Then Aisling’s cell rang.When she looked at it, her heart dropped.
Peyton.
She answered as Tamsin muted the TV.“Anseo, Walsh.”
“Can you talk?”he asked.
“Depends.I’m watching telly on the couch with Tam, but we’re alone.Havin’ a date night.”
“Sorry.This won’t take long.You can put me on speaker.”
Exchanging a glance with Tam, she did.“All right,” Aisling said.
“How are you doing, Tamsin?”he asked.
“Is this the call I’ve been dreading, where you summon her overseas for another lab raid, or something equally dangerous?”
“No, but it is work-related,” he said.
Tamsin snuggled closer to Aisling.“I love you, Peyton, but can I hate you now?”
He chuckled.“It’s all right, Tam.I don’t take it personally.”
“Did ye find another lab or something?”Aisling asked.
“No.As far as we know, it was the only one.We haven’t put paws on the money behind the lab yet, but we’re getting closer.We know who they are.Now it’s a matter of finding them.”
“Any news on who killed that cunt Dorland?”Aisling asked.
“No,” Peyton said.“And considering the message sent with his head, I’m inclined not to pursue it, as long as it doesn’t turn out to intersect with the source of the lab’s funding.I just wish we could nail down the merc team they were using.”
“What do you mean?”Tamsin asked.
“We still cannot figure out how your father found the safe house in the first place,” Peyton said.
“I had surveillance running on yer brothers,” Aisling added.“Had trackers on their cars.Garrison swears no one in his team revealed the location.”
“I’ve talked to them all personally,” Peyton said.“Multiple times.I am convinced the leak wasn’t from inside Trevor’s Enforcers.”
“That’s the mystery, innit?”Aisling said.“If we could figure that out, maybe we could run the tendrils backward and crush the head, if it’s still alive an’ kickin’.”
“We never went anywhere,” Tamsin said.“We never even went to the shops.Garrison or his men always took care of that, and we never even received the post.Anything meant for the house was sent to a secure box at one of Trevor’s businesses, sorted, and then eventually delivered to us.They were very careful.”
Peyton drummed his fingers on the desk.“What about repairmen or maintenance?Plumbers, electricians?HVAC techs?Gardeners?Is there anyone who might have done work at the safe house that we’ve missed talking to?”
“No, no one,” Tamsin said.“Once we returned from France, we traveled to the safe house in the dead of night and never once left the property afterward.Rupert didn’t even go anywhere.Maisie and I sometimes took walks around the grounds, and sometimes Rupert came with us, but the property was literally surrounded by forest that’s not open to the public.It’s private land.”
“What about hikers?”Aisling asked.“Did ye ever encounter any?”
“No.No part of the land was publicly dedicated, and it was clearly fenced and marked as private.Plus, the fences were monitored with sensors, and they had patrols.From when we arrived until…” She choked up.“Untilthatday, I never set foot off the grounds.Trevor and Elizabeth would come visit, but they drove themselves, and they always took precautions to make sure they weren’t followed.I never even went to the physician’s office.The nurse-midwife came out to me.”
“Wait a minute, love.”Aisling turned to look at her.“Ye told me about an ultrasound.Was that the nurse?”
“No, the tech came out separately.She drove a lorry with a portable unit, with one of Trevor’s men with her.They had an X-ray machine, too.But she was a wolf shifter, part of the pack.Trevor said she did work for the pack all the time.She usually works as a tech for a veterinarian.”
Before Aisling could vocalize her suspicions, Peyton spoke.“Let me talk to Trevor right now.I’ll call you back.Stay close to the phone.”The call ended.
“What is it?”Tamsin asked Aisling.“What’d I say?”
