Page 52 of Ghost Among Lies

The situation was much worse than I ever could've imagined.

"You said they ensured they had leverage over you. What do you mean by that?"

Cassie fiddled with the hem of her shirt. "Working for the Astors can get kinda lonely. I love spending time with Benny, but when he started attending school, the days began to drag. That's when I met Ollie. He was one of the gardeners, and I thought we had a connection." She dropped her eyes and whispered, "I thought he loved me."

She glanced back up. "We would sneak away to spend some time together on his lunch break, and more often than not, it led to us having sex. A few months later, I found out I was pregnant. When I went to share the good news with Ollie, he smiled and said his job was done. Apparently, I was the price he was willing to pay for his freedom."

Son of a bitch. These people were worse than I thought.

"They promised him freedom to knock you up?" Nyx asked in disbelief. "Who the hell does that?"

"The Astors," Cassie said with conviction. "They never hid who they were from me because they knew I wouldn't leave Benny, but apparently, they figured the extra insurance was needed because now that they have my daughter, I can never get away from them."

I didn't even need to look at my team to know we were all considering the same plan. "Do you know where she's kept or with whom?"

Cassie shook her head. "No, but it's always the same couple. The husband is a complete jerk, but the wife seems nice. She smiles at me and gives me updates when they bring Sasha to me."

"When did you see her last?" I asked with hope that it was recent enough to access CCTV footage.

"Two days ago."

Perfect. I could work with that.

"You don't by chance know the make and model of the vehicle, do you?"

Cassie smiled. "I can do you one better. I memorized the license plate. If I ever managed to escape, I wanted a way to find my daughter."

Nyx whistled. "Smart. They got cocky and underestimated you. It's going to be their downfall."

"They don't know the first thing about being parents. I would do anything for Benny and my daughter."

I was suddenly very grateful for Cassie. My new goal in life was to be half the mother Cassie was to my son.

CHAPTER THIRTY

HAYES

One glimpse of Sloane's son and all my worries disappeared. I would protect that boy with my life. There was no longer any doubt in my mind.

Benny was the spitting image of his mother, and I was half in love with him already. And that was even before I had the chance to interact with him. I had a feeling time together would only strengthen the bond.

I half listened as Cassie provided the car information to the team. I would be no help to them now, but as soon as they dealt with the assholes responsible for keeping a little girl away from her mother, I would swoop in and make the mess disappear. It would be like they never existed at all. I would gladly do it for the woman who took such good care of Sloane's son all these years. Cassie's love for him was evident by the way she talked about him. He wasn't just a job to her. He was family.

"We need to split up."

Anita's declaration got my attention.

"If we want to do this the right way, we need to hit both the Astors and the couple guarding Sasha at the same time. We can't afford one or the other to get a tip-off before we contain the situation."

It made sense. I didn't like it, because I couldn't be in two places at once, but I understood the logic.

"Sloane and I will go to Paris to deal with the Astors. Nyx, you take Hayes. Get Sasha and make it look like those people never existed. No trace. You got me?" Anita addressed that last part to me.

I dipped my chin in affirmation.

"Lilith, I need you to stay here. As soon as I give you the go-ahead, you move Cassie and Benny to a safe house. I'll have Wes set you up with one."

I needed to find out who this Wes person was. This was the second time I’ve heard that name but no explanation as to whom it could be.