“Yes.”
Anticipation filtered through Brigid’s veins. “Well, how about you tell me? Or you can come to the office. I’m the only one here working early.” Yeah, she’d get a look at Wolfe’s reporter. Was there a romance brewing? Hopefully Angus wouldn’t be ticked she’d invited a reporter into their offices. Yeah, he wouldn’t be happy. If Dana had valuable information the team could use, he’d have to get over it.
Dana cleared her throat. “Okay, but Wolfe and I have quid pro quo.”
Oh, Brigid just bet they did. She coughed away a chuckle. “Fair enough. I’ll give you what I can if your information is helpful to our case.” She sounded just like an HDD operative. Maybe she could get good at this job.
“Okay. Do you want a latte or anything? I’m going to grab one on the way.”
Brigid’s stomach growled. She hadn’t even thought of eating earlier. “Sure. But, well, ah—”
“No whipped cream or sprinkles?” Dana laughed.
“Exactly.” Brigid gave the address. “See you soon.”
Dana clicked off, and Brigid returned to her computer room to conduct a quick dive on Dana the reporter. It wouldn’t hurt to have some information in her pocket when the woman showed up. She read different reports across the screen. Dana had cracked some amazing stories ranging from falsified test scores to corruption to fraud. She’d won several awards, and her dating history was spotty.
Brigid had just turned to Dana’s formative years, what she could find out about them, when the elevator dinged. She quickly closed her browser and strode into the main room, brushing her hair out of her face as she did so.
“Hi.” Dana stood about five-foot-eight in flat black boots, black leggings, and an oversized cream-colored sweater. Her hair was a natural dirty blond and her eyes an intriguing mossy green. A laptop bag was slung carelessly over her shoulder, and she carried a latte in each hand. “You must be Brigid.”
Brigid smiled and moved to take a latte. “It’s nice to meet you. What do I owe you?”
“Information.” Dana’s eyes sparkled with obvious intelligence. “First, reassurance that Wolfe is okay. He’s been on mission before but has still answered my calls.”
“As far as I know, they’re all fine,” Brigid said, her stomach aching. Were they all fine? There was no way to call Raider since he hadn’t taken his phone undercover. But Wolfe should have his. She glanced at the wall. Should she call Malcolm or wait until a decent hour? Better to find out. She reached for her cell phone and quickly dialed Malcolm.
“West.” He answered as if he was already up.
“Hi.” She winced. “I’m sorry to bother you so early, but we’ve lost contact with Wolfe.”
“We?”
She swallowed. “Yeah. I’m with his friend Dana. The reporter?”
Malcolm rustled around. “I was just on my way in. They had to leave the motel quickly, and Wolfe left his regular phone but has the burner for this op. They’re in pursuit of Raider right now, and they’ve been driving all night.”
“Pursuit?” She couldn’t breathe.
“Yeah. I’ll explain when I get in.” He clicked off.
She took the phone and just looked at the blank face. Something had gone wrong.
* * *
The drive to the small town of Collinsville, New York, was four hours of Raider’s life he’d never get back. Josh calmly pulled off Interstate 90, driving to the outskirts of town.
None of this made a lick of sense. At any point, Eddie could’ve shot him. Or explained what they were doing. But no, the mob leader had slept the entire way, Josh had driven silently, and Jonny P had stared out the window into the darkness. As a mind fuck, it wasn’t bad. He had to give them props for that.
So, to keep his cool, he watched the world fly by via streetlights outside, tracking his movements. His eyes grew gritty, but no way in hell would he put his head back and rest. Eddie would probably shoot him the second he did so.
The idea of Brigid’s pretty face kept his attention. Her skin was smooth, and her gaze intelligent. He hadn’t had enough time with her, not nearly enough, so he had to survive this. Whatever this was. Most men would be complaining or asking questions, so he purposely kept silent.
If they wanted to play games, he was all in. Being undercover meant that the less he talked, the better. Were Wolfe and Force following?
This was the first time he’d had anybody back him up while undercover. It was his job usually to determine what was needed in every situation, often before the situation arose. Did Force and Wolfe have that instinct? If they did, they were behind him somewhere, tracking his movements.
The earring camera and the belt audio device were still in place, so he could be traced. But if things went south, which seemed likely at the moment, he’d need backup right away.
