Page 63 of Fractured Future

“And now?” Concern bleeds from Tom’s words.

“If she did it once, she’ll do it again. And she has the entire weight of Sabre behind her now. We’ll make sure she’s safe.”

Looking at his phone again, he spits a curse. “Why is Warner emailing to ask for all my case files on Blaine Madden?”

I brake to pull up to the gate for a fingerprint and retinal scan. “We were going to debrief you today.”

“If that animal is involved in my sister’s case, I should’ve been told. How on earth is Madden wrapped up in this?”

“Seems our criminal friend has made a reappearance,” I reply acerbically. “He was the one who got Ember out of there.”

“Madden was in Mexico?” Tom clarifies.

“According to Ember.”

“What the… Explain. Now.”

“That’s all I know. Madden left her clear instructions to give his name when he deposited her on the side of a road with Warner’s mobile number.”

“How on earth did he locate her? Why?”

“Honestly, it beats me.”

Frankly, the whole tale is ludicrous.

Blaine Madden’s conviction was one of Sabre’s best success stories—the son of a prolific mobster, from a powerful dynasty of British criminals. He took the fall for his family’s crimes.

Most notably, they supplied half of London’s drug trade at one point. The entire enterprise was in Sabre’s crosshairs for years before we nailed the sneaky bastard. Only for him to escape and vanish.

“We’ve been trying to track him down since he escaped.” Tom shakes his head. “I always thought he had inside help. No one disappears that quickly and effectively.”

“Who cares how he escaped?” I reverse into my assigned spot. “Madden is sending us a message. And using Ember as the fucking envelope.”

Cursing again, Tom unclips his seatbelt. “I’ll make some calls. We can get all the court files from the firm’s archive.”

“Good.”

I grab my handgun from the car’s lockbox then climb out to fit it into my holster. Tom attempting to rouse Ember gives me a moment to check my phone. A text message has pinged through.

Ethan: Heard you’re home. Welcome back, bud.

God, there are days when I miss our old teammate. He kept us all sane with his level head. Warner is a great leader, but Ethan brought a balance that we’ve been missing since he left.

Hyland: Thanks. How’s Briar Valley?

Three dots appear before his reply arrives.

Ethan: Quieter than London. Come visit sometime? Willow would love to see you.

Hyland: I need to see this case through, but I’ll come soon. Give her a hug from me.

Ethan: Will do. Be safe.

Hyland: You too.

Tucking it into my pocket, I study Ember as she moves around the vehicle to join me. She looks like shit. Pale, shaky and visibly antsy. I thought the same when she opened the bathroom door earlier.

I don’t care what bullshit she’s fed her brother. She’s refusing to get checked out for a reason, and I intend to find out what that reason is. Whether she wants to tell me or not.