Read Story: SEASON 2 EPISODE 13

Suddenly, my phone began beeping. "Oh, speak of the devil. Let me let you go, and we'll talk later."

"Okay. Good luck!"

I switched over to Astrid, who had been the one calling while I was on the phone with Charity. "Hello?"

"Marcus?" Astrid's voice came over the speaker, crisp and precise with just a touch of warmth.

"Astrid?" I asked.

"Yes. How are you?"

"I'm okay," I said, glancing back to see that Tara had pulled out a book and had started reading. Then I looked at the monstrosity I was in the middle of purchasing. "I'm in the middle of buying a castle."

"A… castle," Astrid repeated, clearly digesting what I'd just told her.

"You did say the world was my oyster," I pointed out.

"So I did, and you took my advice quite literally, didn't you?" she said.

"I guess so. You'll have to come and visit."

"Some other time, perhaps," Astrid said. "I called to see if you would be interested in visiting me."

"Does this have to do with Tanaka?" I asked.

"Yes."

"So, you guys talked?"

"We did. I pointed out that we are on the same side. We both agree that VistaVision would be better under different leadership, and I sympathize with the fact that he was manipulated by his wife. However, I told him that a war between Tanaka and Gerrard would only lead to chaos and that most of us wouldn't stand for it. You may be two of the wealthiest men in the world, but the rest of us aren't without our own resources."

Wow. Was that a threat?

Astrid continued, "Hiro saw reason at the end. He's called off his dogs until you've had a chance to meet."

"He wants to meet in person? Fat chance," I said. "Unless he wants to walk into my apartment surrounded by my security."

"Hiro expressed a similar concern, so I have offered my family home as a neutral place to meet," Astrid said.

I sat on one of the terrace steps. "And Hiro's good with that?"

"In a manner of speaking," Astrid said, and I could hear a note of disapproval in her voice. "Hiro refuses to meet with you in person despite my guarantee of everyone's safety. He will send his son to speak on his behalf."

I considered asking if I could do the same, but something about how Astrid said that made me pause. Instead, I decided to ask a few more questions to have more time to think. "Okay… so Hiro's sending his son to negotiate with me. What's his name?"

"Ryo," Astrid said, the annoyance clear in her tone.

"And… you're not happy about it?"

"My father and I have promised that you would be safe here. I'm annoyed that Hiro is insulting our ability to maintain peace between you for a day or two. My father is definitely insulted."

"When would this meeting take place?"

"Sooner is better than later," Astrid said. "Hiro assures me his son can be out here tomorrow night if you can also make it. We could have the meeting on Saturday."

I had already intended to leave tomorrow to go somewhere else. I might as well make it Norway. "And you're sure I'll be safe?"

"I guarantee your safety," Astrid said.

I studied Tara, who was too busy staring at her book to notice me watching her. Staring at a beautiful woman made thinking about my next steps a more pleasant task. The thing was… I had no idea who this Ryo guy was or what he was capable of. However, it sounded like Hiro had already insulted Astrid, giving me a little more edge at winning her over. The last thing I wanted to do was offend her and jeopardize what little of a relationship we had.

"Send me the details. I'll need to run it by my security team, but if they're good with it, I'd love to see your home, Astrid."

It looked like I would be parlaying with a Tanaka this weekend.