Surveillance at Sunset

The rooftop pool glittered like dropped diamonds as Elena slipped into the water, her skin still carrying the scent of papaya-scented sunscreen from the morning. She'd been following him for three weeks — the man who sat in the corner suite of the glass pyramid that housed Phoenix Dynamics, his fingers dancing across his iphone with practiced secrecy.

Corporate espionage wasn't supposed to feel this personal.

"You're getting sloppy," a voice said from behind her.

Elena turned sharply, water sloshing against the pool's edge. Marcus stood there, jacket draped over his arm, tie loosened. The target.

"I'm just swimming," she said, heart hammering against her ribs.

Marcus laughed, a dry, exhausted sound. "We both know why you're here. The betting pool at the office has you down as 'industrial spy' — though I think 'corporate thief' has a nicer ring to it, don't you?"

He sat on the lounge chair, watching her with eyes that held more sadness than accusation. "Phoenix Dynamics isn't building the future, Elena. It's a pyramid scheme wrapped in innovation-speak. My father founded it on patents that don't exist, on projections that are mathematical impossibilities."

Elena swam to the edge, gripping the rough concrete. "Your investors —"

"Will lose everything when the truth comes out," Marcus finished. "I've been gathering evidence for two years. Tomorrow, I testify before the SEC." He paused. "Unless someone kills me first."

The sunset painted the pyramid behind him in shades of bruised purple and burning gold. Something in his expression stopped her cold — not fear, but relief.

"You hired me," Elena realized slowly.

"I needed to know if my own father would send someone to silence me."

Her phone buzzed on the table. Marcus didn't flinch. "That's him, isn't it?"

Elena answered. "Yes, sir. I have the information."

"Good," her handler said. "Deal with him."

She hung up, the papaya sweetness in the air suddenly sickening. Marcus closed his eyes.

"I understand," he said.

But Elena found herself thinking of her sister, lost to another scheme years ago. Of all the pyramids built on human desperation. She made a different choice.

"The SEC will want your testimony too," she said, reaching for her iphone. "About who hired you."