Yeah, I wasn't so sure about that. I didn't know the first thing about raising a teenager. But maybe I could be for Krista what my mother was for Nova. Or maybe I would fuck this girl up, and she would hate me for the rest of my life.
It was a tossup which way it would go. I just hoped like hell I didn't just make the biggest mistake of my life. We were meant to save Krista, not destroy her.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
BECKETT
I knew the second I was escorted into the conference room that I wasn't going to like how this meeting was going to go.
"Take a seat, Special Agent Walsh." Deputy Director Charles Banger––yes, that was really his last name––motioned to a chair across the table from him and Supervisory Special Agent David Jones.
Neither man bothered to get up or even looked my way when the deputy director spoke. It didn't bode well for me.
I took the seat indicated and placed my folded hands on the table as I waited for them to begin.
"Tell us everything you have on Alexander Dunkin." Deputy Director Banger glanced up with a bored look on his face.
"Everything I have on him is listed in my case notes, sir." I wasn't trying to be disrespectful, but if his plan was to take over the case anyway, he would need to review all my notes. Having this conversation was a waste of both of our time and resources.
"Humor me."
If he insisted.
I spent the next thirty minutes droning on about everything I had learned about Alexander Dunkin, his sons, and their organization over the past eight years. I kept it objective, factual, and devoid of my personal feelings. The deputy director wouldn't care for those anyway. There was a reason he was pulling me off the case, and until I knew that reason, I wasn't giving him any more ammunition to work with.
"Supervisory Special Agent Jones has informed you that you're no longer assigned to the case, is that correct?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good. Now tell me what you know about Lex Dunkin's murder?"
That question threw me for a loop. Especially since it wasn't a federal case. "Nothing. The lead detective confirmed the body was Lex Dunkin, but other than that, I haven't been given any details."
"Good. From this moment forward, you're not to have anything to do with Alexander Dunkin, his family, or his organization."
What the hell?
"May I ask why, sir?" There wasn't a single thing about this meeting that was making sense.
"We received a complaint and are acting accordingly."
I was about to become a broken record in my head butWhat the hell?
"A complaint from who?"
The only member of the Dunkin family I'd spoken to was Mason. Considering he was now out of prison and not exactly a fan of his family, I doubted it was him.
"I'm not at liberty to tell you." The deputy director pushed back his chair. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have another meeting I'm late for."
I sat there stunned. I couldn't even begin to think about what I wanted to say or ask. Thankfully my supervisory special agent didn't kick me out. He sat with me in silence while the meeting played over in my head.
It was probably a solid five minutes before I looked across the table. "What just happened?"
"You were taken off the case but not put on paid leave. Take it as a win. I'll have a cold case file dropped off at your desk later today until a new case comes in."
"Am I dismissed?"
My supervisor nodded. Without a word, I stepped out of the conference room and walked back to my desk in a daze. I knew when I walked into the meeting that it wasn't going to be good, but I hadn’t expected that.
