Page 22 of Lockout

“Yet, you have no proof that this group is after you,” Joe said, letting me know in no uncertain terms that he didn’t believe me. He arched his brows at me.

“You want me to wait until I’m riddled with bullet holes, then come back?” I snapped. Then I forced myself to take a deep breath. Pissing them off wasn’t going to help my cause. “Besides I’m not ending it early,” I clarified. “The position was for six months. That time frame came and went. I’ve been with them for eleven months.”

“Semantics,” Gary said with a wave of his hand. “You knew they would keep you longer if they needed to.”

“But, we could use those semantics to argue-”

“No,” Joe said, cutting me off. “We’re not willing to back out of a contract with the FBI.”

They weren’t in the damn contract. Bastards. They didn’t care what happened to me. I really didn’t want to have to give them my ultimatum. I’d worked so hard for my reputation, for my career, not to mention I didn’t want to embarrass my mother or put a black mark on her own reputation. It didn’t matter that she was retired. She’d made a name for herself and having her daughter tarnish that was bound to upset her.

But my mother loved me. And if I explained the situation, she’d understand. So would Dad. Steeling my nerves, I gave the two men a grim look. “Then I’ll be handing in my resignation to Durrett and Loe, effective immediately.”

Gary’s jaw dropped and it gave me a small sense of satisfaction to see that I’d shocked him. Joe, on the other hand, was a much tougher cookie. His jaw muscles flexed as he stared me down. If he thought that was going to intimidate me, hewasn’t aware of the reputation of the woman he’d hired years ago.

I was known as tenacious and unbending. I didn’t let men intimidate me into backing down. Women either. Going toe to toe with people was my job. And I was damn good at it.

“If you do that, you’ll regret it,” Joe all but growled at me.

When Lock did that deep, agitated sounding tone with me, it put me in mind of a dangerous animal. When Joe did it? He sounded like a Chihuahua. All bark, no bite. I shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe not. I have my reasons to want off this task force, Joe.” I didn’t bother to include Gary. He wasn’t making the decisions here. “Either you help me get off this task force, or I’ll quit and do it myself.”

“Quitting will tank your career,” he threatened. He wasn’t saying that he’d do the tanking, but all three of us knew that was what he meant.

“So be it,” I said with another shrug. My hand clenched into a fist in my lap. “If you want to keep me, that is what I need from you, because at the end of the day my life is more valuable to me than my career.”

“You’re being paranoid.”

It pissed me off to hear that, because that was exactly what everyone else had said. Everyone except Lock. But I didn’t argue with Joe’s statement. I’d given my terms, he either needed to meet them or decline.

Joe leaned back in his seat, considering me. Now it was just up to whether they considered me worth more than honoring a deal with the FBI and the bragging rights that came with that.

I had my answer far faster than I thought I would. I figured they would take some time to think about it. Show some kind of concern for my well-being. My head spun as Joe glared at me.

“Then there’s no reason to keep you, Miss Bradford. We here at Durrett and Loe wish you the best of luck at your next place of employment.”

My heart sank, but I steeled my spine and kept my expression neutral. I’d liked working here. And I loved my job. And now I’d be lucky if I was able to ever practice law again. “Have a good day, Gentlemen,” I told them as I tossed my ID badge and lanyard onto the desk separating us.

I’d already cleared out my stuff months earlier, when I left for D.C., so that it wasn’t taking up space in the office area. So all that was left was to walk out with my head held high. I strode out of their office, and out of the building, as if my world wasn’t crumbling around me.

CHAPTER 10

Lockout

Shoving off the side of the building where I’d been leaning, I studied Keely’s face as she walked out of the law offices. It wasn’t good news. I didn’t need her to say anything.

Her beautiful face was carefully blank as I fell into step with her and we crossed the road. She didn’t say a word as we entered the parking garage and walked toward her car.

Scanning around as my eyes adjusted to the dim garage, I hit the key fob to unlock the door. I’d been watching everyone passing by on the street while she talked to her bosses. If anyone was following her they were doing a damn good job of concealing themselves.

I was sure that Hangman knew where she was, but his crew was waiting, hanging back, to be told what to do about her. Especially now that she was under our protection. They weren’t just going to barrel in and try to take her from me. He knewbetter than that. They knew our reputation. For now, they were doing exactly what we were, planning. He was still in D.C. at the moment, according to Riptide. He was probably going to send his Phoenix crew to take care of her. Which wasn’t going to fucking work, but he didn’t know that yet.

Glancing over at her, I started the car. “You going to say anything?”

That full lower lip trembled as her eyes darted away from me. A quick shake of her head was all the answer I got. I pulled out of the garage and started toward home. I wanted to pull over and drag her into my lap, console her as she cried.

Before I allowed her to come and live at the clubhouse, I’d had Rip do a thorough background check on her. More than the usual. I knew how hard she’d worked to get where she was. That was why I’d refused to be the reason she walked away from it all. That was how resentment built up between two people.

“Want me to kill them?” I asked.

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