case against the fucking bastard. Sarah was a firsthand witness. She could testify to what Mitch had told her, what Sean had told her, what she’d actually seen and heard on that fucking video. If the cops or NCIS showed her mug shots, she might be able to identify some of the men she’d seen on the video.
Hayes, on the other hand, his death made what he’d told her secondhand information. Information that Mitch could and would challenge. The rat bastard was such a good liar, he could easily convince a jury that Hayes had been trying to pin the blame on someone else. And since Hayes was dead, there would be no one to rebut Mitch’s claim.
Without Sarah’s account, they had no hard evidence against Mitch.
Fuck.
“Just let me know when you decide,” Tram said, his voice back to normal. “I got your back, no matter which way you jump.”
“Thanks, dude.” Tag ran his palm down his face and tried not to think about the decision he had to make. “When you headed up?”
“First light. Should arrive early evening. I’ll reach out to Dev. Let him know about this new development—sans the video. I’ll hold off telling him about that until you decide what to do with that information.” He paused, his voice turning careful again. “Wait to call Rio until morning. Get a good night’s sleep. Think things over before you talk to him.”
In other words, before you decide to burn Sarah.
“Way ahead of you,” Tag said tightly.
Waiting for a clear head was the whole reason Rio wasn’t already on his way to Dark Falls. Tag was still too pissed at the woman in the room down the hall to make any major—life-altering—decisions just yet.
He needed to calm down. He needed to think.
When you drilled down to the core of everything, Sarah’s association with him had put the target on her back. Her relationship with him was what had sent Mitch after her, and through her Sean.
Fuck, she’d even had solid reasons for her silence. Or at least she’d thought she had. She’d done it to protect him. She’d done it to protect Sean.
He just didn’t think he could live with her choices.
Or his decision if he didn’t do everything within his power to bring Mitch down. And that included exposing that fucking video and Sarah’s involvement in this damn mess.
At nine o’clock the next morning, Sarah stared out the truck’s passenger window at the Dark Falls police station. The building was red brick and square, four or five stories high, with a flat roof. Through the lens of her nerves, it looked foreboding, anxiety inducing. Stifling.
Butterflies took off in her belly. Chills crawled across her scalp. For her and Sean, stepping into that building meant the beginning of the end.
“Rio set up a meeting with a Detective Rhys Evans. He’s expecting us at nine,” Brett said.
Sarah nodded. He’d already told her this. Their looming meeting with Detective Evans was the reason they were here. Why explain again? It wasn’t like her escort to be repetitive.
She glanced at his hands before turning away. His fingers were still clamped around the steering wheel. Nor had he looked at her since they’d climbed in his truck and headed across town.
He obviously couldn’t stand the sight of her.
Might as well get this over with. She reached for the door.
“Hold up.” He shifted in the seat to face her.
Sarah paused with her hand resting on the chilly metal handle. “I’ll tell him everything. I promise.”
She just wanted this over with. She’d pick up whatever remained of her life once she’d told the detective what she knew. If there was anything left to pick up.
“No. You won’t,” Brett’s voice was flat. Tight. His lips pressed into a thin, white line.
A spurt of anger struck, but it died almost instantly. She hadn’t been exactly forthcoming until recently. She couldn’t blame him for doubting her.
“I didn’t tell Rio everything you told me last night. We’re going to wait to tell them the rest until we find Mitch. For now, just stick to what Porter Hayes told you in the house.”
It took a second for his comment to sink in. He hadn’t told his friend, the police detective, everything?
“What didn’t you tell them?” she asked.
“I told them what they need to know…for now.” He glanced at her, his gaze vivid blue, but shuttered.
Okay… “Which is?”
“That when he held you captive, Porter Hayes told you Mitch and Sean were dealing in stolen weapons, but they’d had a falling