Page 81 of Billion-Dollar Ransom

“What is it?” Nicky asked. “You ready to confess?”

Thing was, Nicky wasn’t sure if she was kidding right now.Maybe it was the lack of sleep or the general undercurrent of paranoia. But it would be very Mike Hardy to laugh and joke until the moment he admitted the ugly truth.

“It’s funny,” Hardy said. “When you asked me for help uncovering the mole, you know who I thought about straightaway?”

“Who?”

“You.”

Nicky returned Mike’s intense stare. “You’re going to have to walk me through that one.”

“Think about it,” Mike said. “You had this sudden promotion to lead thisspecifictask force, and that’s after you’ve spent months investigating a smaller group of kidnappers. Why didn’t you bust them? Why haven’t you shared a single suspect’s name? Maybe you’re protecting them because you’ve joined forces with them. Maybe you thought they were thinking too small. Maybe it’s all about the billion-dollar score.”

Nicky held Mike’s eyes for a long time before finally saying, “Well, Kaitlinwillbe starting college in a few years.”

Mike cracked a smile. “Okay, so we’ve established that neither of us is the mole?”

Nicky twisted her face into a grin. “We’ve established no such thing.”

Mike’s cell phone buzzed, rattling the desktop. “Hold on,” he said. “Must be my evil overlord One, calling to give me my next set of instructions.”

Nicky stared at him as he answered his cell.

“Tell me you’ve got something good for me,” Mike said. He nodded and stood up from his chair. “Put her on.” Then he handed his cell to Nicky.

“Mom?”

“Kaitlin, honey! Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, don’t freak out, everything’s good!”

“Where are you right now?”

“Surrounded by about a dozen dumpy old cops, thanks to you.”

“I’m sorry,” Nicky said. “I truly am. Listen, ask one of them to find you a place to crash for a while, preferably not the drunk tank. I’ll come get you as soon as I can.”

“Come on, Mom. The people in the drunk tank have the best stories!”

“I’ll see you soon. I love you.”

Kaitlin told her mother she loved her too, which gave Nicky the strength to deal with what lay ahead. She would need it.

Nicky handed the phone back to Mike, who was grinning wide.

“Andthatis why I stayed behind,” he said. “I was waiting for word from my crew. They picked up your girl outside the Grove, not far from where she disappeared.”

“Okay, so maybe you’re not the mole,” Nicky allowed.

“But you haven’t cleared yourself yet,” Mike said. “I mean, Special K is kind of a genius. You may need that billion dollars to cover the tuition for all the advanced degrees she’ll earn someday.”

“So let’s keep our eyes on her college fund.”

CHAPTER 91

Friday, 4:02 a.m.

THE FIRST SIGN of the kidnappers: the sound of whirring blades cutting through the calm of the desert.