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  “The plane you plan to transfer him to is agency issued?” Jerome asked.

  “It is.”

  “A search on flight plans filed by the FBI will tell someone where the plane is going.”

  Mike stepped between them facing Roark. “He’s flying with us. I don’t trust you or your people.”

  “Jerome, you know me,” Roark stated. “The last few months things have gotten twisted. My head is on straight now. I’m here to help. Like it or not there are doors the FBI can open that you can’t. I can help you here.”

  Jerome stared at him.

  “Let him in, Jerome,” Cainan ended the standoff. “Let him in, no one else.”

  “Let your men know,” Jerome ordered. “This plane is moving in two minutes.”

  True to his word, two minutes later the plane was taxiing down the runway.

  Cainan watched as the men on the flight seemed to keep a distance from Agent Roark. Cainan held a hand up to wave the man over to sit with him.

  “I had no idea Shawn was in Virginia,” Cainan stated.

  Roark sighed, “From what I gathered before leaving the office, Shawn Bolton has been in Virginia for the last year,” he hesitated as he looked at the people sitting on the plane. “There is more you all need to know. The fire was intended to make him unrecognizable.”

  “That we know,” Sereena stated. “What are you not telling us? How did you connect the body to Cainan?”

  Roark cleared his throat. “The ME found his cell phone stuffed inside his mouth. The techs were able to recover some of the contents from the phone. They found text messages between him and the Giuliani family member. They also found a picture of you on the television carrying Elaine Jacobson out the door during the shooting.”

  Sereena sighed. “Well, now we know how you were discovered.”

  “That damn Elaine,” Mike huffed then glanced at Roark. “Tell me something. Are you here to keep Cainan safe or are you here for your career?”

  Cainan took a good look at the man. Roark had literally taken a beaten since Grace was kidnapped. Many believed if he had acted sooner, Grace would have never been captured or at the very least, been found uninjured. At this point, Cainan was willing to give the man the benefit of the doubt. But he certainly would not put AnnieMarie’s life in this man’s hands. He would rather Roark be here than near her. Cainan held out his hand.

  “Good to have you on board, Special Agent Roark. The information is very helpful.”

  Roark hesitantly shook his hand. “I will keep you alive, Agent Wagner.”

  Cainan could see the man meant what he said. “Does that mean you are going to jump in front of my mother when she tries to kill me?”

  “That would be a no,” Roark replied. “I read your mother’s FBI file.”

  “My mother has an FBI file?”

  “A very extensive one,” Roark smiled.

  “You never looked at your family’s files?” Sereena asked.

  “No,” Cainan replied.

  “I did,” she shrugged. “Hell, I’m surprised they let me in the academy.”

  “You have many criminals in your family, sexy Agent Chase?” Mike asked.

  Sereena nodded. “Sure do. About to have another one if you ever call me sexy Agent Chase again.”

  CHAPTER 11

  The SAC Taylor’s private conference room was filled with Wagners. He had worked for twenty years to get to this point in his career. It was clear this case had huge implications. With that said, at this moment, he would give anything to be somewhere else.

  “Special Agent In-Charge Taylor, you need to explain why we were carted out of our homes and sequestered in this room.” Kennedy Wagner demanded. “Do you have any idea how many bodies are in my morgue?”

  “Or how many cakes I have to bake by this weekend?” A very pregnant Kandace sighed. “How long do we have to stay here?”

  “Why are we here?” Kaitlyn Wagner looked from SAC Taylor to the other agent in the room. “And where is my husband?”

  “Mrs. Wagner as I have explained several times,” SAC Taylor expressed with as much patience as he could maintain, “All of your questions will be answer momentarily. We are a little behind schedule, however, it is my understanding, the package has been delivered and is in the building. I ask for a few more moments of patience.”

  “My patience is running thin, Sir.” Kaitlyn replied.

  “I understand.” He nodded.

  “I don’t think you do,” Kennedy stomped again. “We have been here since seven a.m.”

  “As I explained, that was for your safety.” SAC Taylor stated.

  “My wife needs her rest Agent Taylor,” Wayne Morris complained in his calm, yet firm manner. “In case you haven’t noticed, she is pregnant with our first child. Sitting here for hours with no information coming forth is not my idea of relaxation.”

  “Nor is it mine,” SAC Taylor turned to Kandace. “Please forgive the delay, Mrs. Morris.” He stood. “I have to step out for a moment.”

  Taylor excused himself then walked across the hallway to another closed door. He took a moment to compose himself, turned the knob then walked into the room. He took a moment and thanked God. Wagner had been delivered alive.

  “I understand you came under a little fire boarding the plane, Agent Wagner,” he said as he extended his hand.

  “Yes, Sir. We did. Under the leadership of Jerome Morgan and Agent Chase, I made it in one piece.”

  SAC Taylor shook Jerome’s hand. “Good to have you back on board Morgan.”

  “Anytime you need me, Taylor.” Jerome replied.

  “Agent Roark,” Taylor shook his hand. “Welcome to the Newark office.”

  “Thank you, Sir,” Roark replied.

  “Agent Chase,” SAC Taylor smiled. “You went rouge. I ordered you to stand down.”

  “Yes, Sir you did. The FBI taught me to never leave your partner out there alone.”

  He would have to discipline her for disobeying a direct order, but damn if he did not admire her reasons for doing it. “My office this afternoon.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  Taylor turned to Scott Wagner who stood behind his son. “Mr. Wagner, how do you want to handle your family?”

  “Ask my wife to join us.” Scott stated as he put a hand on Cainan’s shoulder.

  Taylor open the door, spoke to the officer outside the door then closed it back. “Agent Wagner we are going to give you a moment with your parents. We will be outside this door. I have called in every agent available to secure this building. I will do everything in my power to support and protect you during this process.” He looked up at the people in the room. “Let’s give this family some time.”

  Cainan watched as everyone filed out of the room. His heart was pounding as if it was about to bounce out of his chest. His mother is going to love him no matter what. His concern was whether or not she will ever forgive him. He turned to look at his father for strength.

  “You are home son. That is all that will matter.”

  It was as if his father had read his mind. He nodded with a smile as the door opened.

  “Scott, what is going on?”

  Cainan turned at his mother’s voice. His mother stood there frozen in the doorway, starring at him with a mixture of confusion, love and anger.

  “I need you to remember it was Kennedy who broke the glass in your armoire in the living room.”

  With tears in her eyes, his mother took small steps until she reached him. She reached out using her fingers to trace the outline of his face. Tears rolled down her cheek as her other hand came up to cuffed his face.

  “My heart knew,” Kailyn said. “My heart knew that wasn’t my baby in that coffin.”

  Cainan slowly pulled his mother into his arms and hugged her as she silently cried into his chest. “I missed you so much, Mom. I missed your smell. I brought a bottle of your favorite perfume to keep on my dresser just to have you near. Every night I recited the prayer you said when
you put us to bed. Your love kept me going.”

  He felt his mother knees buckle. His arms tightened around her, as his heart ached from the pain he had caused her. His father eased her from him, gathering his wife into his arms. She never released his hand. She held on as she pulled herself together.

  Cainan watched as she took a deep breath as she wiped tears from her eyes.

  His mother looked into his eyes. “You broke that armoire.”

  Cainan smiled. “I did, but that is my story and I’m sticking to it.”

  They all laughed nervously.

  “We have a situation, Kait,” Scott said as he kept a comforting hand on her back. “The people we were hiding Cainan from found him yesterday. They attempted to kill him.”

  “What?” Kaitlyn head shot up.

  “Mom, a few years back I was working undercover for the agency. The people involved in the operation are members of the Giuliani crime family.” Cainan leaned against the conference table as he spoke. “Significant information was gathered on their operation. Enough to bring the crime syndicate down. Somehow they discovered who I was and that I had gathered damaging information. They put a hit out on me and my family. To protect the family, Dad, SAC Taylor and I decided it would be best for me to disappear. However we knew the Giulianis would come after anyone they could use to stop me from testifying. Therefore, I could not just disappear. I had to die. The agency knew who had been tasked with taking me out. They arrested the man and then released him to allow him to complete his task. At least that is what the Giuliani family believed.”

  “It is what I believed too, Cainan.” His mother stated.

  “I know Mom. There was no way we could pull this off without you and the family believing I was dead. There was a traitor in our midst. If anyone suspected I was still alive, my entire family would have been in danger.”

  “None of us thought the situation would go on this long,” Scott jumped in. “I asked Hepburn Dunning to keep Cainan safe until he could testify.”

  “You? Why?” his mother asked. “Why didn’t the agency put you in a safe house, or Witness Protection?”

  “They did,” Cainan stated, “Only they could not go through the normal channels. We had no idea who the traitor was or how far his or her reach may be. Yesterday, we believe someone from the Giuliani family attempted to kill me. My cover was blown. They know where I am. Even now, they know I am here.”

  “How do you know that?” She asked.

  “Because they tried to kill me again on my way here. That’s why we brought the family in this morning. I needed to know everyone was safe.”

  “Any idea on how they found you, son?” Scott asked.

  “No,” Cainan replied then turned back to his mother and took her hand in his. “Mom, I am so sorry to have taken you and the family through so much pain. I took an oath to defend and protect the citizens of the United States. I can not allow people to be intimidated, threatened and murdered at the bequest of a family of criminals looking out for their own greed.”

  “It’s ingrained in you, son. You can’t help it.”

  Cainan smiled up at his father. “Yes, Mom, I got that honest.”

  “So now what?” She asked.

  “We are going to push this case to trial,” Scott stated. “Ready or not, the prosecution is going to set a date. I refuse to keep my family in limbo any longer.”

  Cainan nodded. “I agree with Dad,” he said to his mother. “It’s time for the family to know what we are dealing with. It is going to impact their lives.”

  His mother stood, “I have one question. Did this have anything to do with Hepburn’s death?”

  Cainan shook his head. “No. That story is wilder than the one we are living through right now.”

  “Okay,” she nodded. “Now that you are home, all of us are going to do whatever it takes to keep you home.” She kissed his cheek.

  Cainan shared a look with his father as they walked towards the door. It was going to break his mother’s heart when he told her his plans for the future were not in New Jersey.

  SAC Taylor and Jerome stood in the hallway away from the others, discussing the events of the morning.

  “Do you have any idea how the shooters knew you were going to the airport?”

  Jerome shook his head. “The man we captured isn’t talking. Evidence at the scene indicates there was more then one person on that rooftop. Who they were or how they knew to be there is unclear at this point.”

  “The agency is doing all we can to track who has been involved from our end,” Taylor advised. “It helps that we only have to cover a twenty-four hour timespan. The call from you came to my burner phone. That could not be trace or tapped into.”

  “That leaves someone here, inside your department,” Jerome stated. “It is difficult to police yourself. My team is equipped to conduct an efficient look at your people.”

  Taylor took a deep breath then exhaled. “Put your people on it. Do not give any of my people details on Wagner. Communication on vital moves will be conducted between you and I.”

  “How do you want to handle Agent Roark?”

  “Is he a good man?” Taylor asked.

  Jerome hesitated. “He’s made a misstep or two over a woman.”

  “Haven’t we all,” Taylor stated. The woman connecting them came to mind.

  “How is China?” Jerome asked.

  The vision of his wife flashed through Taylor’s mind as he smiled. The man standing before him had rescued his wife and daughter from a Mexican cartel years ago. They had been kidnapped to get Taylor to undermine a drug lord’s case. Taylor could not dishonor the vow he took to defend the United States. Instead, he reached out to the one man in Special Forces who he knew could bring his wife and daughter home. The Shadow was the best assassin the United States government had ever trained. And now that man, Jerome Morgan was his friend. True to his word, Shadow bought his family home unharmed. Taylor knew without a doubt Jerome Morgan was a true hero. “Beautiful as ever, giving me a fit about retiring.”

  “That’s her job, as a wife, to want you home with her safe from this craziness.”

  “What about you? Any woman out there who can convince you to put down your guns and explosives?”

  A strange expression came over his friends face. “Her heart is not available.”

  “Ahh, there is a story there,” Taylor nodded. “One night over a brandy, we’ll talk. As for Roark,” Taylor looked down the hallway at the man standing outside the door, “we’ll let him seal his own fate.”

  They heard a scream come from the room where the Wagner family had gathered. Both men ran down the hallway, pushing the officer guarding the door aside.

  CHAPTER 12

  AnnieMarie, Winnie and Monica were still at the table and Daisy was in the kitchen when the back door opened.

  “Hey,” AnnieMarie glanced at her watch. “What are you guys doing here?”

  Chrystina and Myles walked in. “The last time I checked this was still my mother’s home too.” Myles replied as he kissed Winnieford on the cheek.

  “We wanted to stop by with news before going into the office,” Chrystina replied.

  “Hello Chrystina,” AnnieMarie gave her a hug.

  “I wasn’t sure I was still one of your favorite people after yesterday,” Chrystina hugged her back.

  “You were a bit bossy,” AnnieMarie smiled. “But I know you were looking out for my safety.”

  “Yes, she was,” Myles reached out and hugged her. “And so was I.”

  “Hello Mrs. Michael,” Chrystina spoke. “How are you this morning?”

  “Nice and full,” Monica replied. “Daisy prepared the most delicious pancakes. I worry about my youthful figure while a guest here.”

  “Yes, Daisy will do that to you,” Myles smiled. “Good morning Daisy.”

  “Hello Myles and Chrystina,” Daisy replied, “What are you two all smiles about?”

  Myles turned to his mother. “After all th
e drama of yesterday, we decided to set a wedding date.”

  “What?” Everyone cheered.

  “When?” AnnieMarie cheerfully asked.

  “The end of next month,” Myles replied as he pulled Chrystina into his arms.

  “A month?” AnnieMarie protested. “That is not enough time.”

  “We have to order flowers, get a caterer….” Winnie responded.

  “A wedding planner, photographer, I could go on,” AnnieMarie declared.

  “My sister is going to coordinate everything.”

  The room fell silent. All eyes fell on Chrystina.

  “What sister?” AnnieMarie asked.

  “My sister, Gina.”

  Winnie, AnnieMarie and Daisy glanced from one to another. AnnieMarie walked over and placed a hand on Chrystina’s forehead. “It doesn’t seem like you have a fever. Have you lost your mind?” She shouted with hands on hips. “You are putting the most important day of your life as a couple in the hands of a woman who thinks that a Gucci knock off is a great find? I refuse to allow that to happen.”

  “We thought you would feel that way,” Myles replied. “Then we all agree, you are going to work with her to ensure our day is perfect.”

  AnnieMarie was certain the expression on her face relayed her shock. “Say what?” She asked in a voice that was unfamiliar to her.

  “I think that is a wonderful idea,” Winnie cheered with a clap of her hands.

  “You think what is a wonderful idea?”

  “You and Gina coordinating their wedding,” she turned to Chrystina. “Now the big question is who is going to do your gown?”

  “I would love to help with that,” Monica raised her hand. “I made gowns all the time at home.”

  “You are a designer?” Chrystina asked.

  “I am. Would you like to see some of my brides?” Monica pulled her phone from her pocket, scrolled through then held up a picture.

  “Oh my God, that is beautiful,” Chrystina gasped.

  AnnieMarie stepped over to look at the picture. She looked at Monica in disbelief. “That is gorgeous. You made this?”