Azlyn smiled.That image warmed something in her.But it didn’t fix the knot in her gut.
“Another one of my coworkers got hurt today,” she blurted out.
Zayn’s entire body stilled.“How?”
“Someone tried to hit him with a car.Danny was alert, thank God.He only ended up with a few bumps and scrapes.But—” she paused, adrenaline flooding her system again, “—he had a dash cam.And he got a good look at the driver.”
Zayn’s eyes narrowed.“And?”
“He recognized the guy.”Azlyn was pacing now, energy buzzing through her veins.“Before Griffin was born, I was looking into this black ops group called Nighthawk Services.At first, we thought it was just a money transfer company.You know, the kind that helps hide assets for shady clients.”
Zayn nodded slowly.“Let me guess—it’s actually a front company.”
“Exactly!The real business?Mercenary work.Former special forces guys, starting salaries at half a million.High-level contracts.Military-level ops with no government oversight.”
“Sounds familiar.”
“I thought they were behind the attacks on my team.I mean—it made sense, right?”She waved a hand.“Turns out, I was wrong.”
He raised an eyebrow.“Completely wrong?”
“Painfully wrong.”She ran a hand through her hair, mussing the curls even more than before.“The guy behind the wheel today wasn’t tied to Nighthawk.Danny recognized him from a different case.A school board bribery scandal we investigated last year.One of the school board members had been voting to approve a shady construction deal.We had the story almost ready to air—interviews, footage, legal review—but everything went on pause when I went into labor.”
Zayn rocked Griffin gently, but his gaze never left her.“So the episode never aired.”
“Right.I’m the one who verifies the details and signs off on the final edits.Olivia handled the interviews, but I did the heavy lifting behind the scenes, worked up the questions, ensured that the research was correct and liaised with our legal team.Because I was on maternity leave for three months, it never got finished.”Azlyn’s voice tightened.“And after she died, I didn’t have it in me to push it through.So it sat.”
“And now someone wants to make sure it never airs.”
“Exactly.”
Zayn’s jaw flexed.“What was the construction project for?”
Azlyn traced her finger along the edge of the polished table.“The school board member was working with a construction company to demolish all the schools in the district and rebuild them.Bigger buildings, new tech—full overhaul.”
Zayn frowned.“Were the schools in bad shape?”
She shook her head.“That’s what caught my attention initially.The high school building in the district was old, but the others were fairly new.Solid buildings.Modern layouts.Sure, they needed upgrades—but renovations would’ve cost ten million.The rebuild project?Three hundred million.”
Zayn let out a low whistle.“That’s a hell of a markup for unnecessary construction.Who would approve something like that?”
“People who’ve been bribed,” she said, rubbing her hands together as she started to pace.“I found pictures of several board members cozying up to the same guy at different social events.And no—I didn’t hack into anything private,” she added, raising a finger to cut off his unspoken question.“They posted the photos themselves.”
Zayn smirked, shifting his son in his arms.“Glad to know my wife isn’t a felon.”
She grinned.“Not officially.But, as I’ve said, I only use my skills for good.Mostly.”
He tilted his head.“Mostly?”
She shrugged.“There’s always a gray area when it comes to justice and online sleuthing.”
Zayn chuckled, but Azlyn’s expression grew serious again.“One of the board members also posted a picture of herself in front of her new Mercedes.She’s a retired teacher and the school board position is a volunteer gig, so that was another red flag.The team and I dug deeper—looked at the members’ finances—and sure enough, we found payments from the construction company to several board members and even the superintendent.”
Zayn’s eyes narrowed.“And that company stood to make what—thirty percent profit?”
“At least.Probably more.”She crossed her arms, jaw tight.“So they paid off the board to greenlight the demolition and new builds.”
“And now someone’s trying to take out your team to stop the story from airing?”
