Steve had all the confirmation he needed that the security breach of a few weeks ago meant Romine was indeed getting closer to the truth.
A long, drawn-out sigh filtered through the phone lines. âThereâs no way for us to know, Steve. Not without finding solid evidence that will physically place them together. Weâve had her home in Arlington staked out since midnight, like you asked. There hasnât been a sign of her there, either.â
Steve bit back a string of vile curses. âWe should fear the worst and assume theyâre together.â How had this happened? Heâd wanted Romine exposed, but heâd had a bad feeling since things had gotten out of control in Kansas. Romine had been careless then. He wouldnât be so foolish this time around.
âStart looking for a paper trail on the off chance sheâs not with Romine.â
âRight away. Weâll start checking out all of her acquaintances. Could help.â
âHow long will it take to start tracing her?â Steve asked. His patience was wearing thin. Damn, he shouldnât have to tell people this high up in the bureau how to do their bloody job.
âThese things take time, Steve.â The thinly veiled patience of his contact slipped, as well.
No wonder, Steve thought. They all had a lot to lose.
âThere are proper channels and certain proceduresââ
Steve swung his feet to the floor. âWhat the hell kind of dog and pony show are you running up there?â he barked into the phone. âScrew channels and to hell with procedure. You have the authority. Use it. Weâve gone to a lot of trouble to set up Douglas because we know sheâll lead us to Romine, but we canât very well track her if you canât even scratch your ass without asking for directions.â
âGive me six hours. Iâll have more to report by then.â
âYou do it in three. And I want Douglasâs picture on every network newscast and in every newspaper from here to California.â
He disconnected the call and tossed the cell phone on the desk. Heâd come too far for one rogue agent with a score to settle to ruin all their plans. There were millions of dollars at risk, not to mention the careers of some very powerful people.
He needed to exercise patience, a skill heâd cultivated and polished. Patience and care, especially when he was so very close to having everything heâd ever wanted. Romine would be found and silenced. Steve knew his opponentâs weaknesses, and taking advantage shouldnât be the headache itâd been for the last three years.
Still, he occasionally had his doubts. Romine had been running for a long time. They were never ableto get anything out of his sister, and now she was engaged to one of the bureauâs former agents, which made her even more untouchable. Kansas had been a disaster. They couldnât afford any further mistakes. He couldnât afford any further mistakes. Romine was a loose end that needed to be tied up. Now, before it was too late.
They were in the middle of a deadly game of chess. All of the pieces were in place, and if he wasnât careful, theyâd all find themselves facing checkmate.
Not all of his confidence fled, however. Steve had grown up a fighter, and if there was one thing heâd learned over the years, it was how to win. No matter what it took.
Â
T HE RED DIGITS of the clock on the bedside table registered half past one. Peyton lifted her arms above her head and stretched, trying to shake off the last vestiges of sleep. Sheâd feel more refreshed after a shower and pumping a good gallon of caffeine into her system.
In about five more minutes.
She snuggled back down under the covers and turned onto her side toward the middle of the bed. Running water from the bathroom shower gave her the slight reassurance that she wasnât alone.
She reached out and smoothed her hand over Jaredâs
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