Page 68 of The Client
“The thing is,” he says, “my father has given you so much freedom within the company that he doesn’t bother looking over your shoulder. Because you’re Mr. Perfect, aren’t you?”
“I’m not—”
“No. You’re not. Everyone justthinksyou are,” he says, an edge to his voice.
He finally seems to find what he’s looking for—a small black rectangle with a silver plug on one end, which I recognize as a USB drive—and holds it up with a grin.
“But they won’t think that for long. You see, kiddo, this video I’ve got here is pretty damning. Your expense account is 10 times the amount of mine and no one ever asks you to justify your expenditures, do they? Not even when you buy yourself a woman.”
I can feel my blood pressure spiking as he plugs the drive into his laptop, double-clicks something, and then turns the screen to face me. There’s a small window playing a digital video file. Inside a lavish office, an older man in a flashy suit with gray streaks in his dark hair sits behind a desk, his fingers steepled. It’s Konstantin Zoric.
Across from him, a young woman perches stiffly on a chair. Izabela. I’d know the set of her shoulders anywhere. She’s clearly uncomfortable being alone with this gentleman. The urge to pull her out of that chair and away from that man courses through me. My chest hitches as an ominous sensation presses down on me.
“What the hell is this?”
“Just a little insurance policy that I spent quite a pretty penny obtaining a copy of,” Dad says with a pleased lilt to his voice.
The dread presses harder down on me as my father turns up the volume.
“I’m sorry, can you repeat that?”Izabela is saying, sounding panicked.
“Are you a virgin,”Zoric says, his tone deadly.“Yes or no? Have you engaged in sexual intercourse or not? It’s a simple question.”
My stomach churns as the video plays on.
“Is this…relevant to a modeling job, Mr. Zoric?”
“You didn’t read the fine print on your contract before signing. Ah, well, that’s your fault, not mine. It clearly states that you are legally bound to provide any and all relevant information about your body, including height, weight, medical history, and health status, and therefore you are required to answer the question. Are you a virgin or not? Because the men who are going to bid on you at the auction tomorrow night will want to know. So. Yes or no?”
It hits me like a ton of bricks. Konstantine Zoric is trafficking women through his modeling agency and auctioning them off to wealthy assholes. Like my father.
“Enough,” I thunder, slapping the laptop shut,my blood gone cold with horror.
Because instinctively, I know what must unfold next on that video. Konstantin Zoric forcing Izabela into agreeing to be sold at that auction. Something she never chose to do. Neverwantedto do. So much makes sense now. Her lack of experience, her virginity, her flashes of attitude.
My dad gestures to the chair across from him. “Have a seat. Let’s chat because, I promise you, your life’s about to change.”
I absolutely won’t sit down, nor will I allow myself to get closer. My hands already itch to wrap around his neck. A sickening burn chars my throat. “What did you do?”
“As you well know, Reginald McConnell, your doting grandfather, has always prided himself on having impeccable ethics. In fact, he claims that’s the foundation for the success of this company. Now, I’ll admit, I was surprised when he named you as his successor and not me. But at the same time, I understood. He believes that my actions at times can be…less than complementary to the company’s reputation. Not good optics.”
“PR nightmare is more like it.”
“Beside the point,” he says, waving my comment away. “If he thinks my actions are inexcusable, imagine how he’s going to feel when he finds out his golden boy likes to fuck hookers? There’s no denying it, either. You’ve been seen out with her countless times. I have photographic evidence.”
“I’ll tell him I didn’t know.”
“Doesn’t matter if you did or didn’t know about it. Either way, this is going to be, what did you just call it? A ‘PR nightmare.’ The damage has already been done. Once the tabloids get wind of this scandal, there will be a media frenzy. Like sharks to chum. Your grandfather will be humiliated, shamed, not to mention furious at how you’ve conducted yourself.”
His words sink in hard. But something else hits me even harder: if Zoric did this to Izabela, who else has he done it to? He’s obviously got his methods down to a fine art. How long has the man been trafficking young women through his modeling agency? The thought turns my stomach.
“Why are you doing this? Hurting the company hurts you, too.” I seethe.
“I won’t have to hurt anybody if you do the right thing and walk away now.” My father shrugs. “It’s a means to an end, kiddo. Don’t take it personally. Working out this deal with you is the most efficient way to put that promotion back in my hands. Theright hands. You know damn well your grandfather won’t stand for this. You can kiss that CEO’s chair goodbye.”
“I’m not going to let you get away with this. You’re the one who purchased her to begin with! What if I tell Reg that?”
“And yet, somehow that charge found its way onto your company card. You should really be more careful about your personal information, son.”
