“He’s not a savant.” I swung my legs off the bed, wedging elbows into thighs and slouching. “However, if he wants to use that term, he’s welcome. After all, I’ve always wondered if he has a mental impairment. Brain damage could explain his behaviour, but it would be too easy. He’s just a liar and a bastard.” My hands curled. “I want him the fuck out of my building.”
“I’m fully aware. But…others have accepted his promises and are financing him behind your back.”
“Goddammit.” My legs bunched, soaring me upright. “The board don’t control my company’s assets. How can they—”
“They control access to labs and technicians if you’re not around to make an executive decision. They provided your brother with what he asked for because, for the first time, he didn’t come sniffing for cash.”
“Yeah, and that’s the terrifying part.”
Even with untold millions from his inheritance, Drake Sinclair seemed to have fingers that coins rapidly spilled out of, whereas I’d taken a slap in the face and turned it into an empire.
An empire that wouldn’t give him a shit-covered penny.
Peter Beck stayed silent, letting my mind whir in peace. My brother had always been a spoiled asshole. The moment I was born, I saw him for what he was. A soulless, cruel, despicable excuse for a human who managed to use reptilian grace and falsehood to con my parents into thinking he was angelic.
His halo had always been blackened, but it didn’t stop them from thinking he hung the moon and stars, while I was the sweeper in the shadows, cleaning up his messes.
When we were younger, if our parents had been in the room, he let me play with his toys, hang with his friends, hugged me like a brother. But the moment they left…fuck me, it’d been a totally different story.
I’d been known as a ‘clumsy’ kid. Breaking bones, ruining clothing, losing belongings. What they didn’t know was, it wasn’t clumsiness causing my pain and unhappiness, but the boy I shared DNA with. A son five years older than me and utterly malicious.
He’d been the catalyst for my first tragedy. The constant devil in the wings, taking anything I loved and destroying it.
“My hands are tied, sir, I’ve tried calling another board meeting to refresh company policy and remind them that you are still very much at the helm, even if you live in Java. But…well, my summons went unheeded.” He sighed heavily. “There isn’t much more I can do without having you personally here.”
“If I visit, I won’t be kind. I won’t be forgiving.” My voice frosted with ruthlessness. “If the board makes me physically appear, their lesson won’t be gentle.” I shrugged, doing my best to roll out the vicious tension in my shoulders. “I’ll fire them and blacklist them from ever working on a board again. I won’t accept any excuses. Back my brother and you’re dead to me.”
“I did try to warn them, Mr. Sinclair.”
“Don’t call me that. Not while my brother holds the same title.” I raked a hand through my hair, my mind already on a plane going to defend my dominion from infidels. “Give me twenty-four hours. I’ll make my brother realise the error of his ways.”
Vengeance would never be so sweet.
I hung up and instantly called another number while striding toward the bathroom. The open air space didn’t look out into a private garden like most of the villas along the ocean did. My personal home didn’t share the beach with goddesses. Instead, it was tucked away in the fronds of huge palms, jackfruit trees, and lime bushes. Heliconias and orchids added colour, enticing birds and butterflies. But it wasn’t the flora and fauna that ensured I’d built my villa inland instead of coastal…it’d been the waterfall.
Nirvana splashed constant and majestic, the perfect backdrop to my shower. Most of the time, I just bathed in the basin formed by the splashing falls. This morning, however, I had no time to waste.
Cal answered on the third ring. His voice catching with a sleep-filled croak. “Sir?”
“Book me a flight to San Diego. Leaving immediately. Charter a flight from Jakarta if you need.”
“What? Right now?”
“Yes, right now.” I rolled my eyes. “Do it.”
“Why are you going to Sinclair and Sinclair? Just communicate online like—”
“Cal, we’re friends, so I permit such liberties, but don’t mistake our dynamics when I ask you to do something. I need a flight. So book me a goddamn flight.”
“It’s because we’re friends that I’m asking.” His voice hardened. “The only reason you’d be leaving is if your brother—”
“For fuck’s sake, I’ll handle it.”
“Ah, shit. Drake’s being a cunt again.” He didn’t ask it as a question. Just a statement, followed by his unwavering loyalty. “I’m going with you.”
“Like fuck you are.” Throwing my toothbrush and other toiletries into a bag, I quickly stormed to my walk-in wardrobe and tossed shirts, shoes, and suits onto the rattan chaise lounge in the centre, working out what I’d need.