But twenty minutes later when he’d finished looking through his binder, he’d found nothing. Zahra set hers aside and shook her head, then Rycroft exhaled and tossed his on the table before him.
Another dead end.
But they still had their trump card to play.
They waited a few more minutes until the attorney finally opened his door and asked them to come in. Turner was seated in a chair beside the window, his expression haunted.
“Based on the severity of the charges and the evidence you have against him, my client has agreed to the deal you offered.”
“I’d say that’s a wise decision,” Rycroft said, and pulled out his phone to call in more agents to take him into custody.
Before Turner could move Matt took two steps toward him and stopped, folding his arms across his chest, making himself look as intimidating as possible. He used his commanding officer’s voice, the one very few people had ever been dumb enough to ignore, let alone defy. “I want a name. Now.” He hadn’t officially signed the paperwork yet, but Turner was a done deal.
The man swallowed and looked toward the window, fucked either way and choosing the lesser of two evils. A slimy bastard, but not stupid, because he talked. “It’s Balducci. Will Balducci.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Briar’s heart hammered when Matt hustled her from the front door of the safe house and into the back of the SUV in the driveway. After she climbed in beside Zahra, Matt slammed the door and walked around to slide behind the wheel.
She pushed the hair out of her face, picturing Balducci’s face. “I remember him. He was one of Georgia’s trainers but I’m not sure about any of the others—”
Matt’s jaw tensed. “He was also Janaia’s recruiter.”
Shock slammed into her. No. She didn’t want to believe it. She looked at Alex, who turned slightly in the front passenger seat to look back at her.
“It’s true. He recruited her eighteen years ago, was her original handler before being promoted within the agency.”
Briar was stunned, the anger she’d shoved deep down rising all over again.
“Alan Turner was his college roommate and fraternity brother,” Zahra told her. “They’ve been in business ventures together since graduation. When Balducci approached him a few years ago about a new business deal, Turner didn’t even blink before forking over money toward it. We think he knew it was outside the realm of legal, but it looks like Balducci went to great lengths to hide it from his investors and the owners of all the other companies involved.”
Great lengths such as setting her up and dealing Janaia a torturous death, Briar thought angrily.
She curled her hands into fists and turned her head to stare out the window, fighting back the rage. What she wouldn’t give for five minutes alone in a room with him. She knew how to inflict maximum pain with well-placed blows to the most vulnerable places on the human body. With each strike she would make Balducci suffer for what he’d done. No punishment would ever be enough, but at least it would be something.
“So what happens now?” she asked numbly as Matt merged onto the freeway and headed for Virginia. They were going to Quantico where Matt would brief his team and get ready to serve the arrest, search and seizure warrants against Balducci. Assuming the paperwork arrived on time.
“Turner’s on his way to the Baltimore field office for questioning,” Matt said, shoulder checking to ease into the fast lane. As soon as he was over he hit the gas.
“We’re waiting until the last moment to freeze Balducci’s accounts, so we don’t tip him off,” Alex said. “I’ve already spoken to Celida so she’s up to speed. She’s getting a team together on her end to carry on the investigation while I handle the warrants. I know certain judges who will pounce all over someone accused of treason.”
“Will he face the death penalty?” Briar asked. She wanted him to die for what he’d done. It was the only way she’d ever find any peace.
“He could. All the charges are federal,” he answered.
She uncurled her fists, laid her palms flat against her thighs. “When will the arrest happen?”
“Tonight.” Matt’s tone had a ring of finality to it that she found comforting. “Only a few, select people know about the charges. His retirement dinner is tonight, and there’s no way he’d miss it even if he is getting worried. We won’t take him down at the party, there’ll be too many civilians around, and we can’t do it beforehand because we’re still waiting on a few last pieces of evidence and we need all the warrants in order first. We want him to think everything’s normal, give him a false sense of security, then take him at home. We’ll have someone at the party to give us updates, and someone will tail him when he leaves. As soon as he gets home, he’s ours.”