To say Chloe was confused was an understatement. One minute she was sitting in the lobby, quietly reading a magazine, and the next Hunter had a fierce grip on her arm, yanking her into his office. Judd and Dennis followed, leaving a terrified Finley and a confused lawyer alone with an agent standing outside the door.
Not even a second after Judd closed the office door behind him, Hunter let go of Chloe’s arm and stood behind his desk, glaring at her, overwhelming rage in his eyes. Chloe looked at the other men, waiting for someone to explain.
Chloe rubbed her arm where Hunter had grabbed her. “Could somebody please explain?”
“You’re his daughter?” Hunter shouted the question.
Chloe naturally assumed that he would put two and two together when he eventually came across a photograph from one of the many public events she attended with her father. She squared her shoulders and steeled herself, defiance in her eyes. “Yes.”
“And you didn’t think that might have been important to tell me the other night?”
“No, not at the time,” she replied. “And if you don’t stop shouting at me, you won’t hear any more from me. You’ll be civil or I’ll be silent.”
Hunter picked up the first thing closest to him and threw it. Dennis and Judd watched in amazement as Amy’s coffee cup hit the wall and shattered.
Dennis stepped forward and stood between Hunter and Chloe. “Okay, let’s all calm down.” He gave a pointed look to Hunter, silently telling him to get his shit together. Hunter turned toward the wall and started at the broken mug on the floor while Dennis made his introductions and took a seat on the corner of Hunter’s desk.
Hunter turned on Chloe. “You told me that you paid someone to give you a new life. What’s your name? We already know your last name is Parnell.”
Chloe’s defenses were strengthening by the second and her eyes began to harden against Hunter, glaring back at him, daring him to challenge her. Hunter cocked his head and raised his eyebrows as if to say, Well?
“Renee,” she said.
Before Hunter could speak again, Dennis once again stepped in. “Okay, let’s just try—”
“Is there anything else you didn’t think was important enough to tell me?” Hunter asked Chloe.
“Yes,” she replied, unrepentant.
Hunter slammed his hand on his desk. “Goddammit! You lied to me!”
“I didn’t lie! And don’t you dare say the phrase ‘lying by omission’ to me.”
“All right, that’s enough!” Dennis gave Hunter a hard enough stare that Hunter let out a disgusted breath and threw himself down in his chair. Dennis then gestured to the chair in front of Hunter’s desk and lightly placed a hand on Chloe’s back. She got the hint and sat down.
Judd brought in another chair for him and placed it on the side of Hunter’s desk so they could all face each other. When everyone was as comfortable as they were going to get, Dennis addressed Chloe.
“Okay. Let’s start with why you’re here.”
The only person in the room Chloe had any hostility toward was Hunter, so she looked directly at Dennis and spoke to him with respect, like she had been raised to do. “I’m sure he told you what happened over the weekend. I came down here—risked my life to come down here—to talk about my friend who has agreed to testify, but only if she and her family would be guaranteed witness protection. I thought talking to him in person about this would be the best course of action.” She looked at Hunter with slanted eyes. “Apparently, I was wrong.”
Hunter was about to say something, but Dennis stopped him with a firm stare, and then turned back to Chloe. “What do you mean you risked your life to come down here?”
Chloe made no attempt to answer Dennis’s question. Judd cleared his throat and Chloe gave him her attention. “The reason for all this…um, the tattoo. We know that the girls who work for your…for Parnell…they all had this tattoo on their back.” Chloe nodded in confirmation. “Do the men who work for him have a tattoo as well?”
“They do.”
“Is it on the inside of their forearm? A letter of the alphabet in Old English script?”
“Yes.” She explained the significance of the tattoo, and the letter associated with it, was meant as identification to anyone who knew about Parnell’s secret life. “All of the tattoos, except for mine, have the letter P.”
Hunter snapped his head up at her, his eyes calling her a liar. “I saw your tattoo. You have the same letter.”
Chloe turned to Hunter, the hard, angry look back in her eyes. “Actually, mine is a D. I guess you didn’t look close enough.”
Judd jumped in before Hunter could retort. “And the D stands for?”
“Daughter,” Dennis said, understanding coming over him. Chloe nodded. “I’m guessing your tattoo carried a lot more weight and significance than the others.”
Hunter began to pace in slow circles. His fists were clenched in tight fists at his sides and his face was rapidly turning from red to purple. It was killing Chloe that with every word she spoke she was hurting Hunter, but if she was going to suggest helping each other in their quest to capture Matthew, she had to fill in as many blanks as she could.
Chloe looked at Dennis and continued. “My father’s captain, Evan Crescent, thoroughly enjoys inflicting pain and carrying out the orders that he is given, and he does it without question and with complete loyalty.”
Judd let out a long whistle. “Well, that explains Finley’s freak out.”
“I was watching from the other room and it seems to me he was more than a little terrified of her,” Dennis said to Judd, tilting his head in Chloe’s direction.
At Chloe’s look of confusion, Judd said, “Mack Finley. He shot and killed two state troopers.”
Understanding instantly crossed Chloe’s face and she looked at Hunter. His face was no longer red with anger, but still he was frustrated. He nodded to confirm that this was the man he had told her about, the one who wanted to turn state’s evidence against his boss, who just happened to be her father.
Judd continued. “I asked you about the tattoo because Finley has one on his arm. When he asked for witness protection, he offered to give up Parnell, and Parnell’s boss, in exchange. He took one look at you and freaked out. He said you were sent here for him.”
Painfully aware her past had officially come back to haunt her, Chloe wore a slight grin as she closed her eyes and gave a small shake of her head. It wasn’t a grin that would indicate any kind of happiness, it was a grin that said she wasn’t at all surprised that the thought of crossing her would be as bad as crossing her father. Because she was his daughter, and had once been known for abruptly and sternly putting people in their place when the need arose, people automatically knew that if and when Matthew sent her anywhere, it was worse than sending Crescent, even though she never had to, and never would, physically harm anyone.
Dennis turned to Chloe. “What about the other guy? Parnell’s boss?”
David. She felt like a thousand daggers had just been thrown into her chest. The thought of David being pursued and investigated by anyone made Chloe sick to her stomach and furious at Finley for even attempting to say his name aloud simply for something as selfish as trying to get away with murder. There was no way she would allow David’s name to slip through Finley’s lips and into the FBI’s hands.
“My father is the boss,” Chloe stated with a scoffing laugh, avoiding the truth while not quite telling a lie. Her voice, her posture, and her eyes said it was an undeniable, undisputable fact, and she knew everyone in the room believed her.
Clearly frustrated and defeated, Hunter hit the back of his chair and it spun at a forceful velocity. It took him a few minutes, but he had finally cooled down. When he turned to Dennis, Chloe ached at the desperation and silent pleas he was giving his oldest friend, who could offer no comfort at the present moment. It was obvious Hunter wanted both Matthew Parnell and Mack Finley in custody and both with a lethal injection in their arms. The desperation came from the fact that Hunter knew there was no way he would get both. It would be one or the other.
“Sorry, man.” It was all Dennis could say.
“There has to be more than that,” Hunter said. “Finley could have seen her and decided that she would be the perfect excuse to change his mind. Don’t look at me like that! There has to be more! The only thing we have on Parnell is her story. It’s not even testimony. We have these files in front of us, but we have no evidence to point to Parnell. He cut off someone’s head and we have no fucking evidence!”
Chloe’s head snapped up and she stared at Hunter in silent shock.
Judd cleared his throat and told her, “There was a woman identified as Sasha Wheeler recently found in Vegas.”
The immediate recognition on Chloe’s face and the slow nod of her head at the mention of Sasha’s name didn’t go unnoticed by anyone in the room. Every nerve in her body seized up and she froze in horror, imagining the torture that Sasha must have gone through. What could Sasha have done to make him cut her head off? Very slowly, the fear she had felt about confronting her father was replaced with disgust and eager determination to see him rot in his own filth.
“I will get you proof,” she said quietly.
Nobody heard her over Hunter’s rant to Dennis. “Other than her,” Hunter waved his arm at Chloe, “all we have is Alice’s testimony. We’ll need more than that, and Finley won’t talk now because he’s afraid of her! And she can’t make up her mind whether or not she’ll testify against him.”
Chloe raised her voice as she stood and leaned against Hunter’s desk. “I will get you your goddamn proof!” Hunter looked at her like he was just noticing her for the first time and she lowered her voice. “I told you that I was going back to Boston. I will get you whatever you need to convict him and every other man responsible. I know what RICO is, and I know that all you need is proof he was responsible, not just for the murders, but for all of his activities in the Family. All he did was give the order, but he did give the order. I know it, Alice knows it, and that jackass in the other room knows it.” She gave Hunter a hard, sincere look. She wanted her father stopped just as much as he did. “I will get you what you need.”
The room fell silent as everyone focused their eyes on Hunter.
“I will get you what you need.” She was trying to assure him, but she knew she was failing.
Hunter turned to Dennis. “Finley will get protection.”
Dennis shrugged his shoulders. “If he testifies, more than likely.”
“Ugh,” Chloe said with disgust. “This Finley guy is irrelevant. I can promise you right now that if my father knows Finley has even thought about talking to you, he won’t be breathing long enough to even see trial.”
All eyes in the room set on Chloe, each one of them with curious and suspicious expressions, which she wasn’t deterred by at all. She let out an exasperated sigh. “Oh, come on. With everything you know so far, do you honestly think my father will let anyone mention his name under oath?”
“What about this other guy Finley told Doug about?” Dennis asked. “Finley said Parnell has someone he reports to.”
“I told you…” Chloe began as she whipped around on Dennis, but then abruptly stopped. Her blood turned to ice and her breath caught in her throat as she saw Jack Lawrence casually leaning against the doorframe, listening to the entire exchange.
Jack gave Chloe a stern look that told her, in no uncertain terms, they did not now, nor ever, know each other, and casually said, “Please, continue.”
Chloe poised herself and turned back to Dennis. “I told you, he is the boss.”
“Says you,” Hunter sharply said.
Chloe whirled on Hunter, fury in her eyes. “You know what? Fuck you!” She thrust her arm out behind her, pointing in the direction of the conference room. “He will tell you the exact same thing. And before you ask, I don’t know what his reasons are.”
“I bet she can get him to tell us what we want to know,” Jack said. Chloe looked at Jack with widening eyes and he returned her stare with a look that said, Trust me. “And my guess is that she can do it without saying a word.”
“Seriously?” Judd asked, doubt in his voice.
Jack walked into the room, addressing everyone. “My money is on her that she can get him to tell the truth about whether or not this Parnell guy reports to a higher power. Everything that you know so far, you only know it from this woman. From what you’ve been told, does it sound like Parnell tolerates any kind of insolence? Including lying?”
“Jack,” Dennis said, “you were sitting behind the glass. You saw how he reacted when he saw her.”
“I did, but there is something that you all seem to be forgetting. Mack Finley worked for Parnell, who is apparently the boss of a very powerful organized crime family. Because of that, I also see that Finley knows the consequences of lying to a Parnell.” He cocked his head in Chloe’s direction. “And it seems to me that Finley is more afraid of the daughter than the father. Look at her. She’s not going to threaten his safety or his life. She won’t even be in the room. If you want to know whether or not Finley is telling the truth about this other guy, then she’s the only one who will get it out of him. He has no idea why she’s here, but if he’s terrified of her just by being in the same building, then let him think she’s going back with news that won’t get him killed.”
Judd, Dennis, and Hunter all exchanged questioning looks as they considered what Jack was saying. Chloe sat back down in an effort to stop her knees from shaking.
“Lawton and Fowler will be in the room with Finley and Doug.” Jack turned to Chloe, giving her a look she knew all too well—the look that said she already knew what to do no matter what he said next. “She will stay here.”
“And do what?” Hunter asked, looking between Jack and Chloe.
“Nothing,” Jack replied simply.
Knowing what Jack was expecting of her, Chloe was back in her old life. Her body language and expression didn’t give away any emotions and she had a tight rein on her composure.
There were no other options available. Judd and Dennis nodded as Hunter stood in disbelief. Finally, Hunter threw his arms in the air in defeat.
“Excellent!” Jack said with a smile, giving everyone in the room a satisfied look, then locked eyes with Chloe. She was poised and ready, her eyes telling him that she understood. Jack gave her a sincere smile, almost like he had missed her over the years and it was good to see her again. He rested a hand on her shoulder and said, “Five minutes.”
As he walked out of the room, Jack gave her shoulder a light squeeze to confirm the smile did, indeed, mean that he was happy to see her healthy and whole, and that they would definitely be speaking later.
***
Mack Finley didn’t trust the confidence Hunter and Judd seemed to exude as they entered the room and took their respective seats at the table. Finley had stopped trembling, but was still nervous, his eyes roaming toward the door every few seconds.
“Where do we go from here, gentlemen?” Doug asked.
“Is your client going to continue with any kind of statement?” Hunter asked. “We can’t go to the Marshals with what he’s given us so far.”
Doug turned to Finley for the answer to that question, but Finley’s eyes were focused on the door looking out into the lobby, which was currently empty.
“What about her?” Finley asked, gesturing toward the lobby with his chin.
“Who?” Judd asked, looking behind him to verify she wasn’t there, then turning back to Finley. “The woman from before? She’s nobody.”
“Bullshit she’s nobody!” Finley said. “I know who she is!”
“Is he right about who she is?” Doug asked Hunter.
“I can tell you with absolute certainty that the name on her identification is not Parnell,” Hunter said. “So, do we continue or call it a day?”
They were all looking at Finley, waiting for an answer, while he stared straight ahead into the lobby. Within seconds his muscles began to tense and his eyes began to widen, but he was able to keep his hands from shaking. Chloe walked through the lobby toward the elevators and glanced in Finley’s direction as she casually pushed the button to call the lift. Finley’s eyes were frozen on Chloe. She had a hard and malicious stare burning into the back of his eyes that said if he had one working brain cell swimming in that head of his, he would keep his mouth shut, go back to his cell, and cut out his tongue.
Without much enthusiasm, Doug looked through the door into the lobby, but only saw the elevator doors close.
Doug turned back to his client. “What do you want to do?”
“I’m done,” Finley spat out.
Doug started to pack up his pens and pads of paper into his briefcase. “All right.”
“And what about the man you claimed to be Parnell’s boss?” Judd asked.
Finley wasn’t completely stupid. “I said I’m done.”