This coming from a woman with two delightful parents who wanted nothing more than for Tina to find happiness…and stop acting like a criminal.
“I appreciate that,” Nash said.
She bobbed her head. “Like I said, I had nothin’ to do with that.”
“Why is that?” I asked.
She shrugged. “Dunno.”
Nash leaned in and Tina mirrored him. “Do you have any idea where he would go if he needed to hide out but still wanted to stay close?”
“Told her I never met the guy, but whenever he needed a new place, he always called Burner Phone Guy,” Tina said, nodding at me without taking her eyes off Nash. “He’d hook us up with a place to crash or find Dunc a place to stash the cars he was stealing.”
“How would he pay Burner Phone Guy?” Nash asked.
“Cash. He’d put it in one of those media mail boxes from the post office and send it.”
“You’ve been real helpful, Tina,” Nash said, making a few notes on his pad before putting the pen down.
“If you have any questions about that night in the warehouse, ask Waylay. Kid’s got one of those memories like a trap. Don’t ever mention going for ice cream unless you’re serious about takin’ her ’cause it’s all you’ll hear for the next two years of your life if you change your mind.”
And just like that, I was back to not liking Tina.
Nash and I got to our feet.
“We appreciate your time,” Nash said.
Tina looked panicked for a second and then a sly look crossed her face. She slapped Nash’s pen off the table like a cat. “Oops. I dropped your pen.”
Nash went pale and looked at me for assistance.
“You’re closer,” I said.
I barely managed to choke back a laugh when he crouched down, keeping his rear end far away from Tina.
“You have yourself a good day,” he said, pocketing the pen.
“See you, Tina,” I said, then followed Nash as he kept his ass to the wall and skirted toward the door.
We found Nolan and Piper sitting in the sunshine on a strip of grass playing tug-of-war with Piper’s stuffed police dog.
“I’ll show you mine if you show me yours,” Nolan offered.
Nash reached down to ruffle Piper’s fur. “Hugo’s unidentified henchman might be less of a henchman and more of a property manager or real estate agent. He got paid in dirty cash through the mail.”
“Mail fraud. Nice.”
“I’ll have my researcher narrow down the search of known associates by those with a connection to real estate,” I said.
“Your turn,” Nash said to Nolan.
“I got hold of an old friend in the Bureau. And no, I’m not sharing his name. But he had some insider knowledge he was willing to share. Says the anonymous intel is coming in through the mail, addressed to Special Agent Idler. It’s handwritten notes on Anthony Hugo’s operations. Nothing huge yet, but so far it’s all checked out. The not-so-anonymous sender has hinted that he’s got more where that came from in exchange for an immunity deal.”
“That lines up with Grim’s intel. Sounds like Duncan Hugo wants to work with the feds if it means getting his father out of the way and taking over the family business,” Nash said.
“Should I be worried about our national security if there are this many leaks at the FBI?” I wondered.
“Nah. It’s probably fine,” Nolan said with a wink.
I opened the WhatsApp chat to fill everyone in on our progress.
“Oh good. Knox and Lucian installed more cameras on the building exterior and added some to the interior. They’ll be adding window and door sensors tomorrow and Lucian left a tracker that looks like a condom for you at the station,” I read.
“I don’t know about you guys, but all this forward momentum is makin’ me hungry,” Nash announced.
“I wouldn’t say no to an open-faced hot turkey sandwich,” Nolan said.
“Hey, Nolan. Tina dropped a pen just to watch Nash pick it up,” I tattled as we got in the car.
FORTY-ONE
WORDS OF WISDOM
Lina
Ninety-six hours. Nash and I had officially survived four whole days of living together and the intense local scrutiny of our budding relationship. I hadn’t even choked on my latte yesterday morning when Justice asked me how my “boyfriend” was doing.
The wedding was four days away—my bridesmaid dress was pretty damn stunning—and Nash’s article was slated to be published the following Monday.
If all went to plan, news of Nash’s recovered memory would draw Duncan Hugo out of hiding, he’d fall into the trap, and then it would all be over.
I just wasn’t sure how much of the “all” I wanted to be over.
The ambiguous “after” was suddenly looming large, which meant decisions would have to be made. If we found the car when we found Duncan, the job would be done and I’d be heading back to Atlanta to wait for my next assignment.
Or…
I slowed my legs to a jog before coming to a stop in Honky Tonk’s parking lot.
Bending at the waist, I tried to catch my breath in the early morning chill. Steam rose from my sweaty face.
Everything was moving so fast. There was a momentum, a sense of urgency we all felt as the days ticked down. It made me feel nervous and just the slightest bit out of control.
“Never understood why people run for fun,” a voice said behind me.
I straightened and found Knox with a gym bag slung over his shoulder.
“What are you doing up so early?” I asked, my breath still coming in pants.
“Dropped Way off at school. Grabbed last night’s deposit and figured I’d hit the gym after the bank.”
“Couldn’t sleep?” I guessed.
“Not a fucking wink.”
“Wedding or Hugo?” I asked, stripping off my headband and using the hem of my shirt to mop my face.
“Fuck Hugo. That asshole’s gonna end up behind bars or in the ground.”
“So wedding then.”
He swiped a hand through his hair. “She’s gonna be mine. Officially. I keep waitin’ for her to come to her senses.”
“You’re scared,” I said, surprised.
“Fuck yeah, I’m scared. I’m shaking in my goddamn boots. I need to lock her down now before she realizes she could do better.”
“She couldn’t,” I said. “No one in this world could ever love her more than you do. And I’m not saying she’s not lovable. I’m saying you love her that much.”
“I do,” he said hoarsely.
“And she loves you that much.”
His lips quirked. “She does, doesn’t she?”
I nodded.
He tossed his gym bag into the back of his truck and I leaned against the fender.
“Tell me it’s worth it,” I blurted out.
“What’s worth it?”
“Letting someone in. Letting them get close enough that they could destroy you if they wanted to.”
“I might sound like a goddamn greeting card, but it’s worth everything,” he rasped.
Goose bumps rose on my rapidly cooling skin.
“I’m not kidding. What I had before compared to what I have now?” He shook his head. “It doesn’t even compare.”