She looked around the vacant room. “What’s happening right now?”
“Hey—” There was a scuffle and Raider’s swearing dimmed in volume.
“Brigid? It’s Wolfe.”
Relief filled her so quickly she almost slid off the chair to the hard floor. “Thank goodness. What’s going on?” Her mind kicked back into gear. “Is hedrunk?”
“Um, yeah. Completely snockered,” Wolfe affirmed, amusement lightening his usually gritty tone. “He and Eddie tied one on, bonding all afternoon. From what he spilled on his shirt, it’s a combination of tequila, Irish whiskey, and I’m guessing peppermint schnapps.”
Brigid winced. “Ugh. That’s a fatal combination.”
In the background, Raider could be heard singing “Danny Boy.” She pressed her ear harder to the phone.
“You know, I think this is the first time I’ve heard that song performed with a Southern accent.” Actually, the man had a pretty decent voice. Maybe she could get him to play the guitar and sing for her when he got home. If he ever forgave her, that was.
“Dude, shut up,” Wolfe said, his voice directed away from the phone. “We don’t want to get kicked out.”
Raider’s voice lowered in volume, and he moved on to a Beyoncé song.
“Damn it,” Wolfe muttered. “I may have to just knock him out. You never should’ve lied to us.”
“I know,” Brigid said, her gaze straying to the plain coffee that was now ice cold. “You can yell at me later. For now, don’t hit him. He’s had too many hits to the head lately. A skull can only take so much.”
“I don’t yell,” Wolfe muttered.
Yeah. He just gave mean coffee. She glanced at the computer. “Are you guys coming home?”
“No. We’re sending the USB to you via courier, and we already dropped it off. Should be there in just over an hour,” Wolfe said.
Her chin dropped. “He managed to get the information?”
“He did,” Wolfe affirmed as Raider crooned a Kenny Chesney song about better boats in the background. “He played a computer game for a while, faked dropping a bunch of stuff, and shoved the flash drive in the right port. He managed to type and get what you wanted—we think. As soon as you confirm, we’ll plan from there.”
Okay. Good. Excellent, really. “Then he and Eddie drank all afternoon.” Their lives were weird.
“Yes.” Wolfe sounded bored. “As soon as you know anything, call me. I’d love to get out of here.” Something clanged, and Wolfe swore. Loudly.
“Hey, baby. Put a ring on it,” Raider sang into the phone. “We’re engaged, and I haven’t given you a ring yet. That was an oversight. I bet you’d like diamonds and emeralds. You know, something Irish and pretty but not in the way when you type.” A ruckus sounded. “Knock it off, Wolfe,” Raider slurred. “All the single ladies, you know, all the single ladies—”
“Damn it.” Wolfe growled, apparently once again having taken possession of the phone. “Call me with an update.” He disengaged the call.
Brigid drew the phone from her head and just looked at it.
Nari poked her head in the doorway. “Heard the phone. News?”
Brigid jerked her attention back to the moment. “Yes. Raider is all right, and the flash drive should be here in just over an hour.” She looked up at the shrink, wondering if she could come clean before Raider or Force told on her. “He did it.”
Nari smiled. “Excellent. He’s good at the job.” She opened the door wider and handed across some notes. “Angus and I have been studying Senator Tyson and trying to profile him a little bit. Here’s what we have so far, but it’d be nice to meet the guy once. Just to get a feeling for him.”
Brigid would rather use a Commodore VIC-20 for a month than meet that man in person. “Think we should bring Dana in? She’s been tracking down everything she can about him.”
Nari slowly nodded. “Sure. Let’s wait and see what you find on the flash drive and then go from there. I do think we’ll bring her in, but let’s get our ducks in a row first.” Her dark gaze narrowed. “You’re pale. Everything okay?”
It had been so long since Brigid had spent time with friends. Since she really had a friend. “No.”
The elevator dinged and heavy footsteps echoed. “Brigid Banaghan! Get your ass out here,” Angus Force bellowed.
Nari jerked around.
