Page 26

TWENTY-SIX

R ather than sleep alone in his apartment, Bryce stayed overnight at the fire hall with Izan and Zack. It was too quiet in his own place, and there was no way he would be able to sleep with Penny nearby if he stayed at his sister’s house and crashed on the couch as she’d offered.

He hated having everything so up in the air with her. He wanted another chance. A future with Penny Mitchell. Maybe, someday, their own kids to read bedtime stories to. He just had to show her he wasn’t like her dad or her boss. At least with the crew nearby and knowing Penny was safe, Bryce could relax enough to get a few-hours doze in before the meeting. His leg throbbed where he’d been knifed, and his head didn’t feel so hot either, but it only fueled his desire to catch these guys.

He grabbed a quick shower and triple espresso drink before he rode to city hall, where they were meeting the governor. The conference room was quiet for as many bodies as they’d crammed in there. Jude and Penny and Anthony sat at the table. Even after a harrowing rescue and little sleep, she looked amazing. Strong.

She met his wink with a slight smile as he moved to stand at the back of the room, where he could stay more alert. Olivia stood next to him. The chief of police chatted with Allen Frees quietly at the other end of the room.

What was taking so long? Bryce checked his watch again. 6:05.

Finally Jason Woods, Governor Noble, and another woman walked in. Not that Bryce knew the governor personally, but even he could tell the man had aged overnight. There was no friendly smile, just gaunt cheek bones, a tic in his jaw, and a wrinkled suit. Bryce didn’t think the room could get any quieter, but somehow it did.

The governor stood at the head of the long table and made eye contact with each person around it before speaking.

“I used to think Last Chance County was one of the safest places a family could go. I’d spend summers out here with my grandparents, my cousins”—he gestured toward Jason Woods—“and friends. I was excited to show my son all the places I’d frequented.”

Wait. Woods was the governor’s cousin?

Bryce missed something the governor said, but he focused on the man once more.

“Obviously things have changed. This isn’t the same county I knew as a boy.”

No one said a thing.

“Find. My. Family.” With each word, a sharp finger stabbed the table top.

“Sir!”

“If I may?—”

“We’ve already—” Voices interrupted and spoke over each other from all over the room.

“Enough.” The governor sliced the air with his hand. “I don’t want excuses. I want them found. Now.”

“Yes, sir.” The mayor tugged at his collar. “We are doing everything we can. But I still advise you to cancel the ball tonight. If we could just take this news to the public, they could?—”

“No! This militia wants the publicity. The attention. They want to make a spectacle of my family. I will not give them the satisfaction. And there is no need to cause the public to panic. We will go on with the events as planned.”

With that, the man turned and left, Jason Woods and the mayor right behind him.

Small conversations erupted around the room. Jude and Penny joined Bryce and Olivia.

“Gutsy move on his part to keep this quiet,” Olivia said.

“He’s not wrong though. These groups want the glory and frenzy. If people knew the governor’s wife and son were missing, do you know how many false leads we’d be sifting through right now? At least keeping it quiet will help us focus on the leads we already have,” Anthony said.

“What leads?” Bryce asked. “As far as I can tell, we’ve got nothing.”

“Not exactly.” Olivia hooked her thumbs through loops on her uniform vest. “You said Sosa was behind the kidnapping of Libby and the kids, but we know he has some tie to the militia too. We have the two dead bodies from the trailer. One of them was Arturo Hernandez. The other we’re still identifying, and we’re processing the scene. That will take time.”

“And we have Emma,” Anthony said.

Penny turned to face Jude. “I want a crack at her.”

Jude paused a moment. “We’ve got nothing to lose. Let’s give it a try. She’ll be transferred to the federal prison soon.”

“I’m going with you.” Bryce didn’t want to let Penny out of his sight, even if she was going to the police station and accompanied by his federal agent brother-in-law.

“You can watch through the one-way glass with me,” Olivia said as she nudged his arm.

Penny stared at his arm where Olivia had made contact. Her eyebrow twitched.

“You good, Pen?” Jude asked her.

“Great.” She flashed a fake smile. “Let’s find our lead.”

Before long, Anthony was sent on a call, but Bryce and Olivia stood behind the one-way glass window, staring at a stark-gray room with a worn table and old wooden chairs. Penny leaned against the wall, picking at her cuticle. She didn’t look up when the door opened and Jude escorted Emma inside.

But Bryce noticed the slight narrowing of her eyes. She was a lioness on the hunt. He almost felt sorry for Emma.

Almost.

“You’re on a sinking ship, Emma,” Penny said, still focused on her nail beds.

“Whatever.”

Jude pulled out Emma’s chair since she was still handcuffed. He took a seat across the table while Penny circled the small room.

“Why are you wasting my time?” Emma speared Penny with a look. “You wouldn’t have me here if you didn’t need something.”

“Oh, we have everything we need. We’re just nice enough to offer you one more chance to lighten your sentence. I’m sure you think you’re protecting Alonzo, but it’s only a matter of time. I doubt he’d be so kind to you. I bet he’ll cave as soon as he’s in custody and leave you holding the bag.”

“Nice try, but you won’t get me to turn on him. He loves me.” Emma didn’t look too worried as she leaned back in her chair.

“Pretty confident words for a woman he left behind.” Penny rounded the table and leaned in Emma’s face.

Emma’s only response was a sharp intake of breath and deadly glare.

“Oh, she’s good.” Olivia chuckled.

“Yeah, she is.” Bryce leaned his forearm on the frame of the glass, taking a little pressure off his injured leg.

Jude sat back watching the exchange, letting the women talk. Penny pulled out her phone and set it on the table in front of Emma. “This guy gave us everything we needed to know. Before he died.”

Emma sat up and looked at the screen. She laughed. “Ramos? He was a low-level dealer. He knew nothing. You’re bluffing.”

“I know Arturo Hernandez is dead.”

Emma went still. Penny circled the table once more, probably letting her words soak in. “We’re closing in on your boyfriend as we speak. I thought, woman to woman, we could level with each other. So I’m gonna tell it to you straight. He’s not worth the multiple life sentences you’re facing.” She leaned over the table on both hands, looking right at her prey.

“Alonzo would never let that happen.” Emma got right back in Penny’s face.

“How does an intelligent girl like you even get caught up with a lowlife like him? You had a 4.0. A full-ride scholarship to school. Is he the reason you left in the middle of your junior year?”

“You don’t know anything. He has a plan. I’ll be free soon enough. I can’t say the same for your loved ones.” Emma smirked.

“Oh, my family is fine. Just chatted with them before I came in here. Which means your plan didn’t work. No one is busting you out, Emma. And you, Jude?”

“Everyone is great.”

“See? Everyone is peachy.” Penny sat in the chair by Jude. “I mean, except Hernandez. Oh, and Ramos. He wasn’t a smart pick for a kidnapping attempt. Very sloppy. But you saw how that ended up. And tonight we’ll have the Governor’s Ball. I’m really looking forward to meeting Cindy and Adam Noble.” Penny leaned back, looking perfectly relaxed against the chair.

Emma’s brows turned in. Her smirk faded.

Maybe she was finally catching on. Penny was going in for the kill. Bryce swelled with pride for her. Emma would do best to stay out of her way.

“So Alonzo can do whatever he wants with the militia. But I don’t see him busting down doors to get you out of here. He’s letting you rot like yesterday’s garbage. He had one shot, and that ‘low-level dealer’ blew it.”

“You know nothing,” Emma hissed. “What would a stuck-up pig like you know about true love? Alonzo is his own man. The militia thinks they’re using him, but he ’s the one in control. All the pieces are in place. The gangs already turned on each other. The militia owes Alonzo everything. And he will free me. It’s only a matter of time. There’s nowhere the governor can hide his family that’s safe. He’ll bow to Alonzo eventually.”

“You think your man is going to rule? And what? That you’ll be the queen beside him?” Penny scoffed.

“Why not hold the strings and let someone else do the heavy lifting?” Emma’s smirk was back.

Penny popped off her chair and stretched. “Ah. Well, lovely chat, Emma.” She tilted her head, a finger to her chin as she studied the woman in cuffs. “I bet you’ll look good in orange.” She winked and left the room, leaving Jude to escort a slack-jawed Emma out.

Bryce and Olivia met Penny in the hall. Emma hurled expletives as Jude led her away. Other officers in uniform scurried past in both directions. The chatter and radio noise from the bullpen down the hall was muffled.

But it was Penny’s green eyes sparkling with victory that captured Bryce’s attention.

“So that’s his endgame,” she said. “Sosa wants to set up his own little kingdom here. He’s already scaring the gangs away, pushing his own product. He must’ve supplied the militia for favors in return.”

“What does he want with the governor’s family?” Olivia asked. “There still hasn’t been a ransom set yet.”

Bryce had an answer for that. “I’m guessing leverage.”

Penny nodded. “The militia is antigovernment. They’ve been very outspoken about wanting a change in the capital. I bet Sosa is just using them to do his dirty work. He gets a few politicians in his pocket, it becomes a lot easier to do shady business and organize a network across the whole state with direct access to three major cities.”

Not if Bryce and this team had anything to say about it. “But we’re not going to let that happen.”

“I certainly hope not.”

Bryce spun around to see Jason Woods staring them down. He walked toward their group. “What’s being done here to find the governor’s family? Does this look like a good time to stand around and chat?”

Woods’s job was on the line, and technically the governor was family to Jason, so Bryce tried to overlook the implications. “We’re doing what we can to find them. Penny just got some valuable intel on Sosa’s endgame.”

“Are you sure he’s the one behind the kidnapping? My cousin’s wife and child are out there somewhere. You better not be wasting time.”

Penny stood, hands on her hips, and had no problem facing the man before them. “We know Sosa kidnapped my family. We got them back. We’ll get the governor’s family too.”

Bryce stepped up to stand beside her. “And they are connected. Sosa and the militia must have a common goal or at least a mutually beneficial understanding. Believe me, we’re not wasting anyone’s time.”

Jason didn’t say anything for a moment. “Good. Keep at it. Ms. Mitchell, if you don’t mind, I’d like to hire you to keep an eye out for Sosa at the ball this evening.”

“The ball is still going on?” Olivia asked. “That will be a lot of police coverage for the event when we could be out looking for the family.”

“I don’t like it, but the other agencies believe Sosa will show if we continue on as planned.” Jason turned toward Penny again. “Brooks said you have some protection detail training and you can recognize Sosa by voice, so the governor wants to add you to the crew tonight. Wear evening dress. If you come with me, we can go over particulars.”

She glanced over at Bryce and Olivia before facing Woods once more. “Anything to be of service.”

Bryce didn’t like the sight of her walking away with Jason at all, but it wasn’t like he was a threat. The man was more wind than substance. But Bryce wanted to be the one at her side. Too bad he wasn’t a bodyguard for hire too.

Olivia nodded toward the flurry of activity in the bullpen. “Come on, Bryce. Let’s look into the militia members and see what we can find before the ball.”