Mind of Danger (Body of Danger #3) - Sidney Bristol Page 0,35

office. This whole time he’d known how damn good Aegis Group people were, but he hadn’t lumped himself in with them. But he was now. They were the kind of people who came through for those who truly needed it. It was Elias’ own shortcomings that hadn’t allowed him to see himself as part of that team. But Jo? Jo didn’t know what it was like to be part of something like this, but she was about to find out.

THURSDAY. EAGLE TECH, Seattle, Washington.

Isaac clenched his jaw harder. It was the only movement he could make that didn’t give him a reminder that he was practically in prison. They’d left him here, handcuffed to the steel table for what felt like days.

He should have slipped away in that moment before the FBI and cops realized he wasn’t technically with Jo. She and Giovanni had manipulated him into this situation, and it was Isaac’s ass on the line.

The cuffs securing his wrists jangled. He squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath.

Once again the chain rattled with his movements.

Damn her.

And damn Giovanni.

How was Isaac going to get out of this?

The door to his temporary cell opened and Jo stepped in, followed by a red haired man Isaac had seen outside of Eagle Tech.

“What do you want?” he snapped before he could think better of it.

“To make you a deal,” Jo said.

Isaac narrowed his gaze.

There was a trick in this, there always was.

She pulled out one of the chairs across from him and sat down. The man remained standing behind her, near the door.

“Where’s your boy toy?” Isaac asked.

“Elias is in the hall.”

“Surprised he’d let you out of his sight.”

She arched a brow at him. “You want to talk about me right now?”

Isaac shrugged.

“Here’s the deal, right now you are on the hook for some hefty charges. But, you and I both know you’re a small fish in this pond—”

“You want me to roll over on Giovanni.” Isaac grimaced. Yeah, he’d known this was coming.

“Will you?” she asked.

He stared off at the wall to his right.

Giovanni had given Isaac every positive opportunity in life possible. He’d gone from poverty to living a comfortable life. But the thing about this lifestyle? They all knew it could end in an instant. Giovanni wouldn’t hesitate to hang Isaac out if it suited his own means. That was, after all, how Isaac had wound up in this situation.

They’d all known there was a fed in their midst. They just hadn’t been fast enough to get her before she got him.

These weren’t the old days where no one snitched. That had ended before Isaac was born. Now, all he could do was look out for his own skin.

“Yeah. Okay. Whatever. What do you need me to do?”

He could very well be signing his life away. If Giovanni caught Isaac in this, he’d die. No questions about it. His loyalty wasn’t worth his life, not when it was a one-way street.

Giovanni had messed up, and Isaac wasn’t going to prison for the man.

Besides, maybe there was still a way to turn this around in his favor. If he went along with whatever mad plan Jo had in mind, maybe he could get off free and clear. And if he couldn’t, well, maybe he could escape another way.

8.

Thursday. Hotel, Seattle, Washington.

Marjorie sat cross-legged on Elias’ bed, staring at the closed bathroom door. No one had bothered taking the nifty digital lock breaking device from her. She hadn’t thought twice about using it on his hotel room, but trespassing on his shower felt wrong. Even after the intimacy they’d shared.

They’d barely gotten a chance to speak all afternoon and evening other than those few moments at the office. There was too much to do and no time to do it. And yet she knew she needed to see and talk and be with Elias. It was as much a need as eating or breathing.

Her head was still spinning from so much activity. This whole job had felt mired in the mud, barely inching forward for so damn long. Now they were sprinting, and she didn’t know if she could keep up. Not without Elias.

She hadn’t seen him in ages, and in a day he’d become crucial.

Which was why she needed to talk him into staying in Seattle.

Yes, he’d had her back and if it wasn’t for him, she might very well be dead. But she also knew this had to take a toll on him. Elias was the kind