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The attack ramped up the timetable for many things. Among them, Ben’s scheduled move into the Bino villa. Naturally, Syson oversaw the logistics. Ben had to wonder if that was for her benefit or his own. The beach altercation had occurred almost a week earlier. Ben had seen little of Syson since then. She told herself not to be too rattled by it. Besides, it wasn’t as if she didn’t have plenty to keep her busy.
The village excursion to meet with the island’s residents was a success on many fronts. More and more people were willing to discuss their struggles which aided in giving Ben a way to gauge the most pressing matters requiring her attention.
Of course any changes on her part were contingent on final approval from her uncle. Maxim Bino had pretty much given his consent but, as it stood, it was a verbal consent. There were still papers to sign, an in-person meeting to attend. Ben owned up to the fact that she’d been reluctant to see her uncle. Despite wanting answers to questions she couldn’t get from her parents, standing on the threshold of receiving them, filled her with dread.
She knew her parents loved her and would have protected her against any threat. Perhaps the reason they’d never told her about the Binos was because they’d been trying to shield her from the very thing she was now so close to riddling out. Nevertheless, this was now an open can of worms that could not be resealed. The Bino meeting had to happen if she was to make good on her promise to the company’s employees. There was so much to consider, but she couldn’t think of a better place to do that. In her opinion, there was no better place for contemplation than her new home.
Ben was to have her own private wing at the Villa Bino. Thankfully the wing was reserved for long term guests so there were few overarching changes required. Fresh paint, new furnishings and color schemes were all that was needed for the new lady of the manor. She’d been told that Syson had taken it upon himself to see that the workers finished the remodel in half the time they’d been allowed. Given how demanding her bodyguard/lover could be, it was no surprise that the crew completed the job in record time. As he’d barely looked her way since the attack, Ben was quite pleased to be out of the inn.
Villa Bino was a breathtaking stretch of property that boasted twenty bedroom suites, not counting the six private wings- one of which now belonged to Ben. The place was quite clearly a showpiece. Ben asked why her uncle needed such space being a single man with no children. As the eldest son of Gregor Bino, Maxim was charged with running the company his father founded.
Each wing possessed its own distinctive design, while the common rooms were of similar schemes. Emerald green and sapphire against a snow white foundation accented everything from the living room furnishings to the hand towels in the guest bathrooms.
“How often did he entertain out here?” Ben took in the vivid sea and sky from her place on one of the many loveseat lounges dotting the white brick patio.
“Not often enough,” Luke sighed while thumbing through a folder he’d pulled from his satchel. “Your uncle wasn’t much for socializing,” he winced, “isn’t much for socializing.”
“It’s okay, Luke,” Ben left the lounge to help herself to juice from the bar cart near the patio entrance to the house.
“You sure about going to see him today?”
“Should have gone to see him the day I got here,” Ben tossed back a healthy swallow of orange juice. “When do we-” Syson walked out to the patio then, and wiped her mind blank for a time.
“Sy?” Luke’s eyes were expectant as he watched Syson crossing the patio.
“Am I interrupting?” he asked Luke, barely glancing Ben’s way.
“See you out at the car Luke.” Ben said.
“Taking her to see Bino,” Luke explained when Ben stalked off the patio.
“That a good idea? Getting that castle of Bino’s up to fortress standards hasn’t been easy.”
“From what I hear, that’s because of you,” Luke met Syson’s glare with a smirk. “Are you suggesting we hold off until you decide the hospital is safe enough? She won’t get in there ‘til next year!” He laughed out the last few words. “Don’t worry Sy. I’ll be with her. So will Bino’s guards.”
“You gonna sit in on the meeting?” Sy took one of the chairs across from Luke at the patio table.
“Well, no...” Luke frowned. “Hell man, you don’t think that old dude’s gonna try anything in there, do you?”
“I don’t trust a damn soul on this island. Not with her,” Syson’s voice was leaden, his features just as hard. “After what Bolt pulled on that beach...”
Luke’s amusement waned as well. Leaning over the table, he pulled a hand through windblown blonde locks and grimaced. “I was sure we’d be reading about Sean Bolton’s untimely and gruesome death by now.”
Syson laughed in spite of himself. “So did I. Times like that, it pays to have friends who’ll tell you the truth even if they have to risk their health to do it.”
“They talked you down,” Once more, Luke leaned close to the table, that time to top off his coffee.
“They got me to see a better way-one that might let me kill two birds with one stone.”
Luke sipped his coffee, nodded approvingly of the taste. “You willing to share details?”
Syson’s eyes narrowed as renewed laughter surged. “Absolutely.”
~~~
“Sy? Can I talk to you?”
“Ben I was just-”
“Leaving. Yeah, I know. You’ve been doing that a lot lately when I’m around.”
Knowing when he’d been accurately evaluated, Syson spread his hands and remained where he was. His eyes raked the length of her in the plum colored empire waist maxi dress that emphasized the fullness of her breasts and the richness of her complexion. His gaze faltered when her fragrance drifted close. He’d become intimately acquainted with and secretly addicted to it given his first hand confirmation that it clung to every part of her body.
“I know you’re upset about what happened on the beach,” she was saying.
“Upset.”
“What happened on the beach,” she glanced at the breathtaking scenery beyond the panoramic windows leading to the patio.
Syson frowned as her meaning became clearer.
Ben hugged herself and walked toward the sunken space in the living room that housed a mini home theater. “If we hadn’t been on the beach...”
“What? You think this was your fault?”
“We didn’t have to be out there.”
“Getting fresh air? Enjoying the day like two normal people?”
“But if we hadn’t-”
“Hey?” He waited until she faced him. “This wasn’t your fault-none of it. Understood?”
“But I-” Ben blinked, her steps tentative as she approached him. “I thought...”
“What? That I’m such a tyrant, I wouldn’t understand the human need for sun and fresh air.”
“Then why are you ignoring me?”
The smile that was just starting to curve Syson’s shapely mouth, froze. “You think I’m doing that?”
“You haven’t said a word to me since the whole beach thing, and-”
“Not because of anything you did, babe.” He began to walk toward her. “The person I hate most in the world is in the one place he can’t be because that puts him too close to the one thing I care most about.” Syson was close enough to touch her then and drew his thumb down her cheek. “Go see your uncle.”
Ben stood on her toes and leaned into his touch. “What will you do?” She smiled at his quirky smile and eye roll.
“Thought I’d test a theory,” he said.
***
“That’s a very expensive vase, Mr. Bolton.”
“And I’m supposed to care, why?”
“Don’t worry about it,” the sound of the item crashing when it landed on the floor, didn’t cause Andrew Faust to look up from his phone. “I’ll just deduct it from your pay.”
“My pay?” Sean Bolton chuckled, smoothed a hand across his shaved head. “So you do remember that I work for you? Benaja Lake was attacked and I didn’t know a damn thing about it. The way I remember it, I was brought here for that very thing.”
“Which I’ve been waiting for since your arrival,” Andrew finally looked up. “I need Ms. Lake handled. My nephew hates you and I brought you here to feed that rage and distract him. You were to do that by making sure Ms. Lake remains in a constant state of danger before I have you kill her.”
“And I told you I had a plan. I would’ve handled it!”
“This isn’t about your prison vendetta with Sy.” Faust shoved to his feet. “She hasn’t met with her uncle yet, but she’s already making profitable connections with certain irritating yet powerful execs. Not to mention, the village folk. We need that to stop.”
Sean Bolton’s glare radiated murderous intent. “She will stop-on my time.”
“Time is something you may have a lot more of, Bolton. Not so for the rest of us.”
Bolton’s glare filtered with fake humor. “Threats, Faust?”
“Facts,” was the immediate response.
***
“Ms. Lake? We’re ready for you.”
Wearing a tight smile, Ben smoothed invisible wrinkles from the folds of her dress and moved slowly down the corridor. The hospital was located just outside Tesh, high in the lush mountains surrounding the island. The corridors were silent aside from the soothing strains of classical music being piped in. It was almost meditative and gave Ben the required motivation to move on to the room at the end of the hall. Despite the desire to meet Maxim Bino for answers, she was still hopelessly on edge.
Two white-coated men waited at the room’s entrance. From the looks of them, they could either be doctors or hired muscle. One of them waved her forward and she advanced as if compelled.
The room was enormous, more like a lavish hotel suite than a medical space. The bed was equally impressive and...non hospital-like. The man in the beautifully dressed king-sized looked like he should be anywhere but fighting for his health. Ben guessed he had to be well over 180 pounds and judging from the way he sat up in the bed, at least 6’2.
“Ru was right. You’re the image of our Cara,” he said.
Hearing her mother’s name released the tension like air from a balloon. She advanced to the bed under her own steam and sat. “Why didn’t she ever tell me about you? About any of you? About this place?”
Maxim Bino’s broad face broke into an approving grin. “I would have expected Ruscilla and Dane to have already shared the family history.”
Ben appeared to cringe. “They didn’t have much time before your security team wanted a moment.”
It was Bino’s turn to cringe. “My apologies that Mr. Faust and his men didn’t use more tact.”
“You should know I plan to see they leave this island if I have the chance.”
Bino’s laughter sounded as hearty as he looked. “That’s what I hope you’ll do.”
Ben’s jaw dropped. “Why haven’t you? If you don’t approve of them, why-”
“Faust provides a necessary service. It’s unfortunate that their service is needed. My hope is that you’ll bring changes that will eliminate that need. The company has lost its way on many fronts, but there is still cause for hope. Thanks to my brother, your Uncle Dane, we’ve made great strides in pharmaceutical research with special interest in Alzheimer’s treatments. There are many other studies-employees can even volunteer to take part and are well paid for their participation. Of course, I’d like for us to have more qualified personnel involved before we dive too far into such business. Dane is very dedicated to it. The disease took our mother, you see?”
Regret surged in Ben’s light eyes and she nodded.
Bino smiled solemnly. “The potential for great success is there. Many of our employees even benefitted from the studies as well.”
Knowing, held Ben’s expression. “But?” she prompted.
“But...with good often comes bad.”
“It sounds like Faust being here is where the trouble lies.” The realization turned her nerves into a frazzled mess in record time. Her fists held the covers in a bruising clutch. Ben couldn’t tell where Maxim Bino’s mood rested following her outburst. To her surprise, he laughed.
“You are your mother’s child!” Bino applauded enthusiastically and then rested back on the pillows bunched at his back.
“Why did they leave? Her and my dad? What happened between all of you?” Ben realized how desperate she sounded.
Maxim Bino nodded as though coming to the decision that it was time. “The problems on the island started long before I brought Faust here.”
“How?”
“We were all kids,” a small nostalgic smile tugged Bino’s mouth, “but we were old enough to remember the scandal that broke when our aunt’s affair became public knowledge.”
“Let me guess. He was married.”
“They both were, but that wasn’t the scandal.”
“Tesh takes adultery lightly. Good to know.”
Maxim Bino’s coffee brown face reflected serene approval. “Your mother was a happy girl-full of life, love. That was never more true than when she met your father.”
“What happened?”
“Your father’s family worked for Bino. Two of his uncles were in the security business. They were in charge of all the company guards-nothing like Faust, just monitoring lobbies, entrances, etcetera. Your father’s uncle Kevan was in charge of my Aunt Shreva’s private security detail. My father was getting death threats on the life of his family. Shreva and Kevan spent a lot of time together. One thing led to another-they fell in love. My uncle Gael, Shreva’s husband, well...he didn’t care-long as he kept all the perks that came with being married to a Bino. Kevan’s wife on the other hand...she wasn’t so accepting.”
“She left him.”
“She preferred to ruin him, instead. Just her luck, she found a way that would ruin the woman he betrayed her with.”
~~~
“Kevan’s wife-your aunt Morissa, had a lot of family that worked for Bino. High executives in our family offered certain employees a way to make ends meet if they needed it.”
Ben’s grip faltered over her knife and fork. She and Bino now sat across from each other at a small beautifully set round table in a small alcove tucked in a far corner of the room. Their late supper consisted of a thick clam chowder, with salad and buttermilk medallion biscuits. It was far from hospital regulation and the savory taste proved it. “What kind of way? Please, Uncle Maxim,” she urged when he hesitated.
He gave a start, something unreadable seemed to illuminate his wide brown face. Ben bit her lip and winced.
“I’m sorry,” she said, “It-”
Bino reached across the table, palm up toward her. Ben accepted.
“It just slipped out.”
He squeezed her hand. “Thank you, child.”
Ben covered the hand holding hers. “Are you sure you want me here handling this? That I’m the right person?”
“You’re the only person, love.”
“Why?” Ben scooted to the edge of her chair. “What did you mean when you said they gave the employees a way?”
The happy illumination of Bino’s face, dimmed substantially. “Morissa knew certain members of her family were sleeping with certain members of mine. Not because they wanted to-the um...connections more of a means to an end.”
“Means to an end,” Ben’s hands flew to her mouth. “No...they were...they were forcing them in return for money.”
“Money, free doctors’ visits for the bed-ridden, better housing, and so on...”
Ben squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to learn more but knowing she had to. “My parents left because of this.”
“Your father’s sister, she was among those used.”
Ben’s elbows hit the table with a thud and she rested her forehead in her palms. “Can this get any worse?”
“Do you really want to know that?”
She could only nod.
“The fallout from the revelations was too much,” Bino went on, “it split up many families. My father was furious-he fired everyone who had connections to it. Those connections didn’t take that too well. Some slithered into the shadows-others formed their own companies.”
Ben blinked, going board straight in her chair. “Your rivals-the reason you had to call in Faust.”
Bino nodded, enjoyed a few spoonfuls of the creamy chowder before he spoke. “Better the devil you know. Or that’s what we thought. Faust Securities, as it was known then, evolved into an unnatural beast over the years. Once they were in, we couldn’t get them out.”
“And you think I can? Is that why Syson’s here? Beautiful island getaway, sparks fly and he gets his family out of your company because he’s just so in love with me?”
“Our company, love,” Bino savored a heavily buttered corner of the crusty bread. “And while I haven’t seen you and that dynamic young man together, I hear the two of you make a stunning couple.”
“Oh! I didn’t mean-we aren’t-”
“It’s alright, love. Your secret is safe. I heard that from someone I trust implicitly.”
“Luke.” Ben shook her head, smiling broadly. “I shouldn’t be surprised to know he’s your spy.”
“He’s not, dear. You can trust Luke. He’s an honorable young man.”
“I know.” Ben scooped up more soup. “He’s great. Did you ask him to bring Syson into this?”
“Syson’s involvement is crucial. He rattles Andrew who knows his nephew is the true head of their family’s company. Syson only has to say he wants it.”
“So why doesn’t he?”
Bino shrugged. “No one knows. We hoped him being here-seeing what his family’s business has become-”
“Wait,” Ben stood and left the table to pace the room. “This whole thing was about getting Syson at the head of a company-not me.”
“It’s about you too, Benaja. Your compassion for the people of this island is what’s needed and, turns out, what it may take to push Syson to do what he should. Unfortunately, his better intentions are smothered under his rage for Andrew and whatever happened between them.”
“Why can’t you just fire them? Send Andrew Faust and his hired guns on their way?”
“Faust has made connections in the company that run very deep. There’s a treachery there that I can’t ferret out.”
“Why not? You run the company.”
Bino nodded his appreciation to the server who had come to clear the table. “Faust was brought into the company by the executive board. The board is appointed by the company president-the appointments are for life or until the board member retires.”
“Uncle Maxim I still don’t-”
“Every company president gets to select a new board when they take the top chair.”
Ben resumed her spot on the edge of the bed. “This is where I come in.”
Bino refused help when he stood from the table and made it back to the bed under his own steam. He made himself comfortable and then slapped his hands to the covers. “This is where you come in,” he confirmed.