Chapter 9 - The Man Buying the Waterfront
Reed Sloane arrived at Vale Maritime's headquarters wearing a watch worth more than Adrian's first car.
He was forty-seven, handsome in a carefully maintained way, and spoke as though every disagreement could be settled by selecting a different number.
Adrian met him in the boardroom.
Reed glanced at the empty chairs.
"Just us?"
"Just us."
"No Martin?"
"Not today."
Reed smiled.
"All right. Mystery meeting. I like those."
Adrian didn't smile back.
"You're offering eighty-eight million for West Pier."
"Correct."
"Why?"
Reed laughed.
"That's generally how buying works, Adrian. I give you money. You give me something worth owning."
"Why now?"
"Market opportunity."
"That's not an answer."
"Fine. High-end waterfront redevelopment. Residential, commercial, marina access. I think the property is undervalued."
"Even with environmental remediation?"
Reed's smile became more deliberate.
"We have specialists for that."
"Have they reviewed Eleanor's independent soil assessment?"
A faint change crossed Reed's face.
It lasted less than a second.
"What assessment?"
Adrian watched him.
"My late wife commissioned another environmental review before she died."
"Was it completed?"
"That's what I'm trying to establish."
Reed spread his hands.
"Well, there you go. Let's have the report. If it changes the numbers, we adjust."
Adrian leaned forward.
"Why does your offer expire in eleven days?"
"Financing calendar."
"Extend it."
"That would be difficult."
"Then don't buy the property."
Reed studied him.
A different man seemed to emerge.
The cheerful developer disappeared, replaced by someone accustomed to getting his way.
"Adrian, I understand you've had a rough week."
"My daughter almost died."
"Yes. It's awful. Truly. I have two boys. I can't imagine."
"Then imagine I don't want to discuss an eighty-eight-million-dollar sale while she's recovering."
Reed nodded slowly.
"Fair."
He closed his portfolio.
Then he said, "Martin tells me Corinne has been a great help getting everyone aligned."
Adrian looked up.
"Aligned how?"
"She's optimistic about the future."
"My wife isn't an officer of this company."
"Of course not."
"She doesn't negotiate for us."
Reed gave a small shrug.
"She knows people. She's a persuasive woman."
"What has she discussed with you?"
Reed hesitated.
"Nothing improper."
Adrian waited.
Reed sighed.
"Listen, I don't want to get dragged into somebody's marriage. I'm buying land, not taking sides."
"Then answer the question."
"She introduced me to a consulting group that's been helping with community outreach and permitting strategy."
"What group?"
Reed opened his portfolio again.
"Bell Advisory Partners."
Adrian didn't recognize the name.
"Who's behind it?"
Reed looked mildly surprised.
"Corinne didn't tell you?"
An hour later, Adrian's controller, Sabrina Cho, sat across from him with a spreadsheet open.
Sabrina was thirty-eight, sharp-eyed, and had been with Vale Maritime long enough to stop pretending the company's executives were always smarter than its accounting staff.
"You asked me to review payments related to the West Pier sale," she said.
"Yes."
"There's a problem."
Adrian waited.
"Bell Advisory Partners is a consulting entity that was formed last year. It has a contract connected to the redevelopment transaction."
"How much?"
"The contract contemplates a success fee of six point four million dollars if the deal closes."
Adrian stared at her.
"Six point four million?"
"Yes."
"For what?"
"The agreement says regulatory coordination, stakeholder relations, and strategic introductions."
"That's a lot of fancy words."
"Usually is when someone wants to avoid explaining what they actually did."
He almost laughed.
"Who's the owner?"
Sabrina turned her laptop toward him.
A corporate registration record appeared.
The listed managing member was Simon Rusk.
Adrian felt something shift.
"Rusk?"
Sabrina nodded.
"You know him?"
Corinne's maiden name was Rusk.
Her older brother's name was Simon.
Adrian had met him exactly twice.
Both times Simon had arrived late, borrowed money, and left before dessert.
He stared at the screen.
"My brother-in-law."
Sabrina watched him carefully.
"Adrian, there's another issue."
"What?"
"The consulting agreement was prepared before Reed made his formal offer."
"How long before?"
"Six weeks."
Adrian looked at the numbers.
Corinne had pushed him toward a transaction from which her brother stood to make millions.
She had never mentioned it.
He could already hear her explanation.
It's complicated, Adrian.
I was going to tell you.
Why do you always assume the worst?
Sabrina lowered her voice.
"Do you want me to inform Martin that we're reviewing these payments?"
"No."
"All right."
"Preserve everything. Emails. Contracts. Payment records. And speak to our outside counsel about how to do it properly."
She nodded.
Adrian stood and walked toward the window.
His phone vibrated.
A message from Corinne.
CORINNE: I know you're angry. But we both have things to lose. Please don't make this uglier than it needs to be.
May you like
For the first time, Adrian understood that her concern wasn't necessarily about their marriage.
It might be about what he was going to discover next.
