Page 38 of Nothing to Beat

Shit—what?That line was for her.That’s why they were in Chicago.This guy.Porter Clement.

“There’s a squad of us,” stated the modest prosecutor, “we’re a team.”

“I’ll bet.”

This wasn’t a trip to see Trish or a second betrayer.Though Porter should be just as concerned about keeping his life as any turncoat.His place was torched… oh, God.Roxie brought her to the man gathering the facts.The man who had evidence maybe even Trish didn’t have.Was it possible he knew more than Trish?The man was aware of strategy, the strength of the case, the chances of conviction.She hadn’t even considered approaching the prosecution…

“Oh my God,” she whispered, fixating on the man who’d been nothing to her a moment ago.“This is why we…” Her hand rose in his general direction while Roxie nodded.“He’s the one prosecuting my brother, my family.”

“Your—shit.”Shock widened his mouth for a second.“You’re Sequoia Gambatto.”She forgave him a few moments of incredulity; her needle was stuck in the same groove.“You changed your hair.”

That was why he hadn’t recognized her?In his defense, Roxie and Tripp were the distracting types.He probably hadn’t really looked.

“Since I was eighteen?Yes.I did.A few times.”

“Eighteen.The last pictures of you were…” Porter said.“You went to college and never came back to Chicago.”

She’d been back, though wouldn’t admit that to this audience.

“My father and I had a falling out.”

Among other things.

“You’ve been out of it for so long…” His demeanor changed.“Don’t mistake me, I’m grateful, but how can you help us break down current operations?”

“Sequoia’s notforyou either.”Roxie tsked.“Geez, what do you think I am?A matchmaker or a madam?”

“We only got Trish because of you.”

“You only got Trish because of Zairn,” Roxie said.“You remember how I reacted when I found out?”

Now she wanted to know how Roxie reacted.That wasn’t exactly the best moment to ask.

“But you brought me her sister anyway.”

“I didn’t bring you her sister, I brought her sister to you.You’re the gift, not the recipient.”

Swiping something aside, Porter picked up a phone.“We can record this here or we can go to the office.It’s late, but for something like this Tim will—”

“Whoa,” Roxie said.“Grab those reins, big boy.It’s not time to saddle up.”

In an involuntary move, she took a step back and came up against Tripp who clasped her shoulders, holding her against him.She hadn’t known he was there, yet he held her up.Tripp was one of those guys who didn’t upset people.Unless he wanted to.He could be the most powerful force in the room or completely invisible.

She hadn’t thought much about his presence, they’d known each other for… ever.Often he was part of the furniture in her life.Not right then.In that moment, she’d never been more grateful for him.Her surrogate brother would never let anyone hurt or harass her, which was ironic given that her biological brother, Joey, would happily sell her for scrap.

“I don’t understand,” Porter said, his hand with the phone sinking to the desk.“Sequoia, you don’t want to testify?Why else would you come here?Why else would you want to talk to me?Are you here to plead for mercy?”

Quite the opposite.Did that make her a bad person?A selfish person?What kind of a person wanted to see their family behind bars?Wait, how many people did her father hurt and torment on a daily basis?Surely one outweighed the other.His guilt had to outweigh hers, whether he felt it or not.

“There is more to life than work, Porter, honey.And this is off the books.”

“Off the books?”

“Completely,” Tripp said.“As far as anyone else is concerned, this conversation never happened.”

“I’m a public servant.”Porter’s edge of suspicion was understandable.“Anything shady—”

“Tripp looks the way he looks, we can’t help the bad boy thing.”Roxie tapped the desk.“The rest of us are squeaky clean… ish.All we need from you is some information.Just a few lousy words.That’s not too much to ask given how much information we’ve funneled your way, wouldn’t you say?”

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