Page 109 of Keller

It's like he's moving through every person in the room. I know him well enough to know this looks like the goodbye tour.

I excuse myself from Becky and intercept him near the bar.

"What was that call about?"

"We need to wrap and head back early."

His voice is clipped and contained, the tone he uses when something has gone sideways and he's already calculating damage control.

"Ridge. What happened?"

"Not here. I'll explain in the car, after I talk to Vin."

Margaret Caldwell appears at his elbow. "Mr. Stone, the foundation chair was hoping to discuss the timeline before?—"

"We'll reschedule. Something's come up in New Orleans, and we need to get back."

"But the donors have questions about?—"

"Becky has my direct line. I'll make myself available tomorrow. Just let me know when. I apologize."

I fall into step beside him as we move toward the elevator. The corridor is empty, so our footsteps echo against the marble.

"Talk to me."

Ridge presses the call button, and the doors slide open immediately.

We step inside. He hits the lobby button, closing the doors.

“Federal preliminary inquiry.” His jaw tightens. “Executive override compliance conduct during the fourth quarter, specifically the October tenth through thirteenth window.”

My ears start ringing as my blood pressure rises. Wells told me two weeks ago that there was some digging behind these scenes. Is this what that was leading up to?

“Based on what?”

“Routing deviations tied to Gulf Meridian. Override authority. Compliance flag suppression.”

“Why now?”

“Someone connected the timing.”

The elevator hums.

“They’re not calling it criminal,” he adds. “They’re calling it threshold review.”

“Subpoenas?”

“Not yet.”The elevator descends, and Houston's skyline drops away floor by floor through the glass-walled elevator.

"How bad?"

Ridge stares at the descending numbers. "Bad enough that we need to shut this shit down before it goes anywhere. The last thing we need is the fucking Feds sniffing around."

I study Ridge's profile, the set of his jaw, the stillness in his hands. He's already calculating, running scenarios, and building contingencies.

"What triggered this?"

"Not here."