Page 134 of Kage

“What picture?” Juliette asked as she moved closer.

I took a deep breath, scrubbing my jaw with my palm. “The photograph showing Randolph and the man who’d obviously been following Juliette?”

“The very one. That is the first photograph captured of Juan Degardo’s firstborn son. I think the men in Bermuda and the ones attacking you here worked for either him or his father. After breaking down the corporate veil, the Feds learned the house in Bermuda belonged to Degardo. My contact allowed that to slip.”

“Interesting,” I said, although I wasn’t certain what it had to do with Juliette. Whatever the hell was going on, the photograph had managed to open a can of worms.

“What are you talking about? You sent my photograph off my camera to my godfather?” There was no mistaking Juliette’s tone. She was pissed.

Nodding, I turned my head. “I did. The fact the man I showed you appeared in three photographs was something Gray had to know.”

“That was one of my private pictures. Did you do that on purpose? Did you keep information about my father from me?” She was leveling both her accusations and her gaze on me.

Gray danced his eyes from one to the other of us before clearing his throat. “Juliette, I know this is difficult for you. Everything. The kidnapping, the not knowing, but I wasn’t allowed to provide Kage with all the information. It was deemed classified.”

“Classified?” she repeated. “Why?”

Gray looked uncomfortable as he turned to face her. “Because your father has been under investigation for various federal crimes, including obstruction of justice.”

Juliette swallowed hard, her face paling. She didn’t respond right away, folding her arms and walking toward the back door.

I stared at Gray, angry he hadn’t provided me with an opportunity to soft sell the news. “What now?”

“Juliette will need to come with me to Washington where she’ll be faced with questions about her ordeal and what she knows about her father’s company.”

“I’m right here,” she snapped. “Talk to me. Since everyone has been keeping the truth from me, I’ll be eager to hear all the formal charges placed against my father.”

“I’m sorry, Juliette, but with the information Kage provided, the justice department finally has enough evidence to place formal charges.”

“And since your computers were hacked, that’s why we were attacked?” I demanded, as angry as I could tell Juliette had become.

“Exactly. I wish I could have prevented what happened.”

“You could have if you’d trusted me enough to return my goddamn calls!”

Gray sighed. “I was detained by the justice department during the times you called. But when I received your email, I acted as quickly as possible. I’m sorry for the delay.”

Juliette laughed. “I thought I could trust you, both of you. But you were both gunning for my father. Did you just use me to get to him?”

How the hell could I respond?

“That’s not what happened, Juliette,” Gray insisted.

She spun around on her heel again. “Why did you and my father have a falling out?”

Gray looked away, shaking his head.

“Why?” she hissed.

“Because he betrayed the unit when he was a SEAL. That’s why. I was angry with him, furious to the point I couldn’t stand talking to him any longer. That’s why.”

The information was too close to home. I thought about Maddox. The reality wasn’t lost on her. She slowly shifted her heated gaze in my direction. “It seems both of you have secrets and axes to grind. Well, doing so to incriminate my father isn’t acceptable.”

I’d rarely seen Gray angry, but he was. He took two steps toward her, his body tense. “I didn’t want to find the need to tell you this, but you leave me no other choice. The envelope in that picture? That was money paid to your father for his cooperation as well as something else.”

He was faltering, something he also never did.

“What the hell does that mean?” Her voice was tight, her chest heaving.

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