Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 133213 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 666(@200wpm)___ 533(@250wpm)___ 444(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 133213 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 666(@200wpm)___ 533(@250wpm)___ 444(@300wpm)
Kenzie’s pink ponytail shook in the negative. “It’s too much of a coincidence.”
The gang was all here, with a couple of extras. The big boss had opened up the room to Sean and Grace and Liam and Avery. Tristan had protested when Ian wanted to bring in his parents. He’d told Big Tag he wasn’t a fucking civilian and he didn’t need mommy and daddy here with him. Or his papa.
So his parents were pissed at him, too. Everyone was. He was the bad guy, and there was nothing he could do to change it. The only thing he could do was embrace the role.
“Huisman is a world-renowned neurologist.” Aidan sat next to Carys, but it was clear they hadn’t hashed it out yet. She wouldn’t look at him. She’d ridden over with TJ and Lou, and Aidan had come with his father, leaving Tristan to ride with Big Tag, who’d spent the hour and a half telling him what a dumbass he was. “Beyond his medical work, he runs the foundation. He’s literally known for his philanthropic work.”
“And he knows Aidan because of our ties to Owen Shaw and his wife, Rebecca,” Liam pointed out. “Rebecca speaks highly of him. Ian, what’s going on?”
“She speaks highly of him because I asked her to,” Ian said, sinking into his seat at the head of the table. “They work in the same field, and Dr. Walsh-Shaw is something of a legend. There would be talk if she had a problem with Huisman. I don’t need problems right now. At this point, the war has been kept to the shadows. Li, I didn’t tell you because you’re not involved with that part of the business. You and Alex pretty much run this place now. I didn’t want to overload you.”
“And it’s classified.” Aidan’s father waved off the issue. “I don’t expect to be kept up to date on Agency matters, Tag. But you might give me a heads-up to watch certain situations more closely.”
Big Tag’s gaze slid Tristan’s way. “Well, up until a few weeks ago I didn’t understand the situation. For the most part my team works directly under me, with Drake and Taylor Radcliffe acting as our Agency liaisons. The twins, Tash, and Lou don’t work with anyone else. Cooper rarely takes other assignments. Zach will occasionally work with military intelligence or Special Forces teams. But this one loves to spread his talents around. How many different Agency teams are you working with, Tris?”
The man made him sound like a cheating lover. “I work where the Agency needs me to work. In this case I’m working with a small team in conjunction with military intel. It’s about a project I started over two years ago. I actually worked on this before I started with the Agency, and I transitioned it over when I joined the team.”
“No, you didn’t because I never got the memo,” Big Tag shot back.
“Neither did I.” Kala looked at him like she was sizing him up.
Of course he’d fucked over her beloved cousin, and neither of the twins were known for letting things go. He glanced over to Carys, who sat between Aidan and her dad. She hadn’t looked at him. Not once. What the hell was going through her head? He knew it was bad because she’d shut down utterly. He could handle a raging Carys. This closed-down woman scared the hell out of him.
“I didn’t transition it to your team. I brought the case with me, though. It was supposed to be nothing more than retrieving intel. A few years ago an arms dealer named The Jester came onto the radar. He moved a lot of guns out of the Philippines in the beginning, but after making enough money, he started dealing weapons of mass destruction, as we like to call them,” Tristan explained. “The Jester worked mostly on the Dark Web, and no one knew what he looked like or where he physically resided.”
“Until you found him,” Big Tag said.
He somehow managed to make it sound like a bad thing. “Yes, I managed to track down one of the world’s most infamous arms dealers when no one else could. Well, no one except the man who killed him. Luckily I took him out before he could report back to the man who’d paid him. I killed the assassin and then sat down at the arms dealer’s system and sent the group a message.”
“Let me guess,” Sean said, eyeing him like he was going to use one of his fillet knives soon. The Taggarts had intimidating stares down. “You walked in, ready to arrest him, found him dead, and decided the smartest thing for you to do was to take over his identity.”
“Yes, I did.” It was obvious this was a trial of sorts, and he was guilty. “I took over his identity on the web and managed to take over his whole business. It wasn’t even hard since no one really knew what he looked like. He hid in the shadows. I unfortunately also discovered he had some dealings with government entities. I’ve been trying to track those down, and I think I’m close. Which brings me to the mission I was supposed to clear with Drake and Taylor this weekend.”