Page 55 of Nick

“Crazy bastards singing Disney songs all night,” Greg said with scorn, his tone dripping with disgust.

“Yet you still allowed him to leave?” he asked, trying to figure out this male, as he didn’t know him at all.

In response, Greg nodded at Harper’s hand and said, “Better Howard be free than them.” It was obvious that Greg had lost his mind if he believed Howard should be released.

“You disgust me. I can’t believe I’ve never recognised you for who you are.”

Nick was astonished that he had even defended him before the Alphas. As far as he was concerned, Josie, Drew, and Greg could be ruled out as suspects.

What, however, did he know? He had been betrayed by one of his closest males.

“Me? I disgust you!” Greg exclaimed. “Ha, that’s rich coming from an animal lover. The fact that you dress them up and show them love makes you think their DNA is similar to ours. Their disgusting fangs and offensive claws rip at their skin,” Greg spat, shaking with revulsion. “Abhorrent and unnatural, that’s what they are.”

Harper stiffened, and her eyes flashed brightly as her beast pressed against her. It was an automatic response to Greg’s threat. Nick didn’t blame her in the slightest. He didn’t bother to clarify Greg’s thought process because it was so obscure.

“Who have you been speaking with?” Who had he sold their secrets to? In his quest to bring them down and provide information to HFH, where else had he looked?

Greg laughed loudly, holding his middle while doubling over. “Oh, you must be in a desperate situation. I would guess that you are questioning the motives of all your people.”

Greg stood up and approached the bars of the cell. Brutally ramming his hand into the bars, he made them rattle and shake, piercing the silence with the sound. “You think I’m the only one? High and mighty Nick is convinced that he has caught the traitor in his midst.”

His fists clenched so tightly that he nearly hit the bars, tempted to hurt Greg.

She made a small movement but stopped before Greg could see her. He noticed she was shaking her head as he glanced at her. He nodded at her.

Exhaling heavily and crossing his arms, he tried to appear indifferent.

While Nick wished he could deny every word Greg said, he was unable to do so because of his betrayal. For him to treat Nick in such a manner after all he had done for him, Greg’s treachery knew no bounds. Moreover, because of his extremist views, Greg was throwing away over two decades of friendship.

In Nick’s opinion, it made no sense. There was no rhyme or reason that could explain it. Cain was absolutely correct in his assertion that he would never be able to understand it. The level of pain he felt was comparable to the loss of a loved one, but that didn’t mean he had to express it.

With the beginning of a smile, the smugness he felt must have shown as he said, “I didn’t catch you.”

Greg had always had a bit of ego, but they had messed around and made fun of it. A prick to Greg’s ego was something Nick could use to his advantage.

“Who did?” asked Greg, cocking his head and guessing, “Josie? She’s always been good with computers. She probably discovered what was going on before you even realised what was happening…” Nick was already shaking his head before he could get too carried away with the idea. Greg’s cocky smile vanished. “Who?”

“It was one of those animals you despise so much. Her parents are a human and a Number, and she is probably one of the most caring and intelligent numbers I have ever encountered. She determined which department the messages originated from.

“The messages from Drake were being systematically erased in an effort to make him look less credible, but fortunately for us, she managed to recover some of them. Aside from that, she placed the bugs that caught you.” Nick replied with satisfaction, “She found your name in those files…everywhere.”

“Perdy!” Greg spat out in displeasure.

“Yes, Perdy,” Nick replied, letting smugness permeate his voice so Greg would be certain to recognize it. “And she will look into your life with my team’s assistance to see what else you might have done and if you left any incriminating evidence behind,” He grinned and gave him a narrowed-eyed look beneath his lashes. “We are both aware that you probably left evidence behind.”

Turning away from him, Greg walked to the other end of the cell. He looked upward, craning his neck to view the patch of sky he could see through the square.

It was then that he realised he couldn’t learn from him. Greg appeared to have closed off, so he wanted to rush into his cell and shake him, but it wouldn’t work.

“Really, that’s all you’re prepared to offer me. I cannot believe you would be willing to throw away everything we have accomplished together just like that.”

Greg scoffed, “Just like that.”

“Well, that’s how it feels. If you felt this way about Numbers, why didn’t you resign? There were plenty of things you could have done that didn’t involve betraying us,” Nick shouted. His voice was pained as he said, “Betraying me.”

He struggled to contain his anger, and his breathing was rough. Harper nodded her head in encouragement, and that was all he needed to know, that no matter his fury, he was doing the right thing.

“Do you think I should have lost my job because you changed the parameters?” Greg laughed again. “It would have been better if you had been loyal to us first.”

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