Heart of Steel

by Cathleen Cole

  The blistering hot shower had made me feel somewhat human and the suit and skyscraper heels exuded power, Bridget and Julie had assured me. I filled them in this morning before I’d rushed out the door. Anna had already left for classes. I grimaced. I’d been missing so many classes lately, for one reason or another. There was no way I was going to end up graduating early. Uncle Caleb was going to be furious.

  But that was another problem for a different day. Things still weren’t right between us since he’d found out about Steel. It seemed like I was hiding more and more things from him.

  “Preston.” I shook my lawyer’s hand. He smiled at me and his other hand went over the top of mine in our shake. His gray eyebrows were low over his brown eyes. The man had been dad’s lawyer forever and now was mine. I remember being a kid when dad was just starting the business, Preston would sneak me candy when dad wasn’t looking.

  “What the hell is going on Remi?” Uncle Caleb looked furious. “Why is the FBI wanting to meet?”

  “I’m not sure Uncle Caleb. The lady wouldn’t say a whole lot, just that we needed to talk and that if I wasn’t willing to voluntarily meet with her, then they’d pick me up and make me speak with them down at the nearest local Austin Police Station.” Uncle Caleb huffed out a breath.

  “I’m sure it’ll be fine.” Preston let go of my hand, but his tone was soothing. He was trying to calm both of us, but he gave my uncle a hard look. It settled Uncle Caleb down a little. Before we could discuss anything more the front door opened and a woman and man in black suits walked through the door.

  They look straight out of the movie Men in Black.

  They walked forward towards us and all five of us eyed each other up. “Ms. Mackenzie?” I nodded and held my hand out to shake Agent Flynn’s. She was clearly the one in charge. “I’m Special Agent Flynn and this is my partner Special Agent Ramirez.”

  I shook Ramirez’s hand and gestured to the men behind me. “This is my Uncle Caleb, my manager, and Preston Durston, my lawyer.” All four exchanged handshakes. Uncle Caleb excused himself and went back to get Janet from the back so that she could watch the front. Her eyes widened when she came out and saw the FBI Agents standing in the lobby, but she didn’t say a word.

  “If you’ll follow us?” I led the way back to the meeting room. Once we’d all settled in, I shot a glance at Preston and he gave me a slight nod. I took a breath. “So, Agent Flynn. Agent Ramirez. What can I help you with?”

  Flynn looked at me in what could only be called a calculating manner. I decided immediately that I didn’t like her. She was looking at me as though I was scum. It surprised me. It was rare for me to make snap decisions about disliking a person.

  “Five days ago, Wednesday morning, the Commercial Crimes Division of the Long Beach California Police Department raided a local vehicle repair shop. They received an anonymous tip that the business was a front for an illegal chop shop that was importing and exporting stolen merchandise out of state.

  We know they are working with someone here in Texas, but the manifest was destroyed on the scene before our teams could confiscate it and track who the second shop is. We have our suspicions, of course.” She looked back and forth between the three of us. I saw Uncle Caleb stiffen next to me and Preston sighed and rubbed his fingers over the crease between his brows.

  Agent Flynn continued, almost gleefully. I tried to keep my expression neutral even though I didn’t understand what was happening yet. “We seized everything within the shop and everything that was set to be shipped that morning, including the Mackenzie’s Trucking semi that the stolen vehicle and parts were loaded on.” I froze in shock.

  What the fuck?

  “One of our trucks was at the shop?” She nodded in confirmation at my question. I looked at Agent Ramirez. He had yet to speak, and I was pretty sure his facial expression hadn’t changed once. I was beginning to suspect he was a robot.

  “And it had illegal vehicles in it?” This came from Preston.

  “They were disassembled but yes. The original serial numbers had been ground down and new numbers had been assigned.”

  I blinked. “Why are we only finding out about this five days later?” I looked over at Uncle Caleb. He had a pinched look on his face. “Uncle Caleb, did you know about this?”

  He grimaced. “I knew Fred had gotten held up in California. He called me Wednesday afternoon. He wasn’t able to give me any specifics though. I was going to follow up this morning if I hadn’t heard from him by Friday.” I gaped at him.

  “Why the hell didn’t you tell me that?” I tried to keep my voice calm since both of the FBI Agents were listening closely to everything we said.

  “Because dealing with the truckers is my job Remi.” He glared at me.

  “I think if a trucker and one of my trucks go missing that warrants me being told about it.”

  Preston cleared his throat and gave us pointed looks. We could speak about this later, his message came through loud and clear. I shut my mouth but not before I gave Uncle Caleb a death glare. I looked back at Agent Flynn.

  “Okay, so now what?”

  “We will be prosecuting Mackenzie’s Trucking, and you as the owner, Ms. Mackenzie, with 18 U.S.C. 2314, Transportation of Stolen Goods. Transporting stolen goods across state lines is a federal offense and falls under our jurisdiction. We will also be adding 18 U.S.C. Chapter 113, Criminal Possession of Stolen Property to those charges as well.” The smug way she said it sent my temper through the roof.

  “What the fuck are you talking about?!” I looked at her incredulously while simultaneously yelling. Preston placed a hand on my shoulder, but I shrugged it off and leaned closer to Agent Flynn.

  “I didn’t steal shit. I had no idea that I was in possession of stolen shit. I had no idea that I was transporting stolen shit. And I had no idea that my company was doing any of these things either.” I folded my arms over my chest. “I may not be a cop or have gone to law school but I’m pretty sure you’re going to have to prove that I had knowledge of these things to make those charges stick.”

  I glanced over at Preston. He didn’t look thrilled at my delivery, but he nodded in the affirmative. I glared back at Agent Flynn and she raised a blonde eyebrow. Her matching blonde hair was neatly coiffed up on top of her head, not one hair out of place. She calmly interlaced her fingers, and I noticed her nails were done with a French manicure. Bridget would have been impressed with her. She was cool, calm, collected, all while I felt like a steaming, pile of shit.

  “You, yourself said that the serial numbers had been ground down then new ones put on. If they had numbers on there, and those numbers matched the numbers on the manifests, how would I, or any of my people know if they were incorrect?” I leaned back in my chair. Flynn didn’t look smug any longer, but she didn’t look worried either and that worried me.

  “We have all types of ways of proving when someone has been an accomplice in a crime, Ms. Mackenzie.”

  I looked at her patronizingly. “So, am I an accomplice, or am I in criminal possession of stolen goods?” I sneered at her. Giving her attitude probably wasn’t smart, but it was the only shred of control I had over all of this.

  “Yes,” She said smugly, indicating that both were accurate.

  I threw up my hands. “Okay, I’ll bite. Who am I in cahoots with?

  Agent Flynn tossed a file down in front of me. “Ever heard of the Vikings MC?” My stomach felt like I’d ridden an elevator to the hundredth floor, and it had dropped unexpectedly into a free fall. I opened the file and flipped through the pages. Looking out from those pages was Cade, Riggs, Steel, Gunnar, and then a few other people I didn’t recognize.

  “Not really, no. Should I have?” I looked up at her and quirked a brow. I wasn’t going to give this bitch anything. Not that I’d ever had a problem with the cops or the law, but I didn’t like how this lady had immediately stepped into my business and started treating me like the bad guy.

  Agent Flynn leaned
forward and flicked back to Steel’s picture. “You don’t recognize this man?” I felt Uncle Caleb stiffen next to me. I studied Steel’s photo. It wasn’t a mug shot but more like a surveillance photo. He was walking across a road, looking around as though he could feel eyes on him. He had sunglasses on and was dressed in his usual jeans, t-shirt, and cut. Next to the photo was a quick rundown.

  Logan “Steel” Steele

  Twenty-eight years old

  SGT at Arms with the Vikings MC

  It went on to list suspected criminal activity and a few other things.

  Shit. His name was Logan? He had said Steel was a nickname. Well, clearly it was his last name as well. It seemed weird now, that I’d been so intimate with him but hadn’t even known his real name. Then I wondered if this was the right time to get hung up on that? I shrugged nonchalantly.

  “I’m not sure. He might look familiar?” I slid the file back over to Flynn and tried to ignore the glare that my uncle was aiming in my direction. Preston cleared his throat and gave me a pointed look. I shot him an apologetic look and sat quietly.

  “We have the paperwork,” she slid over the official paperwork that Steel and I had filled out that first time he’d come into the office a month ago, “Showing that he was here.” She tapped the papers with one perfect nail. I looked in shock at the paper she slid toward me. It was a copy of the original. Who had made a copy for her? I side-eyed my uncle and Preston.

  “Where did you receive this document from?” I was thankful that Preston had stepped in and voiced my question, especially since he’d basically told me to stop talking with his last look.

  Agent Flynn’s eyes flashed over to Uncle Caleb for a moment before fixing themselves on Preston. With almost a bored look she replied, “It was in the file when it was handed to me. I’m not sure who obtained it or from where.” Preston looked unconvinced.

  “Doesn’t that mean…” I started but stopped once I caught Preston’s glare. Agent Flynn’s attention returned to me.

  “Does this jog your memory at all?”

  I shrugged again. “I suppose that might be why he looks familiar.”

  Clearing his throat, Preston addressed the Agent but I could tell he was getting impatient with me. “My clients have a lot of commercial accounts, Agent Flynn. They also have multiple employees. It is illogical to assume Remi would remember every client she signs up, off the top of her head. She did her due diligence and ran the background check on both him and his business before Mackenzie’s entered into business with this gentleman.” Preston glanced at me and I nodded in affirmation.

  He interlaced his fingers in front of him on the desk. “Now, are those the only charges you’ll be bringing against my client?”

  Agent Flynn nodded, her green eyes focusing on my lawyer. “For now. We have a warrant to search both the premise and Ms. Mackenzie’s home at 215 N. Hursh Rd.” I kept my face neutral. They didn’t mention dad’s house. They may not know about it yet.

  “At this time, we won’t be taking Ms. Mackenzie into custody but if she attempts to flee or do anything unadvisable that will change quickly.” She shot me a dark look. I leveled the same look at her, unwilling to back down an inch. If she thought I was scared of her, she didn’t know who she was dealing with.

  “You can’t officially arrest me, anyway. You have no proof that I’ve done anything wrong. So, you can take your warning and shove it up your…”

  “REMI!!” Both my uncle and Preston interrupted me, but I continued to glare at the Agent and she just smiled grimly at me. I wanted to knock her pearly white teeth down her throat. I’d always had a temper; I’d gotten it from my dad. But I idly wondered if it had gotten worse since I’d met Steel?

  “We’ll be spending the day here, going through the offices. We have a team that will be at your home in the next twenty minutes. You’ll be welcome to be present at either location.” She handed Preston a copy of the search warrants. I folded my arms over my chest and gave her my best ‘eat shit and die’ look.

  “Ms. Mackenzie, if I might have a word… alone?” Agent Flynn gave me a challenging smile. Both Uncle Caleb and Preston started sputtering, clearly not wanting me to be alone with this woman. Agent Ramirez left quietly.

  Jesus. Could my life get any worse right now? I looked over at Uncle Caleb, who was white as a sheet, and Preston, who looked grim.

  “It’s fine. Just give us a minute,” I said, and Preston sighed.

  “Don’t answer any other questions,” he muttered. To Agent Flynn, he said, “Anything she answers will be off the record.” He waited for her to agree before he walked out.

  “We’ll be right outside.” Uncle Caleb followed, closing the door behind him.

  I met Agent Flynn’s gaze. Curiosity and judgment were shining in it. “I was just wondering…” She paused as though searching for the right words. “Why?”

  My brows pulled together. “Why what?”

  “Why would you risk all of this?” She motioned around her. “Everything you have. For a guy like Logan Steele. A criminal? We’ve spent the last few days looking into this case, Remi.” She walked back over to the table and sat, crossing her long legs. “You don’t mind if I call you Remi, do you?” I wrinkled my nose. She was beautiful and looked elegant in the suit but there was a toughness about her too. Something that said it’d be a bad idea to fuck with her. I didn’t answer her question.

  “What makes you think I am risking anything for him? I told you I don’t even know him.” I maintained eye contact when Flynn stared at me without blinking for a moment.

  “What is it about him, I wonder?” She mused, continuing on as though I hadn’t asked her anything. She tapped a nail against her cheek. “He’s sexy, there’s no denying that.” Her laugh was husky, but I didn’t feel any jealousy at her admission. Steel wouldn’t be interested in this cop. Her eyes skated down my body and I fought the urge to fidget under her intense stare.

  “Not going to tell me?” I remained stubbornly mute. If she wasn’t going to answer any of my questions, I wasn’t going to give her the satisfaction. I needed to find out how she knew about me and Steel and how she’d gotten paperwork from within Mackenzie’s though.

  Her next words jerked me back to the conversation. “Pity... but it doesn’t matter. He’ll move on once you’re in prison.” I sucked in a breath. She stood up and stopped directly in front of me, slightly too close for comfort. When she spoke next her breath fanned across my cheek.

  “The women are going to love you in prison. You’re gorgeous.” She stepped around me and opened the door. “Have a nice day, Ms. Mackenzie.” She called as she walked down the hall. I stared at the door in confusion.

  Had she just hit on me? Or was she just trying to scare me? I sat there speechless until my uncle and Preston came back into the room.

  “What am I going to do?” I asked them. I mentally reminded myself to tell Preston about this conversation and ask him how she had all of this information.

  Preston started gathering up the files and papers the Agent had given him. “Go home. I’ll start working on this. Remi, don’t go anywhere.” He cautioned. “This isn’t my normal area of expertise. I need to talk to my partners who specialize in criminal prosecutions. We’ll sort this out. I’ll call later today, and set up a meeting to go over everything you know, okay?” I nodded. Preston and Uncle Caleb walked out of the meeting room together again.

  I sat there, stunned. What the hell was going on? I looked over and noticed a company laptop sitting at the end of the table. Someone had destroyed the physical manifest at the pickup location.

  That’s what Agent ass face had said. I leaned forward and peered down the hallway.

  Standing, I leaned out the door and saw the Agents speaking with a team of about ten people, explaining where they wanted them to start the search. Uncle Caleb was still speaking with Preston by the front door. I didn’t know what was happening yet, and I didn’t know how or if it connected to Steel or the Viking
s, but I know that the feds were at least trying to pin some of this on me. If there wasn’t a manifest to find, that was going to be very hard to do.

  I had already shredded the physical copy of the manifest when I’d entered it into the system. The only other copy had gone with the trucker. I quickly sat down and pulled the laptop over to me.

  A voice in my head started singing you’re going to prison; you’re going to prison. I shoved the voice out and typed in the password to the generic admin user account. I thanked every possible higher power that Uncle Caleb had been so ornery about technology. Because of it, we had one generic account that everyone at the company used instead of individualized accounts. It was a logistical nightmare.

  This was one time that the nightmare might work in my favor. I pulled up our tracking system and quickly, and permanently, erased every manifest that had anything to do with the Vikings or Long Beach. Logging back out I shut the laptop and loped over to my office.

  I quickly searched through and made sure there were no surviving hard copies of the previous manifests floating around. I was pretty diligent about shredding them once I’d inputted them, but the other girls may not have been. I didn’t find any. Grabbing my keys, I turned and jolted.

  “What are you doing in here?” Agent Flynn glared at me suspiciously. I walked up and twirled my keys in her face.

  “Getting my keys so I can go home.” I gave her my best haughty look, walked past her, and sailed out the door. I ignored my uncle’s calls behind me.

  I had to fight to drive home at the speed limit. The last thing I needed was to get pulled over. By the time I got home, there were marked and unmarked police cars all over our street. I puffed out an irritated breath and sat in the quiet of my car for a minute. I wanted to scream. I wanted to cry. I wanted to hit someone, preferably Special Agent Flynn.

  Instead, I got out of my car and met my frantic roommates inside the house. I yanked them into my room and explained everything that had happened, both with the cops and with my mom. Their eyes were as big as saucers by the time I was done.