Page 18 of Blackmailed

“Should you prevent it?” Kalkin glanced at Jefferson then to Jochi. “Why not make a video where you announce you’re a mate?” He then pointed to all the information on the table. “This...this isn’t your fight anymore. If you want to retire, hand this off.”

“What?” The thought never occurred to him. Or maybe it had, but the idea of someone else taking onhisjob rubbed Jefferson wrong. "It's not finished."

“It is though,” Adrian said. “Kalkin’s right. If you continue with this, you’ll never leave. You’ll always have one more meeting or one more hearing or one more something. This... This is almost thirty years of information. You can’t believe if you snap your fingers, you’ll be through with it.”

Jefferson sat down. “You’re being audited though.”

Kalkin chuckled. The menacing sound skirted down Jefferson’s spine. “Like I told you, we’re above reproach. We’ve done more to help those who need it than anyone else has or likely will.”

“I feel like I am giving up.”

“Don’t think of it that way,” Adrian said. “Think of it as the new generation is taking over the battle.”

The door swung open with a crash and Keeley stormed into the room holding a tablet. “You need to see this.” She turned it to Jefferson. “I don’t know how this happened, but I am looking into it now.”

The grainy photo from Jefferson's office had been plastered across a D.C. newspaper. From the angle, it was taken near the couch to the right of his office door. The scene captured had his stomach knotting. He and Jochi caught in the middle of having sex. If he had to guess, right after the little meeting with Beltran, Mr. Davis, and Roberts.

Seconds later, every phone in the room buzzed. Jefferson grabbed his phone and the same photo had been used in several different articles. The shit was trending onTwitterin less than ten minutes. Fury surged through his veins. The need to rip everything apart and burn it all down flowed through him, scaring him. He’d never felt such a volatile emotion before. “Son of a bitch.” He loosened his grip on the tablet when he heard it pop. Glancing down, he frowned. The corner of the screen had been broken. He placed the device on the table, turning it over so he didn’t have to see the picture. “I can’t let this lie any longer.”

“Then you play right into their trap,” Kalkin muttered. “First, you can’t tell who is in the picture. If you come out guns blazing, they’ll know for sure it was you. It won’t take them long afterward to figure out who’s with you.”

“I want a crack at this first,” Keeley said. “It’s my equipment they hacked. If I can backtrack and figure out who did it, we can nail their asses.”

"It's a worm." Adrian scrolled through his phone. "Some underling trying to impress their boss. If you find them, they'll squeal. They'll tell you everything." He started typing on his screen. "I can have it retracted within the hour if you want."

Keeley pursed her lips. “Give me two. Then work your magic.”

“Two hours it is,” Adrian grunted as he hit send.

Jochi sat beside him. “We knew this day would come. We can’t always have it the way we want it.”

No, Jefferson agreed. Nothing was ever perfect, he understood that. What he didn't like was having the rug pulled out from under him. Add in the fact he was in the middle of not only trying to nail all of PBH to the wall but also close up the censure and expulsion of two of the major donors to PBH. Jefferson scrubbed his face. "Fine. We'll do it your way."

“Think of it this way” —Kalkin placed his hand on Jefferson’s shoulder— “all the shit you got on Beltran, Roberts and Mr. Davis will be turned over lawfully and used against them. Plus, with Adrian here, he can get the FBI more information once he knows for sure who’s behind this stupid attack.”

The kid nodded. “They’re not heavy hitters for the organization if it’s who you believe it is. We’ll make them an example of what members shouldn’t be doing without permission.”

“Permission?” Jefferson cocked a brow.

“Oh, I implemented some new rules. One, to keep PBH off the radar, is no unsanctioned missions. If I find out there are, well... You’ll have to wait and see what happens.”

The evil grin on the boy’s face chilled the rage burning in Jefferson’s gut. In the year since he first met the last remaining Geithner, beside Bodhi and Hayden, Adrian had grown into his own. Though he still appeared naive about a few things, he had a ruthlessness to him. In the long run, without someone guiding him, it could backfire on all of them.

“I don’t need to hear about it. The less I know, the better off I am.”

Keeley grabbed the tablet she gave Jefferson then sighed. “I swear, all of the men in this pack/pride are going to kill my electronics budget.”

"Sorry." Jefferson winced. "I didn't realize I'd done it until it was too late."

“I’ll let it slide this time,” she teased.

Jerome headed for the door. “I’ll do some digging as well. Call in a few favors.”

“I suppose we should go find Charisma and Penelope. I’m more than sure they’ve seen the reports.”

“Don’t,” Kalkin said. “Let them process it then talk to them. If I’m learning anything with my kids as they’re all getting older, it’s the ability to realize on their own, their parents have sex.”

Rapier nodded. “Nothing like them asking about cats yowling in the middle of the night or other things. Like why daddy is in his big cat form in bed with mommy.”

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