Moonlighter (The Company, #1)(48)

Hmm.

“All in the name of a fun time and a good bargain,” Alex is saying. “But everyone in this room has the power to build better tools. I’m here to tell you that privacy is sexy. And our customers are not stupid. They will pay more for products that aren’t peddling their private information to the highest bidder. They will reward you for your thoughtful innovation. They are slowly learning that there’s no such thing as free.”

Alex glances toward her new device. “The Butler does all his own offline processing. The owner’s voice is never transmitted to our servers unless the customer approves it in real time. And all information is completely encrypted.”

She glances around the room, making eye contact with people at dozens of tables. “This project took me two years. Building a truly private product wasn’t easy. But neither was it impossible.

“Privacy is not a party trick. It’s not cute or funny. But it’s important to our future as a civilization. Tonight, I challenge all of you to look at your work and consider your business models. What will you add to the future of personal electronics? What will your legacy be? Thank you and good night.”

The applause is thunderous.





On her way back to the table, several people flag Alex down. So it takes several minutes for Alex to reappear at my side.

“That was amazing,” I tell her when she finally sits down again.

“Remarkable,” the gray-haired men at our table agree. “Well done.”

“Thank you.” Her smile is tight. Honestly, she looks awfully tense for somebody who’s just finished giving a terrific speech. But I don’t ask her why, because the MC is introducing someone else now. A lifetime achievement award is about to be granted, and the audience listens politely.

I hope the speeches end soon. I’ve already heard the best one, and I can’t wait to take off this bowtie. The night is still young, too. If we got out of here, I could have a glass of scotch or a walk on the beach.

Not two minutes later, though, Alex clamps her hand onto my wrist. “Ladies room,” she gasps. Then she pushes back her chair and stands up.

Well, fine. I guess I’m getting my wish. It’s my job to stay close to Alex, so as Alex walks away, I casually place my napkin on the table, nod to the others, and ease out of my chair.

Something is wrong, though. It’s not like Alex to storm out of the room during a quiet moment like this. As I wind between the tables, following her out, it’s clear that we’re interrupting the action onstage.

And she’s really moving. Even my longer stride can’t keep up with the beautiful woman in the cocktail dress and three-inch heels. She’s leaving the way you’d evacuate from a fire.

When I reach the lobby, she’s still moving fast—a human streak heading for the bathrooms. My only guess is that she ate something earlier that doesn’t agree with her. So I let her escape to the sanctity of the women’s room, and I park myself right outside to wait.

It’s not really like me to worry. But the minutes tick by with no sign from her. Gunnar appears eventually, crossing the empty lobby with a casual stride. “Everything okay?” he asks when he reaches me.

“I really don’t know,” I admit. “All she said was that she needed the ladies’ room.”

“Did you see anyone else go in there?” he asks. “I need to check on her.”

“I haven’t seen a soul,” I admit. “You know what? Let me do it.”

Gunnar shrugs, and I push open the door, hearing only silence inside. “Alex, are you in here?” I step further into the quiet bathroom. Only one of the stall doors is closed. “Alex, you’re scaring me.”

“I’m…I’m bleeding,” she gasps.

“What?” My heart rate doubles. “You’re hurt?”

“No. I…don’t know what’s happening. I might be having a miscarriage.”

Oh Jesus. I hear the toilet flush. And a moment later, the stall door opens, and a very pale Alex comes out. “I need to go to a hospital.”

“Okay, all right.” I hold out a hand, and she grips it, teetering briefly on those heels. That’s when instinct takes over. I just pluck her off the floor carry her toward the door of the restroom. “Gunnar,” I bark as I approach the door, and he opens it. I carry Alex out. “We are going to the E.R.”

“Oh hell. Need company?”

“What we need is a car.”

“On it.” He taps his watch, then starts speaking while he jogs across the lobby toward the main entrance.

“This is bad,” Alex says as I carry her toward the doors.

“You don’t know that for sure,” I say. But who the fuck am I to say so? I’m just a dumb jock who hates the look of fear on Alex’s face. “Let’s find a doctor who can help you out.”

She bites her lip and doesn’t say another word. By the time I get all the way outside, Gunnar has a black passenger sedan and a driver waiting. I place Alex on the back seat and slide in beside her. “We need…”

“The emergency room,” Gunnar finishes for me. “The driver knows.” He shuts the door and raps twice on the glass.

And off we go.





“Do you need me to step out?” I ask the tech who wheels the sonogram machine into the exam room where Alex is reclined.