Chapter 34
34
“ O h, I’m sure plenty of us Falcons would be happy to tell you what’s up,” Philly taunted, although Viper noted his smile didn’t come close to being genuine.
“She can help,” Leo said, his voice quiet, but not hesitant.
She could. But Philly and the agent had a history. One he hadn’t shared yet. As far as Viper was concerned, whether they invited her to join them was Philly’s call.
“Who let you in?” Viper asked. Callie had helped with Stone and Juliana’s situation, but that didn’t give her carte blanche to come and go from the club as she pleased.
“I ran into Mantis in the parking lot. He told me you were here,” she said, looking at Philly as she answered.
Viper frowned. Their president didn’t make rash or thoughtless decisions, but this felt a little like throwing Philly to the wolves with no warning.
Callie’s gaze skimmed the room again before settling on Lina. “Callie Parks,” she said, holding out her hand and stepping toward Lina. As uptight and by-the-books as the woman was, he gave her credit for her intro. Agent Callie Parks was a rising star in the agency, already a special agent in charge at the age of thirty-four. And from the research they’d done on her before bringing her into Juliana and Stone’s situation, she wasn’t done climbing the ladder. That she hadn’t felt the need to assert her title—and everything that came with it—said something.
Lina hesitated, then rose. “Lina Kato.”
The room fell silent as soon as the two women finished shaking hands. Callie eyed the group again before settling her attention on Philly. Taking a breath, she spoke. “Your name cropped up in an old case I’m looking into. I came to ask you about it. It can wait, though. If you need me for something else?”
Philly opened his mouth—most likely to make a prurient jest about what he needed—but stopped when Scipio shook his head, then tipped it toward Lina. Viper didn’t need words to understand the conversation. Scipio was asking their brother to set aside whatever history lay between him and Parks and think about Lina, Dr. Kato, and the families of the six deceased. Asking him to stand down if she could help.
Viper narrowed his eyes at Scipio. It wasn’t a fair request. Parks might be a damn good agent, but she’d hurt Philly. Badly. And for now, they were doing fine without her.
Philly’s gaze swung to him and Lina. Viper made sure his expression conveyed that he had no dog in this fight. And that he trusted Philly to make the right decision. Whether that was to bring her in or preserve his peace, Viper would stand by his brother’s choice.
After a taut pause, Philly nodded sharply, then swiveled his attention to the view out the window. His chest rose and fell in a slow, steady pattern as he reined in his past.
“Go ahead, Leo,” Scipio said. A smart move on his part—Callie might be useful, but the Falcons weren’t ready to welcome her. And Lina made her loyalties clear by leaning into his side. Leo was the most neutral of them all.
Leo didn’t hesitate as he launched into a summary of their findings. Whether his prompt recap was a sign of his faith in Callie or his desire to shift the energy of the room, Viper didn’t know. Regardless, in short order, Callie knew everything they did.
Sitting on the other side of Leo, she drummed her fingers on the table. “I’m aware of the pending acquisition of Navios,” she said. “Given the size, it’s being heavily scrutinized by the FTC. There are no rumors that they’ll block it, but they are going through it with a fine-tooth comb.”
“Nothing fishy coming up?” Leo asked.
Callie shook her head. “Not that I’ve heard, but I can make some inquiries.”
“You’re FBI,” Philly said. “Won’t it be weird if you start poking around an FTC review?”
Callie chose to look at Lina when she answered rather than Philly. “If someone associated with Navios committed murder to hide its role in the death of these six people”—she tapped the death certificates—“so that the acquisition is approved, not only is it murder, but it’s fraud, conspiracy, and several other crimes as well. All of which are within the FBI’s jurisdiction.” Callie’s fingers traced small circles on the table. “On second thought, if you can package everything up for me, Leo, I’ll take it to my boss. It might be better to open our own case and just inform the FTC of our actions.”
Leo nodded. “We want to go through more video today. I’ll send it after that. You’ll have everything we do by tonight.”
Callie nodded, then rose. “I’m staying at the lodge for a few days,” she said, referring to the business Joey’s family owned nestled in the mountains at the north end of the lake. “You have my cell, but you can find me there.”
“What did you want to talk with me about?” Philly asked. Some of the shock—and hostility—had seeped away, but no one could miss the guardedness of his tone.
Callie waved him off. “It can wait. This is more important.” Turning to Lina, she added, “I’m sorry about your father. If Navios was behind his murder, I’ll do everything I can to help.”
Lina nodded but said nothing. Callie didn’t seem to expect her to, and with another scan of the room, she turned and left.
When the door closed behind her, Leo huffed an uncomfortable chuckle. “Well, that was interesting.”
“What do you think she wants from you?” Viper asked Philly.
Philly frowned and shrugged. “No idea. She said it’s an older case, but it can’t be that old if she thinks I might have information about it. I’ve only been out of the military for seven years and for the ten before that, the army kept me too busy to be involved in anything the FBI might be interested in.”
“I take it you all know her?” Lina said.
“We grew up in the same town,” Philly said.
“She helped with the Stone and Juliana situation,” Viper added
“The corruption ring?” she asked. He nodded.
He could all but see the cogs turning in her head, the questions forming. Instead, she turned to Philly. “I’m sure I don’t need to say it, but she came here for something. I don’t doubt that she wants to right all the wrongs and fight the good fight and all that?—”
“But it doesn’t hurt if she can do all that and help us out,” Viper finished, a concoction of emotions unfurling inside him at her concern for his brother.
“She’s collecting chits,” Scipio said with a nod.
Leo wagged his head slowly. “Maybe.”
Philly shook his head in resignation, not disagreement. “Doesn’t matter. Even if she hadn’t helped us then or doesn’t help us now, if she has a case I can help with, I will. She doesn’t get the usual stuff. If it’s on her radar, it probably means a lot of people have been hurt. That’s more important than…our past.”
Viper glanced at Scipio, who studied their brother. Philly could be serious but often wasn’t. He was as solid as the rest of them, but he preferred to laugh his way through life, finding amusement in everything from the first snowfall to the “presents” Sherman liked to leave beside his bike. Viper didn’t doubt his words; they just reflected a part of Philly that they often experienced, but he rarely voiced.
“Then let’s forget about it for now,” Lina said. “Jackson and I have video to go through.”
“So do I,” Leo said.
“Since we agreed to not reach out to the families anymore, Philly and I will get back to our regularly scheduled business,” Scipio said, rising.
Philly nodded and rose as well. “Don’t hesitate to ask, though, if you need help.”
“Of course,” Lina said. After the two men left, she turned to Leo. “Are you going to stay here or head out?”
He grinned. “I may as well stay. Joey’s at work, and I heard a rumor Dottie and Amber are making French dips for lunch.”