Page 31 of Dagger

Pete mulled over Colt’s and Brett’s advice. “I’ll call my contact in IA and fill him in. It could be the best way to begin thetakedown. Henderson may start getting nervous without the protection of local law enforcement.”

“That’ll work well with the plan we settled on with the Demons,” Brett explained. “We agreed to start taking down the people around Henderson. We’re hopin’ once he’s out there swinging, he’ll panic enough to fuck up.”

“I’ve agreed to deal with Barrington,” Colt added. “If we take away the cash cleaner, Henderson will sweat.”

Pete’s stare rested on Colt, and he cocked an eyebrow. “Do I wanna know how?”

Colt shrugged. “I can make the evidence of Barrington’s money laundering appear anonymously in your emails. Nobody will work out it’s me.”

“You need clearance?” Pete asked.

Colt grinned. “Last time I checked, Barrington Bank’s security looked like it was set up by a five-year-old. I’m good, boss.”

“Noted.” Pete’s eyes slid toward Stafford. “We need to settle on your cover story.”

“Easy.” Brett glanced at me. “Gonna say the Demons ran me off the road, brought Elise and me in, and kicked the fuck outta me for intel, which isn’t a lie. Hopefully, they can put me on my ass without too much lasting damage.”

“I’ll speak to John and Sophie,” I offered. “I’m sure she’ll monitor Brett’s injuries. Then, John can arrange for his boys to dump Brett back at the house.”

Pete studied Brett. “You sure about this? I’ll happily pull you out of there if you’re not comfortable.”

“As long as I’m convincing, I don’t think it’s a problem,” he declared. “If it works, Henderson will think I took a beating because I wouldn’t talk. Maybe he’ll put more trust in me.”

“You think he’ll pull you in deeper?” I asked Brett.

“Maybe. If we succeed in neutralizing Henderson’s allies, he’ll turn to me for support. If I can go back to him with something that thinks gives him an edge over the Demons, it’ll ramp up the trust for sure.”

“Dagger won’t like that,” Colt muttered.

Hannigan’s eyes caught mine, his expression sheepish. “Even if it’s Elise who talks him around?”

My spine stiffened, and my skin prickled. “I’m not the FBI’s whore, Hannigan,” I said, tone full of indignation.

Pete’s lips twitched. “You are the least whore-like woman I think I’ve ever met, Duchess, but the fact remains that John ‘Dagger’ Stone is sweet on you. Nothing wrong with using it to our advantage, especially if it keeps Agent Stafford safe.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m happy to approach John, but I won’t hide anything.”

“Don’t think Prez’ll care,” Colt murmured to himself.

My eyes narrowed on him.

“Okay, we’re set,” Hannigan announced. “Contact me when you’re set, and report back.”

We said our goodbyes, and Colt tapped on his keyboard to disconnect the call.

Sitting back, he swung his gaze toward me. “I’ll approach Dagger if you’re uncomfortable,” he offered. “What Hannigan doesn’t know won’t hurt him. But I gotta say, he’s right on this one. I’m not John’s favorite person at the moment, so he’s more likely to help you than me.”

My stomach gave a nervous lurch at the prospect of asking John for any kind of favor. “I’ll speak to him, but I meant what I said. No more lies. I’m going to be upfront about it.”

“Be upfront about what?” a voice growled from the doorway.

I craned my neck to see John entering the room with Cash. He turned to me, dipping his chin. “What d’ya need, Leesy?”

I stood up and threw a hand out toward Brett. “We need to get Agent Stafford back undercover. In order to do that successfully, Robert needs to believe he hasn’t talked, so we need to make it look like you’ve tried to beat information from him, but in a way where there’s no long-term damage.”

“Youwantus to kick his ass?” John asked me.

“In a controlled way, yes.”

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