great parent? Her sister sure as shit didn’t. They were raised together.”
“Anna said she was worried about Zella and Gordy. Zella will never be found. Anna can assume she took off or she is messed up with whoever’s drugs were found at her father’s house. I don’t give a shit what she thinks. She should have the option to take on little Gordy.” I was arguing my wife’s point. The more I spoke, the more I saw its merit.
“And if she doesn’t want him, she sends him to DCFS. My way, we guarantee him a good home.”
I shook my head. “A home with money to buy a kid isn’t the guarantee of a good home.”
Mason stopped near my desk and picked up the gold necklace Anna gave to Lorna. “What is this?”
“It’s the necklace Lorna mentioned last night.”
Mason’s eyes narrowed. “I’m not a jeweler, but it looks like cheap costume shit.”
“It probably is.”
“Tell Lorna not to wear it. It’ll fucking turn her neck green.”
“I told her I’d try to find out what I can. I figure the age of the metal and design of the pendant will tell me if it might have been something that mattered to Nancy.”
Mason let out a long breath, dropping the necklace to the desk. “I need to get the fuck out of here. I’ve spent the last two days going back over traffic cams, security footage, and anything I could access to verify or nullify Top’s information.”
The steel door opened and Sparrow and Patrick entered.
“How are the FBI?” I asked.
Sparrow’s dark stare came my way. “Fucking great. I’m having lunch catered to them today.”
“Laced with a side of arsenic?” I asked.
“If only it were that easy.”
“They won’t come up with anything,” Patrick reassured. “The way I see it, they should be done by today.”
Sparrow’s head shook. “I fucking hope so. Instead of them taking shit out of the building, we were able to push back and let them stay in the office space. At the time I thought it was a good idea. That way they couldn’t add shit that wasn’t there. Now I’m sick of their fucking faces.” He shook his head. “Give me county, city, or state cops. I fucking hate the feds.”
“Sorry,” Patrick began. “I know you all needed me last night, but man...” He ran his hand down his face. “I needed some sleep.”
It was pretty funny considering Patrick and well, all of us, were used to working with minimal slumber.
“Did you get some?” Mason asked.
Patrick sighed. “Four straight hours. I think it’s a fucking record.”
“We’re good,” Mason said. “I spent most of yesterday verifying Top’s information.”
“And?” Sparrow asked.
Mason shrugged. “It’s verifiable.”
“You sound enthusiastic,” I said in observation.
“You’re wondering if you can trust him or if this is a setup,” Patrick said. “I’m wondering the same thing.”
Mason lifted his own coffee mug and leaned against the counter, his cowboy boots crossed at his ankles. “Hear me out.”
Sparrow and Patrick sat as we all turned to Mason.
“We’re listening,” Sparrow said.
My brother-in-law’s expression was somewhere between angry and defeated. That alone had my attention. He lifted his coffee to his lips and then set the mug on the counter, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Fucking believe me that this has been the only goddamned thing on my mind. First, I’m damn good.” He lifted his chin toward all of us. “We’re all damn good. We had already discovered bits and pieces of the information that Top sent, but ours was not compiled as succinctly. What he sent...it’s all right there. There’s a pattern of behavior that I didn’t pick up on.” He took a deep breath and ran his fingers again through his hair. “Maybe I’m stuck on something he said the other day in DC. I admit, I can’t separate my emotions for Laurel and Lorna, and from everyone in this case. I think I should confess to all of you that I screwed up.” He turned to Patrick. “Fuck, my inability to see what was right in front of us could have resulted in Ruby’s death. There’s not a damn thing I can ever do to make that up to you, Madeline, or Ruby.”
Sparrow stood, his brow furrowed. “Is this a resignation speech?”
Mason exhaled. “No, it’s—”
“Good,” Sparrow interrupted, “because unlike the fucking Order, I won’t accept it. You’re still useful to me whether you think so or not. You think you’ve screwed up on this? You think it’s entirely your fault that we’re not celebrating Morehead’s and Jettison’s demise?” He