The Revenge (The Insiders Trilogy #3)(70)

Finally.





FORTY-FOUR

Kash


The phone woke me, and I rolled over to grab it.

Bright calling.

I turned the light on, sat up against the headboard, and knew this wasn’t going to be a good call.

“Yeah?”

Bailey rolled over, lifting her head. She was blinking at me, still drowsy.

Glancing at the clock, I added, “It’s four in the morning.”

“Your girlfriend messed up.”

Fuck.

Throwing back the covers, I stood and went to grab my pants. Pulling them on, I grabbed a shirt and threw it over my shoulder.

“What’s going on?”

I headed for the hallway, but mouthed to Bailey, “Go to sleep. I’ll be back.”

Her eyes were troubled. I doubted she’d go to bed.

Going out into the hallway, I headed for Peter’s study. “Hold a second.”

“No.” Bright’s tone was snarling. “You hold on. We know what you and your girlfriend did. We also know you didn’t call when you could’ve called.”

Coming to the office, I left the lights off and went to stand at the windows. The golf course lay just beyond and the lighting was on, but dim, so anyone walking could still see.

This place had been my home for half my life.

With this conversation, I was now wondering if I’d be getting a different home for the rest of my life.

“You found the house.”

“We found your twin and Chrissy Hayes!” she snapped. “Why the fuck didn’t you give us a heads-up?” She pressed on, not letting me answer. “And don’t even give me some bullshit story where you wanted to handle it yourself, because you know that’ll give you so many felonies that we could lock you up for the rest of your life.”

My hand clenched tight around my phone. “I take it that this call is not as someone who has been paid heavily for favors from the Federal Bureau of Investigation.”

She laughed. “You bet your ass it ain’t. What were you thinking? Your girlfriend left a trail a blind semi driver could find. She did not cover her tracks, and we are working our asses off and finding our own tails behind our rears, but the second you found Chrissy Hayes, you should’ve called us. The second!”

I remained silent. There was no response that she’d want to hear.

She heard that silence and sighed. “Oh, dear God. What were you going to do?”

Again, silence from me.

“We picked up a transition call from someone at your location to a location in Greece. Tell me that wasn’t you, and tell me that wasn’t you either calling in a team or you making plans to go and get your grandfather. Tell me that wasn’t also Calhoun Bastian’s coordinates. ”

I just let my chest rise, air went out, and it lowered.

“Fuck!” She swore into the phone, the vehemence almost rattling. “Shit, shit, shit. You are going to ruin my career. You are a right bastard, aren’t you? What were you going to do, Kashton? At least tell me that.”

Now she was coaxing?

My hand went into my pocket and I tipped my head up, thinking. “What are you doing, Agent Bright?”

She wanted me to say the words.

Fuck.

She was trying to trap me. On the phone.

Fuck.

Someone was listening.

Fuck!

She was no longer an asset to me.

They were moving against me.

“I take it that you are calling me to notify me that you have found my twin brother, and also Chrissy Hayes? Was that the purpose of this phone call?”

“Shit.” A low curse under her breath. “Yeah.” She was resigned. She knew I knew. “We have a team moving in as we’re speaking, and I’m assuming we’ll be taking your brother into custody momentarily.” Another pause of hesitation. “You can wait for another call from myself. We’ll let you know if we find Chrissy Hayes alive or not.”

She ended the call, and with that, I hung my head.

The hold I had over Bright and Wilson was done.

She’d been trying to entrap me, which said they were putting together a case against me. Whether they moved on it or not was a different situation, but now I knew, and I’d be covering my bases. Not letting myself contemplate the loss of that professional relationship, I went to Peter’s safe in the office and took out a phone I didn’t use unless it was absolutely necessary.

I called my team. “Delete everything. Feds are now looking. ”

Then a second call. “Have you left yet?”

“No.”

“Stay. They’ve moved on them already.”

“Will do.”

I had one thing at least. I still had my grandfather within my clasp.

“What’s going on?”

Peter Francis was standing inside the office, his eyes alert and alarmed. It was a stark contrast from the bags under his eyes, or the exhaustion emanating from him.

“The FBI found Chrissy Hayes.”





FORTY-FIVE

Kash


I had limited time.

Peter was told everything, and as he fell to his couch in shock, I strolled right past him. I was an ungrateful asshole to him, too. I should’ve taken the time, softened the blow, been there for him while he was coming to grips with everything that’d been uncovered in the last thirty-six hours.