Total pages in book: 155
Estimated words: 146392 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 146392 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 732(@200wpm)___ 586(@250wpm)___ 488(@300wpm)
Kenzie shook her head. “He put Lou in danger. He could have told us.”
“And we could have trusted him in Australia,” Kala countered. “We’re fucking spies, Kenz. Look, I know it goes against everything I believe in to defend that asshole, but if you’re going to be pissed at him for that, you need to find some nice dude with a white hat to ride into the sunset with. I would have done the same thing.”
“No, you wouldn’t,” Cooper argued.
Kala turned his way, her expression grim. “Yeah, I would, and that’s why you should walk out there and find your perfectly wholesome little sub to top and build a white picket fence with so she can pop out your two point five kids.”
“Kala,” Cooper said, his mouth in a frown. “You wouldn’t put someone’s life on the line. I know you.”
“If you can say that, then you don’t.” She took a long drag off her beer. “And my sister should remember it, too. Though, hey, if you want me to take Parker out, I’ll be happy to.”
“He could have talked to me,” Kenzie said quietly.
“Or he could have talked to me,” Kala replied. “I think the fact that he doesn’t trust us proves he’s got a brain in his head.”
“Well, it’s over now.” Kenzie finished her drink and seemed to steel herself. “We won’t be the ones on the Huisman case if he’s really that dangerous. And now that we know Tasha’s ex set TJ up, we should be able to clear everything with Interpol and The Jester can be someone else’s problem.”
“But I want to deal with The Jester,” Kala complained. “Not only does he sound like a massive asshole since he calls himself The Jester, but I kind of want to figure out who the bombmaker is. I don’t think we should let this go. Dad won’t. He’ll lobby to keep us in play.”
“Even if we manage to clear things up with Interpol, that doesn’t mean everyone will get the memo,” Dare pointed out. “It’s still out there that TJ is somehow connected to this guy. Shouldn’t we be worried about that?”
“Yes, we should.”
TJ looked up, and a familiar figure stood in the doorway. He’d moved with the silence of his father. One of them, anyway. When Jacob Dean had been in the Green Berets his call sign had been Ghost because he’d moved like one. Though Tristan Dean-Miles looked like Adam, there was a lot of Jake in him, too. “Hey, man. You missed all the fun.”
Lou turned her gaze Tristan’s way. “Yes, you did. I suppose you can’t tell us where you’ve been.”
Cooper frowned. “How many teams are you working for, man? We needed you here.”
“Yeah, Lou hasn’t been able to figure out who The Jester is yet,” Kala said.
“I think I know,” Lou said quietly. “But I haven’t put all the pieces together.”
Tristan walked into the conference room, closing the door behind him. “Don’t worry about The Jester. I’ve got it handled. And yes, I’m working with another team on some highly classified ops, but I think it’s time to come clean. I’m sorry I wasn’t here. My handler kept me out of the loop, and I’m starting to wonder if he’s not keeping me in the dark about a lot of things. I’m afraid I might have fucked up my whole life for nothing. TJ, Dare’s right. You can try to clean up the mess Chet made, but not everyone out there will believe it. They’ll still think you have a connection to The Jester.”
Kenzie sat up, focusing in. “So, the Agency is aware of the problem, and you’re working with the team that’s trying to find The Jester?”
Lou shook her head, and TJ knew what she was going to say two seconds before she said it. After all, it only made sense. Something about The Jester had changed two years before. The same time Tristan started disappearing for long periods of time.
“He is The Jester,” Lou said quietly.
Tristan sank down in his seat. “I am, and now I need your help because we’re all in trouble.”
Lou’s hand found his as Tristan started talking.
The future was suddenly dangerous, but it would be okay because she would be at his side.
Epilogue
Some time later
Erin Taggart looked out over the dance floor where her son was smiling down at his new bride. Louisa Ward Taggart looked beautiful in her wedding dress, her hair in soft curls.
The night was illuminated with twinkle lights and the stars above, and she had to admit this was one hell of a wedding.
Her kids were surrounded with love and family and joy.
She glanced over where her daughter was laughing at something Brianna Dean-Miles was saying. She had a whole group of girls who were her crew. Devi might not have gone into the military and formed a team, but those girls knew how to take care of each other.