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From the table beside him, Nico growled. “It’s not a damn football game.”
But when Flynn got up to cross the room, Nico followed him.
Tessa beamed up at them. “Josie is a genius.”
Josie spun in her chair and laughed. “Only because you’re so easy to work with. You noticed so much more than you thought you did. Your emotional memory is excellent.”
Flynn leaned down and kissed Tessa’s hair. “You finished?”
She smiled and nodded. Her eyes were weary but content. The stress from earlier had lessened. Definitely good news.
Josie clicked a few buttons on the laptop and her sketches of Tessa’s father, uncle, and the thugs who’d been at the house that day filled the screen. They were labelled, but Flynn didn’t need it to see the similarities between Tessa and her father. They had the same nose and forehead. The eyes were similar in shape and color, but Tessa’s held all the emotions. Martin’s were cold and blank. Even in the sketch. Flynn couldn’t imagine growing up with those eyes for a role model.
Once again, he was impressed that Tessa had become such an amazing human being. He rubbed her shoulders softly, trying to impart how proud he was of her.
Nico frowned at the screen. “I assumed when you said your father and uncle that they were brothers. These men don’t share many physical similarities.”
While Josie seemed to bristle, Tessa looked up at Nico. “Karlo Pavic is my mother’s brother. She died when I was too young to remember her.”
Nico nodded and patted her shoulder. He turned to Josie. “Have you loaded them up yet?”
She rolled her eyes. “Impatient much? We just finished. I assume you’re going to put them through on your credentials. I don’t have the authorization to begin a search.”
Nico frowned but nodded. “Send the results to my FBI email. I’ll have to call in and get authorization.”
Josie turned back to her computer and the rest of them moved away.
Flynn motioned for Tessa to follow him to where they’d been working on the map. They’d made great progress and input a ton of data. To Flynn, the map was a jumble of words and numbers. He hoped it would help Tessa figure out their next steps.
Her delighted gasp when she saw it had everyone around smiling.
Mitch grinned. “To me, it’s like a massive doodle, but we’ve input pretty much every piece of data connected to the Pavic organization and color coded it.”
Tessa grinned. “This is incredible. Can we put it up on the big screen?”
Soon, most of the group was staring at the map. Flynn wondered how many others found it more confusing than helpful. The way Tansy and Bella gravitated toward it, he assumed they were as delighted as Tessa.
When he heard the door close, he turned to find Nico striding back in. He must have made his phone call outside. He walked straight to Flynn. “Got it. Let’s see where we can spot these bastards.”
They couldn’t access the classified search engines remotely, but they hoped the ones they could access would give them enough. If Martin and Karlo were alive, they had to believe the authorities thought them dead. After more than a decade, he’d bet they weren’t as careful.
Graham let out a shrill whistle and waited until everyone looked at him. “I’ve got Marcus and Troy coming up the trail with enough food for everyone from the No Fail Diner. They’ll be here in about twenty minutes. I vote we include them in our little group. We know they’re reliable and discreet. If we don’t want to include them, we’ll need to head to the lodge in ten and make like we’re having a welcome party for Rodeo Man.”
Graham winked at Tessa. “No pressure, cutie. You’ve got eight minutes to decide.”
Everyone chuckled and made an effort not to look at Tessa. Her eyes flew to Flynn’s and she met him halfway across the room.
From previous conversations with his friends, he knew Marcus Ramirez was the local deputy and Troy Phail ran Phail General. Both men had military backgrounds and had proven themselves in earlier situations where the Midnight Security gang required backup.
“What do you think?” Tessa asked before he could ask her the same.
Flynn shrugged. “I think the more good people we have on our side, the better. And the sooner we’ll be able to solve this. More importantly, what do you think? You know these guys. I’ve heard about them, but haven’t met them yet.”
Tessa nodded. “I don’t know them as well as the others do, but they’ve proven themselves more than once.” Her gaze moved around the room. “I’ve put so many people in danger just by being here.”
“Hey.” He waited until she looked back at him. “We’ve gone over this. Not your fault. Everyone here understands that. Everyone here wants to help and make the world better and safer. Taking down the Pavic family is the right thing to do.”
He waited and watched as she stared into his eyes. She walked into his arms and nodded. “I wish I wasn’t at the center of this whole mess, but I am, and it’s time to be brave. Okay. Let’s bring them in on it, too.”
