“The hotel was an excellent choice. Thank you again.” Rael followed her along the hallway and through the door into the main office. He glanced at the cage as they passed it, dismayed to find the tiger—Dellan—asleep, his back to Rael.
“He’s awesome, isn’t he?” A man stood in the doorway, sharply dressed, a coffee cup in his hand.
Rael gave him a polite smile. “I was admiring him yesterday.” He held out his hand as they drew closer. “Mr. Prescott? I’m Rael Parton.”
“Anson, please. Mr. Prescott sounds like you’re talking to my dad, God rest his soul.” Anson shook the proffered hand. “And my apologies for my absence yesterday. Unfortunately, I was called away on urgent business. Please, come in.” He stood aside and gestured to the office beyond the door.
Rael followed him in, Veronica behind him. Anson’s office was small compared to the vast space that housed the cage. There were two desks, one significantly larger than the other, a couple of filing cabinets, and a wall on which were several monitors. One other door stood at the rear.
Anson sat behind the larger desk, and Rael got a better look at him. He was of a similar height and build to Rael, but his hair and complexion were darker. Deep brown eyes focused intently on him, and Rael wondered what was going on behind them.
“Coffee? Tea? Water?”
Rael smiled at Veronica. “Coffee would be great, thank you.” He reached into his bag and removed his camera, along with his notes.
Anson grinned. “I didn’t think it would be long before we saw that. I’ve seen some of your work, Mr. Parton. Very impressive.”
Rael could be just as complimentary. “Not as impressive as what you’ve accomplished since you took over the running of Global Bio-Tech. You’ve taken the company to new heights.”
Anson gave a modest shrug. “It seems I have a flair for this business.”
“That would be a massive understatement. There are many large pharmaceutical companies out there, but few with such a positive reputation.”
Anson laughed. “What you really mean is, Global Bio-Tech isn’t included in all the usual big pharma conspiracy theories.” He waved his hand dismissively. “I’ve heard them all, believe me. How there’s a cure for cancer, but it’s being suppressed. How pharmaceutical companies are fleecing people for meds that cost cents to produce. Well, not here. If there’s a cure for a major disease out there, and we find it, we’ll research and develop it, then put it on the market at a fair price. Medicine shouldn’t cost the earth.”
Despite his concerns, Rael couldn’t help but admire Anson’s stance. “That’s a refreshingly ethical viewpoint nowadays.”
Anson picked up a photo frame that stood on his desk. “It’s how I was brought up.” He gazed at the photo before turning it to reveal the face of Tom Prescott. “I hope wherever my dad is, he’s proud of what I’m achieving with the company he left in my care.”
His mom’s words of warning went right out of Rael’s head. That opening was too much to ignore.
“But didn’t he leave it to your half brother, Dellan Carson?” Rael asked with as innocent an air as he could muster.
Anson stilled. “I see you’ve done your homework.” He replaced the photo in its former position, then met Rael’s gaze. “Yes, my dad left the company to Dellan. I was given a seat on the board. It was felt at the time that I was too young for such a huge responsibility.”
“And yet here you are,” Rael observed.
Anson smiled broadly, visibly relaxing into his chair. “Here I am indeed. Obviously I’m better equipped to deal with the running of a major company than my youthful appearance would indicate. I may be only twenty-two but as you can see, Global Bio-Tech is flourishing in my tender care.”
Rael inhaled deeply, drawing Anson’s scent into his nostrils. The man was human, there was no doubt. “So if Dellan was left the company, how did you end up running it? If you don’t mind me asking.” His pulse sped up, but Rael did his best to appear calm.
Anson quirked his eyebrows. “I thought you were here to discuss what I’ve achieved, not delve into the family history.” Before Rael could respond, he waved his hand again. “It’s fine. You’re a journalist. Of course you’re curious. Who wouldn’t be? It’s very simple. My brother, Dellan—I do consider him my brother, not my half brother—decided that for the moment, his interests were leading him in other directions. So he took a sabbatical in order to explore those interests. He’s in Europe or Asia right now, looking into new ventures, confident that if I should need him at the helm, I would find him and bring him home. Not that I see any need to do such a thing.”
Rael had to admire the smoothness with which Anson lied. Europe or Asia, huh? Dellan is a good deal closer than that. “He obviously has faith in you.”
Anson smiled. “Which is exactly what he said in the letter he wrote to the board before he left.”
“It must be good to know you can call on him when—if—you need to. After all, you’ve lost both parents. At least you still have Dellan.”
For one brief moment, Anson’s eyes glistened, but then he blinked. “As you say. At least I still have Dellan.” He clasped his hands on the desk. “Now. How about we get on with the interview. Then you can take all the photos you want of our setup here. I’ve arranged a little guided tour so you get to see everything.”
“That sounds perfect.” Rael got out his phone and brought up the voice recorder before referring to his notes. “Okay. Let’s do this.” He pushed aside the temptation to ask to see Dellan’s letter to the board. Not that seeing it would do anything but confirm what Rael’s instincts were telling him—Anson was not to be trusted.
And it still left one question unanswered. Why hadn’t Dellan shifted back into human form? There could only be one response—something was preventing him from shifting. But what?
That only raised more questions. Did Anson know Dellan was a shifter? Did he know the tiger in his office was his half brother? He’d had Dellan declared missing, sure, but that didn’t mean he knew Dellan’s current location. Maybe I’m maligning him. Maybe he’s being kept in the dark. Maybe someone else is responsible for keeping Dellan in his shifted form.
There were far too many maybes. And if Rael was going to make any attempt to free Dellan, he was going to need help.
“THANK YOU again.” Rael shook Anson’s hand. “I’ll send you the link when the article is published.”
“I look forward to reading it.”
Before Anson could return to his desk, Rael put out his hand to stop him. “One last request before I go? I’d love to get a shot of you and the tiger.”
Anson gave him a thin smile. “Sorry, but no. That might seem odd, but I have my reasons.”
Rael shrugged. “It was just an idea.”
Anson huffed. “That tiger has been exploited enough. Veronica will show you out.” Anson returned to his seat behind his desk, already peering at his monitor.
Rael gave a nod, then followed Veronica out of the inner office. As they passed the cage, a sudden movement caught his eyes, and he came to a halt. The tiger had left his tree and was walking toward him, head high.