The Inheritance (The Donatelli Series) (18 page)

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A courier brought a package of information on the company from Joe Grafton, and while Maria and Bridget finished digging through the treasures in the attic, Blade scoured profit and loss statements, minutes of past board meetings, and a report of the past general stockholders meeting. He studied his grandfather’s notes on board members and realized that most of those notes were made years ago. Two of the members of the board were relative newcomers, both women. One was Elisa Williamson, Edward Banner’s former private secretary, and the other was Vanessa Milhauser.

Scanning Williamson’s voting record on previous issues, Blade was impressed. She supported her boss’s issues right down the line. So did Joe Grafton and Gordon Phillips, the CEO and Chairman of the Board. Edward had chosen his replacements well.

Colin Jacobs had supported Edward’s issues until three years ago, after Edward had stopped attending the board meetings. He’d apparently been ill for some time, or maybe he’d just gotten too old to keep on top of things. He was in his nineties when he passed away.

Two members of the board, Baker and Adler, voted at the last meeting to relax the stringent safety standards in the interest of company profits. Jacobs voiced his support of that view, and since he had Edward Banner’s power of attorney, his vote was in the majority.

Blade swore under his breath. The quiet, unassuming attorney had something going under the table.

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The buyers called Monday morning and asked if they could bring their daughter by to see the house again. Blade said, “Come on over. The house is a mess with all the sorting and packing going on, but I’m sure you understand.”

“Of course we do,” the man said. “We’re moving, too.”

Blade and Maria spent nearly an hour with them, and using the appraiser’s report as a guideline, he negotiated a price for the furnishings and artwork they intended to leave behind. The painting in the master bedroom was worth over two million, and Blade refused to take less than the appraised value. The buyers agreed to pay the price. Blade figured they really wanted that painting.

They wanted the contents of the library, and Blade flatly refused. Some things were negotiable.

The library was not.

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Monday afternoon, the private investigator brought copies of the reports Blade had requested. Blade handed him five hundred in cash. The thick envelope he’d brought contained information worth ten times the going rate.

After giving the PI another assignment, Blade sat down at his grandfather’s desk and opened the envelope. One look and he grabbed the phone to call Joe Grafton. “Does the company have an attorney on staff?”

“Yes, sir. Is something wrong?”

“Is it too late to schedule a brief meeting with the attorney right before the board meeting? It’s important or I wouldn’t ask.”

“If you’ll hold on a minute, I’ll check with her right now.”

Blade waited several seconds before Grafton came back on the line. “She’s clearing her schedule for tomorrow morning.”

One more call to Gerry in Gig Harbor, and the fax machine churned out a copy of Edward Banner’s will. Jacobs had known about Blade’s life in detail, including his reluctance to form any close attachments. He’d put the marriage requirement in the will because he didn’t think Blade was capable of finding a woman to marry.

Blade could contest the terms of the will, but if he said his grandfather didn’t know what he’d signed, the entire will could be thrown out and he could lose it all, including the money he’d already been given.

Over dinner, he talked with Maria about it. “Malcolm said my grandfather could no longer read, so he would have believed whatever Jacobs told him. The PI gave his reports directly to Jacobs, and the guy didn’t share all his information with my grandfather. He knew where I was three years ago. He knew where I lived, who I dated, how I made my living, everything down to the name of the guy I bought my Harley from and who carried my car insurance.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I could take it to court, but if I do I could lose everything, including the money I’ve already been given, and the whole process could take years.” The company would be in limbo with those shares tied up in court.

“Jacobs thought you’d be satisfied with what you have?”

Blade nodded. “If I fight him, I could lose everything, and if I don’t, he’ll take control of the company.”

Maria finished her salad before she spoke. “What if we stop in Las Vegas on the way home? There’s no waiting period there. We’ll keep it secret and wait to see what Jacobs does.”

He cocked his head. “You’d do that for me?”

“It would mean keeping it from everyone, Blade, including my family. If we don’t keep it quiet, he could find out.”

“Keep it hidden for how long?”

“Until Jacobs shows his hand and you get control of the company.”

Was she talking about a real marriage or one in name only? Either way, he’d have the company, but would he have her?
What about after?

She gazed into his eyes.
That’s up to you, Blade. You know what I want.

He wanted to give her what she wanted, but he didn’t know if he was capable of being a good husband and father.

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Their lovemaking was intense and passionate that night, and Blade knew Maria loved him. No matter how much money he offered her, she wouldn’t have agreed to marry him if she didn’t love him. He wanted to tell her what she wanted to hear, that he loved her. Maybe he did, but he couldn’t say the words unless he was sure. He didn’t know anything about love, but he knew he wanted to be with her, and he had to stop Jacobs and his buddies from taking control of Edward Banner’s company.

After Maria went to sleep, Blade pulled on his jeans and walked down to the library to study the papers again. Some were personally wrenching. His natural mother had left him in his father’s care while she went on a shoot in Mexico. While there, she became ill, and several weeks passed before she’d recovered enough to come back home. She’d connected with Sunny, who said that John had moved on and taken her two-year-old son with him.

Deanna Benjamin had tried several other times to find Blade. She knew that John had died, but she didn’t know what had happened to her son. Deanna married and had two daughters, and she now lived in Dallas with her husband. Her grown daughters also lived in Dallas.

Secrets and lies. Blade’s entire life was based on secrets and lies.

And greed.

He read the will thoroughly, and although he didn’t understand all the legal terms, he understood that Colin Jacobs had intended for Blade to fail. Jacobs was listed as Executor of the estate, therefore he would be the one to handle the sale of Edward Banner’s company stock. The money, minus a hefty percentage to Jacobs for his time and trouble, would be donated to the charity specified in the will.

No doubt Jacobs already had a buyer lined up for that stock.

How long had he been waiting for Edward Banner to die?

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After breakfast, the limo delivered Maria and Blade to Manhattan, to the company headquarters of the Banner-Covington Shipping Corporation. Maria was nervous about attending the meeting, but she’d agreed to go for a purpose. Blade wanted her to see if she could hear anything of interest at the meeting.

Maria looked out the window at the city. It was her first time in New York, and she didn’t want to miss a thing. She felt almost elegant in her new suit, the most expensive clothes she’d ever owned.

She glanced at Blade, his head bent over his papers, preparing for the most important meeting of his life. There was more than money at stake today. The policies his grandfather had insisted upon to ensure the safety of his employees and the environment were at risk.

The first time they met, he wore a pair of faded jeans and a black T-shirt that hugged his strong chest and arms. He smelled of sweat and motor oil, and he was still the sexiest man she’d ever met. Now, dressed in his new suit and tie, with his hair styled just so, he presented a polished, professional image to the world. And he was still the most appealing man she’d ever met.

He nudged her shoulder. “What are you smiling about?”

“I’m wondering what these high-powered business people would think if they’d seen you and Daisy in the garage that day.”

“You think they’d like my Harley?”

She smiled.
Are those allowed in Manhattan?

Honey, Harley wouldn’t like it here.

Ten minutes later, they were shown into the office of the President and CEO of the company. Blade introduced Maria as a potential investor, Maria Donatelli. “She’s here to observe today.”

Joe Grafton shook her hand and welcomed her.

Potential investor?

What am I supposed to say, that you’re my lover? My secretary? My fiancée? You’re not wearing a ring, honey, and I don’t want to give anything away here.

The company attorney, Martha Nettles, a pleasant looking woman a few years older than Blade, shook his hand and sat behind her desk. Threads of gray sprinkled the dark hair at her temples, but her eyes sparkled with intelligence and wit.

After Grafton left Blade and Maria alone with her, Blade got right down to business. Maria listened quietly to their discussion. At first the attorney remained non-committal, but when she heard the full scope of the problems, her entire demeanor changed. She scribbled furiously on a legal pad and asked her assistant to make copies of the papers Blade had brought with him. Maria realized that Blade could have hired an attorney and fought Jacobs on a personal level, but he wasn’t the only one who’d been harmed by Jacobs. Going at it from this direction, he’d have all the resources of the company behind him.

“Do you attend the board meetings, Miss Nettles?” asked Blade.

“On occasion. Would you like me to sit in today?”

“Absolutely.”
If this ever gets to court, we’ll need someone on our side.

Maria picked up some vague thoughts from the attorney, some professional and some personal observations about Blade’s physique. She liked Blade, liked his honesty, and appreciated him coming to her with this before the company got in trouble with the Securities and Exchange Commission. If anyone was going to get in trouble, it would be Jacobs, Adler, and Baker.

After they left the attorney’s office, Maria whispered, “She thinks Adler and Baker are in with Jacobs.”

“That’s what I figured,” said Blade.

Blade walked in the board room like he owned the place, and Maria had never been more proud. He walked around the table, smiling and shaking hands, introducing himself and Maria Donatelli. No one asked if she was related to Nick and Cara, who were influential in the business world because of the amount of money Cara invested, but eyebrows raised when Blade introduced her.

They’re impressed
, he thought, and she gave him a little smile. Yes, they were impressed. The name Donatelli was connected with great wealth and it often opened doors that were closed to others. Cara didn’t flaunt her money. She was as down to earth as anyone Maria had ever met, but these people didn’t know that.

A woman served coffee and sweet rolls, and a folder with the company logo on the outside had been placed on the table in front of each participant. Colin Jacobs had not yet arrived when Gordon Phillips, Chairman of the Board, brought the meeting to order.

“I’d like to welcome Mr. Blade Banner and Miss Maria Donatelli to the meeting today. It’s an unexpected pleasure to have you with us. We understood that you wouldn’t be participating in the business, Mr. Banner.”

Blade leaned back and surveyed the faces at the table. “You understood wrong,” he told them. “My grandfather left his estate to me, and that estate includes his company stock. I understand Colin Jacobs has been voting those shares, but his power of attorney expired with Edward Banner’s death.”

Maria glanced around the table and stopped on Jim Adler’s ashen face.
Aw, shit
, he thought.
Colin said this was foolproof.