CHAPTER SIX
A truck door slammed and Ashley ran onto the porch. “Did you get the search warrants?”
Jason nodded. “Thanks to the work you’ve already done, it was fairly straight forward.” He looked over her shoulder and nodded at Matthew.
Ashley sat on the porch steps and took a deep breath. She’d been waiting all day for Jason to tell her if a judge was happy to sign the search warrants. “I didn’t think it would take so long.”
“It took longer because we wanted to make sure we had all the evidence verified.”
Matthew sat beside her. “Are you okay?”
She slid across the step, making more room for him. “It’s a little overwhelming knowing that something might finally happen to stop Congressman Welsh from doing this again.”
Jason handed her three sheets of paper. “I thought you might like a copy of the search warrants. If we find the missing money in anyone’s bank account, they’ll be spending a long time in prison.”
“When will you request the information from their banks?”
“It’s already been done. We expect a response sometime tomorrow.”
“And the warrants include non-disclosure orders?”
“That’s right. They won’t know what we’re doing. I’ve spoken with the detective in charge of the investigation. He can’t give you any data the police find, but he will answer your questions. If you want a quick turnaround of facts for your story, I’d start working on the questions now.”
Ashley had already begun a list. “Thank you for helping me. I couldn’t have done this without you.”
Jason shrugged. “It’s Matthew you should be thanking. If he hadn’t asked my boss for help, I wouldn’t be involved in your case.”
She smiled at Matthew. “I knew there was a reason I contacted you.”
“Don’t be too confident. It’s not over yet,” he sighed.
Jason seemed just as worried as Matthew. “If you hear from the police, let me know. Otherwise, I’ll give you a call once the bank investigation is complete. If you need me, contact me on my cell phone. You still have to be careful—keeping a low profile is the best thing you could do at the moment.”
“I will,” Ashley said quickly.
Matthew’s eyebrow rose. “That was easy.”
“I’m learning to listen.”
“There’s hope for you yet,” he muttered.
Jason grinned. “See you later. I’ll call you as soon as I hear anything.”
She watched Jason leave the ranch. There were still too many unanswered questions lurking around the edge of her story. The search warrants would answer most of them, but not all. “I should work on my story.”
“Will you stay here after it’s published?”
“No. I’ll fly back to New York as soon as it’s finished. We still don’t know who’s trying to intimidate me. Until we do, I don’t want to risk someone hurting your family. The longer I’m here, the easier it will be to find me.”
“You can’t stay in your apartment on your own.”
“I’ve been living there for three years,” Ashley said. “I’ll be okay.”
“I’m serious. You’re in more danger now than before you left.”
“I know. I’ll be careful.”
Matthew looked down at his hands. “I’ll miss you when you leave.”
