Three hours later, Nina and Thomas were on their way to the bank to open the safety deposit box, a warrant in hand and an urgency in their actions. They now knew the safety deposit box had been rented by Mya Gregory.
“At least Russo is off the streets,” Thomas said, his heart still jumpy from finding Russo standing there behind Mrs. Gregory.
The man had worked his way into her house and made her search her daughter’s things. Then he’d forced her to call Thomas and Nina, so he could end it all, leaving with what he needed and no witnesses left. But that had backfired on him.
“Yes,” Nina replied with a long sigh. “And we have one feisty woman to thank for that.”
“A brave woman,” Thomas said. “She risked her life to help us and to save us.”
“But...she won’t make it much longer, Thomas. Once Mya’s remains are released for burial, her mother won’t be far behind her.”
“We’ll check on her,” he said, meaning it. “She doesn’t have anyone, but I’ll make sure and check on her often.”
“Me, too,” Nina said, thankful that she’d partnered up with a good man. A man who was back in the driver’s seat, while she sat here wondering how her heart would ever recover after he left.
Shoving that from her mind, Nina got out of the vehicle, and together they went into the bank. One of the officers took them to the vault where the safety deposit boxes were stored.
The key worked right away and soon they had the box open.
“An envelope,” Nina said, picking up the package with gloved hands. “Something’s in here.”
She opened the taped seal that held the padded yellow envelope together, while Thomas took pictures to verify. Then she pulled out a burner phone and another envelope. This one was white and sealed with heavy tape.
And it had a name written across it.
Kelly Denton. The girl who’d been shot. Nina managed to peel away the tape so they could quickly scan the letter. It told the whole tale. The senator’s son had assaulted Kelly, and the two other girls had heard him bragging about it. That had started a chain of events that resulted in a cover-up and now, murder.
“We’d better take this to the police station,” Thomas said. “Russo isn’t going to talk, because he doesn’t know what we know yet. This will hopefully give us enough information to make him tell the truth.”
“I hope so. That man is creepy,” Nina replied, remembering his craggy face and almost suave demeanor. “I hope he tells us who hired him, although I’m pretty sure I know who that was.”
She put the phone and small envelope back into the bigger one and pressed the seal together, the bank officer her witness.
Thomas followed her out of the room and then the bank officer who’d been standing nearby guided them out the door, probably relieved that they’d been discreet, since they were investigating a possible crime.
Once they were back in the SUV, Thomas turned to her. “So you’ve got people watching the senator’s hunting lodge.”
“Yes. If he makes a move, we’ll find a way to detain him. And...we’re still looking for his missing son. He’s probably holed up with his father.” She shrugged and tugged at her seat belt. “I’m thinking one or both of them must own a shotgun. Because the shotgun attacks were far from professional grade.”
“Agreed. It’s all beginning to add up,” Thomas said. “Let’s get this evidence entered and filed, and then we’ll head back to Billings. Maybe there, we can finally pin down the senator and his elusive son.”
Late that night, they rolled into the Wild Iris Inn’s parking lot. Surprised to find Penny and Zeke still up and sitting in the cozy parlor, Nina sent them a weary smile.
“We thought you might need a snack,” Penny said, glancing over at Zeke.
“And an update,” he added. “Max gave us the lowdown. Sad situation, but hopefully it’ll be over soon.”
After taking care of Sam, Nina returned to the dining room, where Penny had set out cheese and crackers, along with brownies and coffee.
“You’ll have to teach me to cook,” Nina said, fatigue tugging at her.
“I’m still learning myself,” Penny admitted. “We have a very good cook who leaves things for me to present to our guests.”
As they ate, Nina turned to Zeke. “Russo is willing to take a plea bargain. In fact, he’s begging for one.”
“I would imagine so,” Zeke replied. “No movement from the lodge. It’s well hidden, so that explains why not many people even knew it was there.”
“But you believe the senator is hiding out there?” Thomas asked, his hand tight on his coffee cup.
“And maybe the son, too.”
Nina nibbled on an oatmeal cookie. “No one connected with the Senator would tell us where the senator was, but we got the impression they knew.”
“They either have no idea or they know to keep quiet,” Thomas said.
“And Kelly Denton?” Nina asked, worried for the girl’s safety even though Russo was out of the picture.
“Safe,” Zeke said. “We moved her to another location, just in case. If the son’s around, he’ll come after her. Probably with a shotgun.”
“Why did they send Russo after us if they know Kelly’s here?” Nina asked, shaking her head.
“You saw him up close,” Thomas replied, his eyes going soft as he looked at her. “And me, well, he knows I’m here to take him, one way or another. I’m thinking Senator Slaton has been trying to cover for his son’s misdeeds, and he got angry when Russo botched killing Kelly Denton and put us on his trail. He’s obviously been protecting Allen all this time. Killing off the girls was an attempt to end it for good.”
“So the senator and his son decided to take matters into their own hands by trying to scare us off the trail. Tried to get to Kelly Denton and then sent Russo to take care of us.”
“Yeah, something like that,” Thomas replied. “They sent an amateur to the hospital and then sent Russo to take care of us when the attempts to scare us didn’t work.”
Nina shook her head. “Kelly was so scared she wouldn’t tell us anything. She’s been traumatized into silence. This happens to young girls a lot. Some never tell anyone at all. When she and the other girls started receiving threats, I think she just shut down.”
Zeke nodded. “We kept so much protection on that girl, they didn’t stand a chance. I’m glad for that.”
Nina nodded, careful to keep her voice low. But Penny, used to the secrecy of their work, had gone upstairs to check on her two-year-old son, Kevin. “So did Max brief the team on the contents of the box—the letter that Mya had hidden, along with the phone?”
Zeke gave her a grim glance. “Yes. But give me the details again.”
Thomas sat down, a brownie in his hand. “In a nutshell, Allen Slaton drugged a girl, attacked her and then bragged about it to his friends.”
“Allen Slaton assaulted Kelly Denton at the Christmas party.”
“And the victim was so afraid, she held the truth inside.” Nina’s stomach recoiled again. “He bragged to his buddies, but he didn’t realize Mya Gregory had her phone set on Record, to capture something else going on at the party. When she and her friend Kristen Banks checked their video to post it, they heard Allen Slaton’s voice in the background and realized what he’d done. They found Kelly later and helped her get back to her apartment. Then they told her they knew the truth.”
Zeke’s frown said it all. “I guess that bond helped Kelly to cope even if she was afraid to come forward.”
Nina nodded. “One of the boys saw them leaving together and got concerned. Allen Slaton asked him to watch them and track their moves. That’s when he realized they probably knew.”
Nina took a sip of water. “The girls came up with a plan to move the phone around, hiding it here and there. After they received some cryptic threats, Kelly Denton wrote a letter but kept it hidden, explaining what had happened to her at the party. Allen Slaton had put drugs in her drink and taken advantage of her. But she thought she’d never be able to prove it, and she was terrified, so she tried to let it go. Once the boys who were with Slaton heard there was a recording of him describing the whole thing, the three girls started receiving threats, and feared for their lives. So they did what they could to put the truth together with the evidence, only they kept it hidden, thinking they’d use it when the time was right. But one of the girls got tired of the threats and took it to another level. She started blackmailing Allen Slaton.”
“The Gregory girl,” Zeke said, his tone grim. “She made it worse.”
“Her mom was dying of cancer. They needed the money,” Nina replied. “Mrs. Gregory obviously doesn’t know the truth. She thought Mya worked extra jobs to help her. We aren’t going to tell her unless we have to. Knowing her daughter did this to try and save her will only make it worse for her. She’ll blame herself.”
“It’s all there in Kelly’s letter,” Thomas said. “She refused to tell us the truth, because she was so scared. They threatened to kill her parents. Now she’s agreed to testify. But only when she knows the senator and his son are in custody and no threat to her and her family.”
“Which we hope will be soon,” Zeke said, getting up. “We’ve got people ready to go. But you two need to rest.”
Nina and Thomas both stood.
“We’re rested,” she said. “And now we’re ready.”
Thomas gave Zeke an unapologetic grin. “You heard the agent.”
Nina’s emotions took a tumble deep inside her heart. He’d backed her up. Thomas knew she wanted in on this and he hadn’t tried to stop her. She loved him—for that and oh, so many more reasons.
When she looked up and met his gaze, she saw so much in his golden-brown eyes. Would he leave after this? Would she ever see him again? Thomas gave her that slight grin and a quick wink.
Zeke’s astute gaze moved from her to Thomas and back, but he didn’t seem surprised. “Okay, then. Get into your gear and load up. It’s gonna be a long night.”
Thomas’s gut burned with a new sensation. Something had passed between Nina and him back there. Something important.
He loved her.
Crazy, since they’d met under the worst of circumstances and had been thrown together to find the truth about a grim, tragic investigation. But no wonder he loved the woman. She was stubborn and spunky and...a really good FBI agent.
As they traipsed through the woods now, feet falling on soft snow with a hardly a sound, he wanted to protect her even more. But Thomas had to let Nina do her job. He’d have her back and she’d do the same for him.
That was the thing that had connected them.
Could they make this work after the fallout from this strange case had settled down?
He sure prayed so. He prayed for a lot of things as the FBI K-9 agents spread out around the perimeter of the Slaton lodge, careful to stay in the shadows. Those girls didn’t deserve this and their parents had suffered in the worst kind of way. Thomas prayed for the peace beyond understanding for Mya’s dying mother and Kristen’s bitter, grieving father. Kelly had a second chance and he prayed for her to get past this, too. Fear and grief had held her captive, but now she could seek the help she needed.
Glancing over at Nina, Thomas took in her tactical gear and the way her shoulders rose in a rigid, down-to-business mode.
And he prayed they could work on their kisses a little bit more after this was all over.
He saw Nina check Sam. The big dog stood at the ready, wearing protective gear, too. Then his earbud crackled to life and he stood at attention, suited in his bulletproof vest and carrying a high-powered rifle.
“Let’s get on with this,” she said through her mic, giving him one last glance. “I’m ready for something good to happen.”
“I hear that,” Thomas said, and they moved in on the lodge.
Tim Ramsey and his German shepherd partner, Frodo, approached on the right. “We have movement in the front of the structure. Looks like a big den or great room.”
“Have we identified the subjects?” Thomas asked through the radio.
Max spoke up from his command post a few yards into the woods. “Positive on both senator and son. We’re moving in.”
They spread out, two by two. Nina and Thomas took the front door. Two locals used a battering ram to get them in.
After that, everything became a blur of voices shouting, dogs barking and the whole house lighting up inside and out as they did a sweep of both levels.
Nina rushed ahead of Thomas, her gun drawn and Sam moving up front. They could hear an agent coming from another part of the house, telling the senator to get down on the floor.
Nina made it through the front door, just before someone rushed at her from a hallway and knocked her off her feet. Allen Slaton.
Sam started barking. Nina shouted, “Hands up. Down on the floor.”
The younger Slaton did as she ordered, defiance mixed with fright in his pretty-boy features.
Nina called to Sam, “Guard!”
Sam stood between the boy and the door, the rottweiler growling. The kid looked terrified, his eyes wide, his hair on end. “Dad?” he called. “Dad? I can’t get away.”
He tried to stand.
Thomas stood behind Nina, his boots hitting on the wooden entryway, his weapon raised. “Stop right there, son. Hands up. Don’t do anything stupid.”
Allen Slaton started to cry, and sank to his knees. “Dad?”
Sam growled again and held his position, his snout aimed at the boy, who was now kneeling with his hands in the air.
Nina stepped between the dog and the young man. “It’s over.” Then she shot a relieved glance at Thomas and read the boy his rights, while the other agents brought the senator into the den just off the front hallway and sat him on a chair.
Nina commanded Sam to stay and then turned to Allen Slaton. Thomas watched as she went to pat him down.
The boy raised his arms, but quickly went for something in his back pocket, his expression full of rage and fear, his eyes on Nina. Thomas saw the weapon and didn’t think twice.
“Nina, look out,” he shouted. And then, after making sure she was safe, he shot Allen Slaton.