Page 100 of Montana Memory

Lucas let out a low curse. “So that’s what this is about.”

“Looks that way,” Jace confirmed. “Johnson and Kelly helped him get out early the first time. Some sketchy paperwork, probably greased a few palms. They were planning to get him out again—until he got shanked in the yard.”

“And now they think Jada’s sitting on the money,” I said, rubbing a hand down my face.

“That’s the theory. They’re not just covering their asses—they’re trying to cash in.”

It clicked into place with a sickening snap. Everything made sense now. The pressure to find Jada even though there was no warrant out for her. The fact that they didn’t kill her right away. They were looking for something they thought she had.

Only, she didn’t.

She didn’t remember a damn thing. Even if Alan had given her that money—which everything I knew about him told me was false—there was no way she could help them find it if she didn’t remember anything about it.

Which meant this was all going to end one way.

Bad.

“I wish I could help more, but by the time Ethan could get a Citadel Security team there, it would be too late.”

“You’ve done a shit-ton, Jace. We’ll check the cabin. Even if it’s a dead end, it’s better than sitting here doing nothing.”

“I’ll stay on standby in case you need more,” he said, then hung up.

Lucas didn’t speak for a while. The trees thinned ahead, the road getting rougher.

Finally, he glanced at me. “If they realize she can’t give them what they want?—”

None of us finished the sentence. We didn’t have to. We all knew what they would do to Jada if they found out shecouldn’tgive them what they wanted.

Lachlan’s voice was calm behind us but firm. “Then we make sure they don’t get the chance.”

None of us said anything else.

We just drove faster.

Stopping the SUV a distance away, Lucas and I knew the drill. We’d follow the same path as before and make different points of entry. I quickly filled Lachlan in on our first visit here, then the three of us silently trekked across the woods to the cabin.

Stopping at the edge of the trees, before our cover disappeared, we scanned the immediate area before moving forward. No sounds. No lights. No movement.

I signaled both Lucas and Lachlan, and we continued to the cabin. Lucas and I went in the front, while Lachlan went around the back.

The second we stepped inside the cabin, I knew something had happened there. The place hadn’t changed much since the last time I’d been inside.

Lucas moved past me into the main room, while Lachlan swept the perimeter. I crouched near the couch, scanning for anything—any sign of her.

Then I saw a smear of blood on the floor by the table. Not much. A small drag mark streaked across the wood like someone had been pulled.

My heart dropped into my gut.

I stepped over it and scanned the area again—and that’s when I spotted the vial, tucked into the corner near the baseboard heater. I reached for it slowly, recognizing it even before I turned it over in my hand. Clear glass. Faint residue. Same shape, same label as the one Beckett had handed to Jada in Spokane. It was another vial of the antidote.

And it was empty.

My curse was low and ugly. Lucas turned to face me. “What?”

I closed my eyes and swallowed hard, then held it up. “They gave it to her.”

Lucas stepped over, his jaw clenched. “Is that?—?”

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