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“Yeah, but that’s CGIS, not us.”
Dane jolted. “Candyland.”
“What? The kids' game?” Jace asked.
Dane’s gut tightened. “No. I’d forgotten all about it. Blocked the memory from my mind probably.” He was sure he had. What else had he blocked out? He was going to have to make an effort to remember his time on the other team no matter how painful it was.
“Candyland was the word Owens used for some secret place. He and the others would talk about it sometimes before they knew I was there. Like, ‘I’ll be at Candyland tonight.’”
Cain shoved his hands in his pockets. “Do you have any ideas where Candyland is, or even what it is?”
Dane cocked his head. “Can we search real estate records and look for any holdings on Oahu under the name Candyland? Is there a database for that? I’m sure Owens would use the name. He’d think it was funny.”
Cass rolled her eyes. “Sounds like a moron.”
Tac went around his desk. “I’ll see what I can pull up. You think he had a secret place?” Tac sat down in front of his computer. “That’s interesting.”
“I do. He was juvenile and moronic when it came to shit like that, but sly like a fox when it came to business. If he was making extra cash, he’d have to put it somewhere, and he’d want to do it without attracting too much attention.”
Cain nodded. “Okay then. If we can find it—"
“Found it,” Tac said. He called out an address on Waikiki Beach including an apartment number.
“Well, shit. He wasn’t playing, was he?” Jace rubbed his knee. “That’s seriously pricey real estate. Downtown.”
“Yup,” Koa agreed. “That puts him overlooking the beach next to the Hilton Hawaiian Village.”
“Candyland. All those young women in town looking to party on their vacation. Easy picking for someone like Owens.” Dane’s stomach churned at the thought of it.
“I thought he had a wife and kids?” Cass demanded.
“He did,” Dane growled. It made him sick to think of Owens out there screwing around on his wife, but it was none of his business. This was all about the motherboards. He knew he was going to have to remind himself of that a lot during this op.
“So, we meet downtown at twenty-one hundred hours. I’ll text you the address later. We’re gonna take a look at Candyland and see if this asshole is hiding anything good there.” Cain nodded to them. “Go home and get some sleep.” He headed back to his office.
Everyone had gotten up and was gathering their stuff just as the door to the hangar opened, and Senator James Weston strode in along with two other men.
“Gentleman,” the taller, well-groomed man said. “And ladies,” he amended when he saw Cass. “I am John Cross, Deputy Director of CGIS, and this is Senator Weston, and my assistant, Neil Ainsley. The senator wanted to see your setup.”
Cain stood at attention. “Yes, sir.” Everyone followed suit.
“At ease,” Weston said. “You must be Cain Maddox.” He offered his hand to Cain, and they shook. “I understand this is a new type of operation. Admiral Bertrand’s baby, if I recall.”
His friendly smile didn’t reach his eyes as far as Dane could tell. This man was on a mission, and his gut said this didn’t bode well for them.
“So, Maddox, tell me about your team,” said the senator.
“What would you like to know, sir?” Cain responded.
Dane bit back a smile. Cain wasn’t giving an inch. He was very loyal to Admiral Bertrand, which was nice to see. Loyalty meant everything to Dane. Especially after his last posting.
Weston’s smile faltered slightly. “What exactly do you do?”
“We are essentially a special operations team. We aid when we can with the usual Coast Guard missions: drug interdiction, rescue operations, human trafficking—”
“Yes, I know that’s what the special operations teams do in the Coast Guard, but my understanding is that you are all special in some way. Explain.”
Dane was glad he wasn’t the one the senator was grilling because he’d probably have lost his temper by now.
