Page 55 of Rescued Duty

Naya swiveled in her desk chair. Her heart pounded in her ears. Soon, whoever had been nearby walked away. She sank back into the chair and loosened her shoulders.

“Nay, this is serious.”

“I know, right? This could be the story of the year.” Of course, there were still missing pieces that needed a place in the puzzle, but it was a start.

“No. I mean this is serious for you. For both of us. Douglas was killed for what he knew, and you’ve already been targeted. The car explosion and a fire at the former chief’s house? That’s serious, Nay.” Ingram sighed. “If someone finds out we both have intel, who knows what they’ll do?”

“Now you sound like Zack.” Naya leaned her head against her hand.

“I get why he told you to stop digging around. He might be on to something there.”

“How am I supposed to stay silent when I know details that could keep other people out of harm’s way?” Especially when it seemed like his parents’ deaths were connected to her story.

She could end up helping himandgetting what she wanted.

“But do you?” Ingram whispered. “You know information that was true years ago, but facts don’t always equal a need for action. There’s nothing that can be done about it at this point. What does finding their killer give Zack? It won’t bring them back.”

Naya didn’t want to argue with her friend, but why wasn’t anyone seeing her side of the story? “That’s exactly why I need to keep digging. Until the answers provide a call to action on the part of whoever is responsible for their deaths. Responsible for hurting people and contaminating the water in Last ChanceCounty.” This was her way of caring for the people in her life. Right?

A ding buzzed in Naya’s ear, and she put her phone on speaker so she could pull up the notification.

A social media update.

Naya went to exit out of the app, but that’s when the picture loaded, along with the notification that she was tagged in the post.

The Green Warriors had posted an update on their protests, and the first image was from the fire with the barrel of fish. Naya was front and center with her pen and paper.

“You still there?” Ingram’s voice filtered through the speaker.

“Yeah. Sorry. It looks like I’ve just made headlines with Green Warriors. Check this out.” Naya forwarded Ingram the picture.

“That you have.” Ingram paused. “Hey, I know that other girl.”

“Which one?”

“The gal sporting the brown shirt.”

Naya zoomed in on the picture. “Sylvia?”

“Yeah. She works in one of the departments here at Ethos.”

Naya frowned. Apparently, there was more to this photo than met the eye. “What is one of Ethos’s workers doing at the protests targeted at the CEO’s house?”

“Beats me. But she’ll be hounded by management here soon enough.”

“That email you all received from Callahan didn’t seem to deter her.”

“And none of this seems to be doing the same for you either, Naya. At what cost will you stop? You’ve already been targeted in your car, pushed over a cliff, and almost blown up.”

Naya swallowed. Ingram wasn’t wrong. “I just want the truth exposed. So those involved are prosecuted and the innocent areinformed and able to move on, free from hurt because of other people’s choices.”

“Nay…” Ingram drew out her name. “I’m saying this because I love you. What is your goal in this? To bring healing to a community or prove a point about whatyoucan accomplish? You’ll destroy the company I work for whether you have evidence or not, and you won’t bring Zack’s family back. You just want that promotion.”

Naya sucked in a breath. The words stung like ripping a band aid off, exposing the wound underneath. She didn’t like what her friend had said, but it didn’t make the question any less valid. Because deep down, her own desires waged a war over what to do. She wanted to do her job wellandbring healing to the community.

“I want both,” Naya whispered. Silence lengthened on the other end. Had she just thought her answer or actually verbalized it?

Was she being prideful with her desires? Or were her intentions pure?

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