Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a familiar figure.
My brain stuttered as I tried to place him.
I couldn't remember where I'd seen him. He was tall and had dark hair, like East, but his was lighter, as was the stubble on his jaw line. He had a soft chin and jaw. Where had I seen him?
I narrowed my eyes and willed myself to remember. And then it clicked. Oh yes, that was Garreth Jameson. We'd met that night at the restaurant East had called The Hiding Spot, and he'd been very aggressive. So what was he doing here? As he signed in on the other side of security, my stomach rolled. I knew who he was here to see. Because someone like Garreth Jameson wouldn't be in a place like this unless he needed to be. So the question was, what were he and Bram Van Linsted planning, and how badly was it going to hurt East?
Nyla
Amelia and I parted ways at the office. When she headed upstairs, she gave me my marching orders to see if I could find a legal way into Rhys Mathison's office that wouldn’t require a warrant. Staring up at her as she marched into the building, I tried to ignore the pang. I used to belong in there.
Now, well, I belonged nowhere.
And whose fault is that?
I started making some calls on my own then marched to the tube. When I reached my station, I paced in front of it as the phone rang and rang. Finally, Olivia Ashong’s lilting voice picked up. "Hello? This is Olivia."
"Oh my God, Olivia. Please don't hang up."
There was a long pregnant pause. "Nyla, I'm sorry, but it’s not really appropriate for us to talk."
I rushed to interrupt her before she hung up.
"I know, I know. Just listen for two minutes, okay? My partner, well, I guess ex-partner, because I'm not Interpol anymore, anyway, she's coming for you. She's coming for you hard. She's been speaking to Bram Van Linsted. We just left him."
Another long pause, but she finally said, "Why would I believe you?"
"I'm a lot of things Livy, but I'm not a liar. And you can check. Call Belmarsh prison and ask for the visitor’s log. They'll tell you. We signed in. You will also want to know that he had another visitor today. One Garreth Jameson. But that's not the important thing. The important thing is he claims to have a ledger tucked away with some mate of his, Rhys Mathison."
Her voice went sharp. "What do they have?"
"He claims to have a ledger that points to the London Lords and the human trafficking ring. I know that's not true. But I don't know if he's had them doctored or if he's just deliberately yanking our chain. I don't know. But we need to get access to that ledger before my former partner does."
"Why would you help us?"
"Jesus fucking Christ. Well, for starters I went over the evidence with a fine-tooth comb, and there's no connection between the ring I split up and the London Lords. Other than the Elite. And even though I'm an idiot, I trust East. I do not trust Van Linsted. He's lying. I can feel it in my bones, and I know that it seems dumb to trust my intuition or my gut or whatever you want to call it, but I can't help it. I do. So, you need to do something."
"What do you suggest we do?”
"I don't know. All I have is the information. We likely won’t make a run against Mathison until tomorrow. So between now and then, you lot need to figure something out. How to get the ledger, how to get a copy of it. Something. I don't know."
Livy’s voice went quiet then. "You really do care about him, don't you?"
My gut knotted. "I did. But he tossed that aside, so you know, c'est la vie."
"He made a mistake. We can all see it, but he's… Well, you know him; he's stubborn. He's decided something, and he can't let it go."
"You know what? Right now I don't even care that he’s stopped talking to me. Hell is coming."
"You said your partner is coming for us?"
"My former partner. Remember, I'm no longer Interpol. If we don't do something, Interpol is going to be after the lads in an official capacity, and there's not a damn thing either one of us can do to stop it. And even if he won't talk to me, he'll listen to you. So you need to warn him."
"Yeah, I'm on it." Before she hung up, she paused. “Nyla?”
"Yeah?" I asked.
"Thank you. You didn't have to stick out your neck to save us, but you are. That means a lot."
"I just hope I’m not too late. I don't know what you can do, but whatever it is, get it done.
I prayed to God I wasn't too late.
Chapter 7
East
"She said what?"
"She said that Van Linsted is trying to nail us with some kind of ledger."
I glanced around, my mind whirring. When Livy called this emergency meeting, I didn't know what kind of bomb she was going to drop on us. "I'm just telling you what she told me. Interpol went to speak to Bram for some reason. He's trying to negotiate a deal. Claims he has a ledger that ties you four to the human trafficking ring."
Bridge slapped the table. "That's a bunch of bullshit. We didn’t have anything to do with it."
I shook my head. "Nah, mate. But whether we had something to do with it or not, these things can be doctored."
My mate ran his hands through his hair. "So, what? Interpol's just supposed to believe him?"
Livy shook her head. "I don't know. I don't know what's in the ledger, so I have no idea. All I'm telling you is what
