We traveled back through the belly of the office to a hallway of closed doors. Bray stopped at the farthest one with two uncomfortable-looking chairs sitting outside it and knocked. He tilted his head at the chairs. “Sit here.”
I did as I was told, wondering if I was going to be paraded in front of the director in an attempt to plea for my protection.
“Come in,” someone said from inside the office, and I was surprised to hear it was a woman.
Bray slipped inside and left the door open a crack. “Thanks for making time for me,” he said.
“For you, Agent Bray, always,” the director said. I imagined a woman in a prim pantsuit with a sharp bob, though I couldn’t see her at all. “What can I help you with?”
He got straight to the point. “I have reason to believe our asset in Del Rio is in danger.”
The director paused. Her voice took on a serious tone. “What kind of danger?”
“It’s related to the case that brought her on as a CI years ago. The parties involved in that night have discovered her location, and I have reason to believe they are actively trying to intercept her. I would like to have the both of us reassigned from the Del Rio case.”
The director paused, and the air grew tense. “You don’t have security clearance to look into those matters from the past, Agent Bray. In fact, I personally told you not to.”
“Yes, but that was before—”
“Before what? Before you decided to break protocol and risk the progress you’ve made in recovering? You had strict instruction: Del Rioonly.”
I reeled at the tone of her voice and imagined Bray blushing in shame. Further thoughts of what had happened to him spun in my mind: What had he recovered from that had resulted in being assigned Del Rio with me, but also revoked his clearance?
“Yes, but there are bigger things at stake now,” Bray said.
“Maybe so, but they arethingsyou don’t need to concern yourself with.”
A long pause passed. I heard what sounded like a stack of papers being tapped on a desktop to straighten it. “You both stay, Agent Bray. If you’d like to request an increase to her protection detail, fine, but no one is being reassigned.”
He paused again, and I imagined him chewing his bottom lip in distress. “With all due respect, you denied the request for overnight protection last night.”
I blinked in surprise. That was why he’d shown up at my apartment the night before; his request got rejected so he’d had to do it himself.
The papers tapped again. The director’s voice came back with a slight bite to it. “Then ask again, Agent Bray.”
A tense silence passed.
“I think it would just be easier if we were reassigned.”
I was waiting for him to confess my cover had been blown, but he didn’t. He was dancing around the detail and instead using Olena as an excuse to have us moved.
The papers landed on the desk with a smack and a chair audibly rolled back. “No oneis getting reassigned, Agent Bray. The both of you are staying on the Del Rio case until it’s finished. Is that clear?”
I flinched at her tone and wondered if Bray had done the same at closer range.
“Yes, ma’am,” he eventually said, defeated.
I let out a heavy sigh in the next pause. When the director’s voice came back, it had softened enough to sound as if someone else was speaking.
“Cal, darling, you look exhausted. Why don’t you come for dinner on Sunday? Your father would love to see you.”
I startled, unsure I’d heard correctly.
Bray sighed. “I can’t, Mom. I’m busy.”
“All right, sweetheart. But please take care of yourself.”
Bray mumbled something unintelligible before returning to open the door. My jaw was on the floor when he stepped back into the hall and closed it behind him.
