Chapter Ten
Director Bonnell wasa woman of average height and average beauty, but when she was pissed, Bryce always likened her to an avenging angel. Awe-inspiring, terrifying, with a hint of murderous intent in her brown eyes, and ready to level a city if she had to. She seemed to grow six feet. She would have retribution. She would make those who challenged her protection tremble. Her frown was especially firm that evening as she took in the sight of Bryce, David, and Alex.
Holing up in his office and devising a plan had been a good idea until she came in. After giving her a quick update about the disaster at the museum, Bryce shifted the ice pack and put it back on his nose. Bonnell kept glancing to him and then over to Alex. She was not happy, and Bryce couldn’t blame her. He wasn’t either.
Alex laid on the couch with an ice pack across his eyes. He made a hand-waving gesture without looking at any of them. “I can feel you staring, Mother. Just stop.”
“How are you feeling?” Bonnell asked.
“I’ll be better when I get the bile out of my throat. That guy has something nasty going on in his head. Obsession… fuck, I haven’t felt one like that since…” Alex shivered.
Since the facility. Bonnell shot Bryce a worried glance and he struggled to keep the walls up around his emotions. Bryce had been a new agent, and Bonnell his team leader, when they discovered a facility in the Oklahoma Ozarks training children to use their psychic abilities. Most of the children hadn’t even known where they were. They’d been admitted to psychiatric programs across the country—and three from international institutions—and quietly snatched up by the bastard running the experiments.
Many of the children went home, but a few had no place to go. Alex’s birth parents had actually allowed the facility director to adopt him. They couldn’t cope with the effect his untrained abilities had on him and the world around him. They hadn’t understood him. Bonnell was the first one Alex spoke to when he finally felt like speaking. She gave him a home, one where Bryce was welcome, too. Everyone in their office knew that she would have their backs if they needed her. She only asked that they do their jobs the best they could.
And Bryce had been royally fucking up lately. He couldn’t even keep Alex from overdoing his abilities, and now the FBI—or Jesse, anyway—had an artifact in their hands that belonged in the DWO archives. He slumped in his chair.
“Aw, fuck,” Alex said as he sat up. “Knock off the regret, Bryce. The last thing I need is lemon mixed up with all this bile. I swear, if getting laid makes you emote this hard, maybe you should be celibate forever.”
“What do you expect?” David said. “He slept with the guy interfering in our case.”
Bryce winced as Bonnell leveled her angelic glare on him. He had carefully avoided that part of the story. She turned toward him. There was no escaping. “Youwhat?”
“It’s complicated,” Bryce said.
“Alex, David, give us the room,” Bonnell said.
David didn’t hesitate to leave, but Alex stood at the end of the couch.
Bonnell sighed. “No one’s getting fired, Alex. Bryce and I need to talk.”
Alex ducked out of the room.
Once the door was shut, Bonnell asked, “Do you want to tell me about this agent? And how you managed to sleep with someone in the middle of this case?”
“Technically we were intimate before you called me about the case,” Bryce replied.
“Jesus Christ, don’t tell me he was the nearby civilian when I called.”
“He was, but I didn’t know he was FBI,” Bryce said.
“If one date is all there is between you, then it shouldn’t be a problem.” When Bryce grimaced, Bonnell sighed. “What else happened?”
Telling Bonnell the whole truth would only expose Bryce’s colossal fuck up. Though he had been following Alex’s advice, he wasn’t about to blame him for his poor decisions. Letting Jesse kiss him had been selfish, and texting him had been epic leagues of foolish. Sure, Alex had encouraged him, but Bryce had known that he should keep his distance. He had really hoped that Jesse wouldn’t figure out the museum statue was in jeopardy for another few days. But no, Bryce couldn’t get that lucky.
Even worse, Jesse had a stubborn, determined streak and he wasn’t easily intimidated into handing over his case. He was invested, and passionate agents rarely appreciated losing a case that had a suspect, especially one in custody. Bryce would be the face of the reason Jesse could no longer investigate the Valless or museum theft.
So much for making a relationship work.
“After we take the case from him, I doubt he’ll want to have anything to do with me,” Bryce said. “What happened will be ancient history in a week.”
Bonnell eyed Bryce suspiciously, but he had too much practice keeping a neutral expression. She nodded and headed for the door. “What’s the name of this agent so I know whose supervisor I need to talk to?”
“Jesse Dawes.”
Bonnell paused, and then turned back to Bryce. “Dawes? Is he from around here?”
“He said he grew up in the Boston area,” Bryce said.
