Page 21 of The Criminal

I ran through the different avenues the agency had been pursuing, from the calls to local pawn shops to pressuring Gigi’s insurance company to start their inquiry. There was a good chance the watches had left the local area, and the insurance provider would have a better chance at tracking them overseas than us. As a multinational corporation, they had impressive resources for a situation like this.

I completed my recap with a quick summary of the odd meeting with fence Charles De Wispelaere and our suspicion that he might have information on the watches. Quinn and I planned to visit the man again soon.

I asked Gigi if she had questions, but John was the one who spoke up.

“There is anotherallegedfence here in Miami that may have information. She is at the top of the food chain. Smart. But not as talkative as De Wispelaere. Derek is working the asset and hopes to have more for us soon.“ As he spoke, his eyes never wavered from mine. I felt the censure in his gaze from across the table like a punch to the gut.

And this was why I didn’t like lies. They always bit you in the ass.

The remainder of the meeting was a blur. I did and said what was expected, but my mind kept returning to Lee. John called her an asset. No fucking way. Every fiber of my being rebelled at labeling her that way. It sucked. There was no way to protect Lee and do my job. Rock on one side, hard place on the other.

The meeting broke up, and the room emptied. Only John Smith and I remained. My boss wasn’t a man to suffer fools. And I’d been a fool.

“How do you know about Lee? Are you bugging your employees now?” Best to be on the offense with a man like Smith.

John chuckled. It was a harsh sound, rusty from infrequent use.

“I’ve known of Lee Vance for years. Impressive woman. The more interesting question is, why do you know her?”

“She’s an old acquaintance, er, responsibility. That I’ve ignored for too long.” I wasn’t having this conversation, not with John. He had so many shady contacts, it was hard to believe he wasn’t a criminal. He could know things about Lee. Things I wasn’t ready to hear.

“I don’t think a woman like her needs minding. She can handle almost anything life throws at her.”

My jaw hardened, and I grunted in agreement. I hated that Lee had lived that kind of life. Had I done my part years ago, her life could have been better, easier. I sent a silent apology to Ray.

John circled the table and rested his hip on the edge near me, arms crossed over his chest. “Why didn’t you mention that you’d met with her? Don’t you trust the people you work with?”

“How do you know I was there?” I trusted this team with my life, but they had no allegiance to Lee. That was the crux of the issue—my divided loyalty.

“One of my law enforcement contacts saw you leaving her store. The rest…” He shrugged.

I’d been played. He’d acted like he knew more, giving me all the rope required to hang myself. If my visit had been part of the investigation and fruitless, I would have reported it. My silence was the red flag. I resisted the urge to slap a palm to my forehead. Lying to a spy was a bad idea.

“I trust everyone here, but it’s Lee. My connection to her is old and…” I trailed off, rubbing a frustrated hand down my face. I didn’t have the right words to explain the protective instincts I had been battling since seeing Lee again. Add guilt, shame, remorse, and, worst of all, attraction to the mix and I was drowning.

“Listen to me. Lee Vance is the kind of woman that can drag you neck-deep into a mess before you know what’s happening. Keep your head. And for God’s sake, keep trusting us. We’re here to help you.” He patted my shoulder and stood.

I almost scoffed at how simple John made it sound. Trust them. Keep Lee at arm’s length. Every fiber of my being screamed that wasn’t happening.

“Understand.”

John’s sigh was weary. He turned back to me. “Is she involved in this shit?”

“Not at this point.” I almost laughed at the irony of repeating Lee’s words to John.

“Aw, fuck. Keep me in the loop when this goes sideways.”

I didn’t have a chance to protest John’s assertion. He walked out the door, leaving me with my thoughts in the empty conference room.

Chapter 10

Lee

Everytimethesecuritydoor at Oleander buzzed, my stomach clenched. Could be excitement. Could be dread. I wasn’t going to try to figure it out. I enjoyed self-reflection but wasn’t a masochist. I pretended to work while waiting on Derek and the Dolphins’ new player to arrive. Both were a big deal for very different reasons.

The quarterback had signed a major contract, and he’d been flashing his bonus money all over town. New downtown condo. A Tesla. And now, he was shopping for a watch. I would be the one to sell it to him. He had a five-year contract with the Fins. A relationship with him would be lucrative. Five years of birthday, Christmas, and anniversary gifts for his wife and his girlfriend. Very lucrative.

Going straight, I would rely on my customers to keep me in business—no more filling in the lean times with ashipmentfrom Uncle Jimmy. I knew I could do it, but shit, it was scary. I was giving up my safety net.

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