Page 45 of Faded Gray Lines

Leighton

It wasten thirty-six in the morning.

Five minutes had passed since I’d finally been summoned.

Two since I confessed to breaking into Emilio’s office, hacking into his computer, and reporting what I’d found.

Zero since getting a response.

Meeting Alex hadn’t seemed so risky before, but the longer I sat inside the shitty sedan watching patrons file in and out of Caliente, a rock settled deep in the pit of my stomach. It was almost time for the lunch rush, and Amanda would blow up my phone soon. I couldn’t risk Emilio noticing I’d disappeared. As a precaution, I’d snuck out the backdoor and walked an entire block out of the way to avoid being seen.

They had to park across the fucking street.

“So he has a file on your father,” Alex finally said, a cigarette dangling from his lips. “What the hell am I supposed to do with that?” Shaking his head, he pressed a button on his door and cracked his window barely an inch.

I wrinkled my nose at the smell. “What do you mean? My father is dead. He was murdered by the cartel you expect me to betray. How are you not seeing the connection?”

After taking a long drag off the end of his cigarette, he pulled it out of his mouth and pointed it at me. “You said you emailed it to yourself because there were other files on there.”

“Yeah.”

“So, what were they? What damning evidence do you have,Agent Harcourt? What secret code did you crack to bring down the beast?”

I folded my hands in my lap and stared at them. This was the part I dreaded telling him. “It never sent.”

His hand paused midway to his mouth. “Beg your pardon?”

I took a breath to calm my racing heart. “I said, it didn’t send. When I logged into my account this morning the email wasn’t there.”

Alex shoved the cigarette in between his lips and grinned. “Imagine that.”

It took everything I had not to rip the damn thing out of his mouth and ram it in his eye.

“There’s something in those files,” I insisted. “Why the hell would Emilio Reyes have personal information on my father? Don’t you find that a bit odd?”

“Frankly, Miss Harcourt, I find everything about your family a bit odd.” Annoyed, he turned to face me. “Did you ever stop to think maybe Reyes has a file on each one of you? I assume he’d be a shitty lieutenant if he didn’t know everything about Brody’s family.”

“You don’t think he knows about—”

Alex was quick to dismiss me. “No. I told you, they’re in a secure location. Hell, you don’t even know where they are.”

I nodded, thankful, even though it felt like a rabid animal had devoured my heart. “Why haven’t you ever brought me to an office?” I asked, dread blooming in my stomach. “Even after what happened in San Marcos, you never took any official reports. I thought a DEA agent had to do stuff like that by law.” I realized it was the first time I’d ever asked such a simple question.

Alex rolled his eyes as if he was insulted. “I like being in the open air. Corporate shit isn’t my style. Why? Do you want me to write up an official report? I will, if you insist, Leighton. Of course, I don’t think you’d like how you’d look on paper.”

“You were the one sitting outside Eden Lachey’s old townhouse. Weren’t you?”

“Me? No, stakeouts aren’t my thing anymore. I leave that to Swenson. But, yeah, I know you’re shacking up with Mateo Cortes.”

“I’m not—”

He held up his hand. “It wasn’t in the original agreement, but obviously, this isn’t a ‘by the book’ kind of case. I’ll look the other way so you can do whatever it is you have to do.”

“What I have to do?” I repeated.

He sliced his hand through the air. “Look, I don’t want to know what goes on between the sheets. Just get me something I can use.”

I didn’t know whether to be shocked or offended he’d just given me the green light to whore myself out. Even I knew that wasn’t standard operating procedure, and it didn’t sit well with me. Regardless, I should’ve just taken the gift for what it was and be thankful he didn’t know about my past with Mateo.