CHAPTER 29
RYAN

I was sitting behind bars, my hands cuffed to a metal table. I’d been here for days, my mind rattled with everything that had happened. No one would allow me updates on Grace’s condition, even if she was carrying my child. I knew she was pregnant. I knew she had just been trying to get into Jesse’s head.

But I needed to be sure that they were both okay.

I was ready to make amends for all the wrong I’d done. But I knew I was still going to serve time. I was going to be here for a while, even with the very best deal a lawyer could throw my way.

It made me sick to think I would end up like my father.

I thought about my child. I wondered if it would be a boy or a girl. If she would have Grace’s eyes and my hair, or my eyes and her hair. If he was a boy, would he enjoy sports? Or science, like Jason? Fuck. Jason didn’t even know what had happened. He was probably calling me, trying to get in touch with me. He was stuck at home with no way of knowing where I had gone. He had to be scared out of his mind.

I closed my eyes as tears rose to them.

I prayed that Grace and Jason and everyone else that I loved would be safe and happy. I prayed that what I had done wouldn’t ruin all of them like my father had ruined me. I prayed that they all knew that I loved them and that they would just let me rot in prison and go on with their lives.

“Mr. Park?”

I lifted my head and looked at the well-dressed man that had entered the room. “Yeah?” I asked.

“I’m here to speak with you on behalf of the United States Government.”

The man sat down in front of me and folded his hands-on top of the table.

“Areyou my lawyer?” I asked.

“No. I’m not your lawyer,” the man said, with a grin.

“Then why are you here?” I asked. “I thought I was meeting with my lawyer.”

“Depending on how this conversation goes, you might not have to.”

“I’m listening.”

I looked up and saw the guard walk away from the door. I felt fear flood my veins as his shadow marched down the hallway. I looked around and saw the remaining guards disappear from view, leaving only me and the sharp-dressed man at the table.

“Here,” he said. “This might make you more comfortable.”

The man brandished a key for the cuffs and unlocked my wrists from the table.

“Thanks,” I said, as I rubbed my wrists.

“My name is Supervisory Special Agent Knox.I work with the FBI.”

I sat back and closed my eyes. This was it. I was in deep shit. The feds were here to put me in a hole so deep I would never see the sun again.

“Mr. Park, I’m here to talk to you,” he said.

“Why me?”

“I know you used specially-coded electrical equipment to take out the power and the back-up generators to City Central Bank.”

“I don’t know what you mean,” I said.

“Don’t play that game, Ryan. I’m offering you a chance at freedom in exchange for your expertise.”

“I don’t have an expertise.”

“Actually you do. You’re one of the most incredible coders in the game. And that means you’re even better at cracking those codes. You implanted a tailor-made code into an aging piece of technology that took out both the main power and the side generators to an entire bank in less than eleven seconds.”

“The code was pre-”

I snapped my jaw closed as the agent in front of me grinned.

“You pre-coded the code, then fused it with the technology you used before the robbery.”

“And if I did?”

“Do you know how many years of schooling it takes for men to pull off things like that?” he asked.

“Three?” I asked.

“Try thirteen. If they’re lucky.”

“How do you know all this?” I asked.

“That’s my specialty. And I’ve been tracking you down for a long time.”

“You have?”

“The jobs in Washington State. San Diego. Colorado. They were brilliant. Well-timed. None of them would’ve been executed to the near-perfection they were without you. It took our own coders days to break down the code you wrote, in order to trace your path.”

“So why didn’t you take me down before?”

“Because you were hitting big cities. States with very strict laws in place for men like you. I was biding my time and waiting for you to strike an area like this. With a less-than-razor sharp police force and lax laws that would allow me to have this conversation with you without drawing attention.”

“So, what is this? Are you recruiting me or something?”

“You are a genius. And it’s very like the FBI to hire men like you in exchange for cooperation and helping us counter the type crime you’ve been so adept at committing.”

“So you’re offering me a job,” I said.

“Working with the FBI cracking codes and teaching our men how to identify and catch men like you,” he said.

“And in exchange for that?”

“You serve no time.”

“No time?”

“At all.”

“Whatsoever?” I asked.

“Yep.”

“Seriously.”

“As serious as the information I have on Grace.”

I felt my heart stop in my chest as the blood drained from my face.

“Where is she?” I asked.

“Take the deal.”

“What happened to her?”

“Take the deal, Ryan.”

“Fine. Yes. I’ll work for you in exchange for no time. I’ll do whatever you want. Where is Grace?” I asked.

“She’s getting released from the hospital today,” the agent said. “Her concussion is abatingand her ribs are healing nicely.”

“And the baby?” I asked.

“As healthy as can be,” the man said with a smile.

Relief flooded my veins. My forehead hit the table and I allowed the tears to fall. Grace was okay. Safe. Strong. And still carrying my child who was also safe and strong. My shoulders shook as the agent continued to sit in front of me, but I didn’t care what he saw. Or what he heard.

My plan had worked.

Grace and my baby were alive.

“We need you to help counter crime, to help us create better security systems for financial institutions like the ones you hit.”

“Done,” I said, as I sniffled.

“Since you turned yourself in and cooperated, the FBI trusts you. For now.. A full-time job with benefits and a decent salary any man with a child on the way could be proud of.”

“Thank you,” I said, as I lifted my head. “Thank you so much.”

“I’ll send the guards back and they’ll get you your clothes back. Go home and you can meet your younger brother there.”

“Jason? He’s ok?” I asked.

“He was really worried about you, but he’s fine.”

“Where is this job? Where will I be going?”

“Someone will be in contact with you soon.”

“Agent Knox?”

I stood to my feet as he knocked on the door to be released.

“Yes, Mr. Park?”

“Thank you again. Really.”

“You’re welcome, Mr. Park. We look forward to working with you.”

The guards came in and escorted me down the hallway as the agent left in the opposite direction.

The guards hauled me off into a room before my things were slung at my feet. I was ordered to change into my clothes and leave everything in the cell behind me. My belongings were given back to me and I walked out of the jailhouse, back onto the streets of the city I’d tried to rob. The wind was whipping through my hair and the sun caused my eyes to squint. I stuffed my wallet in my back pocket and walked toward the road, trying to find my way back into town.

Then a car pulled up beside me and rolled down the window.

“Get in.”

I looked over and saw Agent Knox sitting there in a sleek, blacked-out vehicle.

“What?” I asked.

“Get in. I’ll give you a ride home.”

The car ride was silent as the agent wound through the streets. He seemed to know a lot about me and that made me very nervous. He pulled into my driveway and dropped me off at my house, then handed me a packet of information to take inside to read.

“Everything to answer your questions is in there. I’ve been authorized to give you this.”

He handed me a cell phone as I gave him a quizzical look.

“Wasn’t sure how quickly they’d spit you back out onto the street, so I came prepared,” the agent said.

“Obviously.”

“That’s your work phone. It’s got my number as well as the number of the front desk to the FBI office in D.C.”

“D.C.?” I asked.

“Where did you think you’d be working?” he asked. “This phone is constantly monitored, so use it wisely. Your start date as well as an outline of your salary and benefits is all enclosed. What’s expected of you, the outline of how your first week will go, and a schedule of all the training you need to attend is in here.”

“Yeah. Got it.”

“There’s also a list of neighborhoods and apartment complexes in there that give government workers a good rate. They’re in decent places and good school systems, since Jason will still be in high school.”

“Honestly? The kid’s smart. When I tell him we’re moving again and he’ll probably place out of the rest of his classes so he doesn’t have to fool with it any longer.”

“Then it’s a good thing I put the number of a testing facility in D.C. in there as well.”

“How do you know all this?”

“Like I said. I’ve been tracking you for a long time. It’s my job to know everything about you.”

I shook the man’s hand and I got out of the car and watched him back away. I went over to the potted plant on the porch and fished my car and house keys out of it. Set there for Plan B in case shit went wrong.

Fuck. Shit went so fucking wrong.

I pushed my way into the house and tossed the packet onto the couch. I’d read through that later. All I wanted to do was strip down, take a long ass shower, and see if I could get in touch with Grace. I locked the door behind me and dragged my ass to the bathroom, leaving a trail of clothes in my wake.

Jason came barreling at me from the kitchen and I wrapped him in a bear hug. “Hey man,” I said.

He hugged me back even harder and his shoulders shook as he cried in my arms.

“Hey, shhhh. Shhh, it’s going to be ok. I’m so sorry Jason. I’m so sorry this all happened, but I promise you, everything is going to be ok now.”

My brother and I hugged for a long while, and when he finally settled down, we let one another go. I left him to go grab that shower before I tried to call Grace.

I had no idea if she would ever talk to me again.

But I had to try.