Beloved by Brothers (Doms of Destiny, Colorado 6)

“All I can give you is the place we believe Mitrofanov runs his operation from. It’s a warehouse in South Side. We’ve got intel that he plans on turning the five million in diamonds over to the Chicago mafia day after tomorrow. He’s trying to save his neck. I’ve already got a man on the ground there. Remember, Jason, our focus isn’t on Mitrofanov or The Outfit. We’re still trying to flush out Lunceford.”

“I agree, but I need to bring in Niklaus. I’m still sheriff.” But for how long? The photo painted a clear picture. Shane was running with the Russian mafia, and his wallet was still in Jason’s pocket. I tampered with evidence. “Mitrofanov is enemy number one in Destiny, Brown. That’s got to be my main focus for now.”

“I know you and Corey want to apprehend both Niklaus and Shane. I thought you would feel this way, so I worked it out with Dylan. The TBK jet is ready to take you to Chicago.”

Corey’s concern for both his brother and sister was evident by the look on his face. “There might be an issue, Brown.”

“Jason’s brothers are trying to get on a commercial flight in the morning with my sister and her assistant. They’re also going to Chicago. If they can’t get seats, I’m sure they will call Scott and Eric.”

Brown shook her head. “No one can know you’re going.”

“Agreed.” Jason wanted to keep Phoebe from being hurt. Yes, she would eventually learn that Shane had screwed up even more than any of them had imagined possible. But not now. Not tonight.

“Why are they going to Chicago?” Brown asked.

Corey told her about Phoebe’s deposition on Monday and why Lucas and Mitchell needed to accompany her and Ashley.

“No problem,” Brown said. “I’ll make sure Jason’s brothers can get seats.”

Jason wasn’t surprised she could get something like that done. Agent Brown was capable of a lot of things.

“You’re walking into a hornets’ nest, guys, but if you can take down Mitrofanov before the exchange and retrieve the diamonds, we might be able to use that to our advantage to trap Lunceford. We recorded a call from Lunceford to Mitrofanov a couple of hours ago. Needless to say, they aren’t friends anymore. Lunceford told Mitrofanov that he better turn the diamonds over to him or there would be hell to pay.”

“Now Niklaus has two hits out on him,” Corey said.

He nodded. “The bastard will be lucky if he makes it out alive.”

“Lunceford believes he is owed the five million since he orchestrated the whole con against TBK. The call originated from an apartment in St. Louis. With MacCabe, Jena, and Dixon on their honeymoon, that leaves us three agents short. Dylan and I are headed there now. I’ll put you in touch with my man in Chicago. Keep your ROCs with you, gentlemen, so we can communicate with each from both operational sites. With the level of security we have, Lunceford cannot break into them. We don’t want him tipped off that we are coming.”

After a few other details were worked out, they ended the call.

Jason had a really bad feeling about this trip. “I know Brown said she would make sure my brothers can get tickets, but I’m thinking we should pull the plug on Phoebe’s trip to Chicago completely. Shane is there. Mitrofanov, too.”

“It’s a big city, Jason,” Corey said. “It’s an unfortunate coincidence that my sister is going there the same time we are, but she always stays on the Miracle Mile whenever she’s in Chicago. She’ll be miles away from the South Side.”

Jason glanced at the photo of him and Shane one more time before leaving with Corey for the airport.

Chapter Fourteen

Phoebe placed her briefcase on the conference table. “Where are the Braxton people?”

“They should’ve been here by now,” Ashley informed. “As of yesterday, they confirmed they would be here.”

“Get them on the phone. Find out what the delay is.”

“Will do, boss.”

As Ashley made the call, Phoebe took a seat. Her mind wasn’t really on the Steele case. All she could think about was what Jason suspected about Shane. Murder. Not possible. Her whole world was crumbling and she wasn’t sure there was anything she could do about it. She loved Jason. She loved Mitchell and Lucas, too. But she also loved her brother.

She turned to the floor-to-ceiling glass wall and gazed at two of the three men she wished she could spend the rest of her life with. Mitchell and Lucas sat together, scanning every person who walked by, clearly making sure none posed a threat. They were on high alert for her. Silly, since no one was gunning for her now. Andy McCrae was dead. The only threat now was to her heart.

“The Braxton team is on their way now, Phoebe.”

She took in a deep breath, hoping to clear her thoughts. She had a job to do. Jennifer Steele was not only her friend, but also her client in this case. Whatever was happening in Phoebe’s personal life must be put aside for the next few hours.

Three men appeared on the other side of the glass. Mitchell and Lucas stood up and said something to them.

She waved at her self-appointed bodyguards to let the men pass. The Wolfe brothers didn’t budge. Clearly, Mitchell and Lucas weren’t going to let the men into the room until they were satisfied the trio from Braxton was harmless. She saw one of the men reach into his jacket and pull out an identification card.