One-Knight Stand (White Knights #3) - Julie Moffett Page 0,20
an occasional drive-by, that’s the best we can do. I’ve heard the eldest daughter is out of the country, coincidentally in Brazil.”
“No worries on that front. She’s here on assignment at the same place I am. She’ll be protected as long as I’m here.”
“Well, that’s helpful, if unexpected, news. What do you think our next move should be?”
“We have no move at this point. The ball is in his court. We’ve done what we can. The next move is his.”
Candace liked that about Slash. Brief and to the point. “How can you be sure he’ll even make a move if he doesn’t trust us?”
“He has to trust someone. Personally, I think he already knows who he’s after and has a plan. Now, we just have to wait and see what role, if any, he wants us to play in it.”
After Candace hung up the phone, she sat back in her chair, thinking. This was a delicate situation, especially if there was an insider threat, as she suspected. But Slash had gotten the message across: until the Hidden Avenger made his move, there was nothing they could do but wait.
She looked down in surprise as her phone pinged with a text. Her heart beating fast, she pulled it up and read.
You broke faith with me.
Relief flooded her. It had worked! As suspected, Ethan had been monitoring her calls. She’d never expected him to respond so quickly but was grateful that he had.
I’m so sorry. I had no idea your daughter was in danger. She’s safe at UTOP now, and we’ve been monitoring your wife the best we can.
His reply came a minute later.
That doesn’t make me feel any better. He will make another move soon. You’ve put my family in jeopardy. Their protection was supposed to be part of the deal with the Department of Justice, which you sabotaged.
Slash had been right. Ethan Sinclair had suspected someone in the NSA, and now his only question had to be whether he believed she was working with that person or not. That would drive how much he would bring them into the situation. The ball was totally in his court.
She typed a response quickly.
Who will make a move soon? Who is he? I need you to name names. I can’t help you if you don’t tell me who you suspect is working against you. And I didn’t sabotage the deal at the DOJ. That was out of my hands. I’m working to revive that, a lot more quietly this time around. What can I do to restore your trust?
He didn’t respond right away, which she hoped meant he was weighing the sincerity of her words.
Investigate J. P. Lando’s death. Make it a singular effort (just you), bring me your findings, and then we’ll talk. You have twenty-four hours.
He provided an anonymous email address where she could contact him, an address she knew he’d be monitoring for suspicious activity. But, thank God, at least their communication was back on.
It was a huge risk moving this out of the NSA, but if there were dishonest cells in the agency, she didn’t want to put him at further risk. She wasn’t going to do anything that would cause him to mistrust her, so she’d do exactly what she said she’d do—investigate on her own and get back to him as soon as possible.
She responded immediately.
I’m on it. It’s a priority, and so are you. I mean it.
He didn’t respond.
Chapter Twelve
ISAAC REMINGTON
The traffic on the Baltimore-Washington Parkway had all but slowed to a crawl when the burner phone in his coat pocket rang. He fished it out and answered it.
“Hello?”
“It’s me. The bird has landed. Went off without a hitch.”
“Excellent.” Isaac’s spirits soared. The endgame was so close. “Now, we wait for our friend to contact us.”
“Have you figured that out? How will he know what’s happened?”
“The daughter will alert him.”
“The youngest one? How will she do that?”
“I presume she has a way to contact him. If she doesn’t, once she discovers her mom is missing, she’ll find a way. She’s proven to be quite resourceful at that.”
“I hope you’re right and that she acts quickly. It’s not comfortable sitting on a hot package. I’m still not sure why didn’t we just trash the place and make it apparent that she was kidnapped. If it was in the news, Sinclair would know who had her.”
Isaac sighed inwardly. He didn’t think he had to spell out everything for Sampson, but apparently he did.