Chapter 25
Nerves fluttered through Audra’s belly. She shouldn’t be nervous. She was a bloody spy. She didn’t do nerves. But everything she’d worked toward the last couple of years was on the line with this conversation. If Dee didn’t hear them out, if she decided to arrest them and not listen, all her hard work was for naught.
“You ready?”
Audra drew in a deep breath and looked at Sam. “As I’ll ever be. Let’s do this.” They’d decided the direct approach was best. Dee was home, so they were just going to walk up and knock.
Hand-in-hand, they approached the door. Sam rang the bell, then squeezed her hand.
“It’ll be okay.” He leaned down and kissed the top of her head.
Audra closed her eyes briefly, wondering how he always seemed to know what was on her mind. Though right now, it probably wasn’t hard to tell. A fine tremor coursed through her as they waited.
Movement flickered in the light coming from the side windows beside the door. Audra could see the silhouette of a woman pause for a moment before the door swung open.
She smiled at her boss and waved. “Hi. I’m home.”
Dee’s surprised expression quickly morphed. Her eyebrows slammed together. She raked her gaze over Sam, then speared Audra with a hot glare. “It’s about damn time. And who is this?” She eyed their clasped hands, sighing. “I’m not going to like what you have to say, am I?”
“Could we come in?” Audra asked.
Dee stepped back, opening the door wider, and motioned them inside. “My husband is still at work, but he won’t be for long. We need to make this quick.”
Sam hesitated in the doorway, and Audra glanced back.
“Maybe we should take this elsewhere, then. I’m not sure how long it’ll take.”
“It’ll be fine,” Dee said. “You can slip out the back, if necessary. There’s an exterior door to the block’s shared courtyard in my office.”
Audra tugged on Sam’s hand, and he followed her into the ground-floor flat.
Dee led them through the small foyer to a room behind the stairs. Audra glimpsed a kitchen to her left and a living room to her right as they passed. Both were good size rooms for a London flat. It looked like there was a dining room beyond the kitchen as well.
Flipping on the light, Dee breezed into the room. She walked behind the desk and grabbed her chair, wheeling it around to the other side. “Sit.” She pointed to the brown leather sofa.
Audra perched on the edge, hanging on to Sam’s hand for strength.
“Explain, Ridley.” Dee pierced her with a look, then flicked her gaze to Sam. “And who’s your friend?”
Sam and Audra shared a glance. He nodded slightly, and she inhaled a breath to steady herself before she jumped in.
“So, you know that nine days ago, someone ran me down near the park by my condo.”
Dee nodded once.
“Sunday morning, they found Theo’s body in the park.”
Her boss let out a string of curses and stood. She paced to the bookshelves and stared at them for a long moment before turning back. “You’re sure it was him? How did I not know this?”
“Yes.” Audra waved a hand. “As for how you didn’t know, I’m not sure. His image was plastered all over the news stations there. Someone dropped the ball, I guess. I haven’t talked to Moran, so I’m not sure what happened. Anyway, I should back up. When I woke up after being hit, something bothered me about the incident. It was the shoes.”
“The shoes?” Dee frowned. “What shoes?”
“The black trainers I told you about. A man walked up to me as I laid there, and he had on black trainers. The same ones Theo had on the night before. When I woke up and tried to remember what happened, I couldn’t shake the feeling that Theo—or someone from within our organization—was involved.”
“Why?” Dee’s gaze turned sharp. “What happened?”
“Nothing major. It was just a bunch of small things. Like the shoes. And the fact that someone followed us to the park that night. Someone had been following me.” Audra stabbed her index finger into her chest. “Taking my picture. And I didn’t know. Then, when you ordered me back to London, that feeling got stronger. I couldn’t understand why you would want to remove me from the investigation. Even with my cover blown, I had information the people in Las Vegas could use. It made me wonder if Theo was the only one involved and whether you could be too.”
“You thought I was a traitor?” The indignation in Dee’s voice rang clear.
Audra shrugged. “I didn’t know what to think. So, I called Sam, because I knew I could trust him, and that he could help.”
Dee looked at him. “You’re Sam?”
“Yes.”
She looked at Audra. “How do you know him? And why would you call him?”
“Sam and I worked together ten years ago, before I came to your unit. And full disclosure, we were also lovers. Long story short, we parted amicably and lost touch. Until we ran into each other in Las Vegas in February.”
Dee’s eyes widened. “Did Brogan?—”
Audra shook her head, cutting off her words. She already knew where Dee’s mind had gone. “No. I was alone. He stopped me in the street while I was walking. I basically told him to bugger off.” She glanced at him, a slight upward curve to her lips.
He smirked. “I didn’t listen, though. I went back later to the area where I saw her, hoping to see her again. I was curious about—what she was—up to.”
Audra squeezed his hand, seeing his mind struggling. “Relax. She won’t bite.” She grinned. “Much.”
Her attempt at levity worked, and his shoulders relaxed.
“What did I miss just now?” Dee waved a finger between them.
“A few years ago, I suffered a traumatic brain injury on a mission. Words get stuck in my head sometimes. Stress and anxiety make it worse,” Sam said.
“I stress you out?” Dee raised an eyebrow.
“Anxious,” he corrected. “I know what power you hold over Audra, and I don’t want to see her suffer because she chose to trust me.”
Dee’s eyes narrowed. “What did you do?”
“I involved some friends.”
“What kind of friends? Who are you, exactly?”
“I’m a former SEAL. Audra called me from the hospital. I met her in Vegas later the same day. She filled me in on what happened and what her suspicions were. We took the information she’d gathered and I gave it to a friend of mine. He built some program to analyze it all and has been running things through it.”
Dee blinked and sat back. “Okay.” She pinned Audra with a hard stare. “You gave mission critical information to a civilian?”
“Yes.”
“And let him give it to someone else?”
“Yes.”
“We have answers, though,” Sam said.
“What? Why didn’t you lead with that?” A deep vee formed between her eyebrows. “Bloody hell… Okay, what did you find out?”
“Theo’s been playing both sides,” Audra replied. “Do you have access to the most recent information I gathered from Liam’s office?”
“What information?”
Audra’s eyes widened, and she glanced at Sam for a moment before turning back to Dee. “Theo didn’t pass along the information I copied from Liam’s computer? Or the pictures I took of the ledger I found in his desk?”
Twin pops of red broke out on Dee’s cheeks. Her silvery eyes darkened with anger. “No. What did you find?”
“Get your laptop.” Audra gestured to the desk.
Dee rolled back and grabbed it. After logging in, she passed it to Audra.
“I know it’s against agency policy, but I put too much time and too much of my life into this operation to leave everything in someone else’s hands. I bought a private server, and I’ve been backing up information.” Audra pulled up the server and logged in.
“Audra…” Dee sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.
“You can pretend you didn’t hear that.” Audra turned the laptop around. “I copied the thumb drive and all the pictures. Sam sent everything to his friend. We think Liam’s number two—Donny Callahan—has been paying Theo to keep quiet. And that his brother Patrick could possibly be involved as well.”
“What?” Dee took the computer and started scrolling. “That doesn’t make sense. Why wouldn’t he rat Theo out to his boss?”
“To take over. It gave him leverage with everyone else. Theo would be long gone—forsaking me—when Donny made his bid to take over. He could use me as proof that Liam was inept as a leader. Who brings the enemy into his family circle?”
Dee rubbed her forehead as she continued to scroll. “All right. So, what brought you to me? Why did you decide you could trust me again?”
Audra glanced at Sam. She didn’t want to expose Jo. So, she threw Asher under the bus. “His friend discovered you’ve been doing some digging of your own.” She tipped her head toward Sam.
Dee narrowed her eyes again. “Who’s your friend?”
“No one you need to worry about.” Sam’s smile dropped, his expression turning serious.
“You realize I can ruin your life just as easily as I can ruin hers, right?”
Sam offered her an artificial smile. “But you won’t. Not with what we’ve brought you. And not with what you still need from us.”
“I have dozens of operatives I can put on this. I don’t need either of you.”
“That is a load of tosh, and you know it.” Audra glared at her boss. “Who else knows this op like me? Sure, you’ve got the files now, but I’ve got the key.” She pointed to the side of her head.
“I could lock you up. Right now. And keep you there until you give us everything.”
“You could. But why? I’m offering it to you.”
“With strings.”
“To protect the people who have helped me. Sam’s only here because he wouldn’t let me come alone.”
For several seconds, Dee stared at them. Audra forced her lungs to inhale and to maintain a relaxed posture while she watched the indecision war in her boss’s eyes.
Finally, Dee huffed. “Fine. But let’s not give out anymore sensitive information, all right?”
Audra started to reply, but Sam cut her off before she could do more than open her mouth.
“Let’s get something clear. I’m here for Audra. I don’t care about your rules or your agenda. If I think it will benefit her and keep her safe, I will give whatever I want to whomever I want. That said—” He stopped, taking a breath. “We’re on the same side. We want the same thing. Mostly.”
Dee tipped her head. “You’re either a brave man or a foolish one.”
“I’m probably a bit of both.”
A sudden smile spread over Dee’s face and crinkled the corners of her eyes. “Yes, I think you are. Hopefully, you’re also a sane one.”