“Let’s get this over with,” I growled, I wasn’t in the mood to hear all of his sarcastic remarks. “What have you found out?”
“Nothing much.” He shrugged. “Serena has been doing charity work since she moved out of the state. Nothing suspicious so I think she’s just caught up in the cross hairs with whatever is going on here.”
“Yeah, that’s what we’re thinking,” I said, leaning forward. “I listened in on their meeting yesterday. Daley had two bodyguards and there was a suspicious phone call. We’re gonna have eyes on him twenty-four-seven from now on.”
“Good, good. I think we need it. We’ve found out he’s got some contacts that are known cartel members.”
“Yeah?” Luke asked. “Which ones?”
Charlie pushed five folders into the middle of the table, pointing at them and saying. “There’s one for each of you, all the information we could find on Daley and his contacts.”
Reaching forward, I pulled one towards me and opened it up. It was full of his contacts and had information on each of them. My lips lifted in a small smile, this was it. This was how we would catch him. If one of them was in on it, then we could get to him through them.
“Another missing girl was reported missing last night.” Charlie said into the silence.
“Didn’t you say Daley was talking about a package being delivered, boss?” Kitty said, lifting her head and placing the folder on the table.
“He did?” Charlie looked from her then back to me.
“Yeah,” I said, nodding my head. “Now it makes sense, he must have been talking about the girl.” I pulled my hat off, running my hand through my hair.
This wasn’t good. Why hadn’t I put it together? Now that I thought about it, it was obvious. How he got so angry over not having the ‘package’ when he wanted it. That package must have been the girl.
“One of the top girls in her class.” Charlie shook his head, looking at me, fire blazing in his eyes. “Only five miles from here.”
“They’re getting closer,” Evan said, turning his laptop around to face us with a map on the screen. “The bigger the dots, the more recent they’ve been.”
The map had loads of dots on and they were all getting closer and closer to the compound. There was no mistaking it.
“How did you get that?” Charlie asked, leaning forward in his seat to see it better.
“I’ve got contacts.” Evan shrugged and smirked at Charlie.
Shaking my head at him, I squinted at the screen. He was right, they were getting closer.
“What is their end game?” I mumbled. What were they trying to achieve?
“I don’t know,” Charlie said, standing up. “But we need to find out, and fast.”
We did need to find out fast; not knowing where those girls were, not being any closer to finding out, was frustrating the hell out of me. I needed to run. I needed to think.
Charlie stood up and looked at his phone. “I’ll be in touch,” he said, making his way to the door.
“Later.” I nodded.
We all stayed silent for a while, each of us looking through all of the information we’d just been given.
“Luke, keep track of Kay. I need to run.”
“On it,” he answered, not lifting his head from the folder.
Huffing, I walked out of the warehouse and straight to the house to get changed into my gym clothes. A good run and some exercise on the equipment in the clearing is what I needed.
Watching somebody’s house on my own, was the most boring thing I had ever done. I’d been sat here for over five hours now and not one person had come in or out.
Taking Eli to preschool on my own was scary but once I had done it, I was so happy. Not only that, but I was proud that I had done it all by myself and I couldn’t keep the smile off my face. There was a time not long ago when I thought I’d never be able to take him on my own again but I’d done it and I finally felt like the last piece of the jigsaw had slipped into place.
I’d managed to find Daley’s place pretty easily and I was ready and pumped for some action.
Then… nothing happened. Ty had told me that Charlie was coming to the compound today, he’d text me earlier to say that he left my folder in the kitchen at home.
Home.
That was a word that I was getting used to hearing.
He hadn’t said anything else but I knew that he wouldn’t because, although our lines were secure, he always said that you could never be too careful.
He was due to take over my watch any second now but whether we would be able to talk, I didn’t know.
Pulling my phone out when it buzzed, I swiped the screen and opened up the new message.
FROM: TY
TO: KAY
5 mins away. When I pull up, drive off.
See you at home.
I smiled and kept my eyes on the rear view mirror, looking out for him. A couple of minutes later, he drove up behind me and I pulled my seatbelt around me, switching the engine on. Making my way to Eli’s preschool, I thought about how much my life had changed.
A few months ago, I would have never gone out of that compound on my own, and now I was out on my own, not only taking and picking up Eli, but doing surveillance jobs as well. Everything was perfect. Well…as long as you didn’t count the wife that had turned up out of the blue and not talking to Corey.
I hated not talking to him. I really needed to confront him, especially knowing that he was video calling tonight. I was just so hurt, I still couldn’t wrap my mind around him being so close and not coming to see us.
Pulling up to the preschool, I took a deep breath and got out of the car. I scanned the area as I walked to the door, making sure I knew what and who was around me.
When I pulled the door open, Miss Cooper was sat in the waiting area. She stood and smiled kindly at me, meeting me in the middle of the foyer.
“Miss Anderson? I was wondering if we could have a quick chat?” She waved to the little office opposite, a reassuring smile lighting up her face.
“Sure.” I nodded and walked into the office as she followed behind me and shut the door, closing us in the tiny space.
I watched as she shuffled around the small space, which was covered with stacks of folders and boxes of spare clothes and books. You’d think for a preschool that was so busy and catered for so many children, that they would have a bigger office.
“I wanted to talk about how Eli is getting on,” she said, once she squeezed behind the desk and sat down. “I’m aware that there have been a few changes at home and wanted to talk about going forward.”
“Okay…”
“I’ve got to say, Miss Anderson-”
“Kaylee, call me Kaylee,” I said, lifting my hand and waving it in the air.
“Oh, right.” She cleared her throat and continued. “Kaylee, Eli has improved so much in such a short amount of time. He’s more confident and progressing really fast. I’d like you to consider what you will do when he’s ready to start school.”
“School?” It wasn’t time for him to start school yet, we had a year before he would start.
“I know it’s early to start thinking about it but I feel like you should try and get him in the best school around. He’s such a bright boy.” She smiled, leaning forward and almost knocking over a pile of folders.
Clearing my throat, I shifted in the chair. “So there isn’t a problem with Eli?”
“Oh, no, no. Just the opposite of what you were probably thinking. I’m sorry Kaylee, I didn’t mean to give you the wrong impression.” She frowned, her face going red.
“That’s fine,” I said and pushed up out of the seat. This office was too damn small and was starting to make me sweat. “Was that all?”
“I have some great options for you to discuss with…” She caught herself before she said anything else and I looked down, feeling embarrassed. Who would I discuss them with? I could talk to Ty but he wasn’t Eli’s father, it wasn’t his responsi
bility.
“Right,” I mumbled. “Well, do you have leaflets, or…”
“Oh! I have them here somewhere.” She started to look around the room, but it was obvious that she wouldn’t find anything in the piles and piles of folders and papers.
“Don’t worry about it, Miss Cooper, I’ll have them when you can find them, no rush.” Smiling, I walked through the door and waited in the foyer for Eli, glad to be out of such a small confined space.
“Mama!” Eli shouted as he ran through the door, his coat being dragged along the floor as well as his bag.
“Eli!” I shouted back and crouched down with my arms open wide. This felt good, this felt beyond good. Knowing I was doing this on my own again was such an incredible feeling.
“We on our own, mama?” he asked when I took his bag and coat from him and held my hand out.
“Yep” I grinned down at him. “Want to get burgers and take them back to the warehouse for everyone?”
“Yeah!” he shouted and practically dragged me to the car.
They all scoffed the burgers down as soon as we got back to the warehouse. I had to separate Ty’s from everyone else’s and managed to get them back home safely. I didn’t know when he would be back but I knew that Kitty was taking over his shift tonight.
Luke had asked me if he could come over and read Eli a bedtime story, I couldn’t say no. He was so used to seeing Eli twice a day and since I’d taken Eli on my own, he hadn’t seen him all day.
I cleaned the house, tidying any mess that we had made and making sure the kitchen counters sparkled, all before Luke left. Once he was gone, I jumped in the shower and tried to mentally prepare for my video call with Corey.
This was the first one since we had spoken about Max. He’d tried to video call a few times after but each time I refused to talk to him. It was time that I pulled up my big girl panties and asked him out right, what the hell had gone on?
Stepping into Ty’s home office, I switched the computer on and typed in the password that he’d had me memorize. Twisting my wet hair, I pulled it into a bun on the top of my head and crossed my legs on the giant comfy office chair, waiting for the call to come through.
He always gave a rough time that he would call but it could be at any time if something came up. The ringing sound came from the speakers at the exact time that he said that he’d call. Taking a deep calming breath, I put my hand on the mouse and clicked the accept button.
“Corey?” I mumbled.
“Lil’ sis?” His face came onto the screen, his smile completely taking over. “Ah, it’s good to see you.”
“Yeah,” I ground out, all of my anger coming back full force.
“Hey.” He furrowed his brows, moving closer to the camera. “What’s that tone for? Something happen?”
“Yeah,” I said, moving closer. “You came back to visit nine months ago?”
His eyes widened as he stilled. His body language and demeanour told me all I needed to know, without him having to say a word.
“Listen-”
“What the hell, Corey!” I threw my hands in the air, shaking my head. “I can’t believe you would do that!”
“Kay-”
“I mean, telling me that you had come back to the country, but couldn’t see me because you were doing specialized training, is one thing.” I uncrossed my legs and planted my feet firmly on the ground. “But being this close and not even bothering to come see us?”
My hands were waving around in the air, and if I was honest, I probably looked like a mad woman. But I had every right to be like this with him, he always droned on about the importance of telling each other the truth, when he hadn’t been telling the truth.
“Kaylee, if I’d had known what that sick fuck was doing to you-” He tried to reason, his head hanging down.
“That doesn’t matter!” I leaned forward even more, resting precariously on the edge of my seat. “It doesn’t matter what he did to me…” My voice broke as I tried to hold back a sob.
I covered my mouth with my hand and squeezed my eyes shut tight. I didn’t want to bring all of that back up again or get into that head space. It wouldn’t help anything; it would just make things worse.
“Ah, fuck!” he shouted, making me jump and open my eyes back up.
“You should have wanted to come and see us.” I managed to get past the lump in my throat.
“It wasn’t safe,” he said, bringing his face back up to the camera. “I was there for Ty’s help.”
“I don’t understand,” I sniffled.
He held his head in his hands. “I had some trouble and I needed Ty and the guys to help me out.”
“But…why couldn’t you come and see us?” I asked, still not understanding.
“I had some really dangerous people after me, it wasn’t safe for me to come and see you and Eli.” He leaned back and placed his hands on top of his head. “I wanted to, fuck, I drove past your apartment block and nearly came in.”
His face was torn; I could see how much this had affected him. “So…you wanted to see us?”
“Of course I did. You’ll never understand what it is that I do, Kay, it’s dangerous. I have enemies, enemies in so many countries and if they knew about you then they would target you…and Eli.”
Nodding my head, I thought that I finally understood why he’d stayed away and had minimum contact throughout the years.
“But now that you’re there, you’re safer with the guys and I know they’ll protect you.”
“Yeah,” I mumbled, looking away. “So does this mean we’ll be able to see you soon?” I asked, hopeful.
“Hell yes! As soon as I’ve finished what I’m doing over here, I’m straight back to the states.”
“Really?” I asked. A smile spreading on my face.
“Really.” He nodded.
We were both silent for a couple of minutes, not the awkward kind where you don’t know what to say, but the kind where you’re just thinking.
“Right…” He clapped his hands and smiled wide. “Now that is out of the way, tell me how things are going.”
Blowing out a big breath, I considered how much I should tell him. He must have known Serena, I mean, him and Ty had known each other a long time according to Ty.
I didn’t know how much Ty had told him about the case, or if he had even told him at all. But I thought it was best not to mention that. I cringed when I realized that he didn’t know about me and Ty but that was a conversation for another day.
“I may as well start from the beginning,” I said, getting comfortable in my chair.
I could hear Kay’s laugh as soon as I walked into the house, and when I heard Corey’s laugh follow after, I realized what she was doing. I was glad that she’d finally got to video call with Corey, I was fed up with him harassing me to get her to talk to him. There was no way I was going to push her to do anything that she didn’t want to do. I knew that when she was ready to talk to him, that she would.
Leaving her to finish her video call, I walked into the kitchen, noticing a bag from the burger joint with a note sat in front of it. Picking it up I read it.
Picked you up a couple of burgers.
Kay x
Opening up the bag, I found a couple of burgers and went to warm them through. I was constantly telling Kay that she didn’t need to do this, she always had a hot meal or something for me to eat when I came home. I knew that she was used to doing it, and I really appreciated it, but she didn’t have to.
Pulling the burger out of the microwave, I took a bite and reflected on my afternoon. As soon as Kay had drove off, Daley came through the gates in his obnoxious car and took me all around town, going on a shopping spree. I didn’t know how he did it. I hated going to the supermarket, and for me, shopping for clothes was a ten-minute activity ordering the same pair of jeans several times, online.
I couldn’t deal with shops and the assistants who always wanted to…well…assist.
After he had lu
nch with whom I assumed was a business associate, he came straight home and was still there when Kitty took over from me.
Throwing my rubbish in the trash, I walked through the living room and up the stairs, trying not to disturb Kay. We still hadn’t told Corey about us, that was gonna be a fun conversation. I had no doubt that he wouldn’t like it one bit but he’d have to deal, because I wasn’t going anywhere.
“Love you too, lil’ sis,” I heard Corey say when I got to the top of the stairs.
I looked at my bedroom door, then over to my office. I desperately needed a shower but the pull Kay had on me was too strong, my feet were already taking me in her direction.
Pushing the door open, I leaned on the door frame, watching her. Her legs were pulled up to her chest and she wearing one of my t-shirts pulled over her knees. I smiled at that, I loved it when she wore my clothes. My eyes followed the path of her legs up to her face, buried into her knees.
“Kay?”
Squeaking, her head shot up and she looked at me with wide eyes. “Oh! You scared me!” she said, her hand going to her chest.
I frowned as I saw her face and puffy eyes, she’d been crying, and seeing her like that always hit me straight in the gut.
“What happened?” I gritted out, moving forward. If he’d upset her-
“Nothing,” she said, shaking her head. “I just miss him.”
“Yeah?” I said, softer this time. “Did you sort everything out?”
She puffed out a breath and leaned her head on the backrest of the chair. “Yeah, it’s all sorted.”
“Then what’s with the tears, sweetheart?” I asked, sitting on the edge of the desk, facing her.
“I just…I…I wish he could come home.” She looked back at me, her eyes so sad. I couldn’t bear to see that look in her eyes.
“Did he say when that would be?” Moving closer to her, I swiped away a lone tear as it rolled down her face.
“He keeps saying soon but he’s been saying that for so long now.” She rolled her eyes, looking back down at her knees.
Exposed: Book 2 MAC Security Series Page 6