Page 130 of The Thief
"And the innocent suspects? The men we're lying to?"
"They’ll understand when we explain afterward. Better to be suspicious of good men than trusting of traitors."
Stephen checks his watch. "Timeline?"
Henry runs a hand through his gray hair. "Tomorrow. We brief each suspect separately, give them their individual stories. Then we wait to see which version Trace acts on."
"And if he acts on multiple versions? If he's got more than one source?"
"Then we keep refining until we identify them all."
Henry stands and moves to the window overlooking his gardens. In the distance, security guards patrol the perimeter, professionals doing their job. Men we trust with our lives.
One of whom might be selling us out.
"Do it," he says finally. "Set the trap. But be subtle about it. We can't afford to spook our mole before we identify him."
"Agreed. And Henry?"
"Yes?"
"When we catch him, when we know for certain who's been betraying us... what then?"
Henry's reflection in the window shows a face carved from stone. "Then we remind everyone what happens to traitors in this family. You may not be my men, but you are family now."
I glance at my brothers and see them all nod in agreement. This shit has brought the two organizations a hell of a lot closer. "Understood."
The meeting breaks up with assignments given, roles defined. Tomorrow, we start the process of smoking out our mole. Tonight, we plan exactly how to make him pay for his betrayal.
Emmanuel lingers after the others have left. "You think this will work?"
"It has to work, because if it doesn't, if we can't identify our leak, this war drags on indefinitely."
"And Alastríona remains a target."
"Exactly."
He's quiet for a moment, thinking. "What if the mole realizes what we're doing? What if he warns Trace about the trap?"
"Then we adapt. Improvise. Do whatever it takes to protect our people."
"Even if it means making hard choices about men we've called brothers?"
"Especially then."
Emmanuel nods, understanding. In our world, loyalty is everything. Betrayal is the one sin that can't be forgiven, can't be overlooked, can't be explained away.
Whoever's been feeding information to Trace has signed his own death warrant. The only question is whether he'll have the sense to run before we catch him.
I head back upstairs to find Alastríona still sleeping, curled up in the center of our bed like she's trying to make herself as small as possible. The conversation with Murphy hit her hard, it added another layer of grief to everything she's already carrying.
But she's safe. Whatever happens next, whoever we're fighting, she's safe in this house, in this bed, under my protection.
Tomorrow, we hunt a traitor. Tomorrow, we set traps and plan violence and take another step toward ending this war.
Tonight, I hold the woman I love and remember why all this matters.
Tonight, that's enough.
