“I’ve seen the news. I assume that’s why you’re calling?”
Miles was careful to keep his choice of words as vague as possible. While there was little chance of being overhead way up here on the Ferris wheel, he wasn’t about to take any unnecessary risks, either. Through the phone, he heard his brother sigh heavily.
“I wish I was calling under better circumstances.”
His lips firmed into a straight line and he waited for his brother to continue.
“Look, Sutton and I have been talking. Something’s not right about the whole situation, and we need someone with very specific expertise to make sure that the rot hasn’t spread to our other companies.”
“Expertise such as?”
“Someone we trust implicitly who is capable of doing a full forensic sweep of our systems. You’re probably aware that we’re being charged with criminal negligence in the jet plant fire, which our legal team is working on now. But it gets worse.”
“Worse?”
Sebastian sighed again. “Look, I’ll cut straight to the chase. During the independent safety inspection, drugs were found on the WinJet premises.”
“What? Like a personal stash?”
“More like a considerable quantity for supply and distribution. The DEA have been brought in and they’ve opened an investigation. I can’t tell you how serious this is. Based on their findings, they could have a case to present against us for drug trafficking.”
Miles felt as if he’d been dealt a physical blow. A string of curse words escaped his mouth, and Chloe looked at him in concern. He reached for her hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze before thinking carefully about his reply to his brother.
“And, of course, you guys knew nothing about it, right?”
“Of course not.” Sebastian sounded deeply insulted. “Look, you might not want to be a part of this family in a commercial sense, but I’d like to remind you that dirt sticks. If we’re going to be tarred with this brush, it will affect you, too.”
“I’m aware of that, and I know that you’d never dream of going down that road so don’t get on your high horse with me, okay?” Miles fought the urge to lay a few more truths at his brother’s door. Things like better IT security and plant surveillance, just to name a few, but that would be akin to locking the stable door after their entire breeding stock of horses on the ranch had bolted. “What do you want from me?”
“Can you come home? We’ll give you access to all systems. Look, with the fire, everything is in disarray but one thing has become very clear since the investigation. Corners have been cut, and Sutton and I think it has to be someone at a higher level who authorized or instigated it. That someone has to have left a trail somewhere. We need you to find it.”
Miles tried not to allow emotion to rule over common sense, but hearing his older brother tell him they needed him—well, it was hard to remain dispassionate after a comment like that.
“When?” he asked.
“Ideally? As soon as possible. We can send one of the company jets to collect you today. Can you be ready in about four hours?”
He could, but that would mean leaving Chloe behind on what was supposed to be a weekend getting to know one another. Of course, she’d be there when he returned, but now that she was with him, he didn’t want to leave her. But the pull of family was strong, no matter how much he tried to pretend otherwise, and what his family was going through right now was deadly serious with far-reaching ramifications.
“Look, let me confirm with you in about an hour or so. There’s something I need to take care of first.”
“Something?” his brother asked wryly. “Or someone?”
And there it was, the usual big brother banter.
“I’ll call you back,” Miles said, deliberately ignoring Sebastian’s question.
“I’ll be waiting.”
Miles disconnected and shoved his phone back in his pocket. Chloe was watching him carefully.
“Miles? Are you okay? You look like you’ve had a shock.”
Yeah, he had received a shock. Hearing that the DEA were potentially preparing a case against his family for drug trafficking was hellishly serious.
“Family stuff,” he gritted out without really saying anything at all. The car they were in on the Ferris wheel was nearing the exit point. “C’mon, let’s go somewhere where we can talk.”
Holding her hand, they exited the car, and Miles moved them through the crowd until they found a quiet spot on the edge of the pier.