no faith in the authorities. That'll put KoG off, because we all know that most laws don't apply to the internet. That includes Dez - er, Destiny Pierce. For her to suddenly act like the FBI is going to save the day? It'll cause problems."
"Then I'll pass that up the chain," Agent Dalton decided. "Just know that you suddenly got a lot of people watching you now, Agent Raige. Don't fuck this up."
"People will die if I do," Jason told him. "Not in the habit of letting that happen, sir. We'll update you when we're in Ohio."
"Good luck," Agent Dalton told the men as they left. It actually sounded like he meant it.
Chapter 2
The pair made their way back to the SUV and got in without a word. The problem was that Bradley didn't turn to head out of the city. Instead, he aimed for downtown. Jason just dropped his head and let out a heavy sigh.
"What are we doing?" he asked.
"Stopping by my place so I can grab a go bag," Bradley explained. "It's a day's drive to Ohio. We could fly, but that makes it harder to explain why Zara's coming with us."
"What?" Jason was definitely confused now.
"She knows everyone at Deviant Games, right?" Bradley glanced over and lifted a brow. "She already knows what's going on. If nothing else, she can help you with Crysis. And who knows, maybe that girl will have a few good ideas. Then there's the little part about keeping her from killing you for bailing on the wedding planning."
"Shit," Jason groaned. "It's not going to be a big deal. We're getting married in Vegas!"
"It's still her wedding," Bradley pointed out. "Man, you gotta think of colors and flowers and invitations and shit."
"Invitations are all virtual," Jason said. "We already decided on that. I got her ring too. I mean, she thinks she's keeping the one I bought from that convention booth, so don't give me away?"
"Never," Bradley promised. "Maid of honor?"
"Murder."
That made Bradley laugh. "Best man?"
Jason reached up to loosen his tie. "Riley, but I was hoping you'd stand with me too."
"Always," Bradley promised. "How about I carry the rings, huh? I mean, probably safer that way. Besides, I have a feeling Crysis would help me out with that."
At the sound of his name, the dog lifted his head off the back seat. Jason twisted so he could pet the mutt. "You're a good boy, bud. Just talking about you, not to you." Then he asked, "So, we staying in the city tonight? Just wondering if I need to tell Zara that I won't make it home."
"Nah," Bradley said. "I figure we can crash at your place and head out from there. No need to double back, and we both know you're already missing your girl."
"I am not that bad," Jason insisted.
"Should be," Bradley told him. "When I first met Bethany, wild horses couldn't drag me away. Granted, I also wasn't a field agent at the time, so there's that. Now, with her job, she's busy more often than I am."
Jason turned to face the front again, then sank into his seat to get comfortable. "Sorry I haven't closed this yet. You deserve more time to be home with your family."
"You have busted your balls on this case," Bradley assured him. "Robert Hunter is also a family friend. His wife and mine work for the same company, and I promised them I'd take care of this. Jason, I knew this case was impossible from the start. I figured we'd stick our noses in it, scare the hackers off, and that would be it. I never expected things to escalate to you shooting a guy - let alone everything that's come after. I brought you onto this because I needed your tech skills."
"And got stuck with me because of it," Jason reminded him.
"Not sorry for that part," Bradley promised. "You're a good agent, Jason. A damned good one. No, you don't play by the rules. You make the rules play for you, and believe it or not, I'm ok with that. The truth is that I wish I could think that way, and I've been trying to learn a bit from you. I also know that if it wasn't for you, I'd be working on Nigerian scammers or something equally boring." He paused, and for a moment, Jason was sure Bradley was done talking, until he added, "I want to catch these fuckers too."