Page 142 of Silent Target

I stop breathing.

Caleb takes the book before it falls from my hands.

“Evie.”

“They killed him.”

The words scrape out of me.

“I spent years believing his heart failed.”

My knees weaken.

Caleb catches me.

One arm wraps around my waist as he pulls me against him.

I grip his vest.

Hard.

“I worked for them.”

“You worked for your country.”

“I walked through those halls every day while the men who murdered him watched me.”

“You didn’t know.”

“I should have.”

“No.”

The force in his voice makes me look up.

“You were his daughter, Evie. You loved him. You weren’t responsible for recognizing his murder when the people who caused it controlled the investigation.”

Tears burn behind my eyes.

I refuse to let them fall.

Caleb brushes his thumb beneath one anyway.

“I’m sorry.”

I lean into his hand.

For one second, I let myself grieve.

Then Fathom calls from the next aisle.

“You need to see this.”

I wipe my face and follow Caleb.

A black ledger lies open on a table.

SECOND CIRCLE is stamped across its cover in faded gold.