Page 31 of What Doesn't Kill You…

Oh, he knew where she was going with this. "It's not the same as drugging someone," he said firmly.

"Wait," Rodrigo said. "Who's drugging people?" He eyed Violet suspiciously.

"Nobody," Max said before Violet could confess. This was between them. "She's talking about a discussion we had earlier."

"Wow." Abasi was seriously entertained now. "Violet talks to you? I need to write home about this."

"To whom?" Katrina said sweetly. "You killed everyone you know."

"Not everybody," Abasi said. "Not yet."

"Can we get back on track?" Rodrigo said. "You illegally listen in on anybody else, Max, or was that it?"

Max felt his face burn as shame washed over him. "I'm not proud of the fact I've compromised my ethics for this story," he said tightly. "I tried everything else and got desperate. My choices are something I'll have to live with. Plus, I'm aware I can't use anything I found through the taps or hacking in my article, but at least they gave me a place to start. I had nothing before that." He spread his hands, appealing to them. "This guy has to go down. He's far more dangerous than you can even begin to imagine. He has to be stopped. And, if that means I need to play dirty, then I'm prepared to do it." He took a deep breath. "I'm prepared to do whatever it takes."

Abasi leaned forward, suddenly alert. "Who was it? Who did he take from you?"

Max broke out in a sweat under Abasi's knowing gaze. "I didn't say anythi?—"

"Max," Violet said in a tone that made it clear he was to comply.

He let out a long breath. "Back in college, I had a friend, Sandi. Damien raped her, beat her up pretty badly too. She didn't want to go to the police, claimed he was far too powerful for anyone to believe her." His throat tightened and he rolled his shoulders, trying to loosen everything up. "She, uh, killed herself a few months later."

Rodrigo swore softly, while Katrina's eyes darkened with deep understanding and sadness.

"So, this is revenge," Abasi said with a nod of approval.

"No. Well, not entirely," Max said. "This is about justice. I started looking into Poole years ago, but he's slippery and I couldn't get the evidence I needed to expose him. This is the closest I've gotten. I want to bring him down before he hurts anyone else."

"I need to see all the info you've gathered," Rodrigo said. "I have to check you aren't reading into what you've uncovered. Desperation can blind a man and turn facts into wishful thinking, and we've already got problems after yesterday's run in with Damien. Your room being searched proves that."

"I'll give you access to the cloud storage where I keep everything I have on him," Max said.

"We need a drone," Violet said suddenly.

"Huh?" Max said.

She turned in her chair, looking much calmer now she'd eaten. "If we accidentally fly one over Poole's private residence, we can go over the footage. It might help us get a better idea of what we're up against."

"There's no way anyone on staff will allow a drone to go anywhere near the owner's private home," Katrina said. "Drones are banned in the resort, unless they're for official use." She waggled her phone at them. "It's on their website."

"What we need," Abasi said. "Is a kid with a drone who doesn't give a damn about the hotel rules."

"Or an overgrown kid who'll no doubt piss the staff off but might get the footage we need before he's thrown out of the hotel," Rodrigo said.

Abasi grinned. "I'll tell Evan he gets to buy a new toy. How do you want to play this? It's gonna look weird if some young guy comes to the resort alone to fly his drone."

"Can't you drum up some friends for him and have them all come over for dinner?" Violet asked. "A bachelor party maybe?"

Abasi looked thoughtful. "Yeah, I think I can make that happen."

"Just make sure he doesn't recognize us when he sees us," Rodrigo said. "I'm not sure about this. He isn't the triplet I'd pick to play the part."

"But he's the only one we've got," Katrina said before turning to Abasi. "Might be a good idea to vet what he wears for this adventure too. His usual Hawaiian shirts will stand out too much."

"I'm on it." Abasi checked his watch. "Gotta run. I'll tell the boss I got lost. Nobody will bat an eyelid at the new hire trying to find his way around the island. This place is bigger than it looks on the map. What are you lot up to this afternoon?"

Violet let out a long, pained wail. "I have to learn how to dance."