other prisoner is?”
“That’s irrelevant.”
“Jimmy Jay Hunt. It’s more than relevant.”
Banner wasn’t swayed. “Officer Sheffield gave a statement that Rogan shot his partner in the head, so I don’t care if the other prisoner was Charles Manson, Rogan is a cop killer.”
“Do your homework, John, because there is something more than a little fishy about this entire thing.”
“I need to talk to Agent Kincaid. Are you representing her?”
“Our firm is, yes.”
“She might have relevant information about where her husband is. I will get a fucking warrant if I have to, but she needs to tell us what she knows.”
“And your warrant will be bullshit because the FBI has taken over this case, and you damn well know it.”
Banner fumed.
His partner said to Lucy, “Woman to woman, are you okay that your husband killed a prostitute? A prostitute he was having an affair with?”
Lucy couldn’t even think of a comment.
“You don’t have to remain silent, Agent Kincaid. You can do the right thing and help us. You worked in sex crimes. You know how this goes.”
“You’re out of line, Mendez,” Felicity snapped. “Move out of my way, or I’ll have you both written up for intimidation and harassing my client, and if you think I won’t, Banner, you don’t know me.”
“You’re on the wrong side of this one, Felicity.”
“Not this time, John.”
But he moved and Felicity grabbed Lucy’s arm and pulled her out of the room. She didn’t even see where Felicity was leading her until they reached the edge of the lobby and Felicity sat Lucy down on a bench.
“You’re pale. Are you okay?”
She nodded. “We need to investigate Sheffield. He was paid off or threatened. There has to be some way we can prove it.”
Felicity motioned for her to keep her voice down.
“You can’t do anything, Lucy. Haven’t you been listening? You already have a restraining order against you—”
“Which Elise set up. She knows I have to go to court on Monday. That means she knows when and where I will be at a specific time. They have Sean and he can’t even find help because he’s now considered a cop killer. The wrong cops get to him first, he’ll be beaten or dead and you know it!” She took a deep breath. She had to calm down, but this situation had long ago spiraled out of control.
She needed someone who understood the severity.
“Lucy, I talked to the FBI here in Houston. You need to give a statement. Just that you didn’t know anything about the escape, that you haven’t spoken to Sean since yesterday, the whole nine yards.”
“They need to look into Sheffield. And into who authorized this transport in the first place. There’s no reason for Sean to have been sent to Beaumont. None!”
“I’m looking at your future, Lucy. You obstruct this investigation and you will kill your career.”
“You think I care? I don’t give a shit about my career when my husband has been kidnapped by a man who wants him dead.” Why didn’t Jimmy Hunt just kill him then and there? That didn’t make sense …
It always makes sense. There is a reason for this whole charade. What is Jimmy thinking?
“Oh, no. I know why he took Sean.” Lucy realized that it was a repeat of what had happened nearly two years ago. It was as clear as day. “He wants Sean to steal money for him.”
“Like a bank robbery?”
“Sean is a computer security expert. He can break into any secure system. He’s hired by governments and businesses to test their security. He legally hacks in and then writes programs to improve their security. That’s his job. And Hunt knows this. He could have Sean hack into any system electronically and steal the funds … then he’ll kill him. And Kane—that’s why Kane is missing. Maybe they have him already, to use as leverage. Then they’ll kill him, too.” She sounded crazy, like a conspiracy theorist, but she didn’t care because she knew she was right, or close to it. “They’ve had two years to plan this, and if I don’t stop it, they’ll win and I’ll lose everyone I care about.”
“Lucy, stop. Take a deep breath.”
Easy for her to say … but Felicity was right. Lucy had to reclaim her calm so that she could find Sean and get him back.
And if they had to run from the cops and from Jimmy Hunt for the rest of their lives, so be it.
Running forever was better than being dead.
Chapter Thirty
OUTSIDE NEW BRAUNFELS, TEXAS
Even though Nate trusted