Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 86240 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86240 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
“Not happy to see me?” she said, without losing her high-wattage grin.
The saucy look in her eye did nothing for me. There had only been one woman I’d thought about for the last ninety-one days. “Three months too late,” I said flatly, sounding bitter.
She took a step forward, but my narrowed gaze stopped her. She held up a hand. “I see someone’s bitter.”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. Three months in a hell hole gives one new perspective when you aren’t given the basic rights like due process.”
She folded her arms across her chest and her face went flat and businesslike. “Some lessons are hard earned when one goes rogue. As far as due process, you were out on bail, Shawn. Your freedom was revoked when you were found committing a crime.”
If she thought I’d been put in my place, she was wrong. “You can go the same way you came and I’ll get a lawyer,” I said, calling her out. She wasn’t here as a favor to me. That went away when I’d been left here. She, no, they, the FBI wanted something from me. “And next time, you can come during visiting hours, which I’ll deny.”
“I did it this way so we could have privacy.”
Everything a prisoner did was subject to scrutiny, from visitors to communication with the outside world. All of it could be read, recorded and used against me.
“You could have sent me a lawyer to explain my rights instead,” I groused.
“I came to offer you something,”
It was my turn to cross my arms over my chest and mirror her pose of not giving any ground.
“Tayla,” she began.
Unfortunately, I’d been unable to stop an eye twitch after hearing her name. Once I realized the FBI wasn’t coming for me, I’d worried about Tayla. Especially since the local cops acted like she was a prostitute. With no way to get information about her, because I hadn’t wanted to bring her to the attention of any of Shawn’s friends or enemies, I’d been unable to learn her fate.
“What about her?” I asked, hoping I’d come across as disinterested.
“You care about her,” she said perceptively.
Obsessed was a better word. The memory of her had been the light in the darkness that held me together when this place was trying to rip me apart. Prison was hell, and every minute was an act of survival. The things that I’d endured in these walls would haunt me for many years to come.
“Talk or go. Your choice,” I spat out.
“She’s missing.”
“Again?” I roared, not caring who heard.
“We don’t have a lot of time for your grandstanding,” she said. “She wanted to go after this Ruin guy.”
“And you let her?” I said, dropping my arms as my hands balled into fists. I wanted to pound on the wall for how helpless I felt in that moment, stuck in prison for trying to rescue her.
“For your information, she came up with the plan.” As my eyes closed to near slits, she pushed on. “It was solid, and she had backup. But the bastard was good, and he got her out somehow when we had the place surrounded.”
There were more details, but we were short on time. “So you let a civilian talk you into a bad plan, and you lost her again?”
She waved me off. “She’s not a civilian. She’s a rookie. She’d almost been done with training when she was snatched.”
I mulled that over in my mind, creating a million other questions I didn’t have time to ask.
“So what? You want my help after punishing me for doing the very thing you’re about to ask me to do?”
Hypocrisy, when called out, had a way of shutting people up. She gnashed her teeth before saying, “He’s searching for you.”
That clamped my mouth shut. “One of our techs found a search for you on the dark web. He’s inquiring if you, the Rook, are still in jail or out. He’s trying to make contact. We think because of her.”
There was time for deals to be made, but not now. I had to get her back. “What’s the op?”
7
MATT
There was no fanfare when you got out of prison. Even if you’d been freed due to an error on the part of the government. Earlier that day, I went to court, and the judge threw out the case against me because proper procedure wasn't followed and I hadn’t been given due process. Everything I’d said to my handler had been their way of publicly setting me free without causing suspicion and alerting Ruin, or the kingpin, for that matter. I wouldn’t look like a rat and my cover would still be intact.
I stepped out of prison in the same suit I’d walked in with, sans the jacket. I’d given that to Tayla to cover up with. My wallet, which held little outside of a fake ID and cash, had been returned to me. They also gave me my phone back. But without charge for three months, it was dead. I walked through the gates to the street.