Kathleen Brooks - Secrets Collide

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Cy tossed the cards on the table and scooped in the pot. He enjoyed wiping that smug smile off Marshall’s face. His phone vibrated again and Pierce grabbed it before he could.

“Really? A socialite? So boring compared to the America’s Sweetheart who called you an hour ago,” Pierce complained as he tossed the phone back to the table, ignoring the dark look Cy tossed him.

“Sorry to be late,” Ahmed said as he walked into Mo’s study and took a seat next to Mo. “What did I miss?”

“Besides the who’s who of Hollywood calling my brother wanting to know where he is and offering to send planes to Kentucky to rescue him from the boredom of retirement?” Cade sniped.

Ahmed simply raised an eyebrow at Cade and then looked at Cy.

“I’ve gotten through about half of the unknown pictures and have been able to identify them. They’re mostly arms dealers, some higher-level foreign politicians, and known operators on the black market,” Cy snapped as he dealt the next hand. He tried to take a deep breath, but it felt as if his undercover life was smothering him. He was lost in the lies of his job.

His phone vibrated again and Cy bit back a curse as Pierce grabbed it again. “Oh, this one I bet he takes,” Pierce teased as Cy yanked the phone out of his brother’s hand.

“Gemma? Is everything okay?”

“I’m sorry to interrupt poker night, but I found something,” Gemma squealed. She sounded so excited and proud that Cy couldn’t help but smile. The tension coiling around his heart eased slightly. Immediately his brothers snickered.

“No problem at all. I’ll be right there.” Cy hung up and glared at his brothers and his friends. “Really? You’re a prince and you’re laughing at me?”

“I am sorry, but it’s so obvious you’re completely out of your element,” Mo said while sounding not at all apologetic.

“Did you hear his voice?” Cole asked.

“I did. He’s a goner,” Miles said as he tossed a chip onto the table.

“I noticed whose phone call he didn’t take while he leapt to get Gemma’s call,” Cade teased as he placed his bet.

“Please. She has nothing on Gemma,” Cy folded and stood up from the table.

“Except she’s the highest-paid actress in the world,” Pierce snickered.

“Gemma’s real; she’s not. Gemma’s also funny and braver than her any day. Miss Actress threw such a hissy fit when she had to pick up a snake for a scene, but Gemma . . . Gemma didn’t even scream when she was being chased and shot at by those thugs,” Cy told them. He respected Gemma and he trusted her. That’s more than he could say for any of the other women in Hollywood.

“Let’s cut to the chase here,” Miles said as he won the hand, “you like her. Why aren’t you with her?”

Cy looked down at his feet. It was embarrassing. “I don’t think she likes me. She doesn’t find ways to touch me. She doesn’t bat her eyes at me. She doesn’t try to find ways to spend time together,” Cy shrugged. “Doesn’t that just beat all? I finally find someone I like and she’s not interested.” The tightness returned around his heart and Cy felt his jaw tighten. He was lost again to the smothering feeling of his life.

“Well, she called you, didn’t she?” Marshall offered.

“Yeah, to tell me she found something. She’s been locked in her room for the past three days. I’m glad she sounded so excited. She’s been too hard on herself for not being able to contribute more.”

“Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s see what’s she found.” Cole stood up and the rest of the table followed.

Gemma was pacing the length of the front porch when she saw the line of cars pull up to the curb. Apparently poker night had moved to the bed-and-breakfast.

“Oh my. I better put more cookies in the oven and get more snacks ready.”

Gemma whipped around and saw a tuft of white hair hurrying inside. She hadn’t realized Miss Lily had been standing there.

Cy’s truck was the first to park and she had to stop herself from running down the path in her excitement. She had worked all afternoon and evening on the first notebook, just finished it, and found a lead.

Miles walked up the yard with his brothers, Mo, Ahmed, and Cole. “I hope you don’t mind that we all came. We were eager to hear what you had found.”

“No, not at all. Let’s go into the sitting room. There’s enough room for everyone there," Gemma replied.

Cy opened the door and Gemma gave him a smile. She had finally done something to help her sister and she could barely stop herself from jumping around.

“Did you find Mr. X?” Cy asked, standing next to her while everyone else sat down.

“No. But I did find something big. You know how I told you Paul Russell was going to pursue a seat in Congress to further Mr. X’s purposes?” She waited until everyone nodded. “Well, Gia found out who had been in that position before. And it’s huge. He totally got busted for a huge corruption/prostitution/murder thing a couple of years ago. Not only did I discover who it was, I found out he’s still alive and which prison he’s in.”

Cy had a sinking feeling he knew who it was. “Holy shit,” he cursed under his breath. Everyone stopped and looked at him pointedly. They had all been thinking it, too. “Senator Bruce.”

“How did you know?” Gemma asked, upset that they knew her big discovery.

“Kenna, Dani, and Paige were the key witnesses in the trial of the men found guilty of those crimes. I was there as Paige’s bodyguard. Senator Bruce’s daughter is Will Ashton’s ex-wife and Kenna was the eyewitness to the crime that brought them all down. Bruce took a plea to avoid the death penalty and has never said a word about his involvement. We know nothing more than that,” Cy told her.

“Yes, very uncharacteristically he hasn’t said a word about the crimes. Most people in his position write a tell-all book or sit down with a prime-time reporter to cry about a bad childhood or something that makes them appear the victim. But now it makes sense.” Cole was now sharing the same excitement she felt.

“How so?” Pierce asked as he picked up a cookie Miss Lily offered.

“If he was in the pocket of Mr. X, then he knows a single word would wind up getting him killed. He’s hoping Mr. X uses his influence to get him out of jail. But now we have leverage.” Gemma had never seen the cool lawman so animated in her short time in Keeneston, and his excitement was contagious.

“How so?” Gemma asked.

“Bruce was indicted on twenty-three counts of murder. He agreed to a deal: life in prison. As you read, the case involved prostitutes the men murdered and then Bruce’s bodyguards dumped. How much do you want to bet he got those prostitutes from Mr. X? I’m willing to bet it all,” Cole grinned and Gemma thought that Paige was a very lucky lady.

“Ah. I know where you’re going with this.” Cy smiled and this time Gemma saw the real Cy. She was so wrapped up in the way his eyes shone with excitement and his lips quirked a little higher on one side that she almost missed his explanation. “We pay Bruce a visit and ask him about Mr. X. If he resists, then we’ll have a way to make him talk.”

“What’s that?” Gemma asked. She wasn’t following, but it appeared all the men understood.

“Death,” Cy answered cryptically. “Mo, can we borrow your plane. We have an inmate to visit.”

“It’ll be at the airport in an hour. I let my eldest brother and his wife borrow it. They are flying in from in vitro treatments in New York City,” Mo told them.

“And you’re okay with that?” Cade asked.

“Most definitely. It may be selfish, but I wish for them to have an heir so my children can be raised here in Keeneston and have the childhood I never had—a real one.”