Page 23 of The Savior

Liam processed the information. “It’s been years.”

“Pham is patient, meticulous, and vengeful.”

An eye for an eye.“Who else did he attack?”

“In the last few years…” Mr. Black produced a tablet and gestured to the screen. “Parents, in-laws, wives, a girlfriend, and a daughter died. Some families were hit more than once.”

“We believe Pham’s focusing on connections that would be classified as loved ones,” Westin added.

Liam pictured their faces as if years hadn’t passed. Pain bubbled in his chest. “How?”

“Explosions in the home made to look like accidents.”

He remembered the night of the Red Gold operation and the brilliant fires that tore through the night sky with detonations and gunfire. The mission had been deemed a success, but if his commanding officers knew then what he’d just learned… His stomach roiled, and he jerked his head toward Westin. “But Julia was shot.”

“She’s the outlier,” Mr. Black answered instead.

“But you’re sure this is related?”

“Without a doubt,” Sorenson answered.

“How do you know—”

“We’re aware of a related situation.” The senator pursed her lips. “And between your team, you, and the situation—”

“It’s an abduction,” Westin said, shedding light on the mystery.

“Which adds nothing to our current discussion,” Sorenson snapped.

“Agree to disagree, Samantha.” Westin smoothed a hand over his dark beard as if he needed to focus his hands on something other than the senator. “Questions?”

So many…Liam balled his fists. “Why did it take this long to figure out?”

“Pham spent years planning this hit job,” Mr. Black said. “Your team has been split up for years. Different states, different jurisdictions. It doesn’t appear many of you stayed in touch.”

The blame weighed heavily on Liam. It was true. They’d mostly moved on to new lives. It wasn’t as if any of them were dropping in on one another online or in person.

“If it hadn’t been for Julia…” The senator’s jewelry clinked. “The deaths would’ve gone unnoticed.”

“Unnoticed,” he repeated numbly.

“Unnoticed and chalked up to faulty electrical work, gas line breaks, or appliance malfunctions,” she continued. “But when you can tie each explosion together, the revelations are quite stunning.”

The woman simplified their tragedies to data points in a word problem. His jaw clenched.

Westin’s eyes narrowed. Other than the reference to the senator by her first name, his reaction was the first time that either man had shown a flicker of emotion. Westin’s glare silently shouted a giantShut the fuck upin Sorenson’s direction, and as heartsick as Liam was, he fully supported Westin’s sentiment.

“You should know,” Black said, breaking the tension, “you are one of the few people to have seen Tran Pham in the flesh.”

Raising his eyebrows, Liam thought back.The man with the questions on the Metro, the one who made me uncomfortable—he knew Julia’s name.Culpability and regret pounded. “The second shooter. That was the man who exited the tunnel.”

Westin nodded. “Tran Pham.”

“He talked to her. Small talk.”

“He identified her,” Westin clarified.

“Then why not just…” A lump in his throat cut him off. “Why not just shoot her? Right then and there? Without the elaborate charade.”

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