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From what she could tell, Tristan was avoiding everyone he loved. She thought the only reason he hadn’t dropped the five of them was because he wouldn’t leave the team. The only one he really talked to at this point was Zach. They often held long meetings behind closed doors that never seemed to resolve the darkness that surrounded Tristan now.
“I used the software he gave us, and it’s a ninety percent match,” Lou replied. “The only doubt is because of the angle.”
“Well, the fact that he knows to hide his face says something.” Cooper sat down next to Kala, and Tasha caught the minute his hand almost came down on her thigh. His jaw went tight, and he moved it back to his lap. “How many different places did you catch him?”
“Three,” Lou reported. “All in the last eighteen months.”
Tasha didn’t like the implications. “I think I probably need a full workup on Dare’s father and the whole business. According to Dare, he’s a real piece of work. I’ll get right on it.”
A brow rose over Lou’s glasses. “When will you have time? I think you’ll be taking care of the target. Besides, it’s already done. It’s why I said I needed to talk to you before you put yourself in harm’s way again.”
Lou had mentioned it when she’d walked into the safe house, but she’d been caught up in packing and Kenzie endlessly going on about how cool Brian was.
Zach set his mug down. “Lou and I got on a conference call with Drake earlier today. We think we might have missed a couple of connections, including some involving your boy.”
She didn’t like the sound of that. “Dare isn’t involved in this. He wasn’t even supposed to go out to Oakley’s until Middleton died. I don’t think he and his father are close.”
Their relationship sounded toxic as hell. It had hurt her heart to hear him talk about it. For all her dad’s faults—and there were shockingly few of them—he would never threaten to abandon any of his kids. Even when her youngest brother had told him he would be a grandfather long before he’d expected it, her dad had stood by him.
And called him a dumbass. A lot.
“I think we should be the judge of that, Tash.” Zach’s gaze was steady on her. “I know you’re used to being on the analyst side of the table, but you’re the operative here. You’re also too close to the subject, and the warning I gave Kenzie goes for you, too. Dare Nash’s family has ties to a couple of groups I find highly suspicious. I can’t directly link them, but I have my instincts. I think he might have some mafia ties.”
Cooper snorted at the thought. “Canadian mafia? Is Eugene Levy the head? What exactly do they traffic? Maple syrup?”
“The Rizzuto family, despite their Canadianness, managed to traffic drugs and weapons along with extortion, murder, and racketeering.” Kala gave Cooper what Tasha thought of as her know-it-all smile. “I’m not sure if maple syrup was involved. There are also several gangs in Canada considered to be some of the world’s worst. Don’t let the friendly smiles fool you.”
Kenzie sat up and suddenly looked serious. “She’s right. Dad jokes about how harmless Canadians are, but I’ve heard CSIS has a couple of new teams on the ground, and they aren’t playing around. The rumor is they’ve developed a new department. I’ve even heard some of our teams have started coordinating with them despite what Kala did.”
Kala shrugged. “I found the intel. That dude just did some backup, and honestly not that much.”
“I’ll find out everything I can,” Tasha promised. “In the meantime, I’d like an update on Huisman since I’m apparently going to meet the man.”
“He’s a slippery shit,” Zach said with a frown. “I can’t tell. He’s got connections I think are disturbing, but I can also explain them away. On the surface he looks like a great man who overcame a lot in his life. He’s brought the foundation to new heights, and by all accounts he’s helped a lot of people.”
“He’s dirty,” Kala said quietly. “And we should be careful around him because he has ties to us. To our family.”
Kenzie shook her head. “Levi Green killed his father. Dad had nothing to do with it.”
“Levi Green was working for the Agency when he killed Huisman’s father,” Tristan corrected. “If anything, he should want revenge on the Agency, not the Taggarts.”
“But the situation had been set up because Ian Taggart sent his team to Canada.” Cooper crossed his arms over his chest. “Without that action, the elder Huisman is still alive. I’ve heard of worse reasons to seek revenge.”
“And yet the man wrote an entire book about forgiveness,” Kenzie pointed out.
“Wouldn’t that be an excellent cover?” Kala countered.
