Page 75 of Dark ’N’ Deadly

The room went dead silent.

Gant and Pritchard definitely knew how to construct a bomb. Eric had the scars all over his body to attest to that.

“Regardless of their motive,” JTTF Director Fuentes said, entering the conversation, “sovereign citizens always attack government buildings or government officials. Do we have any idea what their target is?”

“Negative.” Eric shook his head. “Alerts have been issued to all federal, state, and local governments, including every police department in every state sharing a border with New Jersey. Once constructed, an AN bomb would be shock sensitive, so we believe the target is somewhere in Jersey.”

“Hence the importance of following those men and watching those drums,” Verrone said. “One way or the other, we’ll get them.”

A knock sounded on the door and Joe Eden, the duty agent, poked his head in, hesitating as he caught sight of all the brass in the room. “Excuse the interruption. Eric, you wanted to be notified as soon as Tess McTavish arrived.”

“Thank you.” He gave a curt nod to Eden, grasping at what little was left of his self-control and steeling himself mentally for what he had to do. Inside, renewed fury washed over him, but he couldn’t allow anyone in the room get even a glimpse of his emotions. He took a step toward the door.

“McTavish?” Director Fuentes shifted from Eden back to Eric. “Any relation to Jesse McTavish?”

“She’s his sister. Bring her in,” RAC Verrone ordered the duty agent.

Shit. Eric had wanted to confront her first. Alone. Those plans had just gone down the crapper.

“Yes, sir.” Eden closed the door, and a minute later returned with Tess in tow.

Agent Eden stood aside, allowing Tess to enter the room. At the same time, Eden’s cell phone rang, and he stepped back into the corridor, preparing to close the door.

Tess hadn’t gotten two feet into the room when she stopped, staring at him with a combination of fear and terror on her beautiful face. Even from this distance, it was impossible not to miss how red her eyes were. She gripped the rose quartz crystal pendant around her neck as if it were an energy-source lifeline.

He fisted his hands. Don’t be fooled. Her lies could fill an explosives bunker.

Memories blasted him. Three funerals in three days. He’d watched from a wheelchair as his best friends were lowered into the ground while their families held each other, crying and sobbing. Their grief—and his own—still drove him to seek revenge against the man who’d ordered their deaths.

Under the circumstances, it was bad enough that he’d slept with Tess. Given what he now suspected, it was worse than bad.

She started toward him. “I have to tell you something, and I need your help.”

“Not here.” He gently but firmly guided her back to the door.

“Agent Miller.” SAC Hellman stood. “Where are you taking this woman? We’d like to question her.”

“Not until I get first crack.” As he ushered Tess hastily into the corridor, he met her frightened gaze, completely ignoring the command issued by a SAC who was at least three levels above him in seniority. Fuck it. This was personal and he damn well intended to grill Tess. Privately.

Disregarding more stares from the few remaining agents who weren’t in the field, he pushed open the door to an empty office, slamming it shut behind him.

“He has Jesse,” she cried.

“Who has Jesse?”

“My stepfather.”

“Sit down,” he ordered in a cold voice, indicating one of the two chairs in front of the desk. “I watched the video. The full video, and I heard everything. I know you lied about not knowing Mark Pritchard, so start talking.”

She covered her face with her hands. Her shoulders slumped, and for a moment he thought she’d lose it and start crying. If that happened, he didn’t know what he’d do.

Letting her hands drop, she sat in the chair. It was all he could do not to shake the truth out of her.

“Pritchard found out my brother and I were working with you,” she said, looking at him from watery green eyes.

His chest tightened. Don’t. Cry. That would be his undoing.

“How do you know this?” He steeled his expression for what was to come.