Chapter 30

CHAPTER 30

Durango

We spent another night at Axel's house. Having all that time with Willow was amazing. Trip was able to get us all the information we needed regarding the car and driver Tyler used. Axel questioned the driver and determined he is not a threat to Willow or Samantha.

We also learned someone else must have also had a copy of that video where Tyler was threatened to continue distributing drugs. And that video was shared with Benson Hyde, the man who threatened him.

How do we know this? Thanks to Harding, who has contacts in the FBI.

There is an FBI agent deep undercover in Zavier Carte's organization. The very man Tyler named as Hyde's boss. The agent was in the room when Hyde played the video for Carte.

And the agent was also in the room when Carte ordered Hyde to take out Tyler. He was able to reach his contact at the FBI before it went down, but they couldn't prevent it in time. Which was probably best for the agent; otherwise, his cover would have been blown. I should be thinking something along the lines of they should have prevented a murder. But this was Tyler. He was an unredeemable asshole, as far as I'm concerned, and it solved a problem for us.

Who leaked the video to Hyde is a question the police are investigating. And the FBI as part of their undercover operation. Harding will update us once she finds out more.

We decided Willow and Samantha are safe to return to their apartment in Queens. Although Axel insists I stay with them until I'm certain no one is coming after me any longer. And no, I'm not certain about that right now.

When we step into their apartment, we take in the mess. Tyler really did a number. Axel and I help clean up.

Once the apartment is reasonably put back together, Willow and I retreat to her room to give Axel and Samantha privacy. He's heading out on an assignment tonight and won't be staying here. And honestly, I'm not sure what's going on with them. They spent most of the last two days in bed.

"Oh, right. You can come out now," Samantha says.

We exit the bedroom, and I sit on the couch.

"So, are you going to see him again?" Willow asks.

Samantha shrugs. "Probably not. We agreed it was just a short-term sex thing."

"Oh," Willow sounds disappointed. "I thought maybe we could double date sometime."

Samantha stares at the door. "Honestly, I needed a rebound relationship, so it's all good."

Rebound? I'll have to ask a Willow about that. Because despite what she says, I get the distinct feeling Samantha may have wanted more. I've known Axel for many years. And in all that time, he's only had one serious relationship. It ended badly when he found out she was cheating on him while he was overseas. Since then, he hasn't dated much; instead, he picks up women at the bar from time to time.

"We need to talk about that video you have of Tyler," I say.

"Which one?" Samantha asks.

"The non sex one. You need to destroy it."

She opens her mouth, but nothing comes out for a few seconds. "You're right. We don't need it anymore. We don't need any of those files anymore." She walks to her room and comes back with the USB stick. "How should we do it?"

I grab it and toss it onto the floor to smash it into bits with my boot.

"Okay, I guess that works," she says as she goes to the kitchen and grabs a small broom and dustpan. She returns and hands them to me. "You made the mess."

"No problem." I bend down and clean it up. I'm just happy those files are gone, and now there should be no more reminders of Tyler in Willow's life.

Samantha claps her hands together. "I have good news! While we were cleaning up this place, I got a voicemail from the HR department. They want me to report back to work next week."

Willow gives Samantha a hug. "That's good news. But what about the asshole?"

Samantha grins. "Two other women came forward with similar stories. So, they fired him."

From conversations I overheard between Willow and Samantha over the past few days, I knew something was going on with Samantha's job, but it sounds like a bad situation.

She grabs her purse. "If you two don't mind, I'm going to go shopping and treat myself to a new return-to-the-office outfit."

"Be safe," Willow says.

"I will."

Samantha leaves, and all I can think about is that we have an entire afternoon here alone. What I want to do involves never leaving Willow's bedroom.

Before I can suggest that, my phone rings—Harding. "I have to take this."

Willow sits on the couch and watches me.

"Hey, you got something?" I go to the window and stare out.

"Yes and no," Harding says. "We've questioned these guys several times, and I'm convinced they have no idea who Stanvich is."

"Then who hired them?"

"Great question. So far, I've ruled out Moose and Nancy."

"Wait, you mentioned Moose to them?" That means his identity might be compromised. But hell, so is mine.

"No, I'm better than that. But get this: all three claim they were hired by a woman. But in a lineup of photos, they didn't recognize Nancy or Sylvia."

"Can't you bring in a sketch artist or something?" I ask.

"The CIA isn't exactly full of those. Besides, I'm supposed to turn these guys over in a few hours. Can you come in and question them? My gut tells me you might get more information out of them, if you can relate man to man."

I sigh. Harding's the best interrogator there is. If these men aren't giving her more, I really doubt I will have any luck. But of course, I need to go in and try. It's just the timing isn't great. Willow is safe now, but I don't want to leave this perfect bubble we've created for ourselves the last couple of days. I'm afraid once it's gone, we might not get it back.

That's ridiculous, though. Just my insecure thoughts.

"Yeah, I'll be there in an hour." I end the call and turn to Willow.

"You have to go," she says.

I sit next to her on the couch and take her hand in mine. "I'm sorry, but I do. I wouldn't leave if I didn't have to. Shit. I really don't like leaving you here."

She squeezes my hand. "I'll be fine. You staying here was more about keeping you safe than me. So, if you go out that door, aren't you at risk?"

"No. That was my colleague, Harding. The men who kidnapped me are still in custody. She's been questioning them and hit an impasse. She needs me there."

"It's all right. I have work I need to catch up on."

"I'll send you a message once I have an idea how long I'll be," I say.

I kiss her goodbye and make sure she secures every lock on the door.

Harding is holding the men in an office in Brooklyn that the CIA uses. When I arrive, the three men are all tied to chairs spaced about two feet apart. Now, I've seen bruises and marks on suspects before, but these guys are much worse off than is typical. The guy on the right sounds like he's wheezing.

"What happened?" I ask.

"They fell," she says.

"They don't like answering questions. I had to get persuasive," Agent Monroe says.

I've worked with Monroe a few times. He's assisted Harding a few times over the years. He's not exactly a rule follower, which explains why these guys look so bad.

"Yeah? How did that work for you?" I'm being facetious. I already know from Harding they don't have the answers they need.

I walk up to the man who shot me in the arm. "Who asked you to grab me?"

He doesn't respond.

"You wanted to know what Damien told me. Someone hired you three to get that information."

The corner of his mouth turns up, but he quickly schools his features.

Based on what Harding told me on the phone, I dig in.

"What is the name of the woman who hired you?"

The wheezing guy says something I can't make out.

I step over to him. "What was that?"

"Natalie."

I glance up at Harding. She's frowning, which tells me this is new information. "Natalie, what?"

"Don't know," the man says.

I don't recognize him, which tells me he was likely the man who put the bag over my head.

I walk in front of the middle man again. "Is Natalie simply your boss, or are you sleeping with her, too?"

"You son of a bitch," the guy on the left says.

Looks like I hit a nerve.

"Shut up," the first guy says. "He's just trying to push buttons."

I step over to the guy on the left. He's shorter and younger.

"You're sleeping with Natalie, too." I say it as a statement.

"What does it matter?" he asks.

"She's a married woman!" the middle guy says.

Well, they know more than they let on.

"That didn't bother you! What are you complaining about?" Shorty asks.

"Who is her husband?" I ask.

Middle guys shrugs. "It doesn't matter."

I glance back at Shorty. "Did she tell you she was married?"

He nods.

Agent Monroe is frowning. Probably unsure how this interrogation took such a turn. Also probably wondering—like I am—if this is all bullshit.

"That's what she told me," Wheezy says.

I turn to him. "You too?"

He shrugs.

I glance back at the guy in the middle, and despite his injuries, his face flushes red. "You're telling me all three of you were having sex with this woman who hired you for this job, and none of you were aware of what the others were doing?"

"Apparently not," the middle guy says.

I grab a chair and sit down so I'm eye level with these guys. "What is her husband's name?"

They all shrug.

"We didn't ask. She didn't share," the middle guy says. "Look, I'm sorry we grabbed you, but it was just a job. She wanted the coordinates and said you had them."

I take a deep breath to remain calm. "You didn't just grab me. You shot me, remember?" I point to the bandage on my arm. "And I'm pretty sure if I had given you those coordinates, you would have killed me."

He winces. These guys don't strike me as seasoned criminals. They seem more like weak men who were manipulated by someone.

I glance at Harding, who is watching the man intently. "Did you find any phones on them?" I ask.

"We did. They were all password-protected. I sent them to our expert who's working on them," Harding says.

I frown. "It's been a couple of days."

"He wasn't able to get to it until this morning," she says. "Another case took priority."

I turn back to the man. "Anything you want to tell us before we find it for ourselves?"

He stares at the floor and doesn't respond. I glance at the other two, and they avoid my eyes as well.

"We'll figure out who this woman is. And my guess is that she'll sell you all out the first chance she gets," I say.

The middle guy kicks his leg out, trying to get to me, but it's tied to the chair, so all he accomplishes is a small movement forward. He cares for her. Hopefully, Harding can use that to get more information.

"Monroe, take that man to the green room," Harding says.

Monroe smiles. "With pleasure."

I lean down and ask Harding quietly, "What's the green room?"

"A room with green walls."

I roll my eyes. "You know what I mean."

"I just want to keep these guys separated for now. I'm hoping we get that phone information before they are transferred."

"Where are they going?"

She nods for me to follow her out of the room, and I do.

"Local police to be charged with kidnapping and assault," she says once the men can't hear her.

"Can't you put that off? This is more important."

She shrugs. "I've already put it off a day. The detective isn't willing to wait any longer because he's worried one of these guys will claim unlawful imprisonment."

I frown. "Why would he care? It would fall back to you."

She nods. "He shouldn't. But unlike Monroe here, he's hell-bent on following the rules."