Page 50 of Moonlit Hideaway
“Look, we’re the good guys,” Reed said. “But have it your way. We don’t need Hank, but you need to come with us.”
Sierra wasn’t going to budge. “Who was shooting at us? If it was Marco’s men, it means they know we’re ratting on them. I’m out of here.”
“But you need your fake ID, and we need your voice print to make AI videos of you,” Agent Patterson said. “I also need all of your social media logins.”
“You two can’t stay here like sitting ducks,” Reed said. “The goons are gone only because the police showed up. Better come with us while the coast is clear.”
Sierra didn’t like it, but he had a point.
“I’m keeping the gun, but you better have an unmarked car and make sure the cops don’t question us.” She glanced back at the police cars surrounding her battered truck and jogged after Patterson and Reed to the end of the alley. They climbed a chain-link fence and got into a car.
After turning and looping several blocks, the car pulled up to the imposing glass and brick FBI building. The agents draped them with hooded jackets and escorted them into the building, where Sierra had to relinquish her gun. The sterile interior, with its drab gray carpets and fluorescent lights, gave her chills, not just from the aggressive air conditioning. This was a fortress, but Marco’s reach was long. Who knew how many informants he had on the inside?
Sierra avoided eye contact with the men and women they walked by. The sting operation would be doomed from the start if someone recognized her. She’d never dreamed of snitching on the organization, but it was this or marrying a man she despised. Once she crossed the line, her entire family would brand her a traitor. She would be outcast, shunned, and in danger—should anyone ever find out she worked with the Feds.
She looked at Hank for reassurance, and he gave her a warm pat on the shoulder.
“We’re doing the right thing,” he reminded her. “You just need to lay low; let Agent Patterson handle the rest.”
“I hope you’re right,” she said as they walked through metal detectors and navigated the maze of bland corridors behind Agents Reed and Patterson.
“Here we go,” Agent Patterson said, opening the door to a small office. It was clean and bright, with donuts and coffee on a side table. “Make yourselves at home, and then we’ll get started.”
“Thanks for the coffee,” Sierra said. “But I just want to get through this and go.”
Patterson’s sharp gaze was sympathetic. “It’s a lot to take in, I know. But you’re in good hands.”
Reed slid a file across the table. “Here’s the plan. Agent Patterson will take over your identity and draw Marco out. With any luck, he’ll expose his network trying to get to her—thinking she’s you.”
Sierra’s throat was tight. This had to work. Marco’s chokehold on countless lives had to end.
“I’ve always wanted to be a blonde,” Patterson said with a smile. She removed a brown wig and shook out her blond hair. “Even got your highlights—at least what you had at your last concert.”
“Don’t worry, she also has your dance moves down,” Agent Reed said, chuckling. “She’s a great impersonator.”
“What will the rest of the team be doing?” Hank’s voice was full of professional concern.
“Agent Reed and his team will be watching over me,” Agent Patterson said with a slight mid-Atlantic accent. “They’ll be ready to catch Marco’s men as soon as they make a move.”
“Like we did today,” Reed bragged. “You have to admit that was some fireworks show.”
“Okay, what do Hank and I do in the meantime?” Sierra asked.
“You’ll be provided with a fake identity, Jane Dolan, I believe is your preferred pseudonym,” Reed replied.
“You’ll also get a used car that’s not as noticeable as your battered up truck with the West Virginia plates,” Patterson added as if this were a fun excursion and not a dangerous sting operation.
“Yep, and I’m impersonating Hank.” Reed laughed in a gravelly voice. “How’s my country boy vibe?”
“Looking good,” Sierra said, wondering if Marco would be so easily fooled. She managed a smile, though her heart raced. “The sooner we can put this behind us, the better.”
Hank’s brow furrowed. “And what about Sierra’s safety in the long term?”
“Witness protection is an option,” Reed said. “Especially as we move into the next phase of exposing the organization.”
Sierra bit her lip. She knew Hank hoped she’d agree to disappear and stay on the island, but the thought of leaving music behind forever made her chest ache.
“I don’t want to go into witness protection,” she said, averting her gaze from Hank. “I want to return to my career eventually, and I can’t hide forever.”
