Page 61 of Cooper's Command

Cooper winked at her, the ass, then waved them in. “Actually, now is perfect if it means you’ve finally got some intel.”

Emery walked inside, Flint moving in behind her. He gave the room a scan, then alternated his focus between Nova and the hallways outside. As if he expected more cartel assholes to phase out of the walls. And hell, maybe that was part of the reason they were there, to tell her their efforts hadn’t done a damn thing to deter that cartel from calling Hawai’i home.

Milligan stayed off to the right, looking only a bit less haggard than when Nova had last seen him at the factory.

Emery accepted the french fry Cooper offered her, chewing on it before sighing. “So, do you want the good news or the kinda crappy news?”

Nova eased back against the bed, hating how every small move echoed through her ribs, reminding her she was lucky to be alive. “I’ve had a lot of crap news lately, so dazzle me, first.”

Emery laughed. “I said good, not dazzling, but. I’ll start with confirming that you’re officially warrant free and that your record has been expunged of any hint of drug trafficking or murder.”

Nova snorted. “I guess that’s a positive, seeing as I didn’t actually do any of those things.”

“See, not dazzling. Second, according to Director Shaughnessy, you’re officially on the DEA docket here until you’re strong enough to have a video chat to discuss next steps.” Emery glanced at Cooper. “Not sure if that’s a pro or a con, but…”

“Honestly, neither when I’m sitting here feeling every rib move when I breathe thanks to my traitorous ex-boss. What about Simmons? Cartwright? Is none of that part of the good news?”

Milligan moved forward when Emery glanced over her shoulder at him, and Nova knew she wasn’t going to like what the man had to say. “Both men are still recovering, albeit, slower than you. Simmons has made it crystal clear he wants a deal.”

Cooper edged closer to her. “And, is that on the table?”

“We’re all professionals here. You folks know the score. If the intel he has can bring down major players who pose a security threat to our country, then he’ll get WITSEC and whatever else he wants. That’s how we make a difference.”

“And the fact he likely killed Agent Paulin? Tried to kill Nova multiple times?”

“Won’t factor in. But that’s out of my hands and Porter’s. This has gone all the way up the chain. All we can do is hope the bastard gets sent somewhere unpleasant.”

“And Cartwright?” Nova braced herself for the inevitable. “Is he asking for a deal, too?”

“Unknown. Right now, ex-Assistant Director Cartwright is staying completely silent. He hasn’t spoken a word. That might change once he’s cleared to go to lockup but…” Milligan pushed out a heavy breath. “You should prepare for that to happen.”

“Perfect. They get new identities for undertaking heinous crimes and I get mine spit-shined for stopping them.”

“Shaughnessy has given me his word you’ll be free from any kind of fallout over what Simmons and Cartwright accused you of.”

“Sure, except where once it’s out there, it can’t ever be truly taken back. There’ll always be agents who question if I’m really clean or if I’m just smarter than they were.” She pinched the bridge of her nose to stop the pounding from behind her eyes from spreading. “Is that it? Anyone else getting a free walk I should be concerned with? Do we know what cartel they were dealing with?”

“Flint? You want to answer that one seeing as your team’s been running that off-the-books op for me?”

Flint grunted, looking less than happy. “In a word, the Yakuza.”

Rusty and Ethan coughed, looking at Cooper and Bellamy before uttering, “What?” in unison.

Flint held up his hand. “Bowie and I weren’t able to get any admissible intel, but we had achatwith a lingering mercenary we found out by the docks. And he said their boss back in Columbia was being backed by a Japanese mafia organization.”

Rusty huffed. “That’s a bit more than crappy news.”

Ethan nodded. “Remember that Yakuza group we tangled with in Brazil? I swear I still have nightmares.”

“The only positive news is that they seem to have retreated, at least for now.” Flint looked them each in the eyes. “But…”

“But, they’ll be back.” Cooper took her hand and gave it a squeeze. “Then, I guess it’s a good thing you’ve got a team behind you.”

Cooper laughed when Flint cleared his throat. “Make that three teams and a police force. Though, that’s all going to have to wait until you can walk across the room without needing a sedative after.”

Nova smiled, nudging Cooper with her elbow. “You know what makes me tired?”

“Enough. Sheesh.” Bellamy headed for the door. “I also got a couple pizzas. I’ll go grab them. You’re all staying, by the way, and we can work out a security rotation for the first few days once you’re back at Cooper’s. After that, I guess it depends on what you and Shaughnessy decide, Nova.”

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