Chapter 30
Thirty
M ax ran a hand through his hair and gripped the back of his neck, watching Margot and the girls disappear through the door. Reality had crashed down hard this morning, popping the bubble they’d created last night. He wanted to go back to it. Nothing would please him more than to go about his day playing in the pool with those two sweet girls, then later, loving on their mama again in hopes of giving them a sibling.
“You all right?” Sam asked.
“Yeah.” Max dropped his hand. He looked at the marshal. “Marchand, tell me you know where Berry is.”
The marshal’s mouth twisted. “I wish I could. And now that your contact discovered Conroy’s connection to things, I don’t have any leads to go on to find him.”
A dark frown transformed Max’s face. He glared at Marchand. “We need Tad. He’s the only one left who can give us any insight into Berry.”
Marchand’s mouth flattened, and he glanced away. Max could see the hesitation on his face.
“I’m not really asking, Marshal. If you don’t call him and loop him in, we will find him and do it ourselves.”
The marshal’s expression sharpened. “I’ll have you arrested.”
Sam snorted. “You can try. But you’ll never be able to prove it was us.”
A mirthless smile appeared on Dean’s face. “It’s true. All you’ll discover is that it was an anonymous tip .”
Marchand muttered a curse and scrubbed his hands over his face. “I truly hate your little group. Dye was right. You all are impossible.”
Max flashed him a quick, toothy smile. “Glad we’ve cleared that up. So, who’s making the phone call? You or me?”
Blowing out a breath, Marchand aimed an annoyed look at him. “I will.”
“Good. We want to listen in,” Dean said. “To make sure you tell him the whole truth.”
“The whole—” Marchand stopped with an exasperated sigh, then pinched the bridge of his nose. He waved his hand. “Fine.”
Max crossed his arms, waiting.
Marchand’s brows rose. “You mean, right now?”
“Yes.”
“Christ almighty,” Marchand muttered under his breath. He removed his phone from his pocket. Clicking through several screens, he finally dialed a number and put it on speaker.
It rang five times, then rolled to voicemail.
Max clenched his teeth. Dammit .
Marchand left a quick message, asking Tad to call, then hung up. “Happy? That’s all I can do for now.”
“Where is he?” Sam asked.
Again, Marchand hesitated.
Max huffed. “We’ve been over this. No information is safe. But it is quicker if you tell us.”
“I think I need to have a chat with the FBI’s cybersecurity team about your friend.”
Dean chuckled. “Trust me, they’re already aware of him. Answer Sam’s question.”
The marshal threw his hands up. “Fine. He’s in California. North of San Francisco.”
Max glanced at Dean, who already had his phone out to call Asher. In moments, ringing filled the living room.
“Yo. You talk to that marshal about what I told you?” Asher asked without preamble.
“We did. He’s here, and you’re on speaker.”
“Got it. What’s up?”
“Our new friend told us where he stashed Tad.”
A beat of silence came over the line.
Max narrowed his eyes. “You already know, don’t you?”
“Maybe.” Asher drew out the word. “I might also have driven down there and talked to him yesterday.”
“You did what?” Marchand stepped closer, glaring at the phone in Dean’s hand. “You had no authority?—”
“Can it, Marshal. The man’s children are in danger. He has every right to know. Especially since he’s the cause.”
Marchand took a breath, closing his eyes. Max could tell he was counting to ten in his head.
“What did you say to him?” Marchand finally asked.
“Only what we know so far. That you found his car and a body up in North Dakota and that you called Margot in to make an identification. I also mentioned Conroy. He clammed up at that. That’s what made me dig a little deeper into Tad’s connections, which is how I found out Conroy was a patient. Anyway, he asked a few questions about Margot and the girls, then thanked me for telling him what the marshals wouldn’t.”
Max bit back a grin at the subtle dig.
“Then what?” Marchand asked.
“Then I went home.”
Marchand muttered a curse.
“Do you have eyes on Tad?” Max glanced at Marchand.
“No. There’s a marshal in the area in case he needs someone, and we have monitors on his credit cards and bank accounts as well as a GPS tracker in his car, but no one follows him around twenty-four-seven.” He lifted his phone. “I need to make some calls.”
“You do that.” Max resisted the urge to roll his eyes. There were so many ways Tad could elude WitSec. All it would take would be a sympathetic friend or co-worker to give him a ride. Or even some cash. He could steal a credit card too. He’d already proven adept at covering his tracks. He could have another identity the marshals didn’t know about.
Still frowning fiercely, Marchand went out the back door.
Max turned to his friends. “Asher, do you have any idea where Tad is?”
“No. But my best guess is he’s on his way down there to you. I saw the panic in his eyes when I told him Margot was involved. Berry scares him.”
That’s what Max had been afraid of. Tad was bringing the danger to them. “All right. We’ll keep an eye out for him.”
“Good. I’ll keep digging too. See if he pops up anywhere.”
“Sounds good,” Dean said. “Thanks.”
“Yep. Talk to you later.” Asher hung up.
“I don’t like this,” Sam said as soon as the line went silent. “It feels like everything is coming to a head. With Margot and the twins right in the crosshairs.”
Max’s jaw worked.
He agreed.