In The Darkness (Project Artemis #1)(3)

“Mr. Hanson, my name is Marshall Gilmore. I’ve been told you’re just the man I should hire for a job I have,” the man said confidently, as if they’d already struck a deal on this job of his.

“Oh, yeah? Why’s that?”

A long moment of silence hung in the air before Marshall Gilmore answered flatly, “Because I’m told you’re the man to call when you need someone to go undercover.”

Nick sat up straight on the couch and focused on the TV as the man’s statement bounced around in his head. That’s who he’d been for years in the FBI, but he hadn’t had a case like that in far too long. Long enough that he’d turned to seeking out family members for old rich ladies to supplement his bank account.

Maybe wishes did come true after all.

“You’ve got my attention, Mr. Gilmore. What do you say we meet tomorrow and talk about this job of yours you think I might want?”

“I don’t have that long to wait. My daughter’s been kidnapped and gone for a week. The FBI can’t seem to find its ass with both hands, so I’d like you to come to see me tonight. If you’re wondering if this is worth your while, I’m paying three hundred thousand dollars to get my daughter back, and if you get her back safely, I assure you for the rest of your life you’ll see a handsome benefit from it.”

For that amount of money, he’d take a drive to this guy’s house and hear what he had to say. Nick hadn’t had a kidnapping case in ages, so the job already intrigued him.

“Okay. What’s the address?”

Marshall Gilmore gave him the information and then said, “Mr. Hanson, I can’t bear the thought of my daughter being hurt. They’ve had her for too long already. I don’t want to lose her to these people.”

“Give me a few minutes to get ready and I’ll be there within the hour,” Nick said as he stood from the couch to find his shoes.

“Thank you. When you get to the gate, tell the guard there your name. He’ll know to let you in.”

The phone went dead, and Nick stuffed it back into his pocket before searching for where his tie had landed hours before when he threw it off before the card game. As he did, he wondered who this Marshall Gilmore was to have a hundred grand to throw around and a guard with a gate protecting his house.

Whoever he was, he’d just made his night.

From behind him, he heard Marius say in a low voice, “Something tells me our guy Nick just got a new job.”

Nick turned around and smiled. “Someone’s got to pay for all this splendor. We don’t want to end up hanging out at Gideon’s and sitting on cardboard boxes, do we?” he joked.





Chapter Two





Nick stood in an entryway that looked about the size of his entire apartment. Above him hung an enormous wrought iron chandelier he hoped was anchored properly. He shuffled his feet across the white Italian marble floor just in case that huge thing hanging overhead suddenly came crashing down, but a deep voice focused his attention on someone standing just outside the door to a room across the foyer.

“Mr. Hanson, please come in,” a tall, grey haired man wearing a dark three-piece suit said as he waved him toward where he stood.

He did as asked and followed him into a bigger room with dark wood bookcases that rose to the ceiling and took up both the left and right walls. A massive bank of windows made up almost the entire outside wall ahead of him. Everything around him seemed enormous.

Marshall Gilmore extended his arm to offer him a chair in front of the biggest desk Nick had ever seen. Entire villages in Third World countries could eat on that desk. The chairs in front of the desk seemed small in comparison. As he took a seat, he ran his hand along the brown leather arm rest and gold nail heads that made the piece of furniture look sturdy, if not large.

“I’m glad you agreed to come out tonight,” Marshall Gilmore said in a tone that made Nick feel that he had always expected him to do just that and his statement was a mere pleasantry to begin their conversation. “I get the feeling you don’t know who I am, Mr. Hanson. Is that true?”

Unsure if he wanted to admit that truth, Nick quickly scanned the room for any sign of who Marshall Gilmore was and why he should know him. Unfortunately, he found nothing in the stacks of books around him and on the desk in front of him.

He shook him head. “Sorry, I don’t. Should I?”

Leaning back in his chair, Marshall Gilmore nodded. “Not to put too fine a point on it, but yes, you should. If you’ve ever watched television in any part of this country or read a major newspaper on either of the coasts, you’ve met me in some small way. I’m the owner and CEO of Newscom America, the largest media conglomerate in the United States. When news happens in this country, my company brings it to the American people.”

That explained the mansion, security guards at the gate, and the wealth exhibited everywhere around him. It also explained how Marshall Gilmore could drop three hundred grand and not bat an eyelash. Nick had to admit he was impressed.

Regardless, he jumped right in and asked, “So the FBI is unable to handle the case? Why?”

Gilmore grimaced and shook his head. “I have no idea. It is their job, after all, but Persephone’s been gone a week and they have no more clues than they had when this all started.”