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“Thank heavens Dexter got smart.”

“The price was worth it,” he sighs deeply.

I look up at him in slight confusion. “What do you mean?”

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Agent Patterson’s voice booms from the lodge’s back door.

She and her SWAT crew spill out into the backyard, semi-automatic weapons locked and loaded.

“That’s what I mean,” Lucas replies, giving me a weak smile.

34

TASSIA

“We had a deal! An arrangement in place!” Patterson is livid about the Silver Stallions getting away.

I sit on the porch steps of the lodge, wrapped in a blanket, flanked by Mitch and Tyler while Lucas goes over the situation with Patterson. Off in the distance, I can hear sirens.

“Here come the ambulances,” Tyler says. “We called them in. One is for you.”

“But I’m okay,” I insist.

“You’re also pregnant while having gone through tremendous duress,” Mitch says. “We’re taking you to the hospital to get you checked out.”

“Forensics, coroner, paramedics… what about the other deputies?”

“Let me make this clear: we’re not counting on anyone from our office,” Lucas says bitterly, pausing from his argument with Patterson. “I called the state troopers. ETA is about twenty minutes.”

“Where does that leave your dirty deputies then?” Patterson asks, understandably curious.

“We’re doing a massive purge, first thing in the morning. Issuing warrants straight out of Albany, signed by the AG himself,” Lucas replies.

“He’s been apprised of the situation,” Tyler adds. “He was on board with our original requests, and he’s already taking steps to either get our DA in line or removed on account of his fraternization with the mayor.”

“So we’re getting a new police department, basically.”

“Well, we get to stay,” Mitch chuckles softly, nudging my shoulder.

“Where does that leave Frost Valley though? The drug trafficking ring, the conspiracies, the corruption?” I ask.

I want to believe our nightmare is over, and for a moment, I fall prey to discouragement until I remember the steps I took to ensure that nobody gets away with anything anymore. Not in my town. Because Frost Valleyismy town now.

Patterson takes a deep breath as she watches her men circle the cabin, the CSI team positioning the lights for forensics. The two goons they took alive are cuffed and sitting in the back of the SWAT team’s black van, armed men surrounding it.

“The mayor has already recanted his confession,” Patterson says. “There were witnesses present who say everything he said was under duress and the threat of physical violence. Any decent judge will throw the charges out.”

Lucas scoffs. “Hamilton was always a slippery son of a bitch.”

“We’ve got a few Silver Stallions in custody,” Patterson continues. “But I doubt they’ll give us much because you let their boss get away.”

“Dexter and Jake are long gone by now,” Tyler mutters. He doesn’t sound happy about it, but I do understand why they made that deal with him.

“How the hell am I going to take that club down now?” Patterson asks Lucas.

“Dexter said he’s picking up where Trevor left off,” Lucas replies. “He’s moving his operation somewhere to a neighboring district. With a little bit of time and patience, you’ll be able to finish what you started.”

“That doesn’t give me much comfort, not with Trevor Callaghan dead.”