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“How long do you think this will take?” Giovanni asked as the three went back inside the office.

Dario closed the double doors and locked them. Elie watched him as he scanned the lake and boats carefully before turning back to those inside. He was always alert. He opened a panel, pressed a button and, outside, screens dropped down over all the windows. Those screens were see-through from inside the house but reflected light back toward the lake, making it impossible to see into the house. Still, Dario positioned his body between the windows and Valentino, remaining standing when most of the others were already seated. Dario was casual about it, never calling attention to himself, nearly fading into the background, something Elie would have thought impossible when so much light was pouring into the room from all the windows.

“I assigned them complex searches, one of which involves gaining access to finance books we’ve been wanting to look into. Those books will require tremendous skills and finesse to access. Obviously, if they get caught, they lose immediately,” Stefano said. “There are three separate searches involving a crime that was committed. In each case the investigators were given the basic facts. They have to establish whether the crime was real, who was guilty, and if the party reporting the crime had a hidden agenda. The last search is on a crime family in Los Angeles. We needed more information on them. We want to see who comes up with the most information the fastest.”

“You don’t think your investigators are going to have an advantage with two people versus one?” Valentino asked.

“Bernado really isn’t in the hot seat, Val,” Stefano said. “I wasn’t planning on making this into a betting opportunity. That was Giovanni’s idea, and you and Dario went along with it.”

“Pitting Brielle against two sets of investigators who will be able to work twice as fast together hardly seems a fair test,” Emmanuelle said.

“Yet you chose to put your money on Brielle,” Ricco pointed out.

Phones began to light up throughout the room. Stefano frowned down as he read the incoming report. There was silence as each of them read the report thoroughly, going over and over it several times. Elie couldn’t help the grin.

“Yeah,” Emmanuelle said. “This is why I put my money on Brielle.”

Their phones lit up again and right behind that alert came another. Rigina and Rosina and then Bernado checked in, sending their reports quickly followed by Romano and Renato. Again, silence descended on the room while everyone read the reports. This was the one on the books, finances Stefano’s family was looking into. Each wanted to see how detailed the reports were. The win wasn’t going to be based just on who was the fastest, but who had the most information and how accurate that information was.

Giovanni sighed as he stood and walked over to the white board. “Definitely a win for Brielle. Her report was accurate and had more details than the others. There were no red flags raised that our watchers could see.”

“She was lightning fast on the financials,” Val observed, with a quick look at Dario. “That’s Bernado’s forte. He does love to get into books.”

Dario shrugged. “He did say he spends too much time looking around when he should get in and get out. That may have cost him.”

Two hours later, their phones were lighting up again. This time, Rigina and Rosina sent in the first report on the criminal investigation, followed closely by Romano and Renato. The reports were concise and easy to read, both stating the crime had been committed. The one accused was indeed guilty, but the person bringing the plea for justice warranted deeper investigation. Bernado checked in next with exactly the same report. Brielle followed about ten minutes later. Her report was also concise. The crime had been committed. The accused was guilty. The person bringing the plea for justice not only was involved, but had plotted the murder and paid the guilty party for carrying out the murder. He had hired the defense attorney to get the guilty party off in order to ensure his silence, but he wanted him dead. She had evidence to back up her report.

Giovanni sighed. “The investigators would have gotten it right. Bernado would have as well. We can’t fault Brielle for taking the time to actually do the work thoroughly.”

“She came in dead last,” Taviano pointed out.

“True,” Stefano said, “but her report was thorough and complete. She has to be given the win.”

“I don’t know,” Ricco argued. “All the others agreed the one bringing us the case needed more investigation. We didn’t specify how much time was to be spent on each segment of the research.”

Elie didn’t weigh in. As far as he was concerned, his woman beat the others, hands down. He noticed Dario and Val weren’t saying anything, either. They didn’t care about the money being wagered; not that the Ferraros did, either. Dario and Val wanted to snatch Brielle up for her computer skills. Both men were looking at Stefano. He would recognize what an asset she would be. They would know it. They wanted to ensure they got to Brielle before Stefano had a chance to offer her a job. There was satisfaction in knowing they would come to her, not the other way around.

“You have to be fair,” Vittorio said. “She went the distance. She’s a rider. She knows how important it is to have all the information. She wouldn’t stop until she had it all.”

“Rigina and Rosina know. That’s their job. Same with Romano and Renato,” Ricco pointed out. “They plainly clarified that it warranted more investigation.”

Elie thought about what Vittorio had said. He was right, Brielle was a rider, but was that the reason she kept going when others stopped? He didn’t think so. She had a gift. Her gift would drive her to continue, to follow the lead until she had the answers. He remained silent, even when Dario shot him a look expecting him to stand up for Brielle.

Elie didn’t want to call attention to her gift. That was hers. He didn’t understand how it worked. He wanted to know, but then he wanted to know everything about her. She intrigued him. They’d had two weeks alone together and it hadn’t been nearly enough time. He didn’t want to go back to work and leave her by herself in their home, even with personal protectors watching over her, as they were now. He’d been reluctant to agree to meet the others at Dario’s home while she stayed behind to meet the challenge of who was fastest with a keyboard.

He had to resist the urge to send her a message, just to tell her he was proud of her. Had her parents even one time told her that? He was certain they hadn’t. She’d spent a lot of time alone, reinventing her life, trying to make herself into someone confident after he’d contributed to tearing her down with his ridiculous and cruel remarks about her looks. The really insane thing was, he preferred her body type to the thin models he always dated. He had never wanted to take the chance of falling in love so he dated the complete opposite of who he was attracted to.

To distract himself, he paced around Dario’s office, feeling a little like a caged animal. He preferred high ceilings and rooms that didn’t have defined walls. He liked space, lots of it.

“Are you worried about her?” Emmanuelle asked softly, coming up beside him.

Over the last few years, Emme had become more than just his best friend. She was definitely the sibling he’d never had. They confided in each other and often talked over the things they most worried about. Elie was grateful that Val accepted him into their lives the way he did. He could as easily have insisted Emmanuelle put distance between them, although, knowing Emme, if Val had done that, she would have balked and more than likely walked away before she was married. She wasn’t a woman to be told what to do.

“I don’t like being away from her right now,” Elie admitted. “I don’t know if it’s because someone clearly tried to kill her, or if I feel she needs reassurance that I want to be married to her.”

“What’s up with her family?”

“Her mother is dead, not that it would matter as far as anyone treating her better. Her parents wanted one child and when Fayette, her older sister, was born, she was declared a princess and then treated that way. No one was better or ever would be. From that day, they were devoted to giving her everything she could ever want to the point of driving them to the poorhouse. Fayette was so spoiled, she didn’t care.”


Tags: Christine Feehan Shadow Riders Fantasy