“Zane and Brent will find her,” Claire insisted. “They found my brother against all odds and brought him home. Fortress will find Alexa.”
Zane brought Rowan’s shake, then handed Brent a bottled soft drink.
“Adam’s a great guy,” Rowan said.
“You know Adam?” Claire asked, her lips curving.
“I’ve been plying him with coffee and pastries for two days. He’s watching over my employees at Coffee House.”
The other woman laughed. “Hard job, then. I’m glad he’s able to help you out. My brother isn’t very good at rehabbing. He’d rather be assigned to any job than sitting at home doing nothing.”
A small smile curved Rowan’s lips. “Something tells me that’s true of all Fortress operatives.”
“It’s certainly true of Zane.”
“Hey,” Zane protested.
“Just speaking the truth, love.” Claire leaned over and kissed her husband of a few months.
Brent broke the seal on his drink and downed a quarter of the liquid, pleased to see Rowan sipping the shake. Hopefully, she’d drink all of it and keep it down. The woman who was slowly tearing down his barriers had unbelievable strength and he admired her more with every passing hour. Did she know? At the rate his feelings were growing, Brent couldn’t keep the truth from her for long.
“You’re talking to the feds?” Zane asked Brent, his lips curling.
Brent grunted. “Don’t have a choice. Command performance for Rowan and I don’t want her to go alone. They might know something about Alexa’s location or who took her.”
“They’re not known for sharing with others in the sandbox.”
“True. But I know the names of the agents leading the investigation.”
Zane tilted his head. “Mole in the FBI?”
“Better. I asked Stella Armstrong to call in a favor.” Stella was married to one of Durango unit’s members and had been a U.S. Marshal before signing on to be a detective in Otter Creek. “Turns out I served with one of the investigators.”
“A SEAL?”
“This guy changed teams before you came on board. He’s a good man.” Brent paused, memories surfacing. “At least, he used to be a good one.” Brent would still find Alexa, but he hoped to piece together information faster with help from the feds.
“Name?”
“Rafael Torres. Rafe. We served on the same SEAL team for two years.”
Zane’s eyes narrowed. “Heard rumors he’s a hothead.”
“That’s why he was reassigned. SEAL Team Six needed him to have ice in his veins. Torres didn’t.”
Zane whistled. “Tough. How angry was he about the reassignment?”
“Rafe was lucky not to be brought up on charges. Later, though, he admitted being reassigned was the best thing for him and his former teammates.”
Claire and Rowan exchanged puzzled glances. “What’s the big deal?” Claire asked. “To be a SEAL is a great accomplishment. Who cares which team he was assigned to?”
“SEALs are well trained, that’s true. But the men on SEAL Team Six are the best of the best. You have to be asked to join that team and go through an intensive vetting and interview process by the other team members.”
She wrapped her hand around her husband’s. “You’ve never said, but I’m betting you were part of that team.”
He raised one shoulder. “For two years. So was Brent.”
“Why only two years?” Rowan asked Brent.
“Constant high octane missions wear on you after a while. I asked to be reassigned to another team.” He turned to Zane. “Did you look at Maxwell’s two associates?”
The tech guru flicked a glance at Rowan. “I checked into it.”
Brent’s muscles began tightening. “Tell me. No secrets from Rowan. She’ll find out anyway.”
She flashed him a grateful smile.
Yeah, she might be sorry to hear the truth. In his world, the truth was frightening. To a civilian, the same truth would be terrifying.
Zane sighed, his gaze troubled. “Toby Minter was murdered last night.”
The smile faded from Rowan’s mouth as Claire gasped.
“What about Nolan White?” Brent asked.
“Alive for now.”
“You think his life is in danger?” Rowan asked.
“With the company he keeps, definitely.”
“I don’t understand. Are you talking about Jay?”
“Partly. Jay, Toby Minter, and Nolan White all had ties to a cartel in Mexico as well as the six militia groups here.”
Her mouth gaped. “What was the connection?”
“Drugs.”
“What kind of drugs?” Claire asked.
“Cocaine, heroin, marijuana, and Ketamine.”
Rowan pushed aside her empty glass. “That’s how Jay turned his company around so fast. I worked long hours and prayed like crazy that my business would attract loyal customers while my brother-in-law turned into a drug dealer?”
“Time line tracks to when you started Coffee House, baby.”
“And that’s when life for Heather worsened. Jay was more interested in wheeling and dealing than caring for his wife and daughter.” She scowled, her eyes sparking with fury. “How could he deal with those vipers?”
“You play with snakes, you’ll be bitten,” Zane said, his voice soft.
“My brother-in-law wouldn’t believe the danger applied to him. The man thought he was impervious to harm. He wasn’t the only one who paid the price. Jay’s drive for financial success through any means possible cost my sister her life. Now Alexa doesn’t have a mother.”
Ah, man. Brent turned in his seat and wrapped his arms around Rowan. “Alexa has you, sweetheart.”
“It’s not the same as having a parent.” Rowan’s voice dropped to a whisper.
“You love her, Rowan,” Claire said. “That makes her a very lucky girl. Without you, she would be in child protective services. Who knows what kind of living situation she’d have. Because you love her, Alexa will have the security of knowing someone is there for her. Unfortunately, not every child has that advantage.”
“Z, do you have an address on White?” Brent asked.
“Yep. Figured you’d be asking for it.”
“Send it to my cell. I’ll talk to him.”
“We’ll talk to him,” Rowan said, straightening in her seat. “He might be more willing to talk with me along.”
Perhaps. Whether he was willing or not, White would talk. Alexa’s life depended on it.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Rowan’s stomach knotted as Brent parked in Nolan White’s driveway. Her brother-in-law’s colleague might know or suspect something about Alexa’s disappearance. If there
