he'd interacted with this woman, she'd been open, honest, and not a pushover. He could also tell that she'd earned her position, and would do nothing to jeopardize it, and that left a big question hanging between them.
"Why are you really here, Alex?"
She delayed her answer with a sip of her own drink. "A few months ago, I was handed a case that's been subtly active for eight years, but still remained unsolved. I got that case, Jason, in March. Some rogue agent was all but demanding CI agreements for his friends, and some of those included legal protection for cyber crimes. Someone was going to take the fall for this, and it seems I'm the woman who got lucky. I also approved your request. The next week, we began to see progress. In the last few months, arrests have been made. The group is now broken and on its last legs, and I'm getting pats on the back from the top brass for a case that was supposed to bury me."
"So we go down together, huh?" he asked.
She nodded. "And here's the thing you need to know. I don't like the fucking rules either. Sometimes, the ends do justify the means, and in two seconds in that room, I saw enough to realize that those people will move mountains for you. They respect Bradley, but they don't work for him. They work for you, Agent Raige."
"Cynister," he corrected. "They work for a gamer named Cynister who just happens to be an FBI agent. They're also kinda like a rabid dog. Keep your arms and legs inside the ride at all times, because they will bite if you push too hard. They respect you more if you bite back."
"I can do that," she agreed. "Granted, I'm really more of the Silk type and not the Eternal Combat type, but I play just enough to know why everyone loves it so much." Then she smiled and tipped her head at his left hand. "And before I forget, congratulations. You'll have to introduce me to your wife."
Jason dropped his head and chuckled. "She's pregnant, Alex. Told me on our wedding night."
"This a good thing?"
"Very," he promised. "I gotta catch this guy, because I do not want my kid to grow up in a world where the bad guys get away with it."
"I'm here to help in any way I can," she assured him.
Chapter 50
Thursday night, they all finally called it quits and carried their computers down to the gaming hall. Riley wasn't shocked at all to see that Logan had put them all together, even though they hadn't talked about it. Being close meant it was easier to keep an eye on everyone, and that was going to be important this time.
But when they went back upstairs, Chance had "found" a few laptops in his SUV. New ones that had the Deviant games logo on them. Sadly, he didn't have enough for everyone, but it meant they still had a little processing power between rounds. So, for the first time since she'd become a part of the PLG circuit, Riley skipped the pre-party. Instead, she and their crew tried to find just a bit more information before they finally gave up and called it a night.
Bright and early Friday morning, she and Logan made their way down to the gaming hall. There was an agreement that no one in their group would go anywhere alone, and the extra developers from Deviant who'd shown up to run the booth swore they were only a text away. One person could babysit that thing if necessary. So, they'd all made groups - since Rhaven wasn't in a couple - and would get there when they did. Riley intended to be first.
She wasn't, but the man sitting at his computer checking his settings was the one person who wasn't officially with their group. His shoulders were slumped, his lean back curled as he typed. Riley recognized him immediately.
"Dread!" she breathed, hurrying up to hug him from behind. "Hey, I completely forgot that you were coming!"
He pressed his hand over her arms. "I was wondering what happened to everyone. I feel like I've been blackballed."
She dropped into her chair, which was right beside him. "No. Promise. Um, let me catch you up. KoG is being torn apart; they got the second in charge, but the main guy is going to be in this room today. Cynister and Zara got married." Then she grinned. "So Void and I