Page 22 of Storm and Tempest (Brand of Justice #13)

“We have to assume that Dominatus has someone in that office, or a federal judge in their pocket.” Jax set his coffee on the table nearest to him and stared across the open middle at the FBI agent.

“I know you want your life back, but in my experience, once you get caught up with these people, they don’t let it go. ”

He did have an idea that had been coalescing for a while now about where Elliot could go and keep fighting. After all, the more people who were in on this coordinated fight, the better. “I might have another job you can do,” he added. “A way to be part of the group working against Dominatus. ”

Jax got out his phone and sent a message on a secure app he’d been given access to for the taskforce.

Things had been oddly quiet on it lately, but this news might bring a resurgence of efforts.

“When I get a call back, I’ll see what I can arrange so you can still do your job, but in a way that we’re all working together to fight this. ”

Sandra didn’t look happy. “So we’re never going to get our lives back?”

Jax shook his head. “Not anytime soon.”

Elliot reached over and squeezed his sister’s hand. “This is important.”

She whipped her head around and looked at him. “I think what you meant to say is, ‘Your life wasn’t that great anyway,’ wasn’t it? That’s what you wanted to say.”

“A fresh start can be a good thing.”

She shifted her hand out of his grip and folded her arms. “Starting over again ? Sure. That’s always a great thing.”

Elliot opened his mouth to say something but only sighed. “I didn’t want to put you at risk. Amara explained to me that they used her daughter as leverage to get her to do things for them.”

“She was supposed to kill you, but she didn’t,” Sandra said.

“If you go back to the FBI, everyone will see that you aren’t dead.

What do you think will happen to the woman they care about who is missing when you do that?

” She glared at her brother. “You never think about anyone else but yourself. You wanted me in your life, so you were going to have that Amara woman—who is scary, by the way—drag me from my life so you can have what you want. Because what I want is less important.”

“Sis—”

“I was grieving you. Packing up your life and moving on with mine.” Sandra pushed her chair back and stood. “I didn’t ask to be part of this.”

Jax said, “None of us did.”

She turned to him and glared. “That actually makes it worse .”

Jax held up his hands but said nothing.

“I’m so glad to see you.” She looked at her brother. “ So glad you’re alive, and you’re all right. But trying to fight a conspiracy? You could get yourself killed…just like Mom and Dad.”

Maizie’s fingers zipped across her keyboard. Jax could see the conversation was upsetting her. He needed a way for Sandra and Elliot to figure this out another time, preferably when the teen wasn’t around.

Elliot said, “I’m not going to get?—”

Maizie gasped. She looked at Jax. “Their parents died in a plane crash.”

Jax said, “That’s tragic. I’m so sorry for your loss, guys.”

“No, you don’t understand.” Maizie shook her head. “The plane they were in was chartered by Escape, the airline company that changed its name a few years back to Emissary. The one Dominatus owns. Where Ramon and Zeyla went.”

Jax understood the gasp now. “It was one of their planes.”

The brother and sister absorbed this news. Elliot turned to Maizie. “You know for sure it was one of their planes?”

She nodded. “I’m sorry. I was just giving you guys some space to keep talking. I didn’t mean to find a connection.”

Jax went over and put his hand on her shoulder.

Elliot said, “We don’t know that they were part of it, or innocent bystanders who just happened to charter one of their planes. They could’ve been simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

Jax nodded. “They might’ve chartered a flight, not knowing the company had ugly ties.”

“But we’re going to look into it, right?” Sandra stepped away from her brother, putting a visible separation between them. “Find out if they were murdered?”

“You might not like what you find if you dig,” Jax warned her.

He’d had the same realization with his own parents, and the fact his father seemed to have a distant connection to Dominatus.

Though, in his dad’s case it was more like he’d made some kind of arrangement to stay out of their organization.

Jax had tried several times to get his dad to explain the connection.

His father hadn’t wanted to, but he was definitely linked to the organization in some fashion.

Elliot looked at his sister. “It’s up to you whether or not we look into their deaths. If you say leave it alone, I won’t dig.”

Sandra’s face twisted with grief. “It was a long time ago. I don’t remember them much more than you do. But I’d like to know who they really were if there’s something to find. And what really happened to them.”

Maizie said, “I’ll send you what I find. I’m still working through the companies Elliot was investigating.”

“Thank you, Maizie.” Sandra went to the coffee station again and grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl someone had laid out. Several of the muffins had been taken.

“You’re welcome.” Maizie looked at Jax.

He raised his brows, and she smiled a little.

“I need to check back on Samuel, but keep working. If we can get evidence that is undeniable, then we can pass that up the chain, along with the possibility of bringing Elliot on board.” He glanced at Elliot.

“The group I’m part of is all within the government, and each of the people who are part of it have no idea of the others’ identities.

So we can’t tell anyone who they are because we don’t know. ”

He wasn’t sure how much of it was worth sharing. He hadn’t heard from his contact in weeks, and it didn’t seem that anyone else was submitting reports because he’d have been passed those as well.

Sandra said, “That sounds like what the bad guys are doing. What did you call them— Dominatus ?” When he nodded, she continued, “Keeping everyone separated so no one person has the knowledge it would take to bring everyone down. How do you know you don’t work for them?”

Kenna’s people knew he’d made that deal with the president, but Jax wasn’t about to say that to these two when he didn’t know them all that well.

“I know.” Jax lifted his chin. “I have evidence.”

Sandra didn’t seem impressed by that. Elliot was back on his laptop.

The sister said, “It’s a real shame they chose to do it that way, keeping you all separate. Because that means you know nothing. So I don’t need you.”

Jax turned to her, his brows tugging together. “What do you?—”

She swung out toward him with a knife. Jax lifted his arm to defend himself, and the blade glanced off his forearm before he slammed her arm away. He cried out at the sting of pain from the cut, and the surprise. Sandra stumbled back but rallied.

Maizie screamed, and he heard a chair topple back. “Bruce!” She yelled his name so loud it rang in the room.

Jax didn’t go to her. He had to neutralize the threat.

Hopefully the first and only one. He spun Sandra and locked his arms around her, his fingers squeezing her wrist and confining the bones in her hand until she voluntarily gave up the knife.

Or dropped it. He spoke between gritted teeth, aware of the blood dripping down his forearm. “Don’t even think about it.”

Sandra screamed, pushing against his hold on her. She slammed her head back and caught his bad shoulder, which hurt a whole lot, then tried again to headbutt him.

Jax didn’t let go.

The door slammed open.

“Maizie!” Bruce rushed in, and Jax turned Sandra to see the other man had his gun drawn. He pointed it at all corners, then at Elliot.

The agent raised his hands. “I have nothing to do with this. Sandra, what are you doing?” He turned to his sister. “What is going on?”

“I’m doing my job.” She wrestled in his arms.

“Drop the knife,” Jax barked.

“I figured the target would be Samuel, but maybe he was your next target. Sandra. ” Amara came around the table and stood in front of them. “I’ll take care of her.”

Jax didn’t like the sound of that.

“We need to know what she knows,” Amara said. “And who is giving her orders.”

Sandra shuddered. “You’ll never end this. We will kill everyone you love.”

Elliot cried out, “Sandra, why are you doing this?”

Jax glanced at Maizie, who stood in the corner with her back to the wall, then looked back at Amara. The older woman had a kitchen towel in her hands. She wrapped it around Sandra’s hand and the knife, covering the blade so Sandra couldn’t easily stab someone with it.

“Nice-looking blade,” Amara said. “Let go of the knife. No sudden movements, okay?”

Sandra shifted against Jax’s arms, still determined to get away. He wasn’t letting an agent of their enemy go. She’d waited until now to expose her true allegiance, and given the way he was reacting, Elliot had no idea his sister was one of them.

She’d come here to find out what Jax knew, and who was part of the group trying to fight against them.

No matter what, no one could find out what he knew.