“Tessa?” Zane hated what he was about to say, what he was about to do, but it had to happen. “I think you need to tell Ledbetter about our suspicions about Monteith.”
She dropped her head. “If I tell him, my career is over.”
Zane wanted to tell her she was wrong. And she might be. But she might be right.
“But the coincidences are too great not to make sure he’s aware of the full situation.” Tessa straightened. “Wish me luck.”
Before he could say a word to encourage her, she slipped away. Luke, Gil, Benjamin, and Jacob converged on him. “What’s going on?” Jacob asked.
When Zane told him where Tessa was headed, Jacob looked at them and said, “Gentlemen, if you’ll excuse me, I have an agent to defend.”
“Godspeed.” Benjamin clapped him on the back as he walked past them.
The four of them were left staring at each other. “Now what?”
Zane wanted to run up the stairs, hold Tessa’s hand while she bared her soul, and make sure Ledbetter treated her with respect, dignity, and professionalism. Then he wanted to personally deliver both Wendy and Tyson Monteith to the loving embrace of the Raleigh Sheriff’s Office Detention Facility. Not that Tessa wanted or needed him to do any of those things. She was more than capable of taking care of herself. She was also quite possibly the bravest woman he’d ever known. She was willing to not only face and conquer her demons, but when the consequences of the past came charging into the future, she tackled them with grace and dignity.
She would never see herself the way he saw her. And that was okay. He’d tell her every day how extraordinary she was.
“Earth to Zane?” Luke waved a hand in front of Zane’s face.
Zane pulled himself back to the present. “Now we do our jobs and wait to see what happens.” With that, they split up and kept busy doing everything from interviewing the guests who were ready to leave to making a run to the kitchen for bottles of water.
It was almost midnight when Tessa, Jacob, and Ledbetter came downstairs. Ledbetter nodded to Carmichael, who stood in the middle of the room and clapped his hands. “Ladies and gentlemen. It’s been a glorious evening, but our friends in the Secret Service and the other law enforcement branches would love to get home to their families, and they can’t do that until everyone else goes home!” He said it in such a way that the majority of the people chuckled and moved to gather purses and suit jackets from where they’d been draped over chairs. “Thank you for coming!”
As Zane watched, Ledbetter walked to the corner where the threeM’s stood talking, along with their wives. He couldn’t hear what was said, but a few moments later, the wives were being escorted out. The men were being led toward a small sitting room at the back of the home. Ledbetter caught Zane’s eye and jerked his head in a “come on” gesture. Zane didn’t wait to be told twice.
“Are you prepared to back up what Agent Reed told me?” Ledbetter asked.
Zane answered without hesitation. “Yes, sir.”
“What if she lied?”
“She didn’t.”
Ledbetter rolled his eyes. “Are you and she a couple?”
“Yes.”
“Does she know that?”
“Before this week? No. But as of this week, yes.”
Ledbetter huffed, but there was amusement in the sound. “Lucky for you, I’m a romantic.”
Zane was unable to hide his shock at that statement. “I had no idea, sir.”
Ledbetter spoke with a touch of arrogance. “I’m single-handedly responsible for at least ten happy marriages. When you’re ready to propose, come talk to me. You can’t just get down on one knee. That’s not how it’s done anymore. And if you think you have a chance with Special Agent Reed, you’re going to have to up your game and plan to keep it elevated for the next sixty years.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“Good. Now, let’s go see if we can make the world a better place by taking some of the vermin out of circulation for a while.”
TESSASTOODat the back of the room.
She stared hard at Monteith when he entered, but no matter how much she tried, she couldn’t remember anything about him. But when he caught her staring, his face went slack and his stride faltered. Every bit of his body language screamed that he did not want to get anywhere near her.
Jacob edged a fraction closer to her. His lips barely moved as he said, “Funny. He doesn’t look happy to see you.”
