Tate rushed into Lancy’s with a full briefcase. She looked around and saw Lizzy behind the bar, talking to Buzz and Snip. “Hey, Lizzy. Is my brother here yet?” Tate asked, making sure to keep her cover. Her excuse for frequenting the bar was Tucker, whom she knew didn’t get out of work for another hour. Lizzy smiled at her as the two old men turned to look at her. Buzz winked, and Tate got the feeling she was missing out on something. “I’m going to be meeting Flint here in an hour,” Tate said instead of asking what the wink meant.

Snip nodded. “He mentioned that to me. He’s a good boy, that one. You could do worse, like if you dated that one’s grandson. Wild is what he is.”

Tate shook her head as the two instantly fell into bickering.

“Hey,” Lizzy said, rapping on the gleaming wood bar top. “Cover me for a bit. I need to show Tate this new dress I got.”

“Sure thing, boss,” Snip said, sending her another wink.

“Free beer?” Buzz asked with a sly grin.

Lizzy rolled her eyes. “It won’t take long. Two free beers each and that’s it.”

“Deal,” the old men said as they used the bar top to help them stand.

“Come on. It’s so cute. I was thinking about wearing it if Dalton ever takes me someplace fancy.” Lizzy lead the way to the storage closet. “It’s not clean out there. It is here, though. It took me hours, but I combed the place from top to bottom. I’ll make Alex do it, too, when he gets here, which should be soon, right?”

“Yes. He was just packing up when I left.”

Lizzy let out a sigh and closed her eyes for a second. “Your visitor left six bugs in the bar. Two were on table centerpieces. Two are around the bar area. And two were behind the bar. They are high tech, very expensive bugs. And they are different from the ones that were here when my dad was alive.”

“He wants to find out about Valeria? Or did Valeria tell him about us?” Tate asked, keeping her voice low.

“It’s okay, Tate. We can talk freely in here. It appears he didn’t bother bugging my storage areas. This one and the one in the basement are clear. None of my bottles have been moved and none of the motion sensors were triggered. I think he’s checking out Val’s story. The question is, how can we help?”

“What do you mean?”

“I wonder what we should say so the bugs pick us up. I left them active for now. It’ll take a week or so of setup to get them out. I’ll start with the centerpieces. Say they look outdated and to throw them away and so on until I have a clean house again,” Lizzy explained.

“Maybe have me sit at a table with someone and talk about Val?” Tate suggested.

“Exactly. Buzz or Snip could do it. You could sit at the bar next to them. There’s one close by that should pick you up,” Lizzy said. “The trouble is what to say. I can have Buzz ask where Val is.”

“Do they know?” Tate asked. She couldn’t believe Lizzy would trust two gossiping old men with their group.

“They’re the ones who told me about my morning visitor. And they see a lot more than I thought. They’ve been watching the comings and goings since WWII. And they knew my father was involved in something. They’re the ones who warned me something was going on. I trust them, but I will keep them in the dark as much as possible. I’ll bribe them with beer as a distraction,” Lizzy smiled. “Now, what did you find?”

“Oh, my gosh, Lizzy, so much. We knew it wasn’t isolated to us in the States, but I found so many people all over the world whose job is to sway the public by just repeating the same messages over and over.” Tate reached into her bag and pulled out sheets and sheets of paper. “Here are all the ones I found on social media. These are just celebrities and such. Then I translated the talking points Harriet had given me when she was trying to corrupt me to her side of thinking into the main global languages and found all these.”

Lizzy’s eyes got larger as she starting flipping through them. “It’s just as interesting to see who is not here—like Trip. And Vivian Geofferies. We really can cross them off the list.” Lizzy paused. “Wow, he’s on here? He’s like the biggest action star in the world.”

“I know!” Tate exclaimed. “And look at this. Three princesses who are always front and center at fashion shows and gossip rags. But then Alex . . . wow, he found a lot, too,” Tate rushed. “I’m getting ahead of myself. I’m just excited. I was going to have my team run Claudia though Harriet’s talking points. But I don’t know who we can trust, so I had Alex do it. Not only does Claudia match ninety percent of Harriet’s anti-Stratton talking points, so do all these politicians and journalists.” Tate handed over the file.

“These are all USA?” Lizzy asked, quickly flipping through the pictures and the quotes.

“Yes. Alex is going to do the best he can internationally tonight after the bar closes,” Tate said, waiting for Lizzy to find what she had.

“Senator Epps—”

“Exactly,” Tate said with a smug smile.

Tate sat at the bar watching Lizzy pass a note to Buzz. He read it and slowly slid it over to Snip. With a nod of their heads, they turned to Lizzy.

“Lizzy, bring us two beers will ya, dear?”

“Sure thing,” Lizzy called out.

Tate watched Lizzy pour two beers as Buzz and Snip continued to talk. Buzz pulled out his lighter and burned the napkin, tossed the sputtering flames into the beer Lizzy placed on the bar top and looked sadly at the loss of his drink.

“Hey, where’s that cute bartender of yours?” Snip asked.

“Dalton is off for a couple days,” Lizzy smiled as the men practically rolled their eyes at her.

“Not him. I’m talking about Val. I want her to date my grandson,” Snip smiled.

“Now I’m hurt. I thought you wanted me to date your grandson.”

“At this point, I’ll take anyone,” Snip huffed.

“I’m sorry, but Val kind of ditched me. Left us in a real pinch.” Lizzy let the annoyance show in her voice. Tate knew that wasn’t made up. They all felt that way. Val should have trusted them with her mission.

“Think she went back to the DEA?” Buzz asked.

Lizzy snorted. “God no. She hates them with a passion. I actually fear it’s something worse. I caught her trying to sell some drugs out of the bar right before she took off. I was going to give her a chance to straighten up, but she left instead. Sadly, your grandson will need you to pimp him to someone else. The MP’s daughter is easy, just ask Crew,” Lizzy laughed before leaving the two men to instantly leap on that morsel.

Lizzy looked to Tate and the two nodded. The way the men were now going at their grandsons, they appeared completely oblivious to the bug. After all, what was a bug compared to the bomb Lizzy just dropped. Tate almost felt sorry for Crew. His grandfather was going to rake him over the coals for this. The cocky pilot needed to be knocked down a peg or two.

The bar door opened, and Tate saw Flint walk in. He was just under six feet with a runner’s build. He was younger than Tate, not that early thirties were much different from mid-thirties, but he carried himself as if he were much wiser. His dark blond hair was pulled back in his signature man-bun. Tate glanced over at the two old men and saw Buzz was making scissors gestures with his fingers in Flint’s direction.

Tate stood up and walked over to him. With a tilt of her head, she indicated they should go back outside. Once the door closed, she smiled. “It’s so nice out. Lizzy said there’s a great park at the end of the block with picnic tables. Let’s talk there.”

They didn’t speak until they reached the picnic area next to the river. The night was hot and muggy, but a breeze came off the river enough to flutter Tate’s hair as they sat down.

Flint pulled out a notepad and pen from his satchel and took a deep breath. “I think you’ve looked into me. You know I’m reputable. You know I tell the whole story and follow through with leads.”

“Yes,” Tate said slowly.

“I’ve been investigating a story, and I would like your input. Anonymously, of course,” Flint said seriously. He seemed so different from the slightly egotistical hipster she knew from the bar.

“It depends. You know I can’t share classified information. That would be treason.”

“Will you hear me out?” Flint asked. Tate nodded and Flint set down the notepad. “I got into journalism to tell the stories no one wanted to tell, but ones the people should hear. I’ve exposed corruption, abuse, and injustice. But I have never come across something like this before.”

“Like what?” Tate asked, trying to control her breathing.

“A story that leads me to turn against my own profession.” Flint stopped and studied her. Tate tried not to show any emotion as he took in her hands, the muscles of her face, and her eyes.

“Go on,” Tate said.

“Claudia Hughes and all of BBN is purposely reporting false stories in an effort to sway public opinion for some kind of self-fulfilling prophecy,” Flint said, keeping his eyes locked on hers. “But you know that, don’t you?”

“Well, I know the stories she’s done on the president’s involvement with Prince Noah and Zambia are inaccurate,” Tate said, taking in Flint’s reaction as much as he was taking in hers.

“And you know she had BBN fire you, right? Come on, Tate. You can trust me,” Flint said softly as to not scare her.

“Why don’t you tell me the whole story you’re working on, and I’ll see if I can help,” Tate said instead. She knew Flint wouldn’t tell her everything, but a baseline of what he had found would be good.

“I have evidence that Fitz and Claudia are in a relationship. Furthermore, I have evidence that Fitz has used his connection with Claudia to climb the ranks of the Fourth Estate Media Trust owned by the Stanworth family. He’s now the go-to agent when hiring actors for upcoming projects, actors who happen to have the exact same ideology as Claudia Hughes. Do you see the connection between them all?” Flint asked, drilling her with his eyes.

Puzzle pieces clicked together. It had been staring at her this entire time. “George Stanworth,” she gasped.

“What I want to know,” Flint said calmly as if trying to keep her focused, “is why George Stanworth is trying to discredit President Stratton? Do you know?”

Tate took a wobbly breath. Flint was even better that she had thought. She didn’t think he would uncover more than she had.

“But then,” Flint said when he figured Tate wasn’t going to answer, “I thought why Stratton? Why not Mitchell? They are both in the same party, not that I’ve seen any indication that political parties even play a part in this. Do you know what does?”

Tate nodded. “Power.”

“Exactly. When I looked into President Mitchell, I found out why they’re attacking Stratton. President Mitchell used the same language as Claudia Hughes when he spoke to the public. President Mitchell was a traitor.”

Tate had known President Mitchell was a traitor. What she didn’t know until now was the talking points Harriet had given her hadn’t come from Claudia, but from President Mitchell himself. President Mitchell had set the country on a collision course with total economic collapse. “Why?”

Tate snapped her eyes back to Flint’s. She hadn’t meant to say that out loud. “That’s what I’m wondering, and I think you have a pretty good idea.”

Shit. Tate needed Lizzy. She didn’t know what to say. She didn’t know what to do. Tate shot off the bench and started pacing. Flint just watched her. When she used Flint to get their side of the stories out to the public, she didn’t expect Flint would turn around and use her for the story of a lifetime.

“You just want a good story. Is that it?” Tate asked.

“Of course, but you know even better than I do what is going on. I find it interesting the president isn’t fighting back—” Flint paused, his eyes flying to hers. “Son of a bitch. It was you.”

“Me what?” Tate stopped pacing and looked confusingly at Flint.

“You are the one emailing me the inside information I needed to start this investigation,” Flint said, surprised yet completely sure of himself.

“I thought I saw a light. What are y’all doing down here?”

Tate spun to see Crew walking through the park toward them. He was eyeing them curiously. “Pops said he saw you all head out of the bar. Did I interrupt a date?” Tate saw the disapproving look on his face. As if he had any right to judge.

“So you decided to follow us?” Flint asked suspiciously.

“Hell no. I just had to escape the bar. Pops leapt on me for sleeping with Hannah, so it was more of a tactical retreat,” Crew said, sending a wink to them.

Tate moved over and wrapped her arms around Crew. Pulling him in for a hug, she whispered, “Flint has new leads, and he knows I’m involved. Tell Lizzy and see how she wants me to handle this.”

Crew’s smile faded. “I’ll leave you to it.”

Crew turned to leave but Tate stopped him. “The bar is bugged,” she whispered before letting him go this time.

“Tate,” Flint called her attention back to him. “You don’t have to get help. I promise, I’m not going to hurt you. I’m not going to expose you. I only want to expose the truth, which is what I think you’re trying to do as well.”

“What did you want to ask me?” Tate asked, not acknowledging she had sent the emails to him.

“I want to know how you became aware of this . . . movement. It’s certainly well past the point of conspiracy. I want to know how much information you have, what the president knows, and what’s being planned to handle it. And lastly, I want to know how deep it goes. From my investigation, it certainly doesn’t stop with Claudia or even George Stanworth.”

Tate swallowed and took a seat on the bench. “You do realize that if what you say is true, you may be in danger?”

“I do. But I’ve had two assassination attempts on my life for stories I’ve written. I don’t scare easily.”

That surprised Tate. She’d had fallouts from her own stories before—stalkers and threatening letters, but never an assassin. “What stories?”

“One on human trafficking through Mexico and one on how ISIS is funded.” Flint stopped and looked up the street. “You told Crew to get my grandfather?” Flint asked with surprise and horror.

“No, I—” Tate looked up the street and saw Crew, Lizzy, and Snip heading toward them. “Where’s Buzz?”

“You can’t say anything about my story, Tate. You know how critical it is to keep the investigation secret. If George Stanworth finds out about this, he’ll—”

“Try and have you killed is my guess,” Tate finished for him.

“Flint,” Lizzy said, stopping in front of them. “I hear you’ve done some good work.”

“Dammit, Tate,” Flint hissed a second before Snip slapped him upside the head.

“You don’t talk to women like that,” Snip said before shooing Flint over so he could sit on the bench next to his grandson.

“Flint,” Lizzy said kindly yet in complete command of the situation. “Tate didn’t turn on you. She’s giving you the story of a lifetime.”

Tate saw Flint look among them all. “Wait, you all know what’s going on?”

“Not all of it. And Tate says you found something very important. In cases like these, so there’s no confusion, we should start at the very beginning. Go ahead, Snip.”

Tate sat back and listened. Even she hadn’t heard the role Snip and Buzz had played in bringing Lizzy into the case. She saw Lizzy tear up and look off at the water for a moment when Snip told of her dad’s death. “And then we saw this Latin man exit the bar this morning and Lizzy here said she found bugs. That’s why Tate brought you out here.”

“Thanks, Snip. Want to go help Buzz for a little while?”

Snip opened his mouth, but Lizzy smiled first and held up two fingers.

“Fine, two beers each. We deserve more.”

“You’ve probably had more if you’ve been sneaking into the bar to steal beer before your fishing trips.”

“Humph.” Snip didn’t answer, but slowly got up and turned to his grandson. “Protect these ladies, Flint.”

Flint nodded and watched his grandfather slowly head back to the bar. “That’s not a lot to go on,” he said, turning to Lizzy and Tate. “And what does Rotorhead know?”

Lizzy put her hand on Crew’s arm to silence him. “I don’t want Buzz and Snip involved any further than they already are, so I have deliberately kept them in the dark as much as possible. Now Flint, are you ready for the whole story?”