Page 27 of The Saint

“Ohhh, big surprise, Camden Brooks. But you’ll have to trust me.”

Agitation fueled his foot, which tapped under the table. He wasn’t the person who needed to meet anyone. He wasn’t the one searching for answers. “Why aren’t you talking to Amelia Stone about this?” He didn’t want to ask why she wasn’t there, since she had no reason to be at their breakfast meeting—except she was the one with all the questions for the CIA. “You have two agents breathing down her neck. They’re unhelpful and making her problems worse.”

Beth took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She set her fork down, pursed her lips, and looked out the window. “I really wish Amelia hadn’t been there.”

“Well, she was.” Camden took a bite of melon. “I bet she wished nothing happened to her family to start with.”

Beth nodded.

“You guys need to rein in your bulldogs. The ones who have been knocking on her door, asking her asinine questions. She’s a civilian.”

Beth demurred, fanning his aggravation.

He tried to recalibrate his attitude. Camden lifted his coffee cup, which was delicate enough that he might crack it if he didn’t pay attention when setting it down. “What’s going on? What actually happened?”

Beth laser focused her attention on the lone strawberry left on her plate. She moved it around with her fork and eventuallyate it, at which she point she chewed methodically and bought time to formulate her answer. “You’re aware that we are dealing with an ongoing breach in our network?”

“Yeah. That’s how I was pulled into this whole mess.”

“Many covers were blown. Everyone was on a heightened alert. One of the Dumonts’ targets likely realized they were under surveillance and…” Beth frowned. “They turned the situation around and eliminated the Dumonts.”

“That doesn’t make any sense. Why take Hailey if they killed Jonathan?”

“How do you know it’s a they and not a singular person?” Beth volleyed.

God.He disliked the way the CIA did business. Everything was fun and games.

Camden smirked. “Other than what Amelia saw, I meant the royal, all-encompassing they. Because I don’t know jack shit.”

Beth studied him. “If Amelia’s story is to be believed—”

“If it’s to be believed? I was on the phone with her.”

“You heard what she wanted you to believe.”

“Oh, give me a break.”

“I’m simply pointing out that you don’t know who she is and only believed her because she added tears to her voice and panic to her words. She could’ve played you—”

“Are you out of your—” He caught himself and bit the inside of his cheeks. “Theywent after her and the Dumonts simultaneously.Theyprobably see her as a potential witness. Their worst-case scenario was probably Amelia reaching out for help, which she did. I don’t know why you don’t have her in protective custody.”

Beth ignored his jab.

Camden shook his head. He wasn’t going to get anything from Beth. He ran a hand over his face. “Other than your harebrained idea about Amelia, you don’t know who they are?”

Beth shook her head. “Not the slightest clue. But remember, I’m not a handler. I wouldn’t be privy to that information.”

He lifted his palms, frustrated. “Why isn’t their handler here?”

The corners of Beth’s eyes tightened. Her expression faltered almost imperceptibly before she neutralized it. “She’s dead.”

“Well… shit.”

That caught him off guard. The Dumonts weren’t the only victims.

“I’m guessing natural causes have been ruled out.”

“They have.”

---