work with the Shreck and betray Finlay, he'd probably let her name her own price. She could be rich again and part of society and laugh in the faces of all those who'd ostracized her…
There was a knock at the door, and she spun around sharply, face flushed as though she'd been caught doing something wrong. As though whoever it was had known what she was thinking, she made herself breathe steadily and glared at the door. Two callers in one day. She was getting popular. She forced her voice to be calm even as she asked who it was, and then tensed again as Robert Campbell identified himself. He'd made it clear right from the beginning that he wouldn't be visiting her often. There was a limit to how much he could be seen helping her. He had his career to think of. And his own safety. Adrienne understood. If he was here now, it must be important.
