Page 75 of The Press Secretary's Passion

“He was always weak,” Jeffries says.

“That’s true,” I agree. I mean, what else am I supposed to fucking say here? He’s not exactly wrong.

“I knew he would come right here and spill his guts to you, because he was fucking weak,” he snarls. “You all are. Why couldn’t you just do what you were supposed to?”

“Which was?”

“Marry my daughter! That was her only job. She was bred to do it,” he explains.

“According to my father, I thought I was supposed to marry Jules.”

“That was never my plan. They wanted that.”

“Who is they?” I ask, but he’s raising his gun toward me.

“And you couldn’t do what you were supposed to, and now you have to die,” he says. “You all have to die.”

“Who is they?” I repeat on a shout as he pulls the trigger.

The shot goes wide. I dive behind a sofa and pull the gun from my waistband. And then I hear another gunshot go off. I jump up from behind the couch and run to where Jeffries is lying on the floor in a pool of his blood.

Rhys is standing in the doorway, holding a gun in one hand and talking on his phone that’s in the other.

“Sorry, hun,” he says. “I’m going to have to let you go now.”

“Who is they?” I ask Jeffries as I drop to my knees beside him.

“Fairchild,” he whispers, and then he dies.

“I got here as soon as I could,” Rhys tells me.

“Are you going to get into trouble for this?” I ask, and then Gus steps out from the next room with his gun pointed at me.

“There just isn’t any good help anymore,” Rhys drolls.

“Not you too, Gus.”

“No hard feelings, Ghost,” he says. “I’m sorry it has to be this way.”

And then he raises his gun.

And he’s shot in the back by Leo, the Secret Service Agent I never liked.

“Jesus Christ!” Rhys shouts. “This is like that bloodyCluemovie whereeveryonedid it.”

“You too, I take it?” I say, preparing to take down a protection agent that I never really liked and it turns out I was right all along.

“No,” Leo says, and his voice changes to a deep brogue much like Rhys’s. “I’m deep cover.”

“For who?” I ask, hating that someone managed to get past my trusted people. Although, then again, Gus was my trusted people and he just tried to kill me. That does pose a problem.

“For me,” Rhys answers. “And you thank bloody hell for that one at least.”

My thoughts exactly.

Ryan

I know something’s wrong the minute I pull up to the house. Rick is standing at the door knocking, but I know in my gut she’s not there.