Page 17 of Dirty Discipline, Vol. 1

“Believe me, he will. You might think the FBI, CIA, DOJ, and whoever else that stands for law and order in this country, will come to your defense, but in the end, each individual at the top will cover their own ass. There’s great value in that for them. You, on the other hand, are expendable and will become the sacrificial lamb, the scapegoat. I can say without a doubt that you will be thrown under a bus so fast, it’ll make your head spin.”

“So, I assume you don’t have much trust in my uncle either. I mean seeing as he’s the Deputy Director of the CIA.”

“Slade is the only one I trust to always do what’s right, but even his hands are tied in certain instances. You’ve been in the FBI for eight years. You should know how it operates by now.” He crossed his arms as her lips curved into a stubborn pout. “Why do you think you’re here and not at an FBI safehouse until the heat dissipates around your investigation?”

Sage blinked at the question. For a moment she seemed defeated. Kaden’s respect for her grew as she squared her shoulders and looked him straight in the face.

“I don’t know, Mr. Genius. Why don’t you tell me?”

“Did D.D. Palmer even discuss the matter with you when it was brought to his attention that you were still digging into a cold case?”

“No, he didn’t, but there’s nothing irregular about that.” She frowned, clearly not appreciating being under interrogation. “I have a team leader to whom I report my findings.”

“At what point did you discuss your findings with your leader?”

“I…” Sage turned pale. “I haven’t. Purely because I had a new lead I was looking into. Someone… oh, my God!”

“And so, the penny drops.”

“I should’ve made the connection. How could I have missed that!”

“When you’re that close to a situation and have no one to bounce your discoveries and ideas off of, it’s easy to overlook what’s right in front of you.”

“How could you know?”

“I’ve been in the business far longer than you. I know how criminal minds work. So, the lead you were checking, am I correct in assuming it’s someone at the Bureau?”

“Yes, but I don’t know who… not yet.”

“And the moment you started digging, what you were doing came to light, and suddenly, there’s an attempt on your life. Slade said it happened on Wednesday. Where?”

“I was working late at the office. It happened as I was walking toward my car in the underground parking garage.”

“That only FBI employees have access to.”

Sage nodded. The revelation of her oversight painted itself across her face. It was humiliating. For someone as loyal and committed to the Bureau as she was, it came as a huge shock to realize that someone on the inside tried to assassinate her.

“This entire scheme is much bigger than even I realized. That’s why it went cold so quickly last year, even though I had found loopholes that we never closed at the time.”

“Sometimes, it’s better to let sleeping dogs lie.”

“If you’re trying to convince me to stop digging, you have a lot yet to learn about me. Corruption affects every citizen in this country and something of this magnitude? I’m not going to stop until I cut out the rotten core.”

“Which is commendable but under the current situation, it’ll have to be put on the back burner. At least until they believe you’ve given up. Then, and only then, will we continue the investigation.”

“We?”

“Of course. There is no way in hell I’ll let my Babygirl face such danger on her own.”

“I already told you. I’m not your Babygirl, and you are not my Daddy.”

Kaden shrugged. “Your room is upstairs on the left. Go unpack and get some rest. Do not leave this house without telling me. Not even to take a walk in the garden.” With a salute and a wide grin, his words floated toward her as he walked out of the kitchen. “Lunch is at one. And insofar as me being your Daddy is concerned, I do believe the lady doth protest a little too much.”

“I’m not protesting!” she shouted after him. “I’m stating a fact!”

Chapter Eight

Two hours later…

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