“You are not going to believe what I found,” Geneva said the next afternoon.

Felicity shifted the phone receiver from one ear to the other, so she could take notes. She and Jace had all but taken over the Brothers In Arms offices, since the business was temporarily shut down. “Go ahead and tell me. Nothing about this guy surprises me anymore.”

“Well, I didn’t find out much about Kevin Quinn specifically, but I did find out who his biggest funder is. Kim Rigsdale.”

“Again, no surprise there.” She waved Jace over to her temporary digs at Vann’s desk and scribbled Kim’s name on her legal pad. “Hang on, I’m going to put you on speaker phone so Jace can hear too, okay?”

“Yep,” Geneva said.

Jace checked out the windows and double-checked the lock on the door before walking over to stand behind Felicity. His body heat reminded her of their night in the hotel bed and when he placed his hands on her shoulders, she couldn’t suppress a shudder of awareness.

“Go ahead,” she managed to squeak as he massaged her stiff neck muscles.

“Right. It turns out Kim’s the person giving Quinn money to fund his crimes. And her whole great American past? Yeah, nothing but a lie. Turns out she emigrated from Romania in the early 1990s.”

“Seriously?” Jace shook his head and straightened, his hands falling away from Felicity as he crossed his arms. She missed the warmth of his touch immediately. “How’d she lose the accent?”

“Acting school,” Geneva said. “Studied for three years at some fly-by-night place in L.A. Once she got out, she changed her name and did a few B-rated slasher movies before working for a high-dollar escort service out of Beverly Hills.”

“Jesus,” Felicity shook her head. “Why the hell didn’t the Bureau know any of this?”

“I’ve got the best sources around.” The pride in Geneva’s voice radiated through the phone line. “That’s why I protect them so well.”

“Is that how Kim met her husband, through this escort service?” Jace asked.

“Surprisingly, no. But she did get herself enough sugar daddies to afford a bunch of plastic surgery. Got basically everything done and looks nothing like her old self now. Once she’d made a tidy sum for herself, she left the escort service and moved to Santa Barbara. That’s where she met Tim Rigsdale.”

“The WASP King of California,” Jace said.

Felicity chuckled. “Got that right.” She tapped a few keys on her computer to bring up a few old publicity shots of the happy couple. “God, if these people get any whiter I’m going to need my shades. Can you email me pics of Kim pre-transformation?”

“Doing it now.” The tap-tap of computer keys echoed over the phone line. “Should be in your inbox, right about…now.”

Sure enough, her laptop dinged and Felicity clicked open the message from Geneva. No doubt about it, the Kim Rigsdale of today was virtually unrecognizable from the poor, brunette Romanian girl she’d been all those years ago. In fact, the only thing that remained the same was her eyes—still pale blue and haunted, as if she’d seen too much and could forget nothing. Felicity remembered that same haunted stare from the day she and Ted had gone to question her at the mansion. At the time, she’d put it down to being freshly sprung from rehab and coping with the grief of losing her husband so unexpectedly. Now she knew better.

“Do you think this is what Quinn’s using for leverage against her?” Jace asked, leaning against the wall with his long legs crossed at the ankles. “It makes sense, since she’d most likely pay just about anything to keep this stuff secret.”

“Yep,” Felicity said. “Geneva, can you keep digging and see if you find anything on Quinn personally? This shows that she’s paying him, but I’d love to know exactly how that money’s being used and if he is indeed blackmailing her. If we can find that final nail in his coffin, we can really put him away forever.”

“I’ll try. Like I said, this guy is either innocent or an expert at covering his tracks. Since you’ve made a pretty compelling case against the former, I’m going with the latter.” Geneva snorted. “And there’s nothing I love more than a challenge.”

“I can attest to that,” Mark shouted from somewhere in the background of the call.

Jace laughed. “Glad she’s keeping you out of trouble up there, dude.”

“Thanks for the info,” Felicity said. “I think it’s time to pay another visit to the Rigsdale mansion. Jace and I will go over there and see if we can get any more out of Kim. What time are you guys heading back?”

“Right after we get off the phone with you,” Geneva said. “Why?”

“Well, if you don’t have anything else going on once you return, we really need to get a tail on Quinn. Find out where he goes, how he spends his days. With our time getting short until his next kill, I want to figure out his next steps so we can stop him.”

“No problem.” Mark said, his voice growing louder so he must’ve moved closer to the phone and Geneva. “I’m getting itchy to get back in the field anyway. And my gatekeeper here will be with me, so she can’t complain I’m doing something I’m not.”

“Funny,” Geneva said, though her tone sounded the exact opposite. “I’ll call to check in around six tonight. Sound good?”

“Sounds perfect.” Felicity smiled. She was growing to like these people more and more. “Talk to you soon. And guys? Be careful.”

“Always,” Mark said, ending the call.

“Great.” Felicity pushed to her feet and grabbed her purse. “You ready?”

“To see Kim Rigsdale?” Jace straightened and pulled his keys from his back pocket. “Let’s do it.”

* * *

Jace drove to the mansion while Felicity spoke to her boss back at the Bureau. The minute they’d left the Brothers In Arms compound and she’d dialed that number, her whole demeanor had changed from confident and in control to anxious. For a woman who claimed to love working for the FBI, Felicity certainly didn’t look it.

In a show of solidarity, he reached across the bench seat with his free hand and laced her cold fingers with his warm ones. She had the makings of a fantastic private investigator—smart, industrious, tenacious. If she hadn’t been so obviously stressed at the moment, he would’ve suggested a career switch.

He braked behind a slower moving car on the highway, then signaled at the turn off toward the Rigsdale mansion. Honestly, though, who was he to tell her or anyone else what to do with their lives? Hell, he and Felicity might set fire to the sheets at night, but they didn’t really know each other that well. Plus, he had his own cluster fuck going on at the business. Though those violations were nothing but a crock and would hopefully disappear once they caught Quinn.

That was the other thing. Catching Quinn would solve a lot of problems, but it would also mean Felicity would leave, return to her home and her life back in Virginia and where the fuck did that leave Jace? Right back where he started—alone and lonely.

He was happy for his partners. Mark had Geneva and Vann had Mercy.

Jace though? Without Felicity he had no one.

And wasn’t that just a shitter and a half?

As he maneuvered up the twisty road toward the billion-dollar home at the top of the hill, he couldn’t help overhearing snippets of her conversation with her boss at the FBI.

“Yes, sir. I’ve confirmed the information is accurate,” Felicity said, frowning. “No, sir. I’m on my way to talk to her now. Yes, I understand this is completely unofficial, but I really think you should consider reopening—”

Felicity sighed. “Yes, sir. I understand the budget cuts and the reasons behind calling Ted and I off the case, but—” She rolled her neck then exhaled. “Yes, sir. I understand, sir. If it comes down to it, can I at least offer her immunity, sir?”

She winced and held the phone away from her ear.

“Things not going too smoothly?” he whispered.

After a blistering eye roll, Felicity held her hand over the phone and said, “What was your first clue?”

“Don’t worry, we can handle things on our own.”

“But that won’t get us a conviction.” She shook her head and picked up the phone again. “Right, sir. Yes, sir. Got it, sir. Thank you, sir.”

Felicity ended the call then stared out the window beside her. “You know, I joined the FBI right out of college thinking I’d make a difference in the world, thinking I’d have the chance to fight the good fight and bring the bad guys to justice.”

“That’s not the way things turned out?” His heart broke just a little at the sad resignation in her voice.

She snorted. “The only things I seem to be fighting these days are a bunch of budget cuts.”

“I’m sorry.” He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed the back of it. “Really, I am.”

“Me too.” She exhaled slowly as they pulled up in front of the mansion and he cut the engine. Felicity unbuckled her seat belt then straightened her black blazer, her expression shifting from remote to resolute. “Right. Well, let’s get this over with then.”

“You sound so optimistic,” Jace joked, trying to lighten her grim mood. “Who knows, maybe she’ll confess to everything and we can have Quinn in jail before dinnertime.”

“Sure. And maybe star-spangled pigs will fly out of my butt.”

He got out then walked around to hold the door for her before locking up his truck. “Let me know if that happens so I can have my camera ready. That would be worth solid gold on YouTube.”

Felicity subtly flipped him off as they walked up to the front door. “There’s a chance she’s not even home.”

“Oh, I’m betting she’s home. It’s too early for the bars to be in full swing. Where else can she get shitfaced at three p.m.?”

“True.” Felicity rang the bell then assumed her best agent-in-charge stance while she waited. Shoulders back, head high, chin up. The exact opposite of the warm, wanton, wonderful woman he’d held in his arms and loved in the hot tub again that day or in their bed last night. He longed to pull her aside and kiss her hard and deep until they were both breathless with desire. But since Kim’s butler chose that moment to open the door, his plans would have to wait until later.

“Yes, may I help you?” a new guy answered the door, his hulking, body-builder form looking more like Ninja Warrior than the older Ask Jeeves butler from before. He gave them both a suspicious once-over glare. “Mrs. Rigsdale is not expecting any visitors today.”

“I think she’ll want to see us.” Felicity flashed her FBI badge. “We have a few more questions to ask her.”

The guy raised a dark brow. “I’ll let her know you’re here.”

“Thanks.” Felicity walked into the fancy foyer again, ahead of Jace, then cast him a quick look once they were alone. “I’m going to offer her a deal to see if we can get her to talk.”

He frowned. “But I thought your boss said that was a no-go.”

“He did, but I have to offer her something. If Quinn’s got her between a rock and a hard place, she won’t say anything to us without a promise of protection.”

“You do realize that Quinn probably has this place bugged, don’t you?” Jace asked, spotting several suspicious-looking holes in the corners of the carved cornices—the perfect size for small cameras.

“I’m counting on it,” Felicity said, giving him a small smile.

The butler returned and gestured them down the hall toward the library again. “She’ll see you briefly.”

“Great.” Felicity strode down the hall and into the room at the end where they’d met with Kim before. Jace trailed behind taking in all the ostentation wealth around him. He’d gotten a brief glimpse of the place on the night he and Vann had come here to rescue Mark, but damn. This place screamed I’ve got more money than God. It was too much, in his opinion. While he liked to be comfortable as much as the next guy, buying shit just to impress people had never been his style. He preferred to live simply and use what money he had to help others, like giving to the homeless shelter in Ortega and supporting the local veterans outreach programs to help wounded warriors return to productive lives after giving their all for their country.

Basically everything these assholes stood against.

By the time he followed Felicity into the library and got a good look at Kim Rigsdale, wallowing in her misguided misery, he wanted to punch something. Namely Kevin Quinn and his supporters who did nothing but hurt the innocent.

“Mrs. Rigsdale, thank you for agreeing to see us again on such short notice,” Felicity said, taking a seat in a leather wing chair that probably cost more than Jace’s entire apartment and everything in it. She gave him a look then glanced at the chair beside her, indicating he should take a seat, but Jace didn’t feel like sitting. He felt like destroying this bastion of bullshit with his bare hands. He clenched his fists, then crossed his arms to keep himself in check.

Kim Rigsdale gazed at Felicity with glassy, bloodshot eyes then flicked her glance to Jace. “What the fuck is he doing here?”

Her tone held the same loathing most people reserved for dog poop on the bottom of their shoe and Jace couldn’t help but smile. The day self-absorbed bitches like Kim Rigsdale treated him with respect was the day he died. Let her think she was better than him, better than his friends and his SEAL team buddies. They’d get their justice in the end.

“My other partner had to return to the Bureau, so he’s helping me with my investigation.”

Kim gave a derisive snort and mumbled something under her breath that sounded suspiciously like “loser”.

Jace had been called a hell of a lot worse in his time, by people much more scary than this rich bitch. Bring it on, baby. He just continued to smile, feeling nothing but pity for the drunken train wreck Kim Rigsdale had become.

Felicity continued. “We’ve uncovered some information that puts you in a compromising positon, Mrs. Rigsdale.” She pulled the laptop from the messenger bag at her feet and pulled up the pictures Geneva had emailed earlier. “Would you care to explain how an illegal Romanian immigrant ends up married to one of the most powerful white supremacists in the state of California?”

At first, Kim didn’t react, just stayed slumped into the corner of the huge, overstuffed sofa, nursing what looked like a tumbler full of whiskey. Then Felicity got up and moved to sit next to her, forcing Kim to see the old photos of herself.

“This is you isn’t it, Mrs. Rigsdale? Or should I call you Elena Banciu?”

The mention of her former name seemed to do the trick. Kim shoved off the couch, nearly toppling Felicity’s laptop and charged toward Jace, her face angry and her movements unsteady. “Get the fuck out of my house, you filthy piece of shit!”

She went for his face, her manicured nails sharp, but his reflexes were too fast and he caught her hands, trapping them behind her back as she struggled against him, all civility lost as she lapsed back into her native Romanian, spewing what he assumed were curses and taunts.

Felicity raised a brow. “Well, I guess that answers that question, huh?”

Wrestling the snarling woman trapped in his arms into the other wing chair wasn’t a problem, but keeping her there until Felicity locked the door then returned with her handcuffs was harder. He ended up with nasty scratches on both cheeks and a hard kick in the shin for his trouble. Finally though, between him and Felicity, they got Kim’s arms secured behind her back and a heavy hand on her shoulder kept her planted in the chair. She continued to spout Romanian insults at them until Felicity yanked a white doily from beneath some ugly expensive sculpture on an end table and crammed it in Kim’s mouth.

“Bet that felt good, eh darlin’?” Jace said, giving her a wink.

“You have no idea.” Felicity smiled and his whole day brightened.

Jace double-checked the locks on the doors again to make sure Kim’s butler-slash-bodyguard wouldn’t be riding to her rescue anytime soon, then took up position to stand sentry, while Felicity sat on the sofa across from Kim.

“Look, I know this hasn’t been easy for you, Elena. You’ve worked damned hard over the years to get where you are today. Changed virtually everything about yourself to become who you thought they wanted you to be.”

Kim stopped struggling and stared over at Felicity, her cheeks flushed and her breath panting.

“I understand the need to want more, to be more. I do. I’ve struggled in my life to get where I am too. To get ahead in a world dominated by men, a world that caters to their wants, their needs, their lives. But recently someone showed me that it doesn’t have to be that way. That there are other options. I’d like to give you another option today, Elena.”

Kim straightened in her seat as best she could, her eyes still glassy from the alcohol in her system, but her expression curious.

“We know that you’ve been funding the activities of Kevin Quinn. Now, I’m not sure why or how much you know about what he’s been doing, the murders he’s committed, but if you agree to share what you do know with me today, and agree to testify against him in court once we catch him, then I’m prepared to offer to take you into protective custody through the FBI.”

The fight seemed to go out of Kim and she sagged in the chair.

Felicity glanced at Jace and tilted her head toward their prisoner. He nodded and walked over to remove the gag in Kim’s mouth.

“Do you accept my deal?” Felicity asked as Jace wiped his boot on Kim’s priceless Persian rug. “The only other way you get out of this is going to prison. I’m not sure you’d survive long in there, Elena.”

“Kim. My name’s Kim,” she said after an eternity of seconds. “I left Elena behind a long time ago.”

Jace wanted to point out her little Romanian hissy fit just minutes earlier but refrained.

“Take the deal, Kim. You get a new life and Quinn gets the punishment he deserves.”

“You promise you’ll take care of me?” Kim said.

“I’ll do everything in my power to make sure Protective Custody gets you out.” Felicity pulled out her notebook and a pen. “But you have to tell me everything you know about Kevin Quinn.”

Kim stared a Felicity. “I want a new name, a new life, a new everything. I hate this fucking house now. Hate everything it stood for and everything I’ve lost.”

Felicity caught Jace’s eye, held for a moment, before nodding. “Like I said, I’ll do my best. I can’t guarantee anything though until you tell me what you know.”

“Fine.” Kim exhaled. “It started right after Tim and I got married. He would have these meetings here at the house for his “friends”. Basically, a bunch of Neo-Nazi skinheads with dreams of taking over the world. One night a man showed up I hadn’t seen before, with a buzz cut and military fatigues. He said his name was Kevin Quinn….”