Page 67 of Stolen Goods
Thad walked out the door without looking back. Closure was an elusive beast he’d yet to cage, and he wasn’t sure if today had brought him one step closer or two steps back. But he’d finally met his sister, and no one could ever take that away. If Emma was anything like him, which he had a feeling she was, there’d be an email in his inbox in a matter of days. Jo had been wrong—Thad did remember everything she’d taught him. He just hadn’t wanted to waste that knowledge prematurely. Half the skill in a good con was knowing when to strike, a thought sitting at the front of his mind as he opened the door to Parker’s car and sat down.
“You know,” the Fed said as he took the driver’s seat, “she didn’t have to let you inside. When we called to establish the meeting, your mom could’ve said no. And that would have been that. She wanted to see you. She wanted you to see your sister.”
“Save it for your next after-school special, Parker.” He crossed his arms and glanced out the window. A few agents were still standing on the lawn of the house. A few were getting into their cars. “Where to next?”
Parker sighed. “To the field office in downtown Phoenix. We’ll take an initial statement while the lawyers start working on a plea deal. WITSEC will find you a placement. Everything should move quickly. Speed is the only upper hand we have—”
Thad sliced the side of his hand into Parker’s jugular, cutting him off, then dropped a tight fist into his bum leg. The Fed groaned as his eyes bugged, glazing over with the pain. His hands went for his gun, but Thad went for the comm, ripping it from his ear and unplugging the system. The rest of the suits would notice any minute that Parker’s device was down, but right now, they were too busy talking and congratulating themselves on a job well done. The safetyclicked off.
“I will shoot you,” Nate wheezed, pointing the tip of his Glock at Thad’s head.
“I really don’t think you will,” Thad crooned. The bullets were all sitting in a drawer back at the safe house, where Thad had hidden them while Parker was changing.
“What the hell?” Nate turned the weapon over, sensing the weight difference now that he’d slid the gun from its holster. He pulled his brows together in a tight knot, confused and still fighting through the ache.
“Nimble fingers.” Thad winked. Then he slid the cuffs from his pockets, the ones he’d saved from their earlier snafu. While the Fed was still disoriented and distracted, Thad grabbed his wrists and pressed his torso against the wheel, then latched his hands together. He threw the man back into the seat before he had a chance to beep the horn.
“I knew you would try something,” Parker muttered, his distaste tangible. “I told Jo you would try something, but she said you were better than that. She thought you were a better man.”
“Well, I guess it’s time to take her blinders off,” Thad retorted as he grabbed the gun from Parker’s belt and tossed it into the back seat.
The Fed shook his head. “I don’t get it, Ryder. You got everything you wanted, why run? Why now?”
“You’re right, Parker. I did. I used Addy to get to Jo, just like I planned. I used Jo to get to you, just like I planned. I used you to get through the FBI barricade so I could talk to my sister.NowI’m done. And I can go.”
Just then, a phone rang. Whitney Houston blasted through the car. “Run to You.” The pocket of Agent Parker’s suit lit blue from underneath. The cell vibrated against his leg.
“It’s Jo,” he said.
Thad was already reaching for the phone. He knew Jo when he saw her—The Bodyguardwas her favorite movie of all time.
“Nate.” Her voice was low. Not panicked, but with an edge that immediately made the hairs on the back of his neck stand. “The Russians are here. I don’t know how they found us, but we need help. I can handle it for a little while, but get here as soon—”
The line went dead.
He locked eyes with Parker.
“Don’t even think about it, Ryder,” the Fed growled, shaking his torso, trying to free himself of Thad’s hold. The gunshot wound in his leg was no doubt throbbing from the jerky movement, but he didn’t seem to care. Parker was wild, crazed, a man unhinged. “Don’t you dare leave me here. I’ll never forgive you.”
Thad was deadly calm as he reached for the handle on the door. “That’s a risk I’m willing to take.”
He shoved Parker onto the sidewalk and smoothly jumped into the driver’s seat, then stomped his foot on the gas. The car launched into motion—zero to sixty in a matter of seconds. The smell of burning rubber filled the air. He was around the bend before the Feds knew what happened. There’d be no coming back from this. The Feds were minutes behind, if he was lucky. Seconds if he wasn’t. And they’d be a lot less trusting when they caught him.
If he wanted to run, this was his only shot.
Thad pressed his foot down, ignoring stop signs and red lights, not caring as the speedometer ticked to eighty, then ninety, then one hundred. Jo sounded confident on the phone—concentrated but not scared. He could tell by her tone there was already a plan spinning in the back of her mind, but would it work? How much time would she be able to buy? And what about Addison? This wasn’t her life, her world. When he closed his eyes, he saw her, back in that cake shop where they’d first met, huddled and afraid, terrified and hoping he’d save her.
There was only one option, one place he could go—and he had to get there before the Feds. With their procedures and their rules, it would become a hostage situation. He knew exactly how the mafia handled those. Thad couldn’t let that happen. He refused. He’d brought Jo and Addison into this. He’d put them in danger. If he abandoned either of them now, whatever goodness was left in his heart would disappear. If one of them died because of his mistakes, he wouldn’t want to keep living. Nothing was worth so high a price.
I’m coming, Addison. I’m coming, Jo.
He gripped the steering wheel and kept his eyes laser focused on the road. A sense of eerie calm settled over him, of clarity and peace. It felt good for once to be racing toward someone, instead of running away.
Hold on. I’m coming.
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Addison
