The Freelancer – Chapter 85

Trista scrutinized herself in the mirror and realized she forgot to put on her earrings.  She opened her briefcase and saw the envelope from Jenna.  She pulled it out with the earrings and placed it on the table.  Once she was convinced the sparkle they gave her ears was just right, she opened the envelope and removed its contents.

She was interrupted by a knock on the door and set it back on her dining room table.  Trista hoped it was Blaine at the door.  He was delayed by some crisis at the club.  Par for the course, really. Jenna and Jackson left an hour ago, but she wanted to wait for him.  Now she regretted her decision.

“I wasn’t expecting to see you, Collin.  What can I do for you?”

“May I come in?” he asked.

“Of course.”  A realization came to Trista and she added, “This is bad, isn’t it?”

Without waiting for an answer, she walked into the dining room and sank into a chair.  Collin closed the door and joined her at the table.  He cleared his throat before he spoke.

“I feel terrible about telling you this now, knowing where you’re heading.  They found Maureen’s car in a ditch outside of town.  Someone set it on fire, but she hasn’t turned up yet.  There’s still hope she’s alive, of course, but the best chance is within the first twenty-four to forty-eight hours,” he said gently.

“And it’s been a week,” Trista added for him.

She was too in shock to cry.  She had worked with Maureen for years; she was practically family.  Maureen was the one to introduce Blaine to her.  Trista put her head in her hands and stared into space.

That was when she noticed Collin’s name on the top of what Jenna gave her to read, but that didn’t make any sense to her.  She scanned the first few paragraphs for some explanation and drew in a deep, shuddering breath.  Her eyes grew wide and she wished she’d read it the moment Jenna gave it to her.

“Oh my God,” she cried.

Collin took it from her and read it.  Once the shock wore off, she sprang up to action, saying, “We have to call the police.  Jenna’s in danger.”

“No, we don’t,” Collin said, voice firm.

“Are you crazy?  Did you read that?”

“Yes, I did.”

“You’re being too calm about this.  Jenna is in danger.  We have to help her.  Someone’s forcing my best friend to do terrible things.  They might even kill her if they found out she gave me this.  Call your friend at the police station.  Help her!”

Trista waited for Collin to respond.  She watched as he looked at the ground and sighed.  “Jackson and I are undercover FBI agents.  Jackson is with her now, so she’s safe.  I guarantee he’ll keep her safe.”

Trista heard the words as they left his mouth, but they didn’t register in her brain right away.  She watched, dumbfounded, as he dialed his cell phone.

“This is McShae.  Take the Whitmans into protective custody right now.”

He dialed another number once he’d disconnected the first call.

“Mr. McNamara, I’m glad I caught you.  This is Special Agent McShae.  No sir, everything is still under control.  I wanted to make certain you can still trace the employee we spoke about.  Excellent.  Please call me the moment you get something.  Yes, that’s the correct number.  Thank you.”

Trista looked around the room as though she’d never seen it before.

“Trista, I need you to pull yourself together now.”

“What’s going on?  I don’t understand.  Jackson can protect her, but he’s…wait.  He just appeared in her life out of nowhere.  So did you.  What does the FBI want with us?”

“Jenna was under investigation, but this would help clear her if I can corroborate it.”

“Investigation?”

“Caldwell will be relieved,” Collin said as he dialed another number on his cell phone.

“Wait.  Why was Jenna under investigation?  What’s going on?”  Something occurred to her.  “Jackson is undercover?”  The realization of what was going on washed over her.  Her best friend would be destroyed by this.

“For your own safety, I can’t tell you more than you already know.  I need you to get ready to go.  It will raise suspicion if you aren’t there.  You can’t let Jenna know anything is wrong.  Jackson’s cover cannot, under any circumstances, be blown tonight.  Do you understand?”

Trista nodded.  Her throat was far too dry to speak.

“Do you think you can do what I’ve asked?”

She nodded again, wordless.  How could she face her best friend in the world knowing everything she believed was a lie?  Jenna was in love with Jackson, yet he was only with her to investigate her.

How could that sonofabitch do this to her?

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