Double Agent

Plan B

Henry's eyes were wide as he sat in silence, dumbstruck by the information that I'd just unloaded on him. Without speaking, he picked up his coffee, taking a sip and spluttering as the, now cold, liquid left an unpleasant taste in his mouth.

"I can't believe it." He said finally, waving for more coffee, and pushing his mug to one side, helping himself to water from the jug on the table. "How did we fucking miss that?"

I shrugged, not understanding it much myself either.

"I can only assume Duncan had something to do with it. Probably a cop doing him a solid and conveniently losing the files. Can't imagine it does him any favours to have that sort of event lingering over his business."

"You think he'd care more about his business than the murders of his grandson and daughter in law?"

Henry asked with disbelief.

"Well, like I said, the relationship between him and his sons is non existent now. I doubt he'd allow their history to be a mark on his record. It would make it seem like he was an easy target to any other competitors." I shrugged.

I'd decided to fill Henry in on the fact that the guys were working independently of their father, hoping that it may be the convincing element in order to get his help with my plan.

"True." He agreed. "If he has had a man on the inside who's buried this, it'll make it difficult, you realise that? And there's no guarantee that this will work." He explained.

"I know." I replied simply, "But it might be the only chance that we have to get Jonas once and for all."

He studied me closely, and I could tell that he was thinking something over. I knew him well enough to be sure that he wasn't going to have an issue with this idea. Barely a moment later, he confirmed my theory. Tapping his fingers against the side of his mug, he furrowed his brow, turning serious as he asked:

"Are you sure that you're not getting in too deep with this assignment?"

I rolled my eyes, feeling frustrated that for once, he couldn't just give me a solid damn answer.

"I can handle it. I just need you to do this. With evidence tying him to those murders, we can get him, for good. I just need to help the Calaway's find him first, then we can bring him in."

"You mean bring them in?" He corrected me.

I ignored him, leaning back in my chair and folding my arms firmly over my chest.

"Will you do it or not? I mean isn't it what we signed up to do, get criminals off the streets?" I argued.

He held up his hands with a sigh of resignation.

"Fine, I'll do it. But I don't know how long I can keep it under the radar."

"Thank you. I just need time."

"I'll buy you as much as I can."

With a quick glance to the clock, I got back to my feet, sliding from the booth and preparing to leave. Before I could take a step, Henry swung an arm out, catching my wrist and stopping me.

"Nik, don't forget that they're criminals too. No matter what reasons they have, we're still bringing them down."

My breath caught in my throat as I looked back into the eyes of the man I'd once loved, a man I'd never have considered hiding things from. I could see that he cared, and it was impossible to miss the concern that lingered in his determined expression. He reminded me of home, of a time when things were safe and easy, and where my moral compass wasn't broken and on a continued spin that left me lost and confused over my next step. But there was no returning to that now. I had to finish what I'd started, and wherever that would take me, the road wasn't going to be easy. I gently tugged myself free of his grasp, and attempted a small reassuring smile.

"Just find what you can." I replied, giving a brief nod of my head, and leaving the building.

Once I was back in the car, I reassembled my phone and put the key in the ignition, noticing a slight tremor to my hand as I held the key poised to start the engine. I withdrew my hand, holding it up and seeing how it continued to shake, feeling the fluttering sensation passing through my entire body. Whether nerves or stress, I wasn't sure, but whatever it was, felt alien, and I didn't like it. I needed to take control of myself going forward. I couldn't risk being a weak link if I was going to carry this off. Pausing for a moment, I braced my hands on the wheel and pressed my forehead against my knuckles.

"You can do this." I whispered firmly to myself.

Calming myself as much as I could, I adopted my usual bravado and started the car.

Just fake it, til you make it, Nikki.

The living room was deserted by the time that I got back, but I could hear the voices coming from the dining room, and upon entering, saw almost everyone gathered together at the table, tucking into food and conversing happily. Dash looked up at my entrance, and I was relieved when he flashed me a smile, and nodded to the seat opposite him, where an empty chair sat, set up with a place setting.

"Sorry I'm late." I said with a small laugh, filing into the chair, and taking the bottle of wine that Sage held out to me.

"Don't be, it's cool." She assured me, jumping to her feet and heading for the kitchen.

"Erm?" I asked, bemused, tipping a questioning finger in her direction.

"We kept some food in the oven for you." Luke laughed, skewering a piece of chicken onto his fork.

"Yeah, we wanted to eat all together as a family, but Eddie didn't realise we weren't all home when he started cooking."

I blinked at Sage as she swept back into the room, holding my plate aloft, until she set it down in front of me.

"Family?" I croaked, my throat tightening at the use of the word.

"Yeah." She replied.

"Dash told us what you said to him today." Eddie explained, "We figure that you've helped us escape the cops..."

"Been by our side in an attempt on our lives..." Luke added.

"Saved ol' grumpy gills, here." Sage chuckled, ruffling Dash's hair.

"And now, going to help us put an end to that son of a bitch." Eddie finished.

"You've earnt a place at the table." Dash chimed in. "A place among family."

I was touched, and guilt ridden. But mostly, overwhelmed by their kindness. I beamed at them all, determined now more than ever, that I would do all I could to ensure that Jonas Hartel never hurt another one of the people here at this table.

"To family." Luke said with a smile, rising his glass in a toast.

Everyone around the table echoed his sentiment, each rising their own glasses in unison, taking a long drink among their loved ones. I rose my own, struggling to distinguish my muddled emotions as I followed suit, lifting my glass and mumbling:

"To family."

Setting my glass back on the table, I caught the eye of the only one who'd remained silent through the toast. Her eyes blazed with fire, and I got a chill down my back. There was still one person here who posed a danger to me...

Daya.