Page 34 of Hidden Ascent

She pressed her lips together. “I am. You came all the way out here to offer your services, and I’ve been rude. I’m sorry. None of this is your fault.”

He still wanted to walk out, but instead, he indulged his curiosity. “Who’s Lloyd Whitlock?”

“The attorney general.”

“You work for the DEA. Why not ask for an appointment?”

“Because I don’t know who I can trust. Making an appointment puts me out in the open to too many people.”

“What makes you think you can trust the AG?”

“I don’t know for sure, but Harris Baker, the one who tried to kill me, said they didn’t bother with anyone in the highest positions of power. There’s no way I can speak with the president, but I’m hoping Whitlock is high enough. He may be able to help or at the very least alert the right people to what’s happening.”

“What do you want me to do?”

“You said you fix problems. My problem is, I have no way of speaking to him safely.”

Jay had a solution for her, but he also had an insatiable desire to make her squirm right now. “Hmm. That’s a tough one.” He could tell by the smug look on her face that she thought she had him. She may have felt bad for being rude, but she still only saw him as a criminal. “It’s close to impossible. All that security. And you’d want to speak to him somewhere where no one would notice you doing it. Or if they did, no one could do anything about it. Then, you’d have to get away safely.”

“I agree. And yes, it is impossible, but it’s what I need. So, if you can’t do it, I guess we’re done here.”

“I didn’t say it was impossible.”

“Yes, you did. You just said—”

“I said it was close to impossible.” Jay noticed Peter trying hard to keep a straight face.

“I’m not sure what you’re trying to do here,” Isla said. “If you have a solution, I’d like to hear it instead of playing games.” She looked at Peter for support and noticed his smirk. “I’m glad you find this amusing.”

“Can you blame him?” Peter said. “You’re not making it easy, and you’re also not hiding the fact that you want him to fail. What do you expect him to do?”

Her face fell, and Jay gave in. “If I remember correctly, there’s a fundraiser coming up that the attorney general is expected to attend. Black-tie event. But it’s a very tight invite list. You can’t get tickets, but it would be an easy way to get beside him and have a chat without drawing suspicion.”

“Let me guess,youcan get the tickets.”

“Oh good, you’re catching on.”

“And where do these tickets come from, exactly?”

“I told you, I fix problems. I’ve built up a large network of providers over the years.”

“Other criminals?”

“This criminal thing is really a problem for you. I’m not sure you’re going to be able to get past it.”

“I just want to know what I’m in for.”

“You can take the criminal out of the boy but not the boy out of the criminal.”

“That doesn’t even make sense.”

Maybe not, but he was getting to her. “What will it be? Should I arrange tickets? Or do you want me to leave you alone?”

“Fine. Get me a ticket. Now, I just need a dress. Know a good tailor?”

“I think we can fix that,” Peter said. “Jemi will have a dress that will fit you. And I’m sure I can find something for Jay.”

“Jay’s not coming.”

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