Cold as Ice

by Allison Brennan

  Erica nodded. Kate searched her; then motioned for her to sit down at the dining-room table. Steven searched the house first for weapons or anything dangerous, and when it was cleared, he stood behind Kate, who sat across from Erica.

  “Start from the beginning,” Kate said after reading Erica her rights.

  “Where?”

  “How about how you met Elise Hunt, when you started working for her, and why you quit your job. Then end with what you know about the prison break and who was involved other than Tim Sheffield.”

  With tears streaming down her face, Erica Anderson told Kate everything.

  Chapter Forty-one

  SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS

  It took hours to process the house that Elise Hunt had been living in. Two dead bodies, one critically injured, the room where Brad had been tortured, and of course both Nate and Aggie had to give statements to SAPD, the DEA, and the FBI. Brad had given a preliminary statement, but he was in serious condition and his statement was cut short.

  Fortunately, his statement would clear Nate on the drug charges. A more detailed investigation would have to take place, but Brad had overhead enough at the house to believe that Pablo, Clara, and Mitts Vasquez had stolen the drugs, and Pablo and Donny and planted them in Nate’s truck.

  But that didn’t clear Nate from violating his suspension.

  He was summoned to FBI headquarters late Saturday evening and wasn’t surprised to see ASAC Abigail Durant along with his boss, SSA Rachel Vaughn, sitting in Durant’s office.

  “Close the door, Agent Dunning,” Durant said.

  He did.

  “You can sit.”

  “I’d like to stand.” He always felt more comfortable standing at attention when giving an official statement. He didn’t quite know why, but it felt more authentic to him, and he felt far more comfortable—even though he was no longer in the military.

  “Nate—” Rachel began.

  “He can stand,” Durant said. “I read your statement. What did you not say?”

  “I don’t understand the question. I gave all information pertaining to how DEA Agent Jensen and I located the house and Brad Donnelly.”

  “Yes—I see that. You and Agent Jensen are clearly on the same page. Agent Jensen did the groundwork in identifying where the drugs came from, Agent Jensen located the house based on her sources and access to the DEA database, and Agent Jensen asked you to back her up.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Even though you were suspended.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Why didn’t you call in a team earlier? You had clear and convincing evidence that Donny Valeria, who you identified as the shooter in the Mitts Vasquez homicide, was at that house. You should have called in SWAT and had them handle it.”

  “We did call in SAPD as soon as we had eyes on Donny Valeria and they were putting together a team, but Agent Jensen and I felt that there was a more than a fifty percent chance that SSA Donnelly was on the property, and we wanted to keep an eye on the situation until SAPD SWAT could take over. As I stated in my report, I heard a scream from the property and I feared that someone was in immediate danger. I ordered Agent Jensen to call it in and I went to assess the danger.”

  “Without backup.”

  “A life was at risk.”

  “You didn’t know that.”

  “You didn’t hear the screams,” Nate said. He cleared his throat. “I apologize.” He’d overstepped, something he didn’t do. He was too well-trained to give more information than was asked, but Donnelly’s pain had been so clear Nate could have done nothing but what he had done.

  Durant didn’t say anything for a moment. Then she wrote in his file, closed it, and looked back at him. “I’m suspending you for two weeks without pay,” she said. “I know you won’t care, nor will you care that this incident of disobeying orders will be on your permanent record. The next time, Agent Dunning, you will be up in front of the Office of Professional Responsibility.”

  “Yes, ma’am. Thank you, ma’am.”

  “But this is only one part of this meeting. You were ordered to stay away from Agent Kincaid and the investigation into her husband.”

  “Ma’am, I was ordered not to investigate, I was not ordered to avoid Agent Kincaid.”

  “Are you telling me that this pursuit that you and Agent Jensen were on had nothing to do with Sean Rogan?”

  “We were investigating the source of the drugs that were planted in my truck. Because of the timing, as I stated in my report, Agent Jensen and I believed that the drugs were connected in some way to Agent Donnelly’s kidnapping.”

  “You were told not to get involved.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Nate,” Durant began, then sighed. “I know that Leo Proctor is at Lucy’s right now. I know that you have been staying there. You’re friends, I respect that, but I don’t think you grasp the seriousness of the situation that Lucy and her husband are in right now.”

  “May I speak freely?”

  “Yes.”

  “I proudly served in the Army for ten years. I knew that my squad had my back, and I had theirs. When I came to the FBI, I felt a kinship because we are structured to have the same kind of support system. Until now. No one, other than Leo, has reached out to Lucy or to me during this time. I understand that you both need to protect the agency, I respect that. But my team—men and women I need to count on to have my back when we’re in the field—have been silent. That is the environment that has been fostered here. Fear of retaliation, of suspension, I don’t know, but how can I trust any of these people if they can’t even support their own?

  “Sean is my best friend. Lucy is my partner. Their son is in danger. I don’t have to tell you that this arrest and Sean’s subsequent kidnapping—”

  “Prison break,” Rachel said.

  “Kidnapping,” Nate repeated, “coupled with his brother being lured down to Mexico has left a young kid vulnerable. Leo offered to help and protect Jesse Rogan so I could get to the bottom of the planted drugs. I’m not going to apologize for standing by my partner or my friends in the darkest time of their lives.”

  Durant looked him in the eye, but Rachel didn’t. That bothered him. But Durant said, “I respect that, Nate. But I don’t think you understand the gravity of the situation that Sean Rogan is in. He’s now wanted for two murders—Mona Hill and a corrections officer. He is considered a fugitive. You may be right—he may be innocent—but that still doesn’t discount that there is evidence enough for both murders to keep him in custody. And when he’s apprehended, you’re going to have to accept that you cannot use this agency to assist him in any way. What you do on your personal time is your business, but if it comes back on the FBI there will be consequences over and above a two-week suspension. Do you understand?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “You may go.”

  Nate walked out. He didn’t feel good about the conversation, but he didn’t regret anything he’d said.

  He drove immediately to Lucy’s house. He glared at the SAPD vehicle still parked out front, but it wasn’t their fault. They were doing their job.

  Didn’t make him feel any better about what was going on and that Sean was in such trouble.

  Bandit greeted him as soon as he walked in and he hugged the dog. It helped calm him down.

  Leo walked out from the kitchen. “I made dinner for Jess and me. There’s plenty left. Spaghetti and meatballs.”

  “Thank you,” he said automatically.

  “Do you want to talk?”

  Nate shook his head, got up from his squat, but kept his hand on Bandit’s head, scratching his ears. “Thank you for being here for Jess.”

  “And for you, and for Lucy. I spoke to Jack Kincaid and I brought in a couple people to keep an eye on the place. There’s confirmation that Jesse was a target yesterday, but they don’t believe he still is. The patrol is just a precaution. Jack talked to Jesse, he was pretty blunt.”

 
; “Is the kid okay?”

  “I think so, but he’ll be glad to see you.”

  The house alarm beeped once. Nate looked at the security panel and saw Aggie walking up the front path. She looked exhausted but determined. He opened the door.

  “You okay?”

  “Suspended for a week for not informing my supervisor of my actions, but it could have been worse. Brad would be dead if we hadn’t acted when we did so I’ll take the suspension and sleep really well tonight.”

  Leo left, and Nate checked on Jesse. They talked for a bit, which was good for both of them.

  It reminded Nate that he would do everything he’d done all over again, no regrets.

  He went back downstairs to the kitchen, where Aggie had warmed up the food Leo cooked earlier. “I’m starving, I hope you don’t mind.”

  Aggie was always hungry. “Not at all.”

  They sat down and Nate felt … comfortable. Aggie was comfortable to be around. She had grown on him, and he liked her.

  Plus, she was cute.

  They ate, and Aggie said, “Have you heard from Lucy? Do they know where Sean is? How he is? I can’t seem to get any information.”

  “Lucy texted me that she had a lead and would call later. She has a good team with her in Houston right now, my job is to make sure that Jesse stays safe.”

  “I went to see Brad at the hospital. I wasn’t supposed to—but after I was reamed by Salter, I just wanted to make sure he was okay.”

  “Did they let you in to see him?”

  She had a sly smile on her face. “Not exactly. But I saw him for like two minutes.” Now she frowned. “He was sleeping, on painkillers. I read his chart. That little bitch tortured him. There were cuts all over his back. She branded him. He’d been naked like that for God knows how long. Burn marks on his arms and legs. A cut on his face. His body temperature was dangerously low. Two broken ribs. A skull fracture and concussion. They only had him for thirty hours but he would have been dead if they had him much longer.”

  “That was their plan, Aggie.”

  She cleared their plates, rinsed them. She was working through something; Nate remained silent. He went into the freezer and found Lucy’s stash of chocolate ice cream. He dished up two bowls.

  “Hey,” he finally said as she scrubbed a pot that was clearly already clean.

  She glanced over at him.

  He pushed a bowl toward her spot at the island. “Ice cream.”

  She turned off the water and came over. “I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t apologize.”

  “I’m angry.”

  “I know.”

  “Thank you.”

  “No thanks.”

  “No, seriously, you saved my life. I wasn’t thinking when I went after Elise. It was like all my training evaporated and I just wanted to stop her. I was so angry; I didn’t see all the ways it could go wrong.”

  Nate put his hands on Aggie’s shoulders. He felt a jolt, something he wasn’t expecting. He said, “Your instincts are solid, Aggie. You need more training. I can help with that, if you want.”

  She looked up at him, her head tilted to the side, and then Nate kissed her.

  He shouldn’t have. He shouldn’t kiss anyone; he wasn’t relationship material. Too many demons battling inside him. And Aggie was the type of girl who was relationship material, not a casual fling.

  But he wanted to kiss her, so he did.

  She returned his kiss, wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him in. He picked her up and placed her on the island so he could kiss her face to face, without bending down.

  A small moan escaped her throat and his body went into overdrive.

  He pulled back. Stared at her.

  “What?” she said, breathless.

  “Not now.”

  “I like you, Nate.”

  “I like you. A lot. But I can’t tonight—not when I have a responsibility. I can’t afford to be distracted.” He touched her hair. It was soft and messy and he couldn’t wait to take her to bed.

  Just not tonight.

  She didn’t say anything. He kissed her again, so she would know that this wasn’t about her, this was him. He took his responsibilities very seriously, and right now protecting Jesse was his job. Taking Aggie to bed—something he really wanted to do—could wait.

  And sometimes, waiting made the reward ten times better.

  “You’re one of a kind, Nate Dunning,” she said with a smile. “Let’s eat that ice cream before it melts.”

  Chapter Forty-two

  OUTSIDE MONTEMORELOS, MEXICO

  Talking to Megan grounded Jack, reminded him to be safe because he had someone he loved to go home to. Something he needed while he and Kane made camp for the night.

  Megan explained Lucy’s theory that Senator Jonathan Paxton was behind the prison break, though she was skeptical.

  “Lucy hopes she can get Thompson to slip up,” Megan said.

  “When are you talking to him?” he asked.

  “We’re waiting for him to be brought to the interview room. Lots of hoops to jump through.”

  “Bureaucracy,” he grumbled.

  “Is everything about Paxton true? I mean, I know Lucy used to work for him, and that he was behind the vigilante group that was taking out sex offenders, but I didn’t realize that Lucy looks like his daughter.”

  “Everything Lucy said is accurate, and more. I confronted him once and to my face he called Lucy Monique. That’s his dead daughter. I’ve seen pictures, they do look alike, not identical, but enough where people would mistake them as sisters. But remember—Monique was killed before Lucy was born. Paxton grieved, which I understand, but he turned his grief into rage, anger, and retribution. He was obsessed with Lucy and if he’s behind this, there’s something we’re missing. I don’t trust Paxton, but I can’t see him hurting Lucy.”

  “How is what’s happening here connected to you and Kane down there?” Megan asked. “What could Paxton benefit from this?”

  “I don’t know,” Jack admitted. “And I don’t understand why Paxton would work with someone like Jimmy Hunt. Hunt was the type of predator Paxton would put on his own hit list.”

  “Be careful, Jack. Both you and Kane.”

  “We are. Love you, Megan.”

  He ended the call and Kane joined him outside. Jack relayed everything he’d learned from Megan, then said, “What would Jonathan Paxton want with you, Kane? Why would he orchestrate this … trap?”

  “Isn’t Paxton on some sort of FBI watch list?” Kane asked.

  “Yes. He was forced to resign, but the reasons were kept under wraps. Having a sitting senator exposed as the leader of a vigilante group would have had serious repercussions.”

  “I think the question to ask is, why did Paxton want Hunt to help him? To what benefit?”

  Jack thought about that. “I don’t know. Paxton would have the resources to frame Sean—if that’s what this is about. Paxton would have the resources to set you up as well.”

  “But Paxton isn’t a criminal.”

  “I beg to differ.”

  “What I mean is, his people believe in a cause—they aren’t going to be gangbangers and drug traffickers or gun runners. They’re killers, but they believe they’re doing it for a noble cause.”

  “So you think he needs Hunt’s network, his people.”

  “Exactly.”

  “I ask again: why frame Sean?”

  Kane didn’t have an answer. Instead he said, “Let’s assume that Paxton needed Hunt’s help for something. In exchange, Paxton gave him the resources to set me up, to frame Sean, to kidnap Donnelly. Sean helped the FBI seize Hunt’s money; I killed Hunt’s son; Donnelly killed Hunt’s niece.”

  “It’s all about Hunt’s retribution,” Jack said. “Still doesn’t tell us why Paxton would work with him.”

  Kane concurred. “Why the fuck would Paxton care? I’m not seeing the connection.”

  Neither did Jack. Except … “Paxton
wants Sean.”

  “Why? He frames him for murder then breaks him out of prison? That’s a dumbass thing to do. A lot of things have to go right for it to work.”

  “But they did go right.”

  “He wouldn’t need Hunt for that. Why would Paxton help Hunt take out his enemies? What does Hunt have that Paxton wants?”

  That was an excellent question. Jack didn’t know.

  “And Hunt’s son was a fucking predator. He raped dozens of women. Killed many of them. If Paxton knows that—why would he help him?”

  Again, Jack couldn’t answer that.

  “Something doesn’t add up,” Jack said. “Hunt hasn’t gotten back to Blair. Do you think he figured out Blair doesn’t have you in his control anymore?”

  “Possible, but unlikely,” Kane said.

  “I have an idea,” Jack said. “We go on the offensive. We don’t wait for Hunt to contact Blair; we go to Hunt.”

  “Blair claims he doesn’t know where he was supposed to bring me, that he’ll be told when and where when Hunt’s on his way south.”

  “I have an idea there, too. Give me Blair’s phone.”

  Kane did.

  Jack read through a bunch of Blair’s messages to get a feeling for how he communicated, then he wrote: Situation hot here, have to move ASAP or cut him loose. Need safe house.

  It took several minutes, but Hunt replied.

  My place in Ebano. Portia is there. Secure the cargo and wait for my arrival.

  Jack showed the message to Kane.

  “That’s not far,” Kane said. “Not even an hour, driving.”

  “Girlfriend? Associate?”

  “Blair knows.”

  “Can we trust him?”

  “He wants to live,” Kane said. “I’ll know if he’s lying.”

  Chapter Forty-three

  MONTGOMERY, TEXAS

  Sean forced himself not to react when he saw Paxton. The former senator had aged greatly in the two and a half years since Sean had last seen him. His age showed. The loss of everything. His career. His reputation. He had been banished to upstate New York, where he was from, lucky that he wasn’t in prison … but probably thinking he deserved a medal rather than having his title, his reputation, stripped from him.