“Who took her?” Crockett asked.
“How the fuck should I know?”
“Who hired you to scam these women?” Colton asked.
“The real Uncle Charlie.”
“What in the hell does that mean?” Maverick asked.
“It means whatever the hell you want it to mean,” Monty rasped. “I sure as fuck don’t answer to you.”
“Who the fuck is Uncle Charlie?” Sin barked out.
Monty glared up at him. “I don’t owe you fuck wads a goddamn thing.”
“Against me, you will lose.” Sin stepped away. “Get him the hell out of here.”
Dakota grabbed Monty by the collar. “Let’s go have some fun.”
Panic flashed in Monty’s eyes. “You’re a pussy, Dakota. You don’t scare me.”
“You say that now,” Dakota replied. “Let’s see how you feel after we’re done chatting.”
Dakota and Jacoby dragged him out while he screamed and hollered. As his cries grew fainter, Evangeline returned to the conference room.
“Time is getting away from us,” she said.
“He won’t last five minutes with those two,” Sin replied.
Maverick pushed out of his chair. “Evangeline, I think you should report your sister as missing.”
“Not yet,” Sin said. “Monty knows more than he’s telling us. Dakota will get answers.”
“I hate to leave,” Maverick continued, “but I’ve got a security gig in a couple of hours.” He put a hand on his brother’s shoulder. “No more dying, fake or otherwise. You scared the hell out of me.”
Crockett stood. “As far as I’m concerned, Monty is already dead.”
Sin regarded each of the men. “Thanks for being here.”
“We’ve always had each other’s backs,” Colton said. “That’ll never change.”
“Once we locate Hannah and the baby, I’ll release a statement that I’m alive,” Sin said.
“I need to clear my head,” Evangeline said. “I’m stepping outside for a few.”
“We’ll walk out with you,” Maverick replied.
When everyone rounded the corner, Sin propped his heel against the wall in the hallway. Frustration coursed through him. If Monty hadn’t taken Hannah and Robert, then who had? And if Monty wasn’t Uncle Charlie, then who was?
We’re going around and around in circles.
A few minutes later, Dakota jogged toward him. “Hannah’s baby was sold to a Maya and Craig Fields.”
“Who the hell promised them her baby?”
“Uncle Charlie. Monty said he runs a private adoption agency called The Institute.”
“How’d you get him to tell you that?”
“I said please.” Dakota chuffed out a laugh as his phone buzzed. “One of my guys has been calling me. I need my computer, so I’ll be in my office.” As he answered, he took off down the hallway and vanished around the corner.
Sin pulled his phone from his pocket and Googled “The Institute” but found nothing. We’ve got to track down the Fields’. He called Sanchez. “I need you to—”
Monty stumbled around the corner and fell onto the floor. His hand and shirt were blood soaked, his right eye swollen shut. He raised his arm and pointed a gun at Sin. “Where are your bitches now, asshole?”
BANG!
A bullet whizzed by Sin. Unarmed and without backup, he was defenseless.
“I’m gonna fucking kill you, Sinclair Develin! This time, you’re a dead man.”
BANG!
The second bullet grazed Sin’s thigh. Wincing, he grabbed his leg, pain searing through him. Monty crawled toward Sin, trailing blood and squinting through his one good eye.
Evangeline ran around the corner, her Glock in her outstretched arms. “Drop your weapon!”
“Go to hell, bitch.” Monty aimed his gun at her.
BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG!
His arm dropped. Monty lay motionless, blood pooling on the floor beneath him. She ran over and kicked his weapon away, then hurried over to Sin.
Dakota flew around the corner. “Jesus, no!”
“Mine’s a flesh wound,” Sin hollered. “Find Jacoby.”
As Dakota bolted down the hall, Evangeline tore off Sin’s shirt and pressed it against his wound. “I cannot fucking believe this.” She glanced at Monty. “Did I kill him?”
Sin eyed his nemesis. “Looks that way.”
Dakota came running back toward them. “Jacoby’s been shot. I need your help or we’re gonna lose him.”
25
The Institute
Evangeline had spent the last hour scouring the Internet. Determined to find The Institute, she kept working, but her searches had yielded zero results. “If I can’t find it, I can’t hack into it,” she bemoaned to Sin.
As Dr. Joyce entered the black site’s kitchen, she pulled off her surgical mask. “Jacoby’s surgery went well and he’s resting comfortably.” She removed her head cap and threaded her fingers through her hair. “Does he have family and have they been called?”
“Someone from my team is bringing his wife here,” Sin said. “Can I see him?”
“Let’s take a look at your leg first. I understand a bullet grazed your thigh.”
“I’m good.”
“I’m the one with the medical degree, so I’m the boss.” She beckoned him with her index finger before walking out of the room.
“Be right back,” he said to Evangeline before retreating down the hall with the doctor.
Evangeline poured more coffee. Instead of sipping, she dumped the black liquid down the drain and splashed cold water on her face. Her stomach was in knots, her heart ached, and her thoughts had coagulated into a jumbled mess.
She had no idea where the real Uncle Charlie had taken Hannah and Robert. She had no idea where Dakota had taken Thomas Monty’s body. She was wrecked over taking his life, but if she hadn’t, Sin would be a dead man, along with the rest of them.
The situation had been surreal. After she’d tied the shirt around Sin’s leg, the three of them had stabilized Jacoby. Then, while the surgeon operated on him, she and Sin had cleaned up Monty’s blood.
Killing in self-defense was one thing, but being an accessory after the fact was a whole different story. Covering up a killing was a crime. Until this moment, there hadn’t been time to process what had happened, only to react to and handle the chaos.
Feeling lightheaded, she sucked down a deep breath, then slid onto the cold tile floor. This was the first time she had taken a life to save another’s. In Monty’s case, he was a fugitive preying on the innocent. He was wanted for known crimes and suspected of others. Her action kept him from killing Sin and from harming others. If only evil didn’t exist.
Despite the justifications chattering in her head, she was guilty of kidnapping Monty and for not calling the police to report the shootings.
As she tried to make sense of everything, she was missing a huge piece of the pie. She knew nothing about Dakota. What did he do? Why did he have a black site? She thought he was a successful real estate broker with a well-established business. Was that his cover? Was he one of the good guys, deep undercover? A vigilante seeking justice for the innocent? Or was he up to no good? If she had involved law enforcement, would she have been helping or hurting their situation?