Chapter 16
“You ready for this, Chap?” Sutton’s007accent was in full force.
“You better believe it,” Jace assured from the sales counter at the shop. He glanced over the empty store aisles. In the far corner, visible only through a circular mounted mirror, Amy restocked shelves. She was wearing a ball cap today, a throwback to how she looked in high school. And how she’d shown up on his doorstep on graduation night.
“We’re at the auto parts shop now,” Jace said. “Got about 30 minutes before we open.”
“Hey, Burns, do they have nice sound systems there?” Blaine asked, letting him know he’d joined the call. “I blew mine out yesterday.”
“Shut up, Hammerton,” Maddox said with a laugh. “He’s not there to hook you up with speakers.”
“Maybe he could hook usallup with sound systems,” Blaine replied. “Sutton held out on us in that department.”
Jace felt the stiff set of his shoulders soften as the guys put in their two cents. They always had a way of putting him at ease.
“Let’s negotiate sound systems at a later date, shall we?” Sutton said, gaining the floor once more. “Baron has some game-changing intel for us.”
Jace liked the sound of that. He pushed his laptop to the side and snatched his notebook and pen. His pulse raced as a chant ran through his mind.Please, please, please. Say you found the ringleader. Or a good covert profile we can use. Anything that would shift their status from pursued to pursuer.
“All right, guys.” Baron cleared his throat. “We’ve been looking into one of the profiles on the site operating under the nameTaker104.He posted a photo of Ms. Nelson in the grocery store, which proved they had access to her, essentially, so bidders would take them seriously.”
Jace’s shoulders tightened. So far, so good.
“Logan was able to break into the guy’s account,” Baron continued, “where he uncovered the name of a dealer the ring has worked with before. His name’s Albert Volkoff. Turns out this guy has illegal access to a private ocean port on the East Coast. He uses it in trade.”
“That makes sense,” Blaine said. After all, the industry had a particular interest in shipping cargo out of the country.
“Here’s the biggest piece of intel we discovered,” Baron said. “Jace, are you sitting down?”
Jace shoved the barstool back and shot to a stand, his heart thundering clear into his ears. “Let’s hear it.”
“This Volkoff clown askedTaker104to shut out the other bidders. Seems he’s already trying to work out a trade.”
Jace clenched his teeth over a groan. It felt as if he’d been punched in the throat. A man on the East Coast—some scumbag who could shuttle her overseas without batting an eye—had his eye on Amy?
“Creed’s been tracking him, so I’ll let him take over. Creed?”
“Right here.” Creed cleared his throat. “The fact that we discovered this profile in time to intercede is nothing short of a miracle. The heavens are lighting our path, brothers.”
“You got that right,” Logan said.
Jace hadn’t opened his eyes yet. Kept them clutched as tight as his jaw while he waited for further details.
“Volkoff has lived out of the country most of his life. In fact, he was born in Russia, lived there until he was in his late twenties, and has since juggled between dwellings in Asia, Europe, and the United States.”
“I bet he’s filthy rich,” Maddox said.
“The man has enough money to make himself no more than a ghost if he chooses,” Sutton said. “But thanks to Creed, we’ve discovered he’s in New York City as we speak. We’ve got his location all the way down to his penthouse address.”
“Yes,” Jace bellowed with the slam of his fist.This is what they needed.
“Go Creed,” Maddox and Blaine cheered.
“You say he’s got illegal access to this port,” Jace said, “which means we’ve already got cause to put this guy away.”
“Yes,” Baron said softly. “As long as we can catch him.”
“I’ll fly out right now,” Jace spat. “I’ll put that scum in a chokehold he’ll never get out of.”
