Endgame (Last Chance Series) Read Online Free Page A
Author: Dee Davis
nightmares.
Taking another sip of his drink, he opened his eyes again to stare down at the open dossier on his lap. It might have been Gabe's message that pulled him out of the jungle, but it was another man that had clinched the deal, at least as far as Nigel's superiors were concerned.
Cullen Pulaski.
A man would have to be dead not to know who he was. His name was plastered across the headlines enough. Every news rag in the free world covered Cullen Pulaski. But Nigel wasn't interested in magazine articles. His connection with Pulaski was much more personal. And the idea of working with the bastard again wasn't exactly the thrill of a lifetime.
Still, it was bound to be interesting. Nothing about the man was ever boring. And if Gabriel and Payton were involved, he wasn't one to be left on the outside. Not that it had been an option.
His orders had come from the very top. The prime minister's directive. The objective abundantly clear.
And he supposed that, as much as anything, was causing his queasiness. Gabriel Roarke wasn't a man one wanted to cross, and certainly not betray.
And yet, if Nigel was to be true to his directive—that's exactly what he was about to do.
*****
"I REALLY SHOULDN'T BE doing this, you know." Harrison Blake looked up from the FBI computer terminal, his hair sticking up every which way. He was the epitome of the boy next door, and one of the best computer forensic men in the country.
He was also Madison Harper's friend. They'd trained together at Quantico, and even when Harrison had left the Bureau for the private sector, they'd remained close. He was the first person she'd called after she'd received the news about the task force.
In the past twenty-four hours she'd managed to finalize the paperwork on Paul Jackson, update her replacement concerning ongoing cases, and meet with Cullen for a rundown on what he expected. All that was left was to assemble the team. But before that, she needed an ally, and Harrison fit the bill to a tee.
"It was either you come to New York, or me fly to Texas, and since you've got an expense account..."
"Which beats the hell out of what they offer around here." Harrison laughed as he shot a look around the cubicle Madison called an office. The FBI wasn't noted for its lavish perks, and the New York branch was no exception. "But I still could have accessed my own system."
"I know, but this is faster. And it's not like you're here to steal state secrets. I just want to know what, if anything, we've got on Cullen's theory, and you know your way around a computer far better than I do."
"You could have asked one of the computer techs here."
"And given up the chance to see you?" She smiled, but knew the gesture didn't quite reach her eyes. The whole task force idea left her with a bad taste in her mouth. She'd worked incredibly hard to rise within the ranks of the Bureau, and the idea of mavericking for Cullen, no matter how close they were, left her uneasy.
Harrison, as usual, read her mind. "The director approved this, right?"
She nodded, chewing on her lower lip, the habit ingrained since childhood. "He didn't have a choice. Cullen went through the White House."
"And you're worried that his strong-arm tactics won't sit well with the brass."
"Exactly," she sighed. "The last thing I need is to be accused of throwing around my pedigree." Her godfather and her father between them controlled a large chunk of the American economy. Which meant they also had political connections to rival the president. Her career, however, had been built on her own terms. She used her mother's maiden name, and was well into her work as a profiler before her connection to Philip Merrick had become public knowledge.
Until now, she'd never done anything that could even remotely smell of collusion with her godfather or her father, her need to stand on her own two feet almost second nature. But Cullen had blurred the line. And even if she'd wanted to say no, she doubted
Taking another sip of his drink, he opened his eyes again to stare down at the open dossier on his lap. It might have been Gabe's message that pulled him out of the jungle, but it was another man that had clinched the deal, at least as far as Nigel's superiors were concerned.
Cullen Pulaski.
A man would have to be dead not to know who he was. His name was plastered across the headlines enough. Every news rag in the free world covered Cullen Pulaski. But Nigel wasn't interested in magazine articles. His connection with Pulaski was much more personal. And the idea of working with the bastard again wasn't exactly the thrill of a lifetime.
Still, it was bound to be interesting. Nothing about the man was ever boring. And if Gabriel and Payton were involved, he wasn't one to be left on the outside. Not that it had been an option.
His orders had come from the very top. The prime minister's directive. The objective abundantly clear.
And he supposed that, as much as anything, was causing his queasiness. Gabriel Roarke wasn't a man one wanted to cross, and certainly not betray.
And yet, if Nigel was to be true to his directive—that's exactly what he was about to do.
*****
"I REALLY SHOULDN'T BE doing this, you know." Harrison Blake looked up from the FBI computer terminal, his hair sticking up every which way. He was the epitome of the boy next door, and one of the best computer forensic men in the country.
He was also Madison Harper's friend. They'd trained together at Quantico, and even when Harrison had left the Bureau for the private sector, they'd remained close. He was the first person she'd called after she'd received the news about the task force.
In the past twenty-four hours she'd managed to finalize the paperwork on Paul Jackson, update her replacement concerning ongoing cases, and meet with Cullen for a rundown on what he expected. All that was left was to assemble the team. But before that, she needed an ally, and Harrison fit the bill to a tee.
"It was either you come to New York, or me fly to Texas, and since you've got an expense account..."
"Which beats the hell out of what they offer around here." Harrison laughed as he shot a look around the cubicle Madison called an office. The FBI wasn't noted for its lavish perks, and the New York branch was no exception. "But I still could have accessed my own system."
"I know, but this is faster. And it's not like you're here to steal state secrets. I just want to know what, if anything, we've got on Cullen's theory, and you know your way around a computer far better than I do."
"You could have asked one of the computer techs here."
"And given up the chance to see you?" She smiled, but knew the gesture didn't quite reach her eyes. The whole task force idea left her with a bad taste in her mouth. She'd worked incredibly hard to rise within the ranks of the Bureau, and the idea of mavericking for Cullen, no matter how close they were, left her uneasy.
Harrison, as usual, read her mind. "The director approved this, right?"
She nodded, chewing on her lower lip, the habit ingrained since childhood. "He didn't have a choice. Cullen went through the White House."
"And you're worried that his strong-arm tactics won't sit well with the brass."
"Exactly," she sighed. "The last thing I need is to be accused of throwing around my pedigree." Her godfather and her father between them controlled a large chunk of the American economy. Which meant they also had political connections to rival the president. Her career, however, had been built on her own terms. She used her mother's maiden name, and was well into her work as a profiler before her connection to Philip Merrick had become public knowledge.
Until now, she'd never done anything that could even remotely smell of collusion with her godfather or her father, her need to stand on her own two feet almost second nature. But Cullen had blurred the line. And even if she'd wanted to say no, she doubted
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