Page 90 of Betrayed

John was about to fill Blake in on everything they’d uncovered so far. Thinking they’d want privacy, I said, “I’ll get to work.”

“You should stay,” John said.

Fuck, this is going to be bad. I sat beside Blake and waited for the hammer to fall.

“Blake, there’s no easy way to say this, so I’m going to be direct.”

She sat up straight and did her best to be brave, but I felt the panic pouring out of her. I reached for her hand.

“Dallas detectives found evidence that your father has been accepting bribes to dismiss cases.” Blake choked on a gasp, but John didn’t stop. “They issued a warrant for his arrest last night. When they went to the house to arrest him, he wasn’t there.”

Blake stopped breathing.

John looked at me over Blake’s head. “No one has seen or heard from him since he left the office yesterday.”

Blake’s death grip on my hand confirmed she understood the bomb John had just dropped on her.

“Warrant…” she let go of my hand as she spun to face me. “Did you know?”

“No.” Though I’d figured it was only a matter of time given the circumstantial evidence piling up.

John continued, pulling Blake’s attention back to him, “They know they can’t get to you while we’re protecting you, so they’re going after the people we love. But they’re mistaken if they think we’ll make the exchange and walk away.”

My, “That’s not going to happen,” was louder than Blake's, “But you have to.”

John echoed my sentiment. “That won't happen, Blake. We’re working on a plan to bring Meg home without sacrificing you.”

“Thank you,” we said at the same time.

“Will you be okay for a few minutes with Sammie?” John asked Blake.

She turned to me, her unspoken question thundering in my ears.

“Sammie’s a Weatherford Police Officer who works here part time. You’ll be okay.”

Turning back to John, Blake said, “Okay.”

I pulled Blake close and kissed the top of her head before standing up. “I’ll be right here if you need me.”

“Janerek.”

“Yes, sir.” I said as I nodded to Sammie, who escorted Blake to the smaller conference room across the hall.

Jamie started talking as soon as I closed the door. “We think the warrant for Davenport’s arrest made them panic; they’re getting sloppy.”

“Which means they’re prone to making mistakes,” John added.

“Like taking my wife,” Jack growled.

“We’ll get her back,” I said, clapping his shoulder.

“Sharpe, Maxwell?” John asked.

“We’ve set up two trackers for Blake. One will be obvious and easy for them to find. The other will be well hidden and turned off,” Maxwell answered.

“I’ll turn it on remotely after they sweep for bugs,” Doug said.

“If they don’t sweep?” I asked.

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