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I nod. “Also, you don’t have to come into work tomorrow. You’re free to take a break today. Go home. Put yourself together. You can take as long as you need to—"
She looks at me defiantly. “I’m coming to work tomorrow. And I’m not leaving today, either. This is my story to tell, Maverick, and I’m not going to shy away from it like a coward. I refuse to be a victim.”
“You’re not a coward or a victim. You’re a survivor and a fighter, Noelle.”
I just want to hold her. Smell her. Be near her and share her body heat. Protect her.
But not here. And not now.
Sighing, I rise to my feet. “I’ve got a few work issues I need to attend to. You’ll be okay?”
She nods. “Yeah.”
“Noelle?”
She glances up at me.
Say it.
No, don’t say it.
Swallowing hard, I simply say, “Be safe, okay?”
Numbly, she lifts her head in a small nod. “I will.”
Sara is waiting for me when I step outside. “How is she?”
“She’s holding up fine.”
She licks her lips and exhales, her eyes darting everywhere.
“What is it? What’s wrong?”
“We were clearing out Chris Burnham’s desk and we found this.” She opens her left hand to reveal a black flip phone. “It’s his burner cell.”
I frown, puzzled. “Everyone has those, Sara.”
“True. Then I went through the call logs and I found something very interesting.” She flips the phone open and hands it to me. “Check the first three names.”
I read the saved contacts on the sepia screen and my jaw tightens.
No fucking way…
Bringing my eyes to her, I ask, “How true is this?”
“True enough. Dennis is running a background check on the third contact with the forensics team but he’s gotten enough data on the first two. They belong to Nexus. And Chris was working for them.”
“How long?”
“Can’t say. From the minimal time frame, we can only assume on the nature of the calls. They were probably just arranging meetings or so.”
“They’ve been meeting?”
“Most likely. As well as strategizing.” She steps forward to whisper, “Joe Weston told me what the risk analyst recommended.”
My jaw tightening. Mabel was right all along.
Chris Burnham was the mole.
