Page 100 of Knocked Up by my Best Friend's Brothers

“It was a gamble,” Cassius tells me. “We didn’t really know what we were walking into, but we understood whom we were dealing with.”

“You were so awesome,” I manage.

“And you, Christa, were a rock,” River replies. “You stood your ground, you held on, and you fought back.”

“I’m just so happy to see you, to be with you.”

“Nothing gets in the way of our love, baby,” Nathan says and plants a soft kiss on my lips.

I melt into them, letting the seconds we have left turn into the sweetest eternity. In just a few moments, life will come back to haunt us and drag us back into a rather painful reality—the aftermath of a failed execution attempt. The aftermath of what could’ve been my last minutes on earth.

But they saved me.

My men… they saved me in more ways than one way tonight.

33

Christa

The FBI quickly takes over the crime scene in coordination with the local police and the medical examiner. Cassius and his brothers took precautions for this mission, anticipating every possible scenario with incredible precision. It’s loud and chaotic at first, but I believe my lovers when they assure me the time has come for me to tell my story.

So when it’s my turn to give a statement, the whole dam breaks.

What I tell Agent Fisher, the special agent in charge, baffles him, starting with my early days at Perry-Sage. They already have some of my information, which the Hawthornes provided earlier, but they will definitely need me to come in for a formal interview as well.

Finally, I sit in the back of an ambulance with Agent Fisher while a paramedic checks my vitals and prepares me for a ride to the hospital.

“All of this sounds insane, I’ll be honest,” Fisher declares, “though believable. We’d heard rumors before that the crime families were slowly working an angle through cybersecurity. Itwas bound to happen in this day and age. And when Perry-Sage fell, it kind of cracked the whole thing open.”

“They’re adapting, but their traditional methods will be their undoing,” I say. “You can’t be an old-school mobster in the cyberworld. You’re bound to piss off one or two hackers until they turn the tables on you.”

“Miss Mancini was determined to get to you,” he replies, nodding his head toward the building.

I follow his gaze just in time to see Alexandra being dragged out of the building in cuffs, her brother’s body in a black bag right behind her. She looks defeated, merely a shadow of the woman who stared me down earlier. Defeat is not something she is equipped to deal with.

Off to the side, Cassius, River, and Nathan are giving their own statements to another agent, Fisher’s partner, while the police cordon off the area and the crime scene investigators go into the building to start analyzing and bagging the evidence and the rest of the bodies. It’s going to be a long night for them.

“Alexandra Mancini had a bone to pick with me, I suppose. But I don’t regret anything I did,” I tell Fisher.

“Nor should you. I’m only disappointed that you didn’t reach out to the bureau for support,” he replies. “They would’ve protected you.”

“Part of the work I did for Perry-Sage wasn’t legal.”

“I’m sure a deal would’ve been on the table. But that’s done and dusted now. I will check with our legal counsel on the matter, but I’m pretty sure you’re subject to a statute of limitations. And considering all the materials the Hawthorne brothers providedon your behalf today, I have a good feeling about your outcome.”

“You do?”

He chuckles lightly. “Miss Campbell, not only did you help unravel a monumental operation led by a massive corporation and one of America’s top crime families, but you also shed light on how companies exploit brilliant minds for unethical purposes, bordering on the illegal. And here, in Portland, even if it wasn’t your intention, you exposed a previously unknown branch of criminal activities led by the Mancinis. Your contributions to law enforcement are stellar, to say the least.”

“I’ve been living with this guilt regarding my work at Perry-Sage for so long, everything else sort of slipped out of focus for me. Thank you for reminding me.”

“You’re welcome. We’ll need you to come in for a formal interview. I’ll give you a few days to prepare and gather any additional materials you might want to share with us,” he says.

“What’s next? For me, the Hawthornes, and the Mancinis…?”

“Well, you and the Hawthorne family are in the clear. What happened upstairs will be classified as self-defense. No charges will be filed either.” He frowns as he adds, “We’re also connecting the murder of James Bell, known as Spike, to the Mancini crime family. Our team has already taken control of his apartment and everything in it. We’re liaising with our colleagues in cybersecurity on the matter, as I understand he already had a working relationship with the Bureau.”

My heart breaks as I think about Spike. He didn’t deserve to go out like that. He died a hero in my book. I just wish I could thank him for being there for me, for helping me out even though he understood the risks. Doesn’t mean I won’t feel guilty for the restof my life for getting him killed.

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