Deadly Game (Fortress Security #5)(52)

“Like she had a choice,” Hank muttered. “We would have taken her into custody if she refused.”

“You’re searching for my niece. I’ll be happy to help if I can, but I don’t know much.”

“You know more than you think, Ms. Scott” Torres said as he pulled out a chair for her to sit in.

“Call me Rowan. What do you want to know?”

“Anything you can tell us about Jay Maxwell and who might want to hurt him and your sister.” Torres sat on the corner of the bed.

She looked at Brent.

“Tell them everything, baby. They want to help.” Brent listened in silence as she recounted the phone call from Heather, their race across town to find Heather bleeding out, Jay dead, and Alexa missing. She explained about the break-in at her apartment, and the phone call from the kidnappers demanding missing records.

“What do you know about Maxwell’s business associates?”

“Nothing except they’re dead.”

“Dead?” Hank scowled. “Since when are they both dead?”

“As of an hour ago,” Brent said. “Contact Detective Cal Taylor to confirm and learn the details.”

“What do you know about their deaths?” Torres asked.

“Nothing specific about Toby Minter. Nolan White was shot in the head as we left his driveway.”

“Why were you there?” Hank demanded. “You’re not interfering in a federal investigation are you, Maddox?”

Looked as if Crenshaw was hunting for an excuse to shove Brent out of the way. If he had concrete evidence that Brent was investigating Alexa’s disappearance with his own resources, the fed wouldn’t hesitate to arrest him for obstructing justice. Couldn’t happen because that would leave Rowan without his protection.

“I asked him to speak at Jay and Heather’s funeral,” Rowan said.

“What do you know about White, Minter, and Maxwell, Commander?” Torres asked.

Brent recounted what he’d learned from Zane. “The bottom line is, these guys want something or they wouldn’t have taken Alexa. Who wants to deal with a crying kid for days?”

“You expect us to believe you don’t know what these guys want?” Hank tossed his empty soda can into the trash before turning to glare at Brent and Rowan. “How stupid do you think we are?”

“He’s telling you the truth,” Rowan said. “Brent asked me to put the call from the kidnapper on speaker. The kidnapper wants records that Jay must have kept, but I don’t know what he’s after. I hope I can find them for Alexa’s sake.”

“If you find them, you turn them over to us,” Crenshaw insisted.

Brent and Rowan spent another hour rehashing information and answering more questions, all without much insight into what the feds had learned. So much for cooperation, Brent thought, disgusted.

“I’ve got a phone call to make,” Hank muttered. “You can handle the rest, Junior.” The FBI agent grabbed his cell phone and left the room.

Torres studied Brent’s face a moment. “What else do you have, Commander?”

“You’re sure I have more information?”

A snort. “Please. You’re a SEAL. We always know more than we share voluntarily.”

“Heather Maxwell stopped by Rowan’s coffee shop the afternoon before she died. She left a flash drive with an encrypted file on it for Rowan to keep safe.”

“You decoded the file, didn’t you?”

“What makes you say that?”

“Don’t yank my chain, Commander.” Torres moved closer and dropped his voice. “I know Fortress’s reputation. You have the top people in the business working for you, including Zane Murphy. So what’s on the file?”

“Give me an email address. I’ll send it to you.”

A couple minutes later, Torres’s cell phone signaled. The FBI agent tapped on his screen and opened the file, whistled. “Do you know the connection between the militia groups and the international terrorists?”

“Not yet. My main concern is finding Alexa.”

The other man glanced toward the hotel room door. “What do know about the militia groups?”

“Cut to the chase, Torres.” Brent hated playing games and was surprised at Torres’s willingness to do so. He didn’t seem the type.

“You think the militia groups might be behind the Maxwell’s death?”

“I don’t know anything, but I suspect Keith Phillips is behind Alexa’s disappearance. Taylor is working on figuring out who killed the Maxwells.”

“Why zero in on Phillips? There are five other men on this list.”

“True, but the other five group leaders haven’t been making trips to Mexico.”

Torres scowled. “You suspect Phillips because he’s going on vacation?”

Brent’s temper spiked. “In Navarro territory?” he asked.

The SEAL groaned. “Ah, man. You telling me Phillips is dabbling in drugs?”

“Seems he’s ambitious, wanting to fund gun purchases.”

“Fantastic. ATF and DEA will love this.”

“Your turn, Master Chief.”

“We’ve come up with squat on Alexa,” he muttered. “Crenshaw is more interested in staying safe until he retires than tackling a case that smacks of danger. You’ve given us more information than we’ve managed to dig up in the last two days.”