Chapter Thirty-Seven

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

J azz distantly heard Xavier curse, and she thought Serena might’ve gasped. There was a roaring in her ears, though, so hearing anything substantial was out of the question. She even knew that Kate’s lips continued to move, but Jazz had completely zoned out.

Brody had been working with Kate for ten years? Brody had known where she was all along? Kate had known how badly she wanted to find her brother and had never told her?

Trust had never been one of Jazz’s strong points, and right now, she was sure it no longer existed in any form.

“Breathe, Jazz,” Xavier said beside her.

A gasping sob burst from her lungs, making her realize she had been holding her breath for who knew how long.

“I know you’re hurting, Jazz, and I’m so sorry for your pain,” Kate said. “But this was what he wanted.”

“Maybe you should back up a bit, Kate,” Ash said. “I don’t think she heard your last few sentences.”

Kate sent a grateful look at Ash and then turned back to Jazz. “A few years back, I was in Chicago, and I saw a man who looked almost identical to Connor coming out of a restaurant. I knew he had to be Brody. He didn’t see me, but I followed him to an apartment building. He went inside, and so did I. When I knocked on his door, I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t the hard-faced, soulless-looking man who answered the door.

“I introduced myself, and he allowed me to come inside. What he told me I’ve never told another soul. I know for a fact Brody wouldn’t appreciate me telling you now, but if you’re feeling what I think you’re feeling, then you need to know all the facts.”

Kate paused and took a breath. “When you were living in Indianapolis, the Irish mob found Brody and wanted him to reveal your location. He refused. Even though he knew he was abandoning you, he couldn’t allow them to find you and use you.” She gave Jazz a telling look as she added, “They weren’t kind.

“Instead of killing him, they forced him to work for them, but he had no freedom. He was their prisoner, doing what they told him to do, but he had absolutely no autonomy. He managed to sneak away from them one day and went to the apartment, hoping you’d still be there. You had been long gone by then, and the place was cleaned out. He had no clue what had happened to you.

“We had a long talk, and I gave him a chance to escape the mob. His only request was that I find you and give you a home. It took over a year before someone spotted you on the streets in Chicago.”

Jazz remembered that day well. It had been snowing, and she had spent an uncomfortable night in an alleyway, beneath a large rug she’d found in the dumpster. She had been living on the streets for two years by then. Going to homeless shelters or churches had been out of the question. She had still been a minor, and they would have been obligated to report her to the authorities. It had been rough, scary as hell, and often humiliating, but she had survived. Whenever she thought about those days, that’s what she reminded herself: She had survived.

Kate had walked up to her on the sidewalk and introduced herself. To this day, Jazz didn’t know if she’d trusted Kate because she had been so hungry and cold, or if she had recognized that the woman truly did want to help her. Either way, Kate had walked to a car, and Jazz had silently followed her like Kate was the Pied Piper. From that moment on, she had never wanted for anything.

Jazz cleared her throat and managed a raspy, “So the same people who took Brody…they’re the ones who tried to kidnap me in Indianapolis?”

“I imagine there were lots of people looking for you,” Kate said. “Those goons likely got tipped off by the kid in the market and saw some easy cash.”

She could only imagine what her life would have been like if they had caught her. And Brody…sweet heavens, what had they done to her brother?

“Did you order Brody to kill Franco Bass?”

The question surprised everyone, not just because it was a major subject change, but also because it had come from Jules, who was looking at Kate as if she’d never seen her before.

“No. I don’t give orders to Brody.”

“Then who does?” Ash asked.

“I don’t know.”

“Bullshit, Kate.”

“I’m telling the truth, Ash. Brody and I are not a team. And I am most definitely not his boss or handler. He’s done some favors for me. I’ve done several for him. But he’s got his own contacts, his own agenda.”

“Does he work for the Wren Project?” Ash asked.

“No, I don’t believe so. From what I can tell, he’s working against them, but again, he doesn’t report to me, nor does he confide in me. We have a semicordial relationship, mostly because I kept my promise and found Jazz.”

“Why doesn’t he want to see me?” Jazz asked.

Compassion wasn’t something Kate was known for, but Jazz saw it in her eyes when she said, “Because he isn’t the same man he was when he was just your big brother.”

“That shouldn’t be his decision to make. I should get the choice of whether or not I want him in my life.”

“I agree, Jazz, and that’s what I told him.” She opened her purse and retrieved a burner phone that she slid across the table to her. “His phone number is the only one on this. He’s expecting your call.”

She would finally hear her brother’s voice after all these years. Jazz didn’t hesitate. She grabbed the phone and stood. “Excuse me.”

She practically ran out of the room but stopped in the hallway and took a shaky breath. Her heart was pounding as if she’d run a marathon, and she feared she wouldn’t be able to hear Brody over the noise it made.

“Jazz,” Xavier said behind her.

Turning, she stared up at him with tear-glazed eyes. “I know it’s crazy but I’m scared.”

With a soft curse, he pulled her to him and wrapped his arms tight around her. The comfort in his embrace was everything. A huge part of her wanted to just let go and sob out all the pain and sorrow. But that steel core within her told her to straighten her spine and get the job done. She’d been hoping and praying for an opportunity like this for over a decade. She wasn’t going to back away now just because it was hard.

She took a few more seconds to draw strength from his embrace, breathed in the familiar male fragrance that she so loved, and then drew away. “I’ll be fine.”

“I know you will, Jazz. You’re so strong. You want me to stay?”

“No. That’s okay. I think I need to do this alone.”

“Very well. I’ll be in the conference room. Let me know if you need me.”

“Okay.” Before he could walk out of her sight, she said, “Xavier?”

He turned back quickly and said, “Yes?”

“Thank you.”

Walking away from her was one of the hardest things he’d ever done in his life. She had received blow after blow today. And now she might possibly get one more—possibly the biggest one of all—by talking to her brother who could hurt her even more.

Fury fueled every step back to the conference room. He didn’t know who he was angrier with, Kate or Brody McAlister. Both of them had lied to and deceived Jazz for years. And though he knew his rage should be tempered by the knowledge that they’d both done what they could to take care of her, that didn’t negate the lies. No wonder Jazz had trust issues. The people she loved continued to lie and keep things from her. And yes, he silently admitted, he knew he was one of those people.

That stopped now. He could do nothing about the past, but he could damn well make sure it didn’t happen in the future.

He stopped at the conference room door, where Jules and Kate were in a whispered conversation while Ash sat a few feet away with a fierce scowl on his face. Eve and Gideon were talking in low tones to each other. Liam was on his phone, and the smile on his face told him the man was likely talking to his wife. Serena had positioned herself in a corner and was frowning as she typed away on her laptop.

Even though they were all seemingly occupied, he knew they were well aware of what was going on only a few yards away from them. And while his heart told him to turn around and check on Jazz, he forced himself to stay put. She had asked for privacy, and he would honor her wishes, no matter how difficult. That didn’t mean he couldn’t get more answers. His gut told him Kate was still holding back.

“Why did Kevin Doyle take Jazz?” Xavier asked as he walked in.

Kate glanced up, and while he noted she looked as though she’d aged a decade since she had arrived, he refused to relent. If she was holding back intel that could keep Jazz safe, then he had absolutely no sympathy for her.

Pushing her hair back with her fingers, Kate blew out a heavy, weary-filled sigh. “I imagine for the same reasons they used to justify killing her parents and giving her to Arthur Kelly to hold for them.”

“Because she’s Byrne’s daughter? He had that much influence?”

“Yes. As far as crime families go, he was the king in Chicago.”

“So they want to use her for what—some kind of archaic arranged marriage to unite the mob?”

Before Kate could answer, Serena said in the grimmest voice he’d ever heard from her, “I don’t think that’s the biggest reason.”

“What do you mean?” Xavier asked.

“Come look.”

Striding over to where she was, he stopped beside her and looked down at her laptop screen. His heart stopped, and his gut roiled. No wonder they wanted her. Jazz was in just as much danger as she had been before. In the grand scheme of things, the fact that Kevin Doyle was dead meant nothing. A dozen more just like him were likely plotting how to get their hands on Jazz.

And she had no idea.