Chapter 11 - The Arrest
Rachel Sloan stepped between Jonah and the front door.
"You walk out there quietly."
Wyatt stared at her. "They'll bury him."
"If he runs, they won't need evidence."
Jonah buttoned his shirt cuffs.
Stella could not understand how he looked so calm.
"What happens to the drive?" she asked.
"Not here," Jonah said.
"You said they found it."
"I said they found the copy I wanted them to find."
Wyatt's mouth twitched.
Rachel closed her eyes briefly. "I hate both of you."
Jonah looked at Stella. "The original never left Wyatt's jacket."
"Then why let Hale think he has it?"
"Because men become careless when they think they've won."
He walked toward the door.
Stella caught his sleeve.
The movement surprised both of them.
"Jonah."
He looked at her hand, then her face.
"If they keep you—"
"Rachel gets me out."
Rachel muttered, "I appreciate the confidence."
Jonah lowered his voice. "Listen to Wyatt. Stay out of sight. Do not go near Dean."
Stella released him. "You really don't know me very well."
"I'm starting to. That's why I'm worried."
Outside, cameras flashed as Hale placed Jonah in handcuffs.
Hale leaned close enough that the microphones could not hear.
"Your brother begged less than I expected."
Jonah did not react.
That seemed to disappoint Hale.
"You want me angry," Jonah said quietly. "Because angry men make mistakes."
Hale smiled. "Sooner or later."
"Maybe."
Jonah looked toward the brownstone window where he knew Stella was watching.
"But not today."
The police car pulled away.
Stella stood motionless until Wyatt said, "We need to move."
"Where?"
"Mara's clinic has a private basement entrance."
Rachel stayed behind to follow Jonah downtown.
Twenty minutes later, Wyatt drove Stella and Mara through Brooklyn in an ordinary gray sedan.
Stella stared at Dean's financial records on a tablet.
One transfer stood out.
Twenty thousand dollars every month to M.Q. CONSULTING.
"Who's M.Q.?"
Wyatt glanced at the screen. "No idea."
Stella remembered a woman.
Red coat. Dark hair. Waiting outside Dean's building twice in the past year.
Dean had called her "Mara" once, then corrected himself.
No.
Not Mara.
"Marin," Stella whispered.
Wyatt looked over. "What?"
"Dean met a woman named Marin Quinn. He told me she was an accountant. He was afraid of her."
Wyatt took the next exit.
"You know where she works?"
"I know where she drinks."
Before they could turn toward Manhattan, a black SUV slammed into the rear quarter panel.
The gray sedan spun across two lanes.
Mara screamed.
Wyatt fought the wheel.
The SUV hit them again.
Stella looked through the shattered rear window.
May you like
Nico Brandt was driving.
And Dean Keller sat beside him.
