Page 44 of Deadly Scandals

Ashley

Istudied that black-and-white photo, horrified by what I saw. My father and the man Mia had said was her father were standing next to each other, surrounded by a bunch of SEALs.

Surely this picture had to have been doctored. Maybe Joaquín had put her up to this.

But upon closer examination, I was pretty sure that the photo was real. Not that I wouldn’t send it away to a lab to know for sure. And then I noticed something else. A date stamped on the back of the photo.

Twenty-two years ago.

My sister had still been alive and well and living with my parents and me. Before she was kidnapped. Before my life had fallen apart.

But now, I realized something else. Though Mia could have taken this job with ulterior motives—like freeing her brother, or finding classified information and selling it to a cartel—I now needed her more than she needed me.

She could hold the key to finding my missing sister.

I clasped my hands and aligned my mind. Time to get into character. “Let’s start over, Mia. Since we’re forced to work together, let’s try to make the best of it. How’s Joaquín?”

“Good.”

Great. She clearly was not buying what I was selling. I had to try harder. “Good? That’s all you’re going to say? Listen, Mia, if you’re going to be my partner, you’re going to have to attempt to be honest with me. I know that must be hard for you—you know, not lying.”

Dammit, I couldn’t go two minutes without being a bitch to this girl. What could I say? This piece of work brought out the worst in me.

“Well, I mean he is good, considering he’s a prisoner at San Quentin. His case is closed, so frankly, his well-being is none of your business. You don’t care about Joaquín. Why does it matter to you how he’s doing?”

I shook my head.

Friendliness isn’t your strong suit, Ash. Snarky fits you better.

New approach.

“Fine, you’re right. I don’t give a fuck how he is. I hope he hangs himself from a bed sheet and saves the taxpayers’ money. What I meant was, has he given you any more information about his involvement in the cartel?”

She glared at me. “Are you serious? Have you ever visited a prison, Ash? Inmates don’t just talk freely to their visitors about their crimes.”

Right. She had me there. I knew that. He wouldn’t be able to tell her anything. And SEALs would rather die than tell the truth. Even though I knew that, I had still slept with one.

And honestly, I couldn’t wait to fuck Mitch again.

“I know that, Mia. But, I don’t know…maybe he speaks to you in a special code or something. Some type of telepathy.”

She bit her lip. “I’m trying here, Ash. I am. But I really dislike you.”

Hey, at least she was honest.

Well, we both felt the same way about each other. “Do you still believe he’s innocent?”

This time, she glanced down at her feet and her face fell.

“No,” she said in a soft tone.

Liar—and not even a good one. I thought she was an actress. This crazy-ass bitch honestly thought her brother was innocent.

I was now almost certain she’d taken this job to free him. Wow, would she ever learn? What did Grant possibly see in her? Poor guy was trapped for at least the next fifteen years because they shared a three-year-old son. If Grant had any sense at all, he would divorce her, file for custody, and take Julián far away from her.

But Grant was a SEAL. He couldn’t exactly leave his job. Being a SEAL was like being in the Mafia. It was impossible to quit the Teams. But both groups were crooked as all hell. There was a saying in the Teams. If you don’t get caught, then it ain’t illegal.

But I was going to catch them.