Page 61 of Lethal Game

"But what?" she asked, seeing an odd gleam in his eyes.

"I know someone didn't follow us to the restaurant. Which means someone followed Patrick."

"Who? Novikov?"

"I'm not sure," he said slowly. "Patrick wanted to warn me that a CIA agent who is involved in the investigation might have a personal vendetta against Novikov. That agent also worked with my father for years. In fact, Patrick told me an odd story I hadn't heard before about how my father and this agent caught Novikov thirty years ago, but at the time he wasn't deemed to be a threat. Their agencies told them to turn him and use him as an asset. He conned them and blew up a train station six months later, the first of many attacks he's taken credit for. Thatapparently was what drove my father's obsession to get Novikov. And perhaps this CIA agent shares that obsession."

"What does that mean? Are you suggesting this CIA agent might have said something to Patrick, which led Patrick to ask you for a meeting, and then the agent followed you to the park and took a shot at you?"

"When you say it like that, it sounds ridiculous," he said. "It's more likely Patrick started digging into Novikov's reappearance, and someone caught wind of that and didn't like it. They had someone follow Patrick to the park and find an opportunity to take him out. Luckily, they missed. This is why the circle has to be tight. I told Patrick to stay out of it. I hope he listens."

"What about the CIA agent? Are you going to trust him now?"

"I wasn't going to trust him before Patrick told me the story. But I don't care if he has a hidden agenda. If he's useful in bringing down Novikov, that's all that matters." He paused. "I'm just glad I left you in the car."

"I'm happy you weren't the target, although we can't be too sure that they didn't want to kill both of you."

He met her gaze. "No, we can't. But it doesn't matter, because it didn't work."

"What are you going to do now?"

"Find Novikov and arrest him before he can kill anyone else, including me."

She wanted to believe him, but it was feeling like this Novikov had all the power, and now, she was afraid for both of them.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

After Alisa checked in with the hospital and found out her mother's condition was still stable and she was resting comfortably, Jason drove them to the safe house. They would speak to Henry after the lab closed, and he went home. Until then, Alisa could take a break, and he would check in with the team.

Alisa disappeared upstairs as soon as they entered the house, which was probably just as well. Things had gotten a little too heated between them in the car, and that was happening more and more frequently. While he probably should make another promise to himself to leave her alone, he didn't seem to be able keep that promise, so why waste the time? Plus, he had bigger problems.

With Alisa taking a break upstairs, he went into the den and used his burner phone to call Savannah. "I'm at the safe house now. Any updates?"

"We found the shooter's van a few miles from the park. It was clean, no prints. The van is registered to Nolan Hawthorne, who has an address in El Segundo. Unfortunately, Nolan is an eighty-six-year-old man who moved into an assisted living facility last week. Apparently, a grandson has been living with him, butthe manager didn't have information on him. How are you doing?"

"I'm fine. I wasn't hurt. Luckily, no one else was, either."

"Were you the target or was it Hastings?"

"I don't know."

"Why were you meeting with Patrick Hastings, anyway? I thought you were keeping the LA agents out of this, but they keep popping up."

"Like Stephanie, he reached out to me, and I needed to know why. He heard Novikov was in town from one of his contacts, who he declined to name. Our tight bubble of information has sprung more than a few leaks."

"What did he want?"

"To help. I told him to enjoy his retirement and play some golf. This wasn't his job anymore."

"I'm sure that went over well," she said dryly.

"I probably could have used better words," he admitted. "I understand why both Patrick and my former partner, Stephanie, want to help. Patrick lost his best friend, and Stephanie lost her ability to be a field agent. They want Novikov to pay. But I hope they now understand it's important to keep this investigation tight. I can't prevent who they talk to or what they do, but they certainly won't be getting any operational details from me. I've made that clear." He paused. "Are you and Beck set up to check out Moldev's club tonight?"

"Yes. We're going around eight. I'll let you know what we find out. We also have someone watching Tatiana's dance studio. She's been there all day. They'll follow her home. We're monitoring her communications, and she hasn't talked to anyone from her past. What about you?"

"I'm going to follow up with Henry Cavendish. Alisa's mother alluded to the possibility that Henry might know something about Dan's whereabouts. I'll touch base with you later."

Setting down the phone, he opened the computer, checking his email first. There was nothing of note. Then he moved intothe open case file, reviewing the notes Flynn's team had made on various points of the investigation.

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