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As he stepped into the lobby, Luke Andrews stood leaning against a pillar, his hood pulled low, his casual jeans and hoodie a sharp contrast to the tuxedo he’d worn at the holiday party. It had been years, but dressed like this, there was no mistaking him. Noah knew him.

“Luke Andrews,” Noah said, his voice calm but edged with curiosity. “Or should I call you Agent Andrews?”

Luke straightened, a small smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth. “Figured you’d remember me.”

Noah folded his arms. “What’s going on?”

Luke gestured toward a quiet corner of the lobby. “Let’s talk somewhere private.”

Noah instead led him to an empty conference room, shutting the door behind them. As soon as they were alone, Luke dropped the casual pretense. “I’m still with ATF, Noah. And I need your help.”

Noah leaned back against the table, his arms crossed. “It’s been years, Luke. What the hell are you doing here? Or, more importantly, what were you doing at the dinner?”

Luke met his gaze, his tone steady. “I’m here because I trust you. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have come.”

“Cut to the chase,” Noah said, his voice sharp. “Why are you here?”

Luke exhaled, his demeanor shifting into something more serious. “I’m undercover as private security for Maxim Fairchild. ATF has been tracking a shipment of ghost guns coming up from Mexico. They’re being smuggled in shipments of decorative rocks. Maxim Fairchild’s working with the Viper Lords, one of the nastier gangs in South Dakota, to distribute the weapons through garden supply chains. ATF has been building a case, but we’ve only got circumstantial evidence. I need something concrete.”

Noah’s jaw tightened. “And you think I can help with that?”

Luke nodded. “When I saw you at the party, I hoped you were already working the case. I’m in from D.C., and ATF can’t trust anyone local. We’ve buried two agents. Too many leaks. You’re the only one I know who’s clean. I need someone who can have my back.”

“I was simply there with Ruth.” Noah studied him for a long moment, his mind racing. He and Luke had worked together years ago on a sting operation in Kansas City. A gunrunning pipeline was moving weapons across state lines disguised as farming equipment. Luke had been deep undercover, running logistics as a fake supplier. Noah had coordinated the federal side, managing the takedown. They’d worked well together, even under the constant threat of betrayal. But that was then, and this was now.

His voice tight, Noah asked, “Why now? What are you looking for?”

Luke hesitated, then spoke quietly. “Because it’s gone deeper. Fairchild’s not just working with the Viper Lords. He’s got people in Pierre in his pocket, including Dylan Grant.”

Noah stiffened. “Grant? Senior counsel at Ruth’s firm? Are you serious?”

Luke nodded grimly. “Grant owes a ton of money to a loan shark. Fairchild bought the debt, and now Grant’s doing his bidding. But that’s not all. There is someone else inside Ellison & Grant. I’m not sure who. I’ve got my eyes on a few people. Matt Brandt—Grant’s nephew—is a possibility.”

Noah’s hands curled into fists at his sides. “Brandt is Grant’s nephew?”How the hell did I miss that?

“The kid and Grant buried it well. A divorce twice removed. Though, after his behavior at the dinner, I’m seriously doubting his involvement,” Luke said.

Noah’s mind churned with the implications. Ruth was working directly under Brandt and was part of Grant’s division, which meant she was closer to Fairchild’s network than he realized. “Why involve me in this? What do you need me for? I’m not going to tolerate interagency lack of communication.”

Luke’s expression softened slightly. “Because I trust you, Noah. I think there are holes everywhere. And because you care about Ruth. I saw it at the party. The way you looked at her. I don’t want her to be collateral damage.”

“And Melanie?”

“I’ve been in the game long enough to trust my instincts, and something about Melanie isn’t adding up. On the surface, she is just a secretary at the law firm—efficient, friendly, always where she needs to be. But I’ve seen too many operations disguised behind the ordinary to ignore the warning signs.

“First, there is her proximity to key players. She got herself hired as Ruth Everhart’s secretary. Originally, she was hired as a float secretary covering absences. And now working in the chain of Brandt and Grant puts Melanie in a position to overhear, intercept, or manipulate information.

“Then the financial irregularities. I pulled some of her banking records—nothing definitive, but enough small cash deposits and sudden purchases to raise flags. She isn’t living lavishly, but there are unexplained expenses that don’t match her salary.

“Most telling, though, are her movements. I can place her near locations linked to the Viper Lords and Fairchild’s landscaping business—warehouses, private clubs, places she had no reason to be. Not often, and never long, but enough that I started to suspect she was either passing messages, handling logistics, or acting as a lookout.

“And finally, there is her demeanor.I’ve spent time watching her—too confident, too at ease, yet calculated in what she reveals. She acts like someone who has something to hide but knows exactly how to keep it just out of reach.

“She may be part of the operation—someone I need to watch. She is not adding up. I can’t put my finger on it. But I know she’s not just a secretary.”

Noah’s jaw clenched, but he nodded slowly. “You’ve got suspicion but not enough for a conviction. If you’re lying to me about any of this?—”

“I’m not,” Luke interrupted firmly.