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Peter nodded. “He’s got a Washington license, and a Benson address.” He tapped keys, and it came up.
Jasper said, “What about siblings, or high school classmates?”
“No siblings.” Peter glanced at Jasper. “He went to high school in Benson. We should be able to get their yearbook and compare photos. Good idea.”
“It’s why they pay me the big bucks.” Jasper grinned, then took a sip of coffee.
Considering his father was a state senator, and he’d grown up in a mansion in the hills around town, Gage knew for a fact he wasn’t in this for the money. When he’d asked Jasper why he became a cop, all he said was that it ticked off his father. Seemed like more than that at the time.
Gage’s phone buzzed in his pocket. He tugged it out and saw a text from Clare. “Alex is out of surgery. He should be awake soon.”
Peter nodded. The system started to spit out possible matches.
“Send me the photos and any IDs you have. I’ll go talk to Alex,” Gage said. “Any indication whether they’re selling the diamonds locally or elsewhere?”
“We’ve got some chatter about a sale taking place in Portland. Two Vanguard operatives were dispatched to check it out.” Peter shrugged. “Nothing online or in Alex’s messages about anything upcoming.”
Gage figured that would have shut off the minute they tried to shoot him at the park. “What about threats to Selena?”
Peter’s eyes flashed. “We’re monitoring the situation. We have it handled, and she’ll be protected.”
Gage figured Clare could protect herself, but he also planned to watch out for her just in case. “What about anything Alex’s messages that smelled like a threat? A reason he might’ve been targeted?”
“Nothing giving us reason to believe the crew was behind the shooting.”
Liam said, “But they are tying up loose ends.”
Gage didn’t like the sound of that. “I’m headed to the hospital now to check on things.” He grabbed a radio and his keys. “Let me know if anything kicks off.”
He drove his car from the motor pool just in case he had to respond to a callout. Technically their SWAT team wasn’t supposed to work tonight. But tell that to their open cases.
Gage parked in a law enforcement reserved space outside the hospital and headed up to the floor number Clare gave him.
The elevator doors opened to her standing there waiting for him.
“Hey.”
Gage stepped off. “You okay?”
“Yeah, I just didn’t expect you until tomorrow.” She seemed almost nervous.
“Something happening?” Last he’d seen her she’d been injured and at least partly in shock. What had happened since he went back to work? His entire existence had been upended—along with everything he believed about himself—but he didn’t know what changed for her.
Clare started walking down the hall, so he kept pace beside her.
He’d kissed her forehead the last time he’d seen her, right after she told him how she’d lost the baby. He still didn’t understand why she couldn’t have told him, but it was what it was. Years had passed.
Gage lifted two fingers to the cops on the door. Both nodded, the uniformed partners not moving from their posts.
Clare touched his arm. She stopped him beside a door and winced. “Maybe you could hang out here for a second. I just have to go do something.”
He stared at her. “You have to go do something?”
TWENTY-ONE
Clare winced. This wasn’t good. They’d descended into repeating each other’s questions, which meant they weren’t communicating at all. “Can we go back to before, when you…”
Nope. She didn’t need to go there.
