Finlay Donovan Knocks 'Em Dead(Finlay Donovan #2)(51)

I suppressed a shudder. Patricia Mickler once told me that Feliks had eyes and ears everywhere. I’d heard Nick make similar comments before, and I’d always assumed he was being hyperbolic. But after my conversation with Theresa over Carl’s dismembered body, I wasn’t so sure. Even knowing Feliks was securely behind bars, Theresa had been terrified to cross him.

That day in Ramón’s garage, Feliks had warned me he’d be keeping an eye on me. Now, as I watched the shadows deepen around the car, I wondered if he still was.

Nick’s car came to a stop in the driveway of a ramshackle split-level. A TV flickered through the sheer curtains as a figure pulled the fabric back to stare at us.

“Wait here,” Nick said, leaving the ignition on.

He shrugged on his jacket and got out of the car, his long legs taking slow, easy bites of the cracked front walk as he approached the house. Light spilled over the front steps as someone opened the door. A lean figure in a dark hoodie slipped out, checking both ways down the street before meeting Nick halfway to the car.

I slouched low in my seat, keenly aware that I shouldn’t be here, but Joey’s CI didn’t seem to notice me through the tinted windows of Nick’s car. The engine purred quietly, muting their greeting. Nick’s hands were planted on his hips, the CI’s shoved deep in his pockets as they spoke, their heads bent close. I reached for the window button, tempted to crack it open just enough to catch a little of their conversation. But at the last second, I pulled my hand away. The simple fact that Nick had brought me here felt like an olive branch—a demonstration of trust. Trust I wanted to be worthy of.

Until the CI pushed back his hood.

Cam’s crown of bleached-blond hair caught the brash yellow light of the window behind him. My mind raced. Back to what Nick had said about Cam’s murky pond. About the kinds of leads Cam fed to Joey.

… he’s found some nasty stuff online.

Oh, no.

I pressed the window button, holding my breath as it hummed down an inch, just enough for a few words to slip through the crack.

“… some kind of moms’ group or something,” Cam said in a low voice.

“Moms’ group?”

“I know, right?”

No, this was not good. If Cam told Nick where to find the women’s forum, Nick would dig until he found a bone.

“If you’re bullshitting me—”

“I’m serious, man. It all seems normal on the surface, but some shady deals are going down. I’m not just talking dime-bags of weed. I found someone trying to move cases of ARs … high-dollar hookers … contract hits … pretty sure the whole site is a front…”

No. No, no, no! I couldn’t let Cam give Nick any names. Not FedUp. Not EasyClean.

And definitely not mine.

I reached for my purse before I remembered my phone was gone. I had no way to text Cam. No way to warn him to keep his big mouth shut. I rolled my window down a few more inches, praying Nick couldn’t hear the hum over the idling engine.

“Who runs it?” he asked.

Cam jerked his chin toward Nick’s jacket pocket.

Nick muttered something under his breath as he reached for his wallet and plucked out a few bills. Cam looked up and down the street before taking them and stuffing them in his pocket.

“I did some digging around,” he said. “The names were all Russian. Been watching the news about that guy you busted last month. Thought the information might be worth something to you.”

“And you thought you’d wait until Joey was out of town to hit me up for beer money.”

Cam threw up his hands. “Fine. If you don’t want my intel, I guess we’re done.”

Nick grabbed Cam’s elbow as he turned for the door. “Depends on the quality of the intel.”

Cam shrugged. “Hosting, site admin, domain registry, member profiles, user logs … I’ve got it all, plus a back door in.”

“What’s it gonna cost me?”

“I give you everything I have, and then Joey and I are done. I’ve stayed out of trouble—no hacking, no ditching, and no scamming—just like we agreed. I want out of probation and I want the cops off my…” Cam’s eyes flicked in my direction. I watched them darken as he recognized me through the window gap. I had enough dirt on Cam to blow his cozy deal with Joey and send him back for a nice long stint in juvie, and Cam knew it.

I drew a finger across my neck.

His Adam’s apple bobbed. He cleared his throat, jamming his fists deeper in his pockets as I quickly rolled my window up.

Nick turned toward the car and frowned. I shrank back in my seat, hidden behind the tinted glass. He reached once more for his wallet, holding a few bills just out of Cam’s reach as he bent low to meet the hacker’s eyes. I knew that look. It was a lecture. A warning. Cam shot a quick glance at my window as he folded the money into his pocket and disappeared inside his house.

Nick circled around the car and dropped into the driver’s seat.

“What did you find out?” I asked, peeking at the screen of his cell phone as he fired off a quick text to Joey. He slipped his phone in his pocket and backed out of Cam’s driveway.

“Maybe nothing. The kid’s probably working me.”

“Then why’d you pay him?”

“Because on the off chance he’s telling the truth, a lead like that could be a gold mine.” I paid closer attention to our route this time, committing the street names and turns to memory as Nick wound our way out of Cam’s neighborhood. “He says he found some online chat group that might be a front for organized crime.”