“Cutler,” he answered on the third ring.
“We got him.”
At first, that was all the Seattle detective said. But for Liam, it was enough.
“Please tell me you’re referring to Gallo.”
“The one and only.”
Suddenly, Liam had so many questions. “How? When? Is he actually in custody right this second, or?—”
“Easy, brother. Take a breath and I’ll explain.” There was a slight pause and then, “Is Allison with you? She’s going to want to hear this, too.”
“I’ll get her.” Liam was already walking down the hall. “Hey, Al?” he called out to her.
“Yeah?”
“You got a sec?”
“I was just about to put the bacon in the pan, but it can wait.” She met him in the middle of the narrow space. “What’s up?”
“In here.” Liam turned back around and headed for the master suite.
He glanced into his office on their right. Maddie’s tiny body was engulfed by his black leather chair. Her ears were covered with the noise-cancelling headphones he’d given her for reasons such as this. They offered the freedom to talk about the little girl’s dad without fear of being overheard.
“Liam, what’s going on?” Allison entered the room behind him.
“It’s Knox.” He shut the bedroom door. Liam held the phone between them and put the call on speaker. “Okay, Allison’s here. Now what’s this about you having Tommy in custody?”
“Never said he was in custody,” Knox clarified immediately. “But he will be very soon.”
“How?” Allison joined in on the conversation. “What happened?”
“Someone came forward with information we were able to confirm as valid.”
“What information?” Liam asked.
At the same time, Allison wanted to know, “Who?”
The silence that filled the phone’s speakers formed a pit in the bottom of Liam’s stomach. As soon as Knox spoke up again, he understood why.
“It’s one of the guards at Liberty House.” The other man’s tone was heavy with anger and regret.
Allison blinked with a quick, disbelieving shake of her head. “What? No. That isn’t possible. Those men protected us. They’d never?—”
“Was it the new guy?” Liam cut her denial short. “Stapleton?”
Made sense, given the timing and all that.
“Actually, no.”
It was his turn to be surprised. “Seriously?”
“Tell us who it is, Detective,” Allison ordered.
Knox hesitated a moment longer before dropping a bomb neither of them expected. “It’s Lamont.” He sighed.
“Bruce?”Allison’s eyes flew up to his. “No. That can’t be. You must have the wrong?—”
