“Do you remember the denominations of the money?”
“Yes. Everything I saw was in hundreds.”
“Then she could easily fit five hundred thousand into a standard briefcase. Do you remember her ever being alone with the money?”
Layla didn’t immediately respond. “I’m thinking.”
“Take all the time you need.” For some reason, he couldn’t help himself and took her hand in his. When she smiled, he squeezed her fingers.
“The answer is yes. Cass was alone with the money for a short time period while we were loading up the vehicles in Honduras. Only a few minutes, though.”
“That is all it would take. I assume you all had standard gear, including large backpacks.”
“Yes, but wouldn’t that be bold, to stash the money in her gear?”
“Bold, yes, but given her stature on the team, maybe she thought no one would ever check. Although standard protocol for DEA on ops like this is a gear check back stateside.”
“That didn’t happen. We got back, and there were no searches or anything like that. It was a bit hectic, and we did do immediate debriefings, but if my belongings were searched, I didn’t know it.”
“Maybe she caught a break.”
“This would rule her out as the mole, though, because I can tell you one thing, she wouldn’t be stealing from the cartel if she were working for them.”
Hunter nodded. “It might just mean that she got in some trouble, became desperate, and decided to take the cash. However, if she’s vulnerable, that could make her a target for the cartel to blackmail into helping them.”
“Yeah, but if she was on their payroll and stole from them, it would be over for her. What are you going to do with this?”
“I have to take it to Mason ASAP.”
Layla nodded. “I know. I just hate it. I wonder what kind of trouble she got into.”
“It has to be pretty substantial to need that kind of cash.” He hated to say it, but he felt like he had to. “You know that if what I found pans out, she’s going to be done at the DEA and will probably face criminal charges.”
“You don’t think there’ll be any lenience?” she asked.
He doubted it. “I can’t imagine they’d ever trust her to go into the field again. If they put her on desk duty, it would be a huge gift, but I think the most likely thing is that they will terminate her.”
Layla gasped. “But what about her safety? Would they pull her out of the safe house?”
“I hope not, but I can’t guarantee it.”
She took his other hand. “They would be signing her death warrant if they do.”
Zane watched Cass as she poured them each a cup of coffee. He hated that there was still an uncomfortable tension between them, but he didn’t know what to do other than try to act normal even if she was skittish.
What bothered him the most was losing their easy and open relationship. They had formed a strong bond over the past few years. He considered her one of his closest friends. And now he was going back over everything to try to determine when she had started having feelings for him, because he’d been oblivious to it.
He’d be lying to himself if he didn’t admit he’d initially thought she was attractive, but once they were assigned as partners, he’d put up a mental wall that had been like a fortress, and it had worked. Until now.
“Why are you scowling?” Cass asked him.
He smiled. “I didn’t realize I was.”
“Good, because a scowl doesn’t look good on you.” She sat beside him at the kitchen table.
He couldn’t help but say something. “Cass, can we talk?”
She sighed. “Yeah. I realize I was a bit of a jerk to you the other day. I won’t lie, you hurt my ego.”
“How?”
She laughed. “Isn’t that obvious? You rejected me.”
“It’s so much more complicated than that, and you know it.” Against his better judgment, he placed his hand on top of hers.
Her brown eyes locked onto his. “You can’t have it both ways, Zane.” She pulled away from him. “We’re either setting some hard and fast boundaries, or we’re going to explore if there’s something more between us.”
“You think I’m sending mixed signals?” he asked.
“Yes, and I’ve felt that way for a while.”
He leaned back in his chair, trying to figure out how this had gone wrong. “Things have been crazy, and after you were attacked, I wanted nothing more than to protect you. If I made you think I was trying to make a move in the process, then I’m the one who needs to apologize.”
“Oh, Zane. You’re one of the good guys.”
“Didn’t you say just the opposite the other day?”
“I was mad and hurt. I said a lot of things I didn’t mean.”
He took her hand again. “Cass, I do care about you. More than is probably smart, but I also think we have a partnership that can’t be easily replaced. And a friendship I value beyond anything in my life.”
Tears filled her eyes. “I hear all of that, Zane. I really do. But . . .”
“But what?”
She took a deep breath. “I’ve fallen in love with you.”
Talk about a punch to the gut. Before he could respond, he heard commotion coming from the front door, and after a moment, Mason walked into the kitchen.
“What is it?” Zane asked.
“I need to talk to Cass alone.”
She shook her head. “Whatever you have to say to me, you can say it in front of Zane.”
Mason raised an eyebrow. “Are you certain about that?”
“Yes,” she answered quickly.
A wave of unease washed over Zane. Mason took a seat at the table with them, and Zane prepared for bad news, which seemed to be the only kind of news they heard lately.
“What’s this all about?” Zane asked.
Mason focused his attention completely on Cass. “There’s something we have to talk about.”
“Spit it out, Mason.” There was no lightness in Cass’s words. She was all business.
“As part of the ongoing investigation, some strange
