Chapter 31
Audra chewed on her lip as Sam ended the call. That was not at all what she’d been expecting. From what they’d learned about the Powells, drugs seemed like the most likely entry point into Brogan’s operation. But now she wasn’t so sure.
“Well, that was… unexpected,” Dean said.
Sam snorted.
“We need to talk to your FBI friend, Audra,” Max said.
She nodded. “Let’s give him a call.” She took out her phone and dialed the number, putting the call on speaker.
It took several rings, but he finally picked up. “Moran.”
“Hi, Dom. It’s Audra.”
A short pause came over the line. “It’s good to hear your voice. Thompson called. Your boss had a lot to say.”
“Yes, well, we have more.”
“We?”
“I’m here with some friends.”
“Good friends?”
“Yes. You can trust them. Dee knows about them.”
“All right, then. What’s up?”
“So, we just had an interesting conversation with Sebastian Archer.”
“Seb? Why were you talking to him? How do you even know him? He hasn’t been a fed in years.”
Audra quickly gave him a rundown of their conversation and why they’d talked to him.
Dom let out a low whistle. “That—that’s some heavy stuff. But Audra, I can’t let your friend go in undercover.”
“Let me?” Max said, indignation coloring his tone.
Audra sent him a sharp look. He stared back at her. She sighed and shook her head. Sam’s friends were as stubborn as he was.
“I’m done playing nice with this whole thing,” Audra told Dom. “Someone tried to kill me. It wasn’t Theo, because he’s dead. Official channels take too long. And we have a solid plan. Trust me, Max will be able to charm his way in. We just need the info to get him there. What do you know about the Powells’ criminal activity?”
It was Dom’s turn to sigh. “You’re going rogue no matter what I say, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Fine. I haven’t had time to do much digging into them. I only talked to Dee a few days ago. You’re right that there is an open investigation into the Powells. It’s for drug trafficking.”
“We knew that. Is it just drugs?” Sam asked.
“Yes. But after what you just told me, I’m going to call him back and ask if unofficially, they’re looking into whether there’s any human trafficking going on.”
“Good, you do that,” Audra said. “We’ll wait.”
“What? You want me to do that now?”
“Yes.”
He let out a growling sigh. “I think I liked you better when you didn’t trust me.”
“What would you do if someone tried to kill you? If you knew that someone might be dealing children?”
There was a short pause. “You’re right. Give me a few minutes.” He hung up.
Audra’s shoulders slumped. She was tired of waiting. Now that things were moving, she wanted to execute their plan ASAP. She looked at Max. “You need to go shopping. No matter what criminal enterprise your alias undertakes, you need to look like a savvy businessman.”
“I actually went to a tailor not long after we landed on this plan and commissioned a few suits. They should be ready tomorrow.”
She grinned. “I like you.”
A quick laugh burst from his chest. “That’s good. I think we’ll be seeing a lot of each other.”
Her smile widened. “You will.”
The next few minutes passed with excruciating slowness. Audra willed the phone to ring again, but knew it could be some time before Dom called her back. It all depended on how quickly the other agent picked up and what he knew.
She got up and finished the pastry she’d set aside and sipped her coffee. Sam, Max, and Dean made idle chitchat while they waited. They were planning a cookout for when they got back to Costa Rica. Audra hoped she’d be able to join them.
The phone rang. Dean pounced on it, putting it on speaker.
“Dom?” Audra said, walking closer.
“Yeah. So Pierce wants to talk to you now. I told him maybe.”
“Did he tell you anything?”
“Yes. Your suspicions aren’t baseless. He’s heard rumors the Powells deal in the skin trade, but they don’t have anything concrete. I think before you proceed, you need to find out more about why they met with Brogan. It could be drugs or people at this point.”
“Yeah, but the question is how?” Dean said.
An inkling of an idea struck Audra. Sam wouldn’t like it, but they were running out of options. “So, I think I have a plan.”