that intimidating her would only shut her down. He leaned forward and set his hand on hers; she jumped and then fixed him with a wide-eyed stare. “We can’t afford to let this story leak, Roni. Lives are at stake. Can you understand that?”
It took her a moment, but she nodded. “Yeah. I understand. But I have a lot at stake too.” She frowned at him. “Besides, I already told you I wasn’t going to pursue the story. You’re the one who brought me here.”
“You’re dangerous to us,” Steele said. “Surely you can see that.”
“Just the fact that you know we’re here. That you were able to find us, is a huge issue,” Chrome added.
She glared at him. Which was funny. He was ruthless and intimidating as hell, but somehow she wasn’t cowed. “It’s not my fault your secret base isn’t as secret as you want it to be. If nothing else, you should take from this that you have some holes that need to be filled.”
And hell, she was right.
A sizzling silence swirled.
Steele folded his fingers and studied them as though he’d never seen them before. After a while he said in a low voice, “What did you mean when you said you have a lot at stake too?”
She blew out a breath. Something glimmered in her eyes. “Yes. I work for the Snoop. But not because I want to. The…publisher has something over me.”
“Something?”
She sighed. “My sister.”
A suspicion rippled in Sterling’s gut. A suspicion that she was playing them. She’d done it before. “Right,” he snapped, making his disbelief clear.
She glared at him. “You read my texts. Read all of them. He hasn’t exactly couched his threats. And while you’re scrolling through my phone, check my pictures. She’s there.”
“The girl in the wheelchair?”
Her throat worked. She nodded.
“Are you saying Morrow kidnapped your sister?”
“Not exactly.”
“Then what?”
“He’s…” She scrubbed her face. “He’s my stepfather. When my mom died, he got custody of Annabelle. He’s been promising to sign it over to me, but he’s just been dangling it like a carrot. If I don’t feed Marcus something, he’ll…” Her words choked off and she dropped her gaze.
“He’ll what?” For the first time in this interrogation, Steele’s tone was gentle.
Her expression firmed. Her eyes blazed. “He’ll cut me off.” The tears were real now, fat droplets tracking down her cheek. The sight made Sterling ache. Fuck. She could be lying…or not. His gut was leaning toward not. There was far too much anguish in her tone. “He’s done it before. Taken her away to God knows where. Not letting me see her for months. He really is an ass.”
“It seems a little far-fetched that he would go to such lengths to secure your services as a reporter,” Chrome said. “There are thousands of reporters in the world, no doubt itching to work for the Snoop.”
Roni sniffed. “I’m very good. I found you, didn’t I? Besides, it goes deeper than that. He needs to keep me under his thumb because of the money.”
“The money?”
“My mom’s estate. According to her will, Marcus got a third. He’s blown through that. Now he’s working on Annabelle’s share and then I’m sure he’ll dip into mine. Aside from that…I know things about him.”
“What kinds of things?”
“Look, you don’t get where he is by not making shady deals. He has…friends in low places.”
Steele’s brow darkened. “What kinds of friends?”
“All kinds. He has politicians in his pocket, drug dealers, gang members. You name it.”
“And how do you know all this?”
She shrugged. “I might have hacked his computer.”
“His computer…” Steele shot Chrome a speaking glance. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”
Sure as hell, they were all thinking the same thing. If Morrow was going to investigate them, they were going to investigate him right the fuck back. And maybe they could find out where the original tip had come from.
Chrome nodded. “Let’s get Ant on it.” Ant was their resident computer genius. There was nothing Ant couldn’t hack. Nothing.
They both stood; their chairs scraped on the floor.
“And in the meantime?” Sterling asked.
“In the meantime,” Steele said to Roni. “We’re going to have to hold you here.”
Sterling frowned. The holding cell was bleak. There was a hard cot and a stony pillow. And bars. She wouldn’t do well behind bars, he suspected. “I can watch her. Take her to my place?”
But Steele’s expression was adamant. He shook his head. “Until we know if she’s telling the truth, she’s staying down here.” He said it in a tone that made it