Page 53 of Allie's Shelter

“She’s safe. Decided to hide her in plain sight since the secure location was compromised.”

Dale’s eyes narrowed while he studied Ross. “You already have a lead on the sniper.”

“Maybe. That’s why I’m here.”

“Good grief, you always suspect everyone and their shadow.”

“Always.” Ross raised an eyebrow. “When did you stop doing the same?”

Dale ignored him. “I should thank you for sending me her prints. She popped for a few open cases in DC and Virginia. It was why we came down and picked her up.”

“Impersonating a law officer is a big deal.” Ross shrugged. “Any of that related to this case?”

“Depends on what you’re expecting to relate.”

With an eye roll for the cryptic talk, Ross dropped into the chair near Dale’s desk. There was a short stack of files carefully placed so Ross couldn’t easily read the names. He gave his friend credit for knowing how to get under his skin and tried to shake it off. “Got anything unclassified you plan to share?”

Ross knew their previous life in Special Forces was the only reason he’d been allowed inside the office. The FBI wasn’t big on Ross’s type of investigations and recovery team, no matter their proven track record. He also knew that if his superiors asked, Dale would call him an asset rather than a problem. He appreciated the benefits of the bonds made while dodging bullets on those dark op missions, and he intended to leverage them to help Allie. “Sure. To save you some time and hassle, she and her pal—now dead, thanks to you—drove into Haleswood at the request of Bradley Roberts.”

Ross sat up straight, ready to light into Dale for keeping this to himself even for a few hours, but Dale held up a hand. “Be careful what you say to me.”

“Noted,” Ross replied with a curt nod. “So, they had orders to wait for Al—Ms. Williams—and take her down?”

“Take her alive, actually. The girl swears she doesn’t know why her pal opened fire. Maybe he didn’t know his basic gun safety.”

“Right.” He didn’t believe that for a minute.

“This is pretty sticky.”

Ross heard the invitation to share the latest news. “Roberts has embezzled millions over the years and recently framed Ms. Williams for the same crime. Additionally, someone filed a claim on the guy’s corporate life insurance policy.”

“Standard procedure, I’m sure.”

“Except Roberts isn’t dead. He called me less than an hour ago. Threatening me while I was on the way here,” Ross said through gritted teeth. “You should know the beneficiary listed is Ms. Williams with an address in the Cayman Islands.”

“Interesting.” Dale leaned back in his chair as if that didn’t matter, but Ross wasn’t buying the careless routine. “You’re sure she’s innocent.”

“Yes.” Ross managed to answer without yelling or punching anything. “I’ve got a video from a bank lobby showing Roberts stopped by after his ‘death.’“

“Inadmissible, I’m sure.”

“You could always request your own copy.”

“I’ll make a note. What else?”

“Roberts sent someone else to take another shot at Ms. Williams.”

“According to my prisoner, only two gangbangers came this way.”

Ross struggled for patience. He and Dale weren’t exactly on the same side here. Though both of them wanted to take down the bad guy, they had opposing methods. “What’s more important to your case? Roberts alive and talking or dead and done? I can deliver him either way.”

“You’re confident.” Dale drummed his fingers against the stack of files. “Based on the preliminaries from the forensic accountants, alive would be better.”

“What about the faulty new drug?”

“You mean the theory of the faulty new drug.”

Ross knew he had him on the hook, it was a matter of keeping him there. “Ms. Williams is willing to provide the proof you need to unravel all of that too.”

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