Chapter One: The Red Words on the Severance Agreement

Vale rubbed his wedding ring with his thumb. His tell. Lin had seen it twelve times in two years. “Something wrong?” Vale asked. “One million is generous.” The lawyer smiled. “A sensible conclusion.” Lin turned to the appendix. More red words appeared. [ADDITIONAL PRICE: Lin Zheng surrenders authorship of all reports from the last eighteen months. The Milo Kovac dossier passes to a Crown Sports adviser and will be used to inflate today's auction.] The shape of the scheme became clear. No rival had stolen the list. Vale had released it to drive up Kovac's price for super-agent Adrian Kane. Northcastle would claim it had been forced to bid higher; Crown Sports would collect its commission.