didn’t deserve to live, and he had no problem with pest control.
“The Ravelino link is me and the picture I found in Juan’s room.”
All eyes turned to Astrid.
Jack cocked his head. “You think this all goes back to that first mission?”
“Yes, it has to. I was looking for my sister, and Iago and his men show up, then my sister makes an appearance.”
“That makes sense.”
Alex sipped his espresso as he nodded his agreement. “What about Frederick though? He links to the Ravelino cartel but how does he know about your sister?”
Astrid got up and began to pace as she bit on her thumbnail, before spinning to face them. “What if he has no idea about Adeline?”
Liam crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned against the desk. “I don’t follow.”
“Okay, let me show you.” Astrid grabbed a black marker and went to the whiteboard they used for formation planning. Flipping to a clean page, she wrote down Ravelino, Frederick, and Adeline at the top and then her name, CIA, and Eidolon at the bottom.
“Okay, so Frederick links to you and Ravelino.” She drew in the lines as she spoke. “I link to Ravelino, you, the CIA, and Adeline. Adeline links to me, Ravelino, and the CIA.” She kept drawing until it was a tangled web and he was frowning, a headache forming in the back of his eyes at the thought of his father.
“I think Frederick went to Ravelino purely because he found a link to me and my failed mission. By attacking me, he destabilises you.”
Gunner smoothed a hand over his long hair, his hatred for Frederick almost as strong as Jack’s over what he’d done to him. “So, you don’t think he knows about Adeline?”
“No.”
“That makes sense. He never mentioned any ties to the CIA or the cartel, and I’m sure he would’ve utilised both before now if he had them.”
“So, Frederick alerted the cartel to where we were in the hope they would attack Astrid and force us onto the back foot?” Jack was catching up to her thought process now.
She beamed at him. “Yes.”
“Okay, I get that but why would that force Adeline out of hiding and what does she want?”
“That I don’t know yet. I do know she wanted me to see her but not be able to follow her, which was why she picked that place and time.”
Jack glanced at Alex. “Have Shadow find out from Iago if this lines up. I want to know how he found Astrid and what he knows.”
Astrid raised a brow. “Shadow?”
Jack and his team were the only people who knew about Shadow Elite and he needed it to stay that way. A team like the one he’d assembled needed to work in total darkness to function the way he needed them to. Fortis and Zenobi couldn’t know about them, but she was there, and if they were going to create a life together he’d have to be honest with her, even if that meant being honest about the fact he couldn’t tell her.
“Can we talk about this later?”
“Yes, of course. Or not at all if that’s better for my mental health.”
Jack shook his head. “No, we’ll talk. Just not now.”
“Whatever you need.”
“Okay, back to the subject at hand. Let’s operate on the premise that Frederick is still playing his own agenda and Ravelino isn’t an issue for the moment. Do we have any sightings of him anywhere?”
“No, he’s laying low, but we’ll find him. I have every programme known to man, and a lot that aren’t, running, and they’ll flag any sighting or mention of his name.”
Lopez was watching Astrid again, and Jack didn’t like it. He needed to find out what the issue was if there was one. They’d all been working around the clock the last week and needed to get some sleep. “Okay, everyone, tonight I want you to get some sleep and let Fortis handle things. People are starting to look burned out, and that means mistakes we can’t afford.”
Blake chuckled. “Sleep, Jack? Is that what we’re calling it now?”
“Yeah, well, enjoy it while you can because I hear you won’t be having much in your future.”
Blake gave him the finger and Astrid frowned as she looked between the men. “No way! Is Pax pregnant?”
Blake glared at Jack. “Thanks, asshole.”
Jack shrugged but remained silent.
“Yes, she is, but it’s early days, so keep your mouth shut about it.”
“Blake, watch how you speak to her.” He loved Blake like a brother, but he wouldn’t tolerate