Page 196 of Fractured Allegiance

---

"That depends." His tone shifts, harder now. "On whether I can trust you."

I grip the phone tighter. "What do you mean?"

"I mean I've been making calls. Asking questions. And what I found is interesting. I’ll like if you don’t lie or dodge this." Another pause, deliberate. "You're Bureau, aren't you?"

My chest tightens.

For a second, I consider lying. Denying it. Playing it off.

But he already knows. And if I lie now, I lose any chance of his help.

"Yes."

Silence on the other end. Long enough that I think he might hang up.

Then: "Does she know?"

I hesitate. "She knows enough." I lie.

"Enough to trust you?"

The question cuts deeper than it should. "If she didn't, she wouldn't have given me your number."

More silence. I can hear him breathing, processing, calculating.

"Here's what's going to happen," Elias says finally. "I'm going to help you get her out. Not because I trust you. Not because I like you. But because I trust her, and she needs me. And I don't ignore her when she needs me."

"Understood."

"But if you fuck this up, if you put her in more danger than she's already in, if you use her to advance whatever case you're building—I will kill you. Bureau badge won't save you. Understood?"

"Understood."

"Good." His tone shifts again, businesslike now. "Where are you?"

"Redhook. My unofficial cover apartment."

"Stay there, and text me the address. I'm coming to you. We need to plan this properly, and I don't do that over the phone."

"How long?"

"Thirty minutes."

The line goes dead.

I send the address to him and set the phone down.

Thirty minutes.

Then I'll know if I truly have an ally.

Or if I'm walking into another trap.

Thirty minutes passed, and I'm standing by the window, watching the street below, when I hear it.

A knock. Three sharp raps against the door.

Not loud. Not timid. Controlled.

---