The door between the garage and the house opened and Frida stepped out. She was showered and fresh, wearing one of his old shirts and her pants from yesterday, her hair pulled into a neat ponytail. She looked nothing like the cutthroat lawyer he knew she was. She looked like the girl next door that every boy in the neighborhood had fantasies about.
He wasn’t sure which look he liked best on her; both worked for him, but then perhaps it was just that Frida worked for him on so many levels. She moved toward the car, and he quickly locked up behind her and secured the alarm before getting into the driver’s seat.
They drove to Alliance in almost silence, not strained in any way but restful as if each were in their own head, preparing for what was to come in their own way.
He parked and turned to her. “I need to work this case this for Tycen Neal. He’s a good kid, and deserves better than this life.”
Frida nodded her agreement. “And I want to help in any way I can too. So how about we work this and my case together? I can’t help thinking that the sudden uptake in violence, his disappearance after my attack, and the break-in at my office aren’t a coincidence.”
Once again, this woman had surprised him with the way she made the connections so quickly. He’d been thinking the same thing, and Frida’s offer to work the cases side by side was a good idea.
“I agree. Let’s go speak to Shane and get everyone’s thoughts on this.”
Thirty minutes later, they were in the conference room with Shane, Emme, Alex, Caitlin, Kingsley, James, and Mercy.
“I agree with Shane, we need two defined teams on this.” Emme moved to stand beside her fiancé.
Malco sighed. “The cases are connected.”
Shane crossed his arms over his chest. “I guessed as much, and I agree, but you can’t work a case this big alone. We need one team working the evidence Randall gave Frida, and one working Tycen Neal’s disappearance. I propose we split the cases and work them side by side with you and Frida as the team that links everything. That way, you get all the information you need for both cases and speed the process along.”
Malco turned it over in his mind and then looked to Frida; after all, she was the paying client for one of these cases. The other would be pro bono for Tycen. Frida nodded and turned to Shane.
“I like the idea, but I want to bring one of my researchers in, she’s shit hot with research and will be able to help go through the files.”
Shane cocked his head. “I thought the whole purpose of this was that the Chief only trusts you?”
“It is, but I trust my team, or they wouldn’t be on my team. I’ll leave the rest to keep the office ticking over until this is done. Which reminds me, my first point of interest is to find out who broke into my office.”
“I have a theory on that, actually.” Alex stepped toward the laptop on the desk, flashing an image onto the large screen behind them. Everyone turned and saw a grainy image of Detective Charles Kasten come onto the screen. It was dark, and he appeared to be in an underground parking garage. The image showed him talking to a white male of around forty, who wore a suit. His face was turned away from the camera so they couldn’t easily ID him.
“Talk to me, Alex,” Shane snapped.
“This is Detective Kasten meeting with a man named Clark Pool. As you probably know, Pool is the local DA. That meeting took place thirty minutes after Frida arrived here.” He flipped a button, and the image changed so that Kasten was shown across town. “This was a block from Frida’s office and ten minutes before the call came in about the break-in. Coincidence? I think not.”
“Son of a bitch.” Malco’s voice turned into a growl.
Frida stood and began to pace, which he was coming to learn was her way of thinking things through. She paced, and she talked it out.
“So Kasten is on someone in the DA’s office payroll. Which means this corruption goes from the top to the bottom.”
James leaned back in his chair, crossing his booted foot over his knee. “So, how does this link to Tycen Neal?”
Malco gritted his teeth before he replied, the thought of the kid involved in this turning his stomach. “That’s what we need to find out, and before it’s too late.”
“Agreed. Okay, everyone, I want Alex and Mercy on the files.” Shane began to dish out orders. “Romeo and Caitlin, work with Kingsley on finding Tycen Neal. This is time-sensitive, I want this kid found.” Shane turned to Frida. “Frida, have your person come in and work with Alex and Mercy here. Cleo will make a computer available for her.”
“Thank you, Shane.”
Malco felt a split-second surge of jealousy when Frida smiled at Shane before he shut it down. He wasn’t a twelve-year-old boy with a crush. He was a grown-ass man who would act like one. He and Frida were messing around, having fun, that was all. This was not the Alliance Agency’s next great love story.
Just then, Cleo popped her head around the door. “Shane, Mrs. Neal is here with Ward.”
Malco’s heart ached for what he knew this woman must be feeling. He didn’t know her well, just from the times she’d picked Tycen up from the center. She seemed like a woman doing her best in a shitty situation. It was far too reminiscent of his own mother for his liking.
“Thanks, Cleo, show them into my office. I’ll be there in two minutes.” Cleo nodded and disappeared. Shane speared him with a look. “You ready?” Malco nodded. He was as ready as he ever would be.
“Can I come?”
Frida’s voice from so close beside him made him jump, breaking the painful
