Ethan’s heart was pounding wildly. It was a bold move on his part, but he knew guys like Estavez didn’t want to work with cowards.
“I see you are a smart man, Mr. Evans.” Estavez paused, talking a draw from his cigar. “But I also know you don’t have the connections and the funds to pull this off on your own. I’m willing to offer all of that and more, for a sixty-forty split.”
The negotiations went on from there, and when they had finally negotiated a fifty-fifty split, Estavez laid out the rest of his plan to launch their new online empire.
When they returned home, it felt as though their entire life had been upgraded. They leased a large office space with exposed brick walls and a full-service coffee bar. They hired more staff to support their new venture. DoubleDownCasino.com was a law-abiding, flourishing start-up as far as anyone knew.
Flush with cash and newfound success, Ethan got a little sloppy. He started renting private jets to fly himself, Jack, and their small group of friends out to Las Vegas for three-day weekends of partying and gambling. Estavez had deep connections within the industry and landed Ethan a seat at some of the most exclusive poker tables in Vegas. That’s when Ethan started getting himself into debt with the wrong people.
Of course, Estavez was waiting in the wings, eager to bail Ethan out of trouble. That’s when the relationship between the twins and the Costa Rican gangster began to sour. With Ethan’s back against the wall, Estavez decided to change the terms of the deal. He wanted to cut the brothers down to only twenty percent of the profits, even though they had done all the work to get the site where it was. Ethan was furious. There were some heated phone conversations among the three of them, but Estavez refused to back down, threatening to throw Ethan to the wolves.
Jack had insisted they fly down to Costa Rica, to work out a deal with Estavez face-to-face. He was furious with Ethan and frustrated at the situation. He’d been a licensed pilot since they graduated college and told Ethan that some time in the sky would clear his head. Ethan was going to meet him there. But Jack didn’t make it.
Ethan shivered in spite of the heat, thinking about his brother. He shifted his thoughts back to the present.
He was far away from the ceremony site now, outside the bounds of the resort. He had followed a path that led into a thick bundle of trees and bushes. He retraced his steps and started walking back toward the crowd of people now populating the pool area. The sun was lowering in the sky over the ocean, changing the colors of the waves from turquoise to a murky blue. From a distance, he could just make out the silhouette of his soon-to-be wife.
Or rather, his soon-to-be-dead wife.
Twenty-Three
Ethan
“Ethan, there you are!” Marissa said, charging in his direction. She was slightly breathless when she finally caught up to him.
“I’m sorry, sweetheart. I was caught on a work call,” he said, kissing her hand in a gesture of apology. “It won’t happen again.”
“It better not.” Marissa arched a perfectly shaped eyebrow at him. “Now, come on, we have a party to host.”
He looked around the rehearsal dinner as she led him to the head table. The palm trees were heavy with crystals and small LED lights that gave the effect of twinkling icicles reflected in the pool. White linen-lined cocktail tables were placed throughout the area and an army of servers were offering drinks to all the guests who had gathered for the evening.
The ebb and flow of laughter revealed a more cheerful mood than the night before. He could see that people were more comfortable moving on from the incident with Lizzy than they were dealing with their grief. Ethan was relieved because he had his own plan to execute, and the incident on the jet had nearly derailed the entire operation.
The plan he had put into place was rather simple. He and Marissa would be wed tomorrow in a highly anticipated ceremony. But it was what would happen after the wedding that would send an unexpected shockwave through the tabloids.
Upon the official signing of the wedding documents, the prenuptial agreement that he and Marissa signed would become legal and binding. In the event of her death, he would not inherit her entire fortune, as some tabloid trash had speculated. Instead, he would receive a large lump sum via a life insurance policy, their home in Chicago, and a generous share of stock in her company. To an outsider, this wouldn’t seem important to Ethan because of his own successful business. But because of the debt he owed to Estavez, this money now meant life or death to him.
Given that Marissa’s entire fortune was tied up in multiple trusts, with layers upon layers of protection, it would be nearly impossible to extract the money he needed from her while she was alive. Even if she wanted to give him the money, it would be a legal nightmare to do so. That was the catch of extreme wealth—it seemed the more money you had, the less control you had over it.
And so, he’d had a choice to make: his life or Marissa’s. And while Marissa was beautiful, rich, and a tomcat in the sack, he wasn’t ready to die. Not yet.
As they crossed over a footbridge arching over the glistening pool, he spotted Sydney wearing a deep red dress. She was arm-in-arm with the mystery man from the airport that his PI Bishop had told him about. The sight immediately threw Ethan off balance. He wasn’t used to seeing Sydney with anyone other than his dead brother.
“Sydney!” he heard Marissa yelp next to him.
Marissa grabbed his arm and nearly dragged him to where Sydney and her date where standing. As they drew closer, Ethan looked him up and down, taking in his perfectly straight posture, muscular physique, and sharp clothing. Bishop had been right; the guy certainly gave off an ex-military vibe.
The girls exchanged cheek kisses, and complimented each other on how beautiful they looked. Marissa looked at Sydney’s date, then smiled slyly at her, seeming happy that her best friend was dating again. Ethan hung back a few steps, observing their exchange. Sydney looked genuinely happy to see Marissa, but when her eyes fell on him, she seemed to clam up.
“Ethan, how are you,” she said, leaning in for a quick hug. There was a palpable tension between the two of them.
“I’m good. Glad you made it, Syd,” he said, glancing at the man next to her. The way she was standing so near to him displayed a certain level of comfort between them. He looked squarely at Sydney. “I heard you had a bumpy ride on the way here.”
“You can say that again!” she said, adding an awkward laugh as if to emphasize her point. She reached over and put a hand on the mystery guest’s back.
“This is Alex, my date for the, uh, weekend,” she said and added another nervous laugh. “Alex, these are my dear friends, Marissa and Ethan.” The way her eyes moved quickly from one face to another gave Ethan the feeling that she was lying about something. What that was, he wasn’t sure. But he knew Sydney well enough to know she was a terrible liar.
Alex extended his hand. First to Ethan and then to Marissa. Ethan noted his firm handshake and the effort to make eye contact.
“Nice to meet you,” Alex said confidently.
“Nice to meet you, Alex,” he replied smoothly. “Glad you could join us for the celebration.”
“Yes, we are so excited that Sydney brought a date!” Marissa blurted out.