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“If it’s not in the database, how can you be sure it’s a gang symbol?” Growler asked, trying to ease her discomfort.
“Just a feeling. I swear it’s one I’ve seen before.”
As someone who trusted their instincts on numerous occasions, Growler wasn’t going to dismiss Cass’s. He would respect her and whatever feelings she had. “I’m sure it will come to you.”
Cass smiled, but it looked strained to him. “Maybe. Anyway, it’s something we can move forward with. Maybe the police are familiar with it.”
“I’ll speak to Julian, our FBI contact, and see if he has any information for me.” Ox made a note on his tablet.
“Can I get a copy of this tattoo? I’ll see if Astrid recognizes it. I’m not sure she will, but it’s worth checking with her.” Growler looked at the tablet, wondering how he could make a note to add to the file.
“I’ll add it to your working file so you have it. And I haven’t forgotten you need a rundown of how it all works.” Cass flicked him a smile. “We can do that now.”
Growler nodded. “Thanks, appreciate it.”
While the meeting hadn’t been super productive in terms of getting to the bottom of the mystery of who was chasing Astrid, they at least now had a starting block—albeit a vague one, but from little clues, big ones grew until the mystery was solved.
This was a call Pedro didn’t want to make, but he knew he had to. Was he taking the easy route by not doing a video? Yeah, but he didn’t care. He still had a plan. A good plan, and while the chase didn’t go as he expected, he’d been able to get out of the situation without being identified.
So what if she’d picked up a guard? It just meant he needed to make adjustments. It would be easier if Enrico and Andrés were with him, but Mr. Rook had wanted them back in Mexico. He hadn’t heard from them, and Pedro wasn’t going to allow himself to wonder why communication had stopped between them all.
Connecting the call, he put the phone to his ear and gazed out over the ocean. The wind had whipped up considerably since he’d arrived, and waves crashed onto the sand.
“I hope you’ve got news for me, Pedro.”
Mr. Rook didn’t spare niceties when it came to business—he wanted answers and action.
“The problem still exists, but I’m getting closer to eliminating her.” Not a total fabrication. He had come close.
“Not what I wanted to hear. She’s high profile. This needs to be done in a way as to draw no attention to us. To me. I don’t trust you not to be able to do that, considering I heard chatter that she was involved in a car chase.”
Pedro shouldn’t have been surprised that Mr. Rook knew about the chase. He had numerous people on his payroll, including police, judges, and others who could help him with anything he needed. All Mr. Rook had to do was blink, and he could get information on anyone at any time.
“I was playing with her. Letting her know that her perfect life isn’t so perfect.”
“I’m not here for you to play games. Javier is on his way. He’ll be working with you, and you will listen to him.”
Pedro cursed silently. Javier was an asshole and Mr. Rook’s right-hand man. The chances of Pedro making it back to Mexico in one piece took a left turn.
“Understood.” He wasn’t going to argue with Mr. Rook, but he would prove that Javier’s presence was unnecessary. Nor was he going to hand over the reins of this job—it was his, not Javier’s. He would make sure Astrid Conway was out of the picture before Javier arrived.
To make that happen, he needed to get to Astrid Conway as soon as he could. Not tomorrow. Or next week. Pedro had limited hours now to eliminate the bitch and ensure his position in Mr. Rook’s organization was protected.
Chapter Fifteen
“How long have you been working at Alliez?” Astrid asked Angel, who was driving her back to her place. Growler hadn’t been available all day, and while she didn’t mind Angel, he wasn’t Growler. He didn’t give her that same sense of safety that Growler gave her.
“Couple years. I was a SEAL before I joined.” Angel indicated as he turned down her street. The drive home from the studio had been uneventful and for that, she was grateful.
“Were you on the same team as Growler?” she asked, hoping Angel would be able to give her a little insight into what Growler had been like while he’d been in the Navy.
“Nah, I was based on the east coast.”
There went her idea to find out about Growler. “Did you like being a SEAL?” she asked instead.
Angel shrugged. “Like everything, it had its moments. But I’m glad I did it, and I know what we did helped a lot of people. Here we are.” He pulled into her driveway and cut the engine, the subject clearly closed in his mind as well.
Before she had a chance to release her seatbelt, the door opened, and there stood Growler. Her heart skipped a beat, and warmth trickled around her body. She liked being greeted by him. Liked knowing that he had to have been watching for her arrival. Had he been waiting outside? He must’ve.
