“Lionel’s been talking with Jon, who’s been talking to Matthew. But you’ve been a little too quiet lately. What’s going on?”
“You want to talk about thishere?In public?” Jane glanced around them, annoyed to find them conveniently apart from everyone else.
“Keep your voice down and there won’t be any problem. Geez, Jane. A little discretion.” Raine’s mocking tone didn’t help.
“Enough, you,” their uncle warned her. He looked back at Jane. “You need to be careful. We’ve been keeping watch, and we want eyes on you at all times.”
“We? And eyes on me, or Matthew and Haversham too?”
“Yes.”
Raine snorted. “That’s clear as muddied glass.”
Chris ignored her. “I’m not kidding, Jane. I’m glad I’m back because this case you’re on is a hornet’s nest waiting to explode.”
“I know that. But something you said. ‘Wewant eyes on you.’ Who’s ‘we’?”
“Lionel, Jon, Hal, and Diego—who’s a pretty funny guy with potential by the way.”
Jane blinked. “You talked to Diego?”
“About your case? I’ve talked toeveryone.This pile of worms is bigger than you know.”
“I don’t understand why you’re involved now.”Please tell me you’re not sticking your nose into my business to protect me.
“Relax, super agent.” He read her too well. “Lionel asked me for help. I gave it to him. Especially since I learned the Bednareks are involved. Kid, you’re playing in the big leagues.”
“Who? Bednarek?” Then what he’d said before hit her. “Wait. You’re looking at me, Matthew, and Haversham? Have you seen Matthew lately? Haversham’s been bugging me because he hasn’t talked to Matthew in days. Though I thought Matthew might have talked to my boss Tuesday.”
“He did not.”
She had chills.
Her uncle looked grim. “We—HalandDiego—can’t find him. Not through Matthew’s social media or phone, and not through the many public means of surveillance in the city.”
“You can’t track him?”
“No.” He glanced down before looking into her eyes again.
What she saw there froze her in her seat.
“Jane, those who go missing around the Bednareks are rarely found alive. Only dead and buried—in one piece, if they’re lucky.”
After a pause, Raine asked, “And if they’re not lucky?”
“You don’t want to know.”
Chapter 38
“Explain please,”Jane said calmly, while inside her stomach roiled. Bad enough that Matthew had been incommunicado for a few days. But hearing that her uncle knew more about her case than she did served both to annoy and worry her.
Raine continued eating, watching them with wide eyes. Her gaze shifted back and forth from Jane to Chris, tracking their verbal volleys like a fan at a tennis match.
“August Kaminski is bad news. You already knew that. I’ve had dealings with his people. Let me tell you, they were damn good at what they did. Though they lost more than they won, they managed to come out on top of Team Ten a few times.”
“No kidding.” Raine looked impressed.
He nodded. “When we first went head-to-head, I had no idea Kaminski was involved.”
