Page 42 of Break My Fall

“You know anyone in the middle of the state who would be inclined to help someone being trafficked get out?”

He took her prolonged silence as a yes. And he let the silence linger.

She broke it. “Do you have names? Timelines?”

“Not yet. But I think it was only one so far. Shouldn’t be too hard to find out. It was within the last six months.”

“I’ll see what I can find out on my end.” There was a pause, and when the woman next spoke, the concern in her voice was so real, Gray could feel her tension in his bones. “You need to rein her in.”

Gray snorted.

“She’s not equipped for this.”

“I agree with you one thousand percent, but you don’t know her. She’s tenacious. And she...”

“She can’t say no.”

“Exactly!” He’d expected this FBI agent to be a bit more hard-nosed about this. Her reputation preceded her, and everything he’d heard was that she was not someone you messed around with. But from the way she talked, he thought she understood. “I’m not sure if she could live with herself if she did. It’s like she needs to help as much as she needs air.”

“She probably does. And that means you’re in big trouble. You’re going to have to find a way to protect her but also not clip her wings. She’ll never forgive you for it.”

“I’m learning that. I think I made her entire family mad because I made it clear that I think they’ve dropped the ball on her protection.”

There was a hiss of sound. Had she opened a soft drink? “I understand where you’re coming from. I have a sister who I fully intend to blame any and all gray hair on. She has absolutely no sense of self-preservation. But take some friendly advice. You can’t protect everyone. You can try, but if you take it too far, you’ll smother them or stop them from doing what they believe they’re called to do. And they will not thank you for it. They may even turn on you.”

Gray didn’t like the advice, but he couldn’t argue that her words rang true. “I think I may be teetering on the edge of doing that.”

She laughed. “I’d bet you ran right past the edge and don’t even realize it yet. But it’s probably not too late.”

“I don’t know.” Gray looked back at the house where he could see the family moving around, clearing the table, and taking dishes to the kitchen. “As far as I can see, the only real solution is to solve the problem on this end. As long as that exists, she won’t stop.”

“I don’t know your friend, but you’re probably right. The good news is we’re closer than ever to solving that particular problem.”

“It might not be soon enough.”

There was a long pause, and he thought she might be about to end the call. But instead, she said, “We want to keep everyone safe. And that sounds noble. It feels right to us.”

“Yes. It does.”

“But that’s not our job.”

“I’m pretty sure itisour job.”

“We’re to protect and serve and do everything we can to bring criminals to justice. By doing that, we help provide safety for our citizens. But itisn’tour job to keep everyone safe.”

“I don’t mind taking the risks, but I don’t wantherto take them.”

“Not your call, my friend.”

“You can be very annoying.”

“I’ve heard that. My husband, sister, and my friends would agree. I choose to see it as them being annoyed because I’m so often right. It’s a burden I’m willing to bear.” Her laughter ruined her attempt at being a snob. “Sorry. I couldn’t resist. When this is over and we’ve fixed the mess up there, we’ll have to come pay you a visit. I’d like to meet this girl who has you all tied up in knots.”

“You’re welcome to visit anytime. As for meeting her ...” Gray let the sentence hang for a moment. “That will depend on whether we’re still speaking.”

“You’ll find a way. Good luck. Call me if you need me.”

“Will do.”

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