Chapter 64

CHAPTER

SIXTY-FOUR

Adrienne was far more cunning than Maddie could have ever guessed.

She was going to do whatever it took to become CEO of this company.

Maddie could see it playing out. Josh dying. Adrienne stepping forward to take over her rightful position.

It was clear she'd gotten her father's smarts—only she'd hidden that fact. Meanwhile, she'd secretly learned to hack. To program. To create digital chaos.

How was Maddie going to stop this woman?

"Adrienne, there's a better way to handle things," Maddie said, even though she knew the words sounded lame and cliché.

"Don't even try to talk me into changing my mind. It's made up. You can draw this out to be painfully long and suffer more or you can just do what I tell you."

"What are you going to do with me after he jumps? Besides make it look like I did it?"

"After somebody"—Adrienne cleared her throat—"releases information that you're a murderer to the entire company, people are going to think you're capable of anything."

"Those records were sealed. How did you find out?"

"I'm pretty good at hacking systems to find out whatever I need. It comes easily to me. Must have gotten that from my dad. So when I looked into your background, I saw your juvenile record. I felt like I'd hit the jackpot."

Maddie's jaw tightened. This woman was determined to get what she wanted and wouldn't let anything stop her.

"Anyway, I've been going around randomly mentioning to people that you've had erratic behavior and that I caught you doing drugs. I may have even planted some paraphernalia here and there. I also may have set up some text messages on your phone. I'm really good at making things like that look fake. Like, really good."

"You didn't?" Maddie muttered.

"Oh, I did. So Josh is going to jump. I'm going to drug you. Put the gun in your hand. And when I run from these cliffs and try to find help after I witnessed what happened, who do you think people are going to believe? Me? Or you?"

"So Josh is just going to happen to die, you're going to witness it, and then you're going to step up to rightfully claim your place in the company and people are going to think that's a coincidence?" Maddie asked.

Adrienne's eyes narrowed. "I'll have some time pass, of course. Then I'll make it look like a surprise. You don't think I'm that stupid, do you?"

"I never said you were stupid. In fact, I think you're very smart. Too smart to kill someone."

"Well, it's too late for that. I already have two murders under my belt. Three if you include my ex-husband."

Maddie's eyes widened. This woman really had lost it. She had no scruples whatsoever.

Considering the fact she had a gun and they didn't, that would make it hard to have the upper hand in the situation. Adrienne wasn't going to want to keep talking for much longer. Maddie knew that.

Adrienne glanced back at Josh. "So what's it going to be, my spoiled younger brother? Are you going to make this easy or hard?"

He peered down the cliff before stepping back, his head wobbling as if he was woozy and his balance unsteady.

"I can come forward with the company," he pleaded. "Say that you rightfully deserve to be the CEO. There are other ways to go about this."

"You and I both know that's never going to happen. You can say it all you want now, but as soon as you're off of this cliff, you're calling the police and telling them everything I just said." She paused, something hardening in her gaze. "So walk."

"What if I don't push him?" Maddie asked. "Are you going to shoot both of us? Because it's going to kind of be hard to pin all of this on me if I have a gunshot wound."

"Unless I make it look as if it was self-inflicted."

She really had thought this through. "You don't have to do this."

"But I do." A grin curled across her lips. "You know what? I said I'd only killed three people. But it's actually four."

Adrienne smirked. She'd waited to share this part, hadn't she? She was getting a kick out of it. But why?

"Who else did you kill?" Maddie's voice trembled as she asked the question.

"I actually went to talk to Josh's father once I found out that he was my father too," Adrienne said. "He could care less about the fact I was his daughter. In fact, he dismissed me. That made me very angry."

Maddie's gaze swung back to Josh. His eyes widened as he stared at the gun in Adrienne's hands.

"I watched our father die," she continued. "I was there as the life drained from his eyes. Then I left, and I waited for his assistant to find him in the morning. Do you know what else? I didn't even feel bad about it."

"You little . . ." Josh began to lunge at her.

As he did, Adrienne stepped forward.

Before Maddie realized what was happening, Adrienne's hands hit Josh's shoulders.

He screamed as he flew backward. Then he disappeared on the other side of the cliff.