and his stutter became more pronounced each day.
Matt knew his brother was right. Bandon hadn’t sent them any more money recently and he was avoiding all talk of business other than boat trips and dock rental on the phone.
The FBI was pressuring them for more information, for evidence they could use to track the other people involved in the money laundering, but Bandon wasn’t falling for anything.
“Don’t worry little brother,” Matt said, trying to calm Alan down. If Alan panicked, things would only get worse. Matt was always the one to take care of things. To fix things. He would do it now. He’d hold things together long enough for them to get the evidence they needed to get the FBI off their backs and then they’d move on.
He had been stashing money here and there for years. He had enough money for him and Alan to start over someplace. They wouldn’t live the way they had been, living it up in the sun, but they’d be alive. And, not in prison.
“I’ll figure out a way to get the agents what they need.”
“H-h-h—” His brother stopped, his frustration palpable as he struggled to ask the question.
Matt didn’t need to hear the question. Alan was going to ask him how they’d do that. Alan hated it when Matt finished sentences for him instead of giving him time to get the words out himself, but he couldn’t help himself right now.
Alan wanted to know how. And, he had no idea how he would take care of things. How he would get the evidence they needed.
He had already given the FBI the records they had, but they weren’t satisfied with that. They’d noticed the bigger numbers coming in lately, just as the brothers had. They wanted to know the same thing Matt had wondered himself.
Who was the other money being laundered for? Mafia? Other government officials? Maybe other housing inspectors. Who knew? The possibilities were endless, really.
“I don’t know, brother,” he said now to Alan, ignoring the unspoken rule not to answer questions his brother hadn’t managed to spit out. “I’ll think of something, though.”
He’d tried telling Bandon he knew there was more money coming than Bandon himself could need laundered. He had demanded to know where the money was coming from.
Bandon had acted like he hadn’t even asked the questions. He’d just kept right on talking about the boat business and refused to answer a thing. But, Matt would come up with something. He had to. He and Alan couldn’t go to prison over this. They just couldn’t.
Chapter 24
Chad got the call three days later. The FBI had lost track of the Masters brothers. They missed their last two check-ins with their handler and hadn’t been spotted since then. They were missing in the wind and no one had any idea where Rick Bandon had gone either.
Something felt very wrong to Chad. And, he wasn’t going to wait around to see what happened. He made calls to Jack and Andrew as he headed over to Jennie’s. It was time to get her out of town. Time to be sure she was safe.
Jennie opened the door to a very intense-looking Chad. He didn’t wait for an invitation or even for her to step out of his way. He pushed his way into her house and dropped his duffle bag on the floor.
Zeke didn’t bat an eye at Chad’s pushy entrance. He knew Chad and apparently didn’t consider him an intruder.
Jennie eyed her ‘faithful’ dog with a raised brow.
Traitor.
“Gee, Chad. Please, come in. Mi casa is apparently su casa,” she said with her typical bite of sarcasm.
All she wanted to do was crawl into bed. It might only be nine o’clock at night but her body was done. She needed sleep. Jennie couldn’t get over how tired this pregnancy was making her.
Kelly had told her how tired she was when she was pregnant with Maddy, but Jennie had no idea it would be this bad. She walked around in a constant fog as though her head were a block of mush not a brain.
“The Masters brothers are missing. I’m your new protection detail.” In a move completely uncharacteristic of him, he kicked off his shoes, dropped his large body onto Jennie’s small couch, and put his feet up on the coffee table.
She didn’t know why he was acting so out of character, but she just wanted him to leave so she could go to bed.
“Chad, I don’t need protection. My name isn’t even on