Salvation (Surrender 3)

With that one statement, he’s put the nail in my coffin. My heart pounds and stomach turns. Suddenly, I’m nauseated and lightheaded. If anything happens to Raven, Robbie will go ballistic. Memories of the night he told me about his accident come to me. The way he explained Raven’s devastation and his guilt over losing so many men… He’d tailspin back to a dark place. Declan would never recover. And it would be my fault.

“Do I have your attention now?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll be in touch.” The line clicks.

There’s only one way to get some easy cash in this short period of time. I sigh and pick up the phone, calling my mentor. Randy’s going to be thrilled.

Robbie

I walk into my office with my phone to my ear, listening to Ember babble about some sort of granite she found and the color of cabinets. She knows I don’t give a shit, but insists on telling me everything and asks for my approval. Truth is, I’d agree to anything as long as it brings a smile to her face.

“And guess what else?” she squeals.

“What?”

“They think all the renovations can be done in six weeks or less! So if everything else goes through, you’ll be a homeowner by Thanksgiving. Isn’t that great?”

“Babe, we’ll be homeowners.”

“You know what I meant.”

“No, say it.”

She sighs. “There’s a chance we’ll be homeowners by Thanksgiving.”

Finn, my Dad, and Thad come into my office, all of them looking solemn. “I need to go. Call you later.”

“Remember, I’m meeting with Randy tonight.”

“Do I need to worry?”

“Nope, this is legitimate. Love you!”

I drop the phone on the desk and look at the men. “What’s going on?”

“The name Trey ring a bell?” Finn asks.

“The guy Natalie was mixed up?”

Thad flinches and looks at the ground.

“Same guy.”

“What about him?”

“Shake called me this morning. He contracts with the Alabama Bureau of Investigation once in a while. They’re working on a big case, and Trey’s name was in the file. Turns out he isn’t a one-shop operation. He works for someone a lot larger, someone the ABI has been targeting for almost a year. Until recently, it hasn’t been in their best interest to bust this guy,” Dad tells me.

“What happened recently?”

“He went multi-state and moved some of his business into Tennessee. They suspect he’s bringing his products over state lines. Each time they get close to confirmation, it turns out to be a bogus tip.”

“So what’s that have to do with us?”

“ABI is working with TBI, and they’ve asked us to do an independent investigation.”

“Dad, no offense, but don’t these State Agencies have the same resources we do? I know you’ve been involved in some heavy shit in the past, but what can we do here?”