Page 58 of Lethal Game

"Jason," Patrick greeted him, relief in his voice. "Glad you came."

"You sounded worried. What’s going on?"

"It’s Novikov. I heard he's in LA."

"Where did you hear that?"

Patrick hesitated, then said, "It doesn't matter. You need to step out of the investigation. With your last name, you'll have Novikov's target on your back. He hated your father, and he would be more than happy to take you out, too."

"That won't happen. I'm going to catch him this time."

"You have the same glint in your eyes that your father used to get when he thought he had a chance to bring Novikov in. That made him reckless."

"He wasn't reckless; he was set up. There's a difference."

"I know." Patrick ran a hand through his hair. "I understand where you're coming from. I want to see Novikov get what he deserves as much as you do, but you're too close to the situation. It's too personal. I'm surprised Damon is allowing it."

"He trusts me to get the job done."

"And you're going to do that job with Flynn MacKenzie's team?"

He stiffened. "Do we really need to talk, Patrick, because you seem to know everything already?"

"I have a lot of friends in law enforcement. You can't believe Novikov's appearance on US soil is a secret."

"I figured the news would leak, but we're keeping theoperational details within a tight circle. And you should understand why."

"Because someone set your father up," he said with a sigh. "I still rack my brain, wondering who the hell betrayed our team. It makes me angry that I haven't been able to figure it out. I've let down my best friend, my brother. Your father saved my life on more than one occasion, and he was my conscience. If I got a little too close to a line I shouldn't cross, he would yank me back. He would tell me we have to do it the right way."

"That sounds like my father."

"I still can't believe he's gone. At random times, I'll hear his voice in my head. It always surprises me how clear it is. I'm sure you're going through the same thing."

He missed his father, but he didn't hear his voice in his head. What he remembered most was his father's hard profile. He was always looking away, looking at someone else, never looking back at him. That was, sadly, what he remembered the most. But when that image ran through his mind, he reminded himself that there had been some good times.

They had shared beers after work as he got older and more involved in his father's world. Having something in common had brought them closer together, but even then, there had been a distance between them. But he wasn't going to share his thoughts with Patrick. It would sound like he was bashing his father, and he wasn't.

Drew Colter had been a hero. He'd saved many lives in his career. He just hadn't been the best dad. But now that he was an agent, he understood it was difficult to serve country and family. His father had made his choice. The same one he was making now. Not that he had a family anymore. In some ways, that gave him freedom because he no longer had to worry about disappointing anyone, or that one day they'd get the worst call of their lives, that he was gone. There was no one to get that call now.

He frowned, realizing he was losing his focus, which tendedto happen when he got caught up in Patrick's stories about his dad.

Clearing his throat, he said, "Did you have something else to tell me? Because you could have mentioned this concern in a text."

"It's about Mick. He doesn't want to capture Novikov; he wants to kill him."

"Okay. I can't say a lot of other people don't feel the same way. I'm sure you wouldn't mind putting a bullet in him. Nor would Stephanie. But I'm determined to get justice, not vengeance."

Patrick smiled. "Your father would be proud to hear you say that. And I won't deny I wouldn't mind if justice was served with a bullet, but that's not my call. I just wanted to warn you that Mick often has his own agenda. He and your father worked together in Eastern Europe and in the Soviet Union when they were both young, determined-to-be-great agents for their respective agencies. I heard a story that at one point, they had a chance to take Novikov into custody, but their agencies thought he would have more value as an asset, so they were ordered to turn him and then let him go."

"No way. I never heard this," he said in disbelief.

"This was over thirty years ago. Novikov was not the master terrorist he is now. He was twenty-five years old at the time and had just left the KGB and was working for the Bratva. It wasn't unusual to try to get eyes into operations happening in that part of the world, but Novikov conned them. He wasn't turned. Six months later, he blew up a train station in Berlin, and that’s when your father and Mick became obsessed with bringing him in. For three decades, they chased him. I think your father's obsession made him act too impulsively three years ago. He was desperate to get the man who had always eluded him."

He'd seen his father's obsession, but he'd never heard the story Patrick had just told him. "My father and I talked about Novikov a lot, especially three years ago when we knew he wasin LA. My dad never mentioned having him in custody and letting him go. When did he tell you this? And why wouldn't he have told me when we were working the case together?"

"He told me a very long time ago, probably a year after it happened. As for why me and not you? It's easier to tell your partner a secret that makes you look bad than your son. He wanted your respect."

He didn't know what to make of the story. "All right. Let's say that's all true. Why are you telling me now?"

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