Total pages in book: 60
Estimated words: 56893 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 284(@200wpm)___ 228(@250wpm)___ 190(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56893 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 284(@200wpm)___ 228(@250wpm)___ 190(@300wpm)
She nodded. “Thank you.” Her mind drifted to her father and the day she’d had to pack her things and run. She shook her head and sighed. “I don’t know how my dad can put his kids through this much stress.”
“Neither do I.”
The doorbell rang, causing her stomach to give another nervous twist, as they both rose from their seats.
“I’ve got it,” Zach said. “Stay here and relax.”
She snorted. As if she could calm down.
Shaking his head, he strode out of the room and returned with Remy and a man in an ill-fitting tan suit. His hair was gray and receding, and he looked familiar.
Zach walked back to her, taking up a protective stance by her side. The tense look on Zach’s face, the way his lips pulled into a tight line, scared her.
Remy walked up behind him and came to her side. “Hi, Hadley.”
She treated him to a forced smile. “Remy.”
“This is Sean Andrews. He works in the Violent Crime and Racketeering section of the Justice Department,” Remy said.
Andrews. Hadley narrowed her gaze. “I know you,” she whispered.
He nodded. “Hello, Ms. Stevens. You’ve grown up.”
Suddenly, she was thrust back to the night she’d been greeted by her father and two agents. One woman and… him. “You took us to Illinois.”
He inclined his head. “Thank you for making the time to meet with me today,” the federal agent said. “You did the right thing by taking your sister and leaving. Smart.”
“Were you watching me?” she asked, horrified.
“No but we were keeping an eye on your father. We knew your action by extension of that.” His cool demeanor was the same as when he’d blown up her world the first time.
She’d hated him then and she disliked him as much now. No compassion for the people whose lives he upended.
“How about we sit?” Zach asked, as if he knew she was about to lose it. He gestured around the room to the empty seats and the other men sat.
Zach placed a hand on her back, and she eased down onto the cushion with him by her side.
Agent Asshole leaned forward, facing her. “I’m going to get right to it, Ms. Stevens. Your father has been arrested for fraud and money laundering conspiracy. A grand jury indicted him and his associates with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, four counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.”
She felt her eyes bulge and her lips part. Beside her, Zach moved closer and took her hand, but she’d gone numb.
The agent continued to talk. If he was aware of her emotional breakdown, he didn’t care. “Without getting into details at the moment, you should know conspiracy to commit wire fraud has a possible penalty of five years in federal prison and convictions of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering have potential twenty-year prison sentences.”
Nausea threatened and the important questions and words she knew she should say wouldn’t come.
“We offered him a lesser charge if he turns on the masterminds who used the funds for their sex trafficking.”
Sex trafficking. “Oh God. Those were the men who threatened to take me and Dani?” Her voice broke. As much as she’d known what her father was into, it hurt to hear it out loud.
The agent nodded. “It was a decent deal, but your father refused. It isn’t a deal breaker for us convicting the other men, but it does make us have to work harder.”
“I don’t give a shit about your issues. Why the hell would my father turn down a deal for less time in prison?” she asked, her voice rising. “He has a daughter who needs a parent. He has to take the deal! I want to see him.” She tried to push herself up from her seat, but Zach held on tight.
“Hads.” He slipped an arm around her shoulders, holding her, his support unwavering. Zach’s body felt warm against hers but inside she was ice cold.
“There’s more. Let’s get through it, okay?” Remy leaned forward, his expression full of regret.
She nodded, her throat full, tears dripping down her face. “Okay but first, can you arrange for me to see him?” She needed to convince him to turn so he might get out earlier. Anything to give her something to tell her sister that was positive. She’d given up on her dad when he’d risked his children a second time but she knew Dani still held out hope for him.
Agent Andrews shook his head. “I’m sorry but your father doesn’t want to see you or your sister. He was insistent.”
“Of course, he doesn’t. He knows I’m going to try and convince him to do the right thing.” As much as she hurt for herself, she was dying for Dani. How was she ever going to break this news to her sister?