Page 2 of Vengeful Lies

Connor couldn’t handle putting the woman he loved, who he’d been missing for twelve long years, in danger again, and honestly, she wasn't the best person to interrogate this John Jones guy anyway. Even if she wore a comms unit and they were in her ear telling her what to say and how to respond, it was much easier for one of them to do it.

Since he was the only single guy left of his four biological brothers he’d volunteered.

Watching Cooper, then Cole, then Connor fall in love had been painful. It dragged-up memories of his beautiful wife. The woman who had seen past his gruff exterior and loved him even when he wasn't all that lovable.

There was a lot of anger inside him, but Gretel hadn't seen any of that.

All she’d seen was him.

She was the best thing to ever happen to him and losing her had almost crushed him.

If he hadn't had a tiny baby girl, not even a year old yet, who was depending on him for literally everything, he very well may have given in to the grief and anger raging inside him.

But Esther was his world, and he had to go on for her.

Right now, what Essie needed the most from him was to clear this threat hanging over the entire family’s head. He didn’t want his tiny little tornado of energy to grow up under lock and key, kept separate from the rest of the world for her own safety.

He wanted his baby girl to be able to spread those big wings of hers and fly high.

So, he had to sit there, had to fight through the anxiety gnawing at his gut and wait.

There had been no sign of John Jones at the point where Becca had arranged to meet him. Since they had all agreed Becca couldn’t go and he would meet with the man who claimed to be Cassandra’s brother himself, he had a photo of him so he could recognize him and he was sitting in his car with a clear view of the front doors of the mall where the meeting was supposed to take place.

Minutes ticked by.

His tension mounted.

Nine passed with no signs of the man who was supposed to meet with Becca.

Was John Jones sitting in one of the many cars waiting to catch a glimpse of Becca? Was he unwilling to get out before he saw her in case they played the exact switch-up they had, sending someone else in her place?

Debating whether it was worth it to call Connor and Becca, asking them to go down there, and have Becca pretend she was going to be the one to meet with John long enough to lure him in, he decided it was worth the risk. After all, it wasn't like John could try much of anything with so many people about anyway. Cade pulled out his cell phone and was just about to bring up his brother’s number and call it when his phone dinged with a message.

The number was the same one that had called Becca last night.

They’d used their Prey Security resources—one of the benefits of working for the world-renowned company as part of Charlie Team—to try to trace the number. While they’d been able to ping the location as close to this mall where John Jones had asked Becca to meet with him, they hadn't been able to get anything else from the phone. It was one of those prepaid throwaway things that only hinted further that whoever this John guy was he was somehow involved in this whole mess.

How had the man gotten his number?

He’d had Becca’s because they’d worked together in Cambodia, and as an employee of her charity he’d had access to her number, but why was John texting him now? Did he somehow know that Becca hadn't come but he’d come in her place?

The sense of foreboding that followed him since Becca got the call last night suddenly surged until he could barely breathe.

Something was wrong.

This was a trap of some sort.

Whether to get their hands on Becca, which they’d been trying to do for the last couple of weeks or because they’d decided to move on to a new target, he had no idea.

Nor did it matter.

Because the words running across his screen as his eyes scanned the message shattered his entire world.

You should have backed off when you

had the chance

Now it’s too late

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