Page 26 of Redemption

Once we’re seated, Evander lets out a long breath. “Finn’s not with me.”

“No shit, Sherlock,” Jay mutters in his first sign of any emotion since the night began.

“Where is he?” I am desperate to keep my voice rational and even. I’ve been in enough meetings with men to realize any woman’s emotions are viewed as weak or unstable. A man can rage or scream at people in frustration, but a woman can’t. I can’t. Steady. Calm. Find the way out of the maze without losing my cool.

Evander rubs his face. “I’m still gathering intel.”

“You must know something.” Jay’s tone borders on threatening. “Or you wouldn’t be here.”

“I came because you’d be worried, and any time a plan goes this wrong, I make it a priority to speak to my clients in person.”

“You don’t have a clue where he is,” I whisper. The realization causes a ball to rise into my throat. The urge to let out a huge, wracking sob is almost more than I can bear.

“I’m hoping to get more information while we’re talking. I have a crew piecing together where he might have been taken.”

“Taken?” I latch onto the one word. Of course, it makes sense. He was coming to me, and he would never go anywhere else. “We had a bombing here.” I glance at Jay. “A few weeks ago. Do you think Finn’s kidnapping and that are connected?”

“I wouldn’t rule out anything at this point,” Evander admits.

“The Volkovs?” I peer at Jay, trying to get a beat on where his head has gone. Mine is spiraling, searching for any answer to make sense of Finn disappearing.

“Could be.” Jay frowns. “I got the impression whatever Hagen was after wasinthe prison not out of it.”

Evander let his phone rest on the coffee table and steeples his fingers. “Here’s what we know. My crew got him to the emergency fire escape that links to the roof. They use the platform to helicopter patients out of the infirmary. During the escape, he knocked a guard unconscious. That wasn’t unexpected. We wanted the jailbreak to look like Finn had manufactured it rather than inside help. Protect people’s jobs in case I need them again later.” He takes a deep breath. “Shots were fired in the stairwell, but Finn did get out.” His phone beeps, and he picks it up to check the message before setting it down. “My helicopter crew was intercepted by a group of three at the airport. What I don’t understand is who these people are connected to or where they’ve taken him.”

“As far as you know, he’s alive?” My voice is little more than a whisper. The thought of him dead is enough to make my knees weak, and my stomach rolls.

“According to my inside contacts, the cameras on the roof show Finn rushing into the helicopter willingly with a big Black man. He probably assumed it was me. We’ve never met, but I have a certain reputation.”

“Finn’s led a colorful life,” I hedge.

“Colorful?” Evander chuckles. “Bloodthirsty is more accurate. He’s got a lot of enemies. Conversely, the talent for blood and mayhem can be appealing to people or organizations.” He rubs his neck. “We have a tracker on the helicopter, and when it’s apparent exactly where they’re headed, we can narrow the field of suspects.” His phone buzzes, and he hits the answer button and heads into the kitchen.

“Oh, my God,” I mutter, dropping my head into my hands. “We’ve lost him.”

“Whoever took him didn’t kill him, at least not right away. So, either Evander is on track and they want to use him for something, or the grudge is personal,” Jay reasons.

“That’s supposed to make me feel better?” I snap. “We don’t have him. He’s a wanted criminal. He’s got enemies everywhere. Someone sent us a warning weeks ago, and we’re still no closer to figuring that out. Do you really think none of this is connected? There’s no such thing as coincidence.” God knows I heard those words often enough from Finn.

Evander returns to the living room and stands in front of me and Jay, tapping the phone against his palm. “They’ve landed on a remote airstrip in Ireland.”

“Ireland,” I breathe. Relieved and anxious because Ireland could mean so many things.

“Who owns it?” Jay asks. “Mafia?”

“PLA,” he admits with a grimace. “Not worst-case scenario, but they don’t play around. They’ve been rapidly gaining power. The guard at the prison confirmed he was able to get a microtracker on Finn while they were in the infirmary. So, in the morning, we should have a lock on his exact location. We can go in and extract him.”

“I don’t understand,” I admit. Why would the PLA kidnap Finn from a jailbreak? Why would they need him at all?

“My guess?” Evander glances between me and Jay. “He has the bloodlust they like. As the head of his mafia organization, he annihilated several competing groups. He’s a strong tactician.”

“I bet you any tactical plans came from his brother, Lorcan, not him. Finn isn’t subtle,” I say.

“Subtle isn’t necessary most of the time. They like effective.” Evander shrugs. “Besides, his brother is dead, right?”

“Right.” I try not to make the word sound hesitant. Lorcan isn’t any more dead than Kim is. I run my hands through my hair and try to gather my thoughts. When the CIA detained me in Ireland, Kim appeared quickly. Would they have tried to insert her in the PLA? Would Lorcan have gone with her? “An extraction?”

“I’ll fly to Ireland to get a lay of the land. I’ve got people I can work with to get him out.”

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