Chapter 42

Jake tried notto smirk as he watched Claire tear into her fourth dumpling with ravenous abandon. It felt like old times having Dana back in his office. Claire joining them was an added bonus. As was the gem of a Thai restaurant she'd found. The spicy basil chicken certainly elevated his mood and possibly his blood pressure.

"Where did you hear about this place?" Jake asked, grabbing another piece of spicy chicken with his chopsticks despite the perspiration gathering on his brow.

"My friend, Betty, from Passages told me about it," Claire answered.

"How'd it go today?" Jake asked around a mouthful of food.

Claire and Dana exchanged a look before Claire answered. "It was fine, but something came up that I was wondering if you'd help me with."

"Oh yeah? Lay it on me." Jake welcomed the distraction considering the abysmal day he'd been having hitting dead ends trying to locate his father.

"Max didn't show up at St. Ann's today. No one has seen or heard from him since Hayes died." Claire wrung her hands. "We got really close at Passages. I know he doesn't have anyone in his life, and Max isn't the sort of person who does well on his own. I'm worried something happened to him and I was thinking since finding people is your superpower, maybe you'd help me look for him?"

The comment deflated Jake. He knew Claire meant it as a compliment, but it was a reminder of how much Wade and his mother were counting on him to find someone too.

He knew if he dug far enough, he'd find answers, because Claire was right; finding people was what he did. The trouble was, sometimes how he found them did more harm than good.

Jake knew that however this thing with his father turned out, he and Wade would deal with it. But if he looked into this kid Max and the outcome wasn't the one Claire was hoping for, she might not be able to cope.

He didn't want to let her down, but he didn't want to cause her unnecessary pain either.

Jake proceeded cautiously. "I appreciate your confidence in me, but it might be misguided."

"What do you mean?" she asked.

Exhaling, Jake set his meal down and threaded his hands behind his head. Jake looked back at the stack of folders on his desk. Corporate espionage, homegrown terrorism, human trafficking—he never thought he'd feel this way, but he'd take tracking down a Grim Reaper and a scared kid over any of them.

"I hope this Max guy isn't wrapped up in the Hayes investigation, because we're gonna have to sit this one out and let the DOJ do their thing."

Claire looked crestfallen. "No one is looking for a rehab runaway. If they are it's only to pin Hayes's death on him."

"Why do you say that?"

"You should've heard the way everyone was talking about Max today. They've all but convicted him. It's like they don't even care that he's the reason we all got out before the fire got too bad." Claire swiped at a tear. "He didn't do anything wrong. They just want to blame him because he's different, but I'm not going to let that happen."

Jake glanced at Dana. This was starting to feel like the Sadie situation all over again. Claire hadn't trusted him to help then. He didn't want to make the same mistake twice.

He pulled out his notepad and flipped to a new page. "Different how?"

Claire perked up. "You'll help me find him?"

"Unofficially," he warned. "Now tell me what you know."

When Claire finished her lengthy description, Jake snapped his notebook shut. "I'll make sure this gets into the right hands."

"Wait, you're not going to look for him?"

"Claire, I can't, and neither can you. If the DOJ catches us poking around, things could get a whole lot worse."

"How? We didn't do anything wrong."

"A US Congressman was murdered. The DOJ is out for blood, they don't necessarily care whose. In cases like these it's guilt by association and the whole party goes down. That's why I'm doing everything I can to keep you as far away from their investigation as possible."

Claire crossed her arms, her frustration clear.

"I know you're worried about your friend, but I need you to trust me. I've got some contacts who can look into Max discreetly." Jake stood up and walked over to his desk. He came back after rummaging around in his drawers. "Here, I know you lost yours in the fire," he said, handing Claire a burner. "I've got the number. If I hear anything, I promise, you'll be my first call."

Claire powered on the phone. "Can I call Betty in case she's heard anything about Max?"

"Yeah. You can use conference room B down the hall if you want some privacy."

"Thanks."

Claire left the room and Dana stood, ready to follow, but Jake stopped her. "Let's give her a minute."

"I don't think that's the best idea. Betty might not be the best influence based on what I saw at St. Ann's today."

"I took the necessary precautions," Jake said, holding up his phone. "That phone has an app that transmits location and conversations directly to me."

Dana's eyes widened. "Did you do that to my phone, too?"

He grinned and grabbed her hips, pulling her closer. "That would certainly make my life easier, wouldn't it?"

Dana leaned into his touch, letting her fingers glide over his cheek. "I didn't know you were going to shave."

Jake rubbed his smooth jawline. "The Bureau might actually be worse than the Army when it comes to keeping up appearances."

"That's a shame," she admitted. "I liked the beard."

"Roger that," Jake grinned, tipping her lips up to meet his.

"Jake …" she pulled away. "We talked about this."

He exhaled, letting his forehead fall to Dana's momentarily while he collected himself. "Right. It's just been a day."

"Still nothing on your father?" she asked.

Jake shook his head. "It's like tracking a ghost."

"Well, now you're talking about my area of expertise," she offered. "Want some help?"

"Thanks, but I've got some calls into my old contacts. It's a Hail Mary, but that's where I'm at right now."

Dana slipped her hand into his. "Don't lose hope."

"I think I needed to hear that." He squeezed her hand. "Thank you for being here. It means more than you know."

Whatever Dana was about to say was cut short when Jenkins burst through Jake's office door, Claire by her side.