Page 14 of Bad Situation

“I’m good. Thank you, though.” I take the papers and read the message innocently sitting on top, teasing me with the answers it might reveal.

My stomach dips when I read the same phone number I memorized after finding his card covertly hidden in my desk yesterday. Below the number is a simple message and I know Callie enough to know she took it down verbatim.

Call me as soon as possible.

—Eli

What in the hell is with this man?

No sooner do I crinkle it into a ball and toss into the recycle bin, I decide the only way I’ll get my mind off things is a trip to the gym. But when I get up, there’s a scuffle outside my office.

I close my laptop and move to the door as Callie’s voice rises, arguing, “How did you get up here? Wait, you can’t just barge into her office.”

“This piece of paper says I can.” The voice makes my stomach drop and its owner appears in my doorway. A satisfied smile spreads across her makeup-free face and she holds up another piece of paper that looks similar to the one she arrived with yesterday when my office was basically ransacked. She’s with the other guy but Eli’s nowhere in sight. Special Agent Bree Newman turns from Callie before leveling her eyes on me. “Jensen Omera Montgomery, I have a federal warrant for your arrest for wire fraud and insider trading.”

Holy fuck.

*****

“You have the right to remain silent.”

The fuck, I’ll remain silent.

“Callie,” I bite out, trying to turn where I can see her. “Get Patrick.”

Callie panics. “I think I saw him go downstairs. I don’t know where he is!”

“Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.”

“Call his cell.” I look at the other agent and ask, “Where are you taking me?”

Click.

“Federal courthouse.”

“You have the right to an attorney.”

If I can find him.

“Call Patrick. Tell him to call Lehmans and get their asses to the federal courthouse,” I demand.

“If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you.” Special Agent Bree-fucking-Newman clicks the second cuff around my wrist and ad-libs her own addition to my Miranda rights. “But we all know you can afford your own attorney.”

I look over at Callie, who’s standing there staring at my personal nightmare unfolding in front of her, wringing her hands and doing nothing. “Dammit, Callie. Go!”

Her eyes jump to mine and, waking from her trance, she rushes to her desk.

“Let’s go.” Bree tugs at my bicep and I do my best to shrug out of her hold.

Looking back one more time, I yell over my shoulder, “And call my father!”

*****

Eli

I glare at my new group supervisor, Larry Flemming, who, in the short time I’ve worked in the Lone Star State, has talked more about his stats than the quality of his cases.

“You’re being taken off the Montgomery case. It’s being handed over to prosecutors as we speak. I’ve got a stack of files with your name on them as of this afternoon.”

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