Page 32 of Girl Betrayed

“Of course they are.”

Jake scratched his head, pacing away from Jenkins as he digested the news. “The only reason the Department of Justice would get involved is if they suspected this goes higher up than just some congressional misconduct.” He stopped pacing. “Why was Hayes in rehab?”

“Jake, the man’s dead. Let him rest in peace.”

“He’s a public official. There’s no way his murder doesn’t get press. If there’s dirt to find, it’ll come out.”

Jenkins sighed in defeat. “Hayes was in for substance abuse.”

Jake’s temper spiked, his first thought of his fallen comrades. “Drugs? How far back does it go? Because if that’s why he made that call in Ghazni?—”

“Jake, don’t go dredging up the past. It’s only gonna make those families relive their losses again. It’s time to let it go.”

“I tried to let it go, but I watched Hayes get away with murder, and then get rewarded with a cushy Congressional office. I’m tired of watching politicians build their careers on the backs of good men and women they view as disposable.”

“This goes higher than Congress. Hayes was on the short list for the VP ticket. They planned to announce it when he got out of rehab.”

“What? They were going to put him in the White House?”

Jenkins shrugged. “Word is he was willing to back POTUS’s agenda.”

“Is that all it takes? Hayes would back anything if it served his personal agenda. And I’ll tell you one thing, I’m gonna find out what it was, because my gut tells me it’s why he’s lying in the morgue.”

“You can give your gut a rest, Jake. You’re not getting assigned to this case.”

“Assignment or not, it’s still my job to serve this country.” Jake jabbed a finger at Hayes’s corpse. “That’s why I’m gonna make sure this spineless prick’s agendas die with him.”

Jenkins sank down onto the cold metal stool with a heavy sigh. “I know you’re not gonna let this go, so let’s hear it. I know you’ve cooked up a theory already.”

“Jenks, think about it. There’s no way Hayes was qualified to run for Vice President. That means he has something on someone powerful enough to make that happen. To anyone who didn’t want him in office, his death may look like dodging a bullet, but what I’m worried about is the bullets left in the chamber.”

“Jake if you dig into this, I’m telling you, one of those bullets is gonna have your name on it.”

“What aren’t you telling me?”

“Hayes was at Passages for more than just substance abuse. He was caught with a minor.”

“What the?—”

Jenkins held her hands up and rushed to finish her explanation before Jake could fully fly off the handle. “The girl was a 17-year-old junkie and says the whole thing was consensual.”

“That doesn’t make it okay!” Jake punched the closest thing to him, denting the metal cooler. He held onto the pain stinging his knuckles, but it wasn’t enough to quiet the rage roaring through him. “He’s lucky he’s already dead, because if I find out that son of a bitch even looked at Claire wrong …”

“Jake, I’ve got no love for the man, or the way Hayes ran the DOD when he was there, but you can’t go around crying scandal about a decorated Veteran and Congressman who was almost decapitated by someone playing Grim Reaper. Everything I told you is off the record, and it needs to stay that way.”

“I’m not looking to smear his name, Jenks. I just want to make sure whatever got him killed isn’t gonna roll down hill and land on Claire or Dana, or even Meredith for that matter.”

The cool exterior Jenkins always exuded slipped. “Did you find out what she has to do with this?”

“She and Claire share the same therapist. He apparently thought they could learn from each other, so he hosted a few group sessions for them at Passages.”

“Jesus. Has anyone checked that woman’s room for a Grim Reaper costume?”

Jake knew Jenkins was only half serious, but it was refreshing to find someone who shared his sentiment when it came to Meredith Kincaid. Dana was too blinded by guilt to see that the woman who she’d once considered a friend might be beyond saving.

“Now do you see why I need to be a part of this investigation?” he asked.

“Jake, you’re under the misguided notion that I have any say in this matter. I told you, it’s out of my hands.”