Page 71 of The Millionaire's Mechanic

Scowling, Rainer looked up to find Powell watching him, the man’s flat expression even more closed down than usual.

“We need to talk.”

* * *

Rainer stared at the video of the man climbing out of Georgia’s backseat, his blood ice-cold.

One of the other kidnappers. It had to be. One of the men they hadn’t apprehended had gone to threaten Georgia. But the camera wasn’t placed near the back of the warehouse, but at the parking lot entrance. There wasn’t enough resolution to make out his face, just his general size and height.

Less than a minute later, Georgia almost fell out of the car, staggering to the thin border of shrubbery that separated the building from the black asphalt of the lot. She fell to her knees, retching in the bushes.

Fuck. “Do you have any photos of the man?”

A hard copy of the photograph was set in front of him. It was blown up and slightly grainy, but the image of the man’s face was clear enough.

Why the hell did he look familiar? Had Rainer seen him before? Perhaps at Elite?

“Tell me you’re running facial recognition with your CIA buddies,” he said, scowling at the picture on his desk, racking his brain to place the man.

“We didn’t need to. He’s been identified.”

Rainer looked up, waiting.

Powell grimaced. “His name is Shane Mackenzie.”

Rainer’s head drew back. “Wait. Isn’t that…”

His voice trailed off when the head of security nodded grimly. “Mack. The other long-term foster child of Ephraim Levi and Diamond Jones, Georgia’s foster brother. I recognized him from the pictures Ephraim keeps of the family downstairs in his office.”

Rubbing his face, Rainer swore. “Fucking hell. No wonder Georgia looks like that. She literally saw a ghost.”

But why the hell had her brother suddenly risen from the dead? And what had he said to her to make her react like that?

“Her shock does appear genuine.”

Groaning, Rainer met Powell’s eyes. “You think this has something to do with the kidnapping? Don’t tell me you still suspect George of being involved?”

Powell lifted his shoulders. “As I said, her shock appears to be genuine. But it seems too coincidental that Mr. Mackenzie has resurfaced just after Georgia quit Elite motors to come work for you.”

Rainer hated it, but Powell was right. “Fuck, Elite is still at the center of this shitshow. Mack used to work there—he was the one who got George that crap job.”

He hadn’t done her any favors, letting her work under that asshole Mitchell.But Mack had been above Mitch,he remembered. He’d been able to keep Georgia from being mistreated, up until he disappeared.

“She said he was in a car accident.”

“Yes. That’s the official cause of death,” Powell confirmed before reacting all the details. “We’ve begun a deep dive into Ephraim and Georgia’s phone records to see if Mackenzie has been in touch since his presumed death. So far there are no smoking guns.”

Rainer swore for a whole other reason. “She’s not involved.”

Georgia had been shattered by what happened tonight.

Powell winced, an unusual gesture for him. “Let me make sure of that…but also it’s a little telling that she didn’t immediately confess that her foster brother is alive.”

“So, she might need to work up to it,” Rainer muttered, stung. “God knows what he told her. Perhaps he threatened her.”

Powell sighed. “I just want you to be ready for the worst-case scenario. Even if she didn’t know he was alive and he is involved, she might choose to protect him instead of telling you the truth.”

Rainer closed his eyes. Of course, Powell would believe the worst, but George was not about to betray him. He had to believe that.

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