Brutal Heir (Billionaire Heirs #2)

Chapter 4

Sage

The two-way radio beeps at my waist. The sound irritates me enough to send my hands hovering above the keyboard as I press my eyes closed. Somehow, I know the call is for me, and I’m not going to like the result. It’s been like that since my run-in with Ezequiel, at the beginning of the week.

“Come in, Sage,” Ramos calls from the front gate.

I curl my fingers into my palms, the pressure forcing my arms to tremble. After a couple of seconds, I blow out a breath and pull the radio from the clip. “This is Sage.”

“The jet landed in Delta section a few minutes ago,” he reports. “Took me a few to log a crew coming in.”

At least it wasn’t bad news. “Roger that.”

I clip the radio to my waist and sit back. For some odd reason, knowing Addler de Marco is home makes me smile. Not sure why—the owner is far removed from anyone at Kelly Oil this has to be one hell of a story. Why didn’t she tell me something was up? “I didn’t realize he stepped out.” I glance from one to another and still unsure of how to proceed.

“You lost Bill?” he says, distracting me from my speculation.

“I…uh...” I swallow hard, clenching my fingers against my palm. Heat rushes across my face.

“He had an emergency,” Elena explains, drawing his attention back to her.

Tension’s in the air. Whatever is between them is beyond me. “I’ll leave you two, then.” I turn on my heel and head back to my office. It’s not until I’m safely behind my desk that I can actually take a breath.

Despite a few unexpected visitors, I make it through to the end of the day.

“He bought the company,” Elena says from the door.

I stop, mid-keystroke. “What?” Although I’d been expecting to hear about the company finding a buyer, her statement still catches me by surprise.

“Addler de Marco bought the construction division.”

“I see.”

She looks exhausted. I can’t say I blame her since she spent all day with Mr. de Marco. “Bill got a call about it before he had to leave. We’re getting a visit on Monday for the official announcement.”

I nod, a little numb. Where will we be at this time on Monday? Bill and Elena will probably still have a job. Which reminds me… “What happened to Bill? Is everything okay?” It’s not like him to disappear in the middle of the day without telling anyone.

“Isabela.”

The single word says more than anyone would be prepared for. His wife has been on a waiting list for a kidney. “How bad?”

“He didn’t say,” she replies quietly.

I flop back in my chair, wrung out. That’s it. I’m taking the weekend off and heading to Laredo. Since most people are gone, I should be able to handle anything over the phone. After the week I’ve had, I can use a break.