Chapter 18 Brenna #2
I turned to him with tears in my eyes. “I’m sorry. So very sorry.”
“I’m the one who’s sorry. I didn’t—”
I pressed my lips to his, and we wrapped our arms around each other.
“We should let Emma know,” I said, resting my head on his shoulder.
“I’ll go get her.”
“I just heard,” she said, coming out of the bedroom when Atticus knocked. “Do you want to head over to the detention center?”
“I do.” I glanced up at Atticus. “We do.”
“I’ll drive. The two of you are a mess,” Emma said, nudging Atticus with her elbow.
“I’m curious as to how you put all this together in just a few hours,” Emma said as she navigated her way through typical DC traffic.
Atticus explained how Alice and Tex discovered the evidence that had been manufactured to make Luke look guilty and were able to prove its inauthenticity.
“That led to Collins’ confession,” he added as traffic slowed to a crawl.
When we pulled into the federal courthouse parking garage in Alexandria fifteen minutes later, I felt my shoulders tighten. How would Luke react when he saw me? When he saw Atticus?
Once inside the building, Soledad was waiting for us in the hallway.
“What’s happening?” I asked.
“Your brother is processing out now. Conference room three. It’s taking longer than usual because we need to make sure there’s no possibility of charges being refiled. I want this to end today, permanently.”
“Has anyone told him why he’s being released?”
“He knows the charges are being dropped, based on new evidence, but I’m not sure how much beyond that. I thought you might want to be the one to explain.”
“I appreciate it.”
“Let me check on their progress.”
The next ten minutes crawled by as we waited for her to return. Atticus stood by the window, staring at the parking lot below. I paced the narrow hallway.
“He’s going to be angry,” I said, wrapping my arms around myself.
“He has every right to be,” Atticus replied. “I failed him when he needed me most.”
“We both did.”
The few feet between us felt like miles. When he took a step in my direction, I did the same until we were back in each other’s arms, where we belonged.
“He’ll understand once we explain,” I whispered.
“I hope so.”
Finally, the door opened and Luke walked out. No handcuffs bound his wrists now. No federal marshals flanked him. But my brother appeared more defeated than I’d ever seen him.
He glanced in our direction, then his focus shifted to the exit sign behind us.
“Luke—”
He held up a hand, his expression carved from granite. “Don’t.”
“Please, just listen—”
“To what? An explanation of how my own sister thought I’d commit treason? How the man I’ve called brother since we were eighteen believed I’d sell out my country for money?”
Each word was a knife, and I deserved every cut.
“You both believed I could betray everything I’ve ever stood for.”
“I let evidence override instinct,” Atticus admitted, stepping forward. “And I’ll regret that for the rest of my life.”
Luke’s laugh when he shook his head sounded sharp and bitter. “Damn right you will.”
“Luke, about Trevor…” I started.
“I already know,” he said flatly. “When they told me someone confessed to framing me, I figured it had to be him.”
“Look, I know I fucked up. You’re my brother, and I should’ve fought harder against your arrest. But if it weren’t for Atticus—”
“Brenna, this can wait—”
I put my hand on Atticus’ arm. “It can’t.
” I turned back to my brother. “From the minute the FBI led you away, Atticus spent every minute proving your innocence. He didn’t sleep.
He didn’t stop. His entire team worked through the night, tracking down every digital fingerprint Trevor tried to hide.
They proved the evidence was fabricated, got Trevor detained at the airport, and had him confessing—all in less than twelve hours.
“The other thing that happened is Morrison, Liu, and Castellano were all taken into federal custody this morning. Your arrest triggered Trevor’s panic, and his confession gave us everything we needed to take them down.”
I watched as my brother fought with himself—the betrayal was still raw, but somewhere deep inside, he recognized the outcome of what he’d had to endure was that the real traitors were taken down.
“So you’re saying that at least my twenty-two hours of hell accomplished something?”
“I know it doesn’t do anything to erase the hurt I caused you…”
“We caused,” Atticus added.
Luke looked around at the cold walls of the corridor and ran his hand through his hair. “I need to get the fuck out of here.”
“We’ll take you home,” I said, looking over at Emma, who nodded.
Rather than stubbornly refuse the offer, he relented. “Thanks.”
We took a few steps, then Luke stopped.
“I want you to know that I hear what you did to get me exonerated, and I get it—all of it. But right now, I can’t just flip a switch and say everything is like it was before this happened. It will be, eventually, just not today.” His gaze met mine. “Okay, Bug?”
His use of the nickname he’d given me when we were kids felt like a small amount of forgiveness, of connection. “I’m sorry, Luke.”
When he opened his arms and I fell into his embrace, my eyes filled with tears.
“I’m sorry,” I repeated.
“So am I,” he whispered against my hair.
He let go, turned to Atticus, and extended his hand. The handshake was formal, contained—not the embrace of brothers, but not enemies either. Just two men acknowledging where they stood.
“Let’s go,” he finally said. “This place makes my skin crawl.”
We walked out together into the humid Virginia morning. Luke stood on the courthouse steps and turned his face toward the sun like he’d been underground for days instead of hours.
“I’ll go get the car,” Emma offered.
“We’ll go with you,” I said, not wanting to remain on these steps any more than Luke did.
We walked in silence, then took the elevator down three floors. Once Emma unlocked the doors, Luke climbed into the backseat with me while Atticus sat up front.
“Where to?” she asked.
Luke rattled off his address. “I need a shower, clean clothes, and about a year of sleep.”
“Maybe after you’ve had a chance to rest, we can have dinner,” I suggested.
“I’d like that.” Luke leaned forward. “What about you, Perry? Will you be around, or are you headed back to the mountains?”
Atticus’ eyes met mine. “That’s up to your sister.”
“He’s staying with me,” I said.
Luke looked between us, and a ghost of a smile appeared on his face. “Living together already? Mom’s going to have opinions about that.”
“One crisis at a time,” I muttered.
“She and Dad don’t know about my arrest, do they?”
“They do not.”
“Thank God for small mercies,” he said under his breath.
The drive to my brother’s place in the historic district in Arlington took thirty minutes. I stared out the window at the normal world continuing around us—people heading to work, joggers on the Mount Vernon Trail, tourists gathering at the Memorial Bridge for photos.
“Three years,” Luke said quietly as we passed the Pentagon. “Three years of building Redpoint together. Every decision made jointly, every problem mutually solved, every celebration shared. And Trevor destroyed all of it.”
“He’ll be in prison a long time for what he did,” I offered.
Luke nodded. “I’d say that’s some comfort, but it isn’t.”
I reached over and rested my hand on his, relieved when he didn’t flinch or pull it away.
“Do you want us to walk you in?” I asked when we pulled up to his bungalow a few minutes later.
“Nah. I’m okay.” He glanced at his house. “Probably gonna have to sell this place now,” he said quietly.
“Why?” Atticus asked before I could.
“Business is gonna tank, no job prospects,” Luke said without turning his head.
“I have a feeling you’ll have at least one offer in the next few days.”
Luke finally looked over at him. “From who?”
“I heard there’s gonna be a position opening up with K19. One I think you’d be perfect for.”
“Yeah? Whose?” Luke asked.
Atticus’ eyes met mine, and in them, I saw a question.
“His,” I answered for him.
Luke smiled. “Would I have to work out there, in the wilds of the Adirondacks?”
Atticus shook his head. “Not a job requirement that I know of.”
“Then, maybe you shouldn’t quit.”
“No?”
I watched as the two of them volleyed words like a tennis ball.
“Maybe they’d be interested in having a team in DC,” said Luke.
Atticus nodded. “It’s certainly possible.”
After Luke got out, Emma drove us back to my place. When we pulled up, she said she was heading home and would pick up her things later.
Once I’d thanked her for staying with me, feeding me, and insisting I showered, we hugged, then Atticus and I went inside.
“I love you,” he murmured against my hair after we stepped onto the elevator and he pulled me into his arms. “I never want to feel as far away from you as I did when you walked past me in that hotel corridor.”
“I love you too,” I said. “And I don’t, either. So what should we do about it?”
He leaned away far enough to look into my eyes. “I might have a few ideas.”