Mark got dried and slipped on a pair of jeans, boots and a t-shirt then wandered out to the balcony and lit up. He slumped down in his favourite seat and put his feet up on the railings.
"Why are you so upset, Mark?" He muttered to himself, and the answer came back to him. Because you wanted her to be your girlfriend."So becoming a billionaire with a hot secretary that'll blow you while you bone your way through the FHM Top 100 transforms you into a crybaby man-bitch, does it?" Ant shouted over the noise of the speedboat as the three friends raced the girls around the Island. "Man, you need a punch in the balls to remind you they're there.""Ignore him," Sam said, shaking his head. "I just think you're too close, buddy. You need a little distance from the problem is all.""How do you mean?""Step back and think about what you want. Look at the big picture," Sam said, mentally reminding Mark of the hundreds ofPerhaps because he'd sorted things out with Jasminehe felt a lot better and was able to relax and chill out by the pool with his friends and the girls. The afternoon sun was hot and he had slipped into the pool, relaxing on the steps in the water water while his brain drifted.The situation with Henrystill hung over him, but he felt comforted by having Connor on his side and Sarah secretly working with him too. He had been able for most of the day to put it to the side, distracted with other things, but now the situation kept intruding on him..He was aware that Henrywas playing things carefully. He had to be. Markknew that he'd had conversations with his sisters and with Jasminethat could have been recorded. He knew he'd had sex with Sarah, and done plenty with Jasminetoo, so if there was video recordings then Henryhad a huge amount of data that he could use.Henry's obsession with Jasminewas a worry t
Markand Jasminejoined the rest of the group downstairs around seven thirty and they chatted away, having a laugh and passing the time until dinner.Shortly before eight the chef appeared along with several of the waiting and kitchen staff and they began to lay out a buffet while the chef worked the grill. Markhad ordered a burger with some prawns on the side, while the rest of them ordered a mixture of steaks, chicken or fish.Jasminewas correct when she said how fantastic the aroma was of all the marinaded meat and fish cooking, as well as the various salads and side dishes the staff laid out next to the grill.When each of their dishes was ready they were walked up, given their plates by the chef then helped themselves to the hot and cold buffet. Markended up with a fantastic bacon cheeseburger made from bison on a bun, with fries, salad and some grilled prawns in a garlic and chilli sauce.Sitting eating an
He turned to the bedroom, seeing Jasminestill lying on top of the sheet, this time with Mark's phone opened in front of her."What you doing?" He asked, smiling at her."Checking your emails. They're fairly stacking up.""What's the count now?""Six thousand or so." She gave him a grin. "Me and Shmi will start blasting through them tomorrow if you want?""Six thousand?" Markasked. "I don't know six thousand people.""Yeah, well there's a lot more than that know you. Not like I do, of course, unless you've been keeping some really big secrets from me," She said, winking."Hardly.""So are you..." Jasmine's sentence was cut off by the sound of a knock on the glass doors, then a second later Maddycalled."Hello, Mark? You still up?""Yeah, I'm back here.""You coming to join me and Myraon the balcony? Last night on the Island."Mark
Markwondered if the old man was bluffing or if he truly had a covert CCTV system with complete coverage of the Island. He knew it technologically possible, and BenjaminMooredefinitely had the funds, but to have something of that scale and keep it secret would be an extraordinary achievement. On top of that, even if Henrydid have an insurance policy in the event something happened to him, who could he possibly trust with the knowledge? He frowned, watching the Englishman to try and figure out if he was lying or not."So what do you want?" Marksaid eventually. "I mean you haven't done this for no reason, so what are you hoping to get out of it?""I'll discuss that when I'm good and ready, I think," The old man sniffed. "For the time being, you can leave my Jasminealone. No more taking her in your bed, or in the shower. No more bathing together either." His face turned grim. "You leave her here when you leave tomorrow."
"Mark?" He heard Connor call from up the shaft as the small lights winked out, the light at the bottom of the shaft went off and the interior lights in the saferoom disappeared. He knew that Connor must be gripping tightly to the ladder, unable to even see the rungs before him."Down here," Marksaid, stepping forward. "Henry's inside, but I've got the door blocked."He realized he shouldn't have said that as soon as the words were out his mouth.He didn't even have time to curse before he heard the click or felt the pinpricks in his chest, and then every muscle in his body went tight. His stomach went taught, like he'd just done a thousand sit-ups, his legs stiffened, and his torso tightened up. The 50,000 volts from the tazer shot through his system, stiffening him and tightening every muscle.The gunshot boomed in the close confines of the small chamber at the bottom of the shaft as Mark's finger involuntarily pressured the trigger
Markfrowned as he tried to concentrate. A confusing flicker of memories came back to him. Chatting with Myraand Maddy. He was running down the stairs from his suite. The trees flickered past him as he ran. A ladder going down underground. He jolted, stiffened and groaned all at the same time as the physical sensation of being tasered came back to him, mingled with the sound of the gunshot."Mark?"His hand moved up to touch his head and he saw it was red, covered in what had to be his blood. "I... I got shot?""No, Mark, you didn't get shot," Jasminesaid quickly. "Do you know where you are?""Down the ladder." He mumbled, replaying the images. Why was he running? What was he running from? Or to?A new memory flickered, of Henryon his knees, with Markpointing a gun at him. Markcould remember how angry he was, but not the words he snarled at the old man.Then it all came back.Descending the shaft, He
"Can we ask George Yousef?" Marksaid, thinking aloud. "He knows there's a safehouse here. He did some financial digging for me, and he knows Henry's up to something.""That's involving more people," Myraprotested immediately."Sometimes it's important to involve the right people," Connor said quickly. "If he's already in the know, and he's your lawyer, then there's a good chance he'll help you figure this out.""Maddy?" Markasked.She shrugged. "We could do with the help, I think.""I'm voting we get him. Jasmine, can you go and wake him up and bring him down here please?" Markasked. "It'll save Connor climbing that ladder again.""Sure.""We didn't come down the ladder," Myrasaid. "There's a staircase that leads up to a hidden door in the floor of the bar, next to the pool. We came down there.""Really?" Markasked. "How did....?""I found it when I
"Hello?" They heard Connor call, and by some unspoken signal, both Maddyand Myrarolled out the bed, leaving Markunder the covers. Maddysat down on the bed and Myrawalked towards the door."In here," She said.Connor appeared in the doorway with a bundle of clothes in his arms and handed them to Myra."Give us a minute. We've just cleaned him up, and we'll get him dressed."The Scotsman nodded and turned away, closing the door behind him."Right, you," Maddysaid firmly, hauling back the covers. Myratossed a pair of dark blue jeans to Maddyand dropped a hooded jersey and sneakers on the foot of the bed. She came around to the other side of it."Sorry about this," Marksaid softly, now feeling a little embarassed at his nudity."Shut up, Mark," Myrasaid briskly as she helped Maddymaneuvre the trousers round his feet. Markhad to roll onto hi