Andy was pacing, debating. He pulled his phone out of his pocket once, then put it back.
He sat down at his desk instead, but continued to stare out the window into his large employee parking lot rather than working.
He stood and started pacing again.
Finally decided, he made the call.
...........................................................................
Sitting in a sleek black car with tinted windows, FBI consultant Detective Reverty Walker was parked on the side of a busy street watching a specific room at an exclusive hotel building in London. He was scowling behind his black sunglasses but he wasn't particularly angry. That was simply his face.
His phone rang and he glanced down at it, expecting to see the number of his contact in town calling with information. He did not expect to see Andrew Jansen's number pop up. He hadn't personally spoken to him for a couple years.
"Andy?", he answered curiously. "What's up?"
"Is my sister with you?", Andy asked in his direct, assertive manner.
This conversation felt all too familiar and Rev got an irritated surge of deja vu.
"No, why?", he asked, hearing the edge to his voice.
There was a pause.
"Have you heard from her recently?", Andy asked.
The irritation instantly switched to worry. There was no one on the planet Rev loved besides Paige, and right now it sounded like her brother didn't know where she was.
"I've been in England for four months, and I haven't talked to her for about two. I've tried calling and she's tried calling, but we're in different time zones. What's wrong?"
"So, you haven't heard about Brad?"
"No, Andy, get to the point", Rev snapped, his anxiety continuing to climb. "What did the wanker do this time?"
"He died".
Rev was stunned. The implications of what that meant to his dear beloved Paige hit him in wave after wave until he could nearly feel the grief she must be feeling. Tears blinded his vision, even though what he had felt for that man could easily be described as hatred.
"When? How?", Rev finally got out, running one massive hand over his bald head.
"Seven weeks ago at the end of one of her shows. One of the fans who had been putting crazy shit about her on social media had shown up. Victor identified the guy moving toward the stage, and Brad heard it through his earpiece. He was backstage, so he rushed onto the stage and grabbed her, turning to run her back. The guy pulled a gun and shot before Vic got to him. He shot Brad through the back, it exited out of his chest, and the bullet lodged in Paige's shoulder. He died right there in her arms".
Rev's eyes filled with tears and he could hardly breathe.
In her arms. Oh, love.
"Her injury?", he choked out.
"She had surgery to get it removed and acted like it was no big deal. It didn't hit anything major, but she's supposed to be doing physical therapy. After the other injuries she's had, it probably isn't a big deal to her".
"The attacker?"
"People started screaming and fleeing. It was mass chaos. He turned his gun on himself and blew his brains out before Vic could get the gun away".
"How was her mental state after this?", Rev asked warily.
Paige had a history of anxiety and PTSD, had endured a ton of trauma and grief, and had struggled with severe depression at times.
"Really rough", Andy said. "She blames herself and no one can tell her otherwise".
"And then she disappeared?", Rev asked, his blood pressure rising. "When?"
"After the lawyer gave us Brad's will but before his funeral. Brad left everything he owned to Paige, and obviously she has all their money...but all of his life insurance he left to Bre. Not Bre and Steve, just Bre. I helped him set this up probably ten years ago, and Paige was the beneficiary at that point, so some time since then he changed it to Bre. I asked Paige if she knew why and she told me to talk to Bre if I wanted to know, which I haven't. Bre's been...distraught. Steve and Bre, their kids, my kids...they're all devastated. Anyway, after the reading of his will, there were envelopes for Paige, Bre, Steve, and myself. I'm assuming they had letters from Brad because I did. Among other things he wrote me that he wants Paige to be happy, and he wants her with you if that's what she wants, so I need to accept you into the family to make things easier. That's why I assumed she was with you".
Rev was trying to wrap his head around everything. He knew exactly why Brad left that money to Bre but he wasn't going to tell Andy if Paige hadn't.
"No one knows where she is?", he clarified.
"Nope. She handed Steve a check for thirty thousand dollars, told him to handle the funeral, and she left a couple days later. No one has heard from her or seen her since the day after the will. We've tried calling her. I wanted to make sure things were being taken care of, bills and the maintenance on the houses, but now...I'm terrified because she's not with you like I had assumed. Can you help?"
"Why the fuck didn't you call me weeks ago?", Rev snapped, his heart beating unnaturally fast. She might already have killed herself by now.
"You've always taken care of her. We assumed she needed space and healing, and we knew she'd be safe with you. I didn't want to set her off by sticking my nose in. I knew you would help her take care of anything that needed to be done, but I got nervous when I didn't hear any updates, and it's obvious no one has been to either the cottage or her house. The guys haven't heard anything about what she wants them to do with the band. I realized if you were involved, you'd probably be communicating with us".
"One second", Rev said.
He used his phone to bring up the information for a tracking device. If Paige was still wearing a pair of silver stud earrings he had given her eight years ago, he would know exactly where she was. He hadn't checked on these for months, but last he knew, she still had them in her ears.
They showed up as still active and in Tijuana, Mexico. He just hoped beyond belief that they were actually in her ears and that she was still alive.
"Andy? I know where she is".
"Oh, thank God. Where? How?"
"Mexico. I gave her a pair of earrings a long time ago. She didn't know these had trackers in them. No one did. If they're still in her ears, I know exactly where she is. Why do you think she doesn't want to be found right now, and why the fuck hasn't she called me?"
"She's consumed with grief and guilt. I think it hurts her to see or talk to us, especially the kids because they ask her where their Uck is. Everything is a reminder. I'm really worried she might be planning on doing something crazy, especially since she hasn't called you".
Rev felt a deep seeded worry settling in the pit of his stomach.
"My gut tells me you're spot on with all that", Rev said. "I'm going to hand my case over and get the fuck out of here. I'll let you know as soon as I have her. Hang in there".
"Thanks, man. Hurry".
Rev hung up and immediately called his friend, Clint, directly. He was Special Agent in Charge of the FBI branch in the north, and Rev worked for him as a liaison, mostly doing intel and espionage now at forty-six years old, rather than skull-cracking missions. Rev had spent ten grueling years working directly with Clint in taking down sex trafficking rings in the United States, and that was still his specialty, though his focus was now higher up the chain and aimed worldwide.
"Any breakthroughs?", Clint greeted his old friend.
"I need to hand this over and head to Mexico", Rev said in a no-nonsense tone. "Send me someone right now".
There was a long pause and Rev almost started shouting at his friend before he answered.
"What are you talking about?", Clint finally asked, right as Rev opened his mouth to flip out on him.
"Brad Davis was shot and killed and Paige took off. Andy called me because no one knows where she is and I just so happened to have given her earring trackers again after she chucked the first pair. They're still active and sitting in Mexico. I gotta go get her".
There was another long pause.
"Where exactly in Mexico is she?", Clint asked.
Rev's defenses went up. He had been doing police work, detective work, and assassin work for all of his adult life, and a good portion of his success was due to instinct alone. Right now he instinctively knew Clint had known about this. He didn't ask him for details about Brad's death, express sympathy for Paige, or register any surprise at all. He simply wanted her location.
"YOU KNEW!?!?", Rev roared through the phone. "You knew the love of my life lost her husband SEVEN WEEKS AGO and you DIDN'T TELL ME?!?"
"Slow down", Clint said, calmly. "We wanted you to complete your mission and get home before we told you".
"Who's we and what bloody fucking right do you think you have to wait until it's convenient for you to tell me?!?"
Rev started driving.
"I'm out. Get someone to this location if you don't wanna lose your guy. I'm heading back immediately".
"Rev, there is...more to this", Clint said, sounding uncomfortable.
"More to what? Spit it out if you have something to say!"
"I can't have you heading to Mexico and messing up our plans right now", Clint said, "but if you know exactly where she is, I want you to tell me to make things smoother".
Rev pulled over abruptly. His temple was pounding and he was seeing red.
"What the fuck do you know about my girlfriend that I don't?", Rev asked, forcing his voice to be calm. It came out low and dangerous with barely suppressed rage.
"She's...ah...Rev, I don't know how to say this".
"THEN JUST FUCKING SAY IT!!!!", Rev roared.
"In the past five weeks, she's killed eight high ranking leaders in the sex trafficking trade. Three of those were in the States, five in Mexico. We don't know exactly where she is, but we have a good idea, and only I know exactly who she is, and who she is to you. They're calling her the Singing Angel of Death. She gets close, assumedly because she's beautiful and talented, gets them alone, and offs them. While we admire what she's doing, she can't go unchecked, especially here where due process is the preferred system to follow".
Rev felt like someone had just stabbed him in the heart with an icy spear.
"Paige is killing people?"
He was absolutely dumbfounded. Not that she hadn't killed people before, but she hadn't hunted them down to do so. Those previous situations had presented themselves and she had simply rose to the occasion.
"My Paige is killing sex traffickers?"
At least now I know she's alive.
That was some comfort. Although, what she was doing was extremely dangerous, and she might not actually be alive much longer if he didn't stop her.
"You're going to arrest her?", he guessed, feeling terrified for his love.
"We're sending someone to persuade her to work with us in order to avoid that happening", Clint said diplomatically.
"And if she doesn't cooperate?", Rev asked, holding his breath. He knew how this worked, and he also knew Paige.
"It will work", Clint said. "She's a reasonable girl who has gone on a suicide mission because she feels like she's got nothing to lose and a whole lot of penance to pay".
"You don't know her like I do", Rev said. "Who did you send?"
"Thompson is on his way now".
"Thompson is a fucking idiot and she will try to kill him".
"That wouldn't be in her best interest", Clint said.
If Paige didn't cooperate, she was going to end up hurt or dead, and Rev figured with her mindset right now, she wasn't gonna be keen on cooperating. He had to get to her before that blundering idiot.
Oh, love, what the fuck are you thinking?
"Call him off", Rev said, his tone still dangerous. "I'll take care of it".
"Rev, I need her brought in. It's not optional. I'm not calling him off".
"Then you better bloody well hope I get to her first, and that he doesn't show his face, or you're gonna be short an agent", Rev snapped.
"Now, Rev-", Clint started, and Rev hung up on him.
Rev pulled up flights and booked the first available from London to Tijuana, using a false identity which Clint didn't know. Then he drove to his hotel, cleaned out his room, and headed to the airport.
On a hunch, he called his friend Tim in Texas once he cleared security.
"Hey, Rev", Tim said, not sounding at all surprised to hear from him, even though they hadn't talked for probably a year.
Tim had spearheaded an organization which stopped sex trafficking convoys at the border, freeing the victims and helping them to become citizens. They killed most of the traffickers, but Rev had brought enough to Clint to pump for information that the network was largely shut down at this point, and Tim had little to do at his section of the border anymore.
"You saw Paige recently?", Rev guessed.
"No, but she called me about two months ago. You looking for her?"
"I know where she is and I have a rough outline of what's she's doing. What I don't know is why, who got her involved, and why no one thought to call me about this".
"What exactly is she doing?", Tim asked.
"Tell me what she called you for first".
"She told me she was done performing and wanted to help us do missions. I explained that we didn't have much to do here anymore because so much of it had been shut down, thanks to you. I asked if her husband was okay with her doing that and she said he was dead. Then I asked what you thought of it and she flat out said she didn't want you to know".
Rev felt a pang.
Why is she avoiding me?
She had always run to him in the past, whenever she had been in any kind of trouble or emotional upset.
"She asked for Ip's number, which I gave her. He's still here, working for Jose. Then Victor called me a few days ago looking for her so I asked Ip if he'd seen her recently. He said he had talked to her several times over the phone. Upon questioning him, I found out she was asking for information about the trafficking network. Picking his brain, more or less. I figured she was up to something and I figured you'd be not too far behind if she was".
"She is", Rev said. "It's not good".
He quickly ran through all the details that he knew and what he was currently doing about it.
"You need backup?", Tim asked. "I can get there a helluva lot faster than you, bring the guys I got left. Jose, Ip, Luis, Dean".
"Yeah, I'd appreciate it. We gotta intercept this wanker Thompson or she's likely to kill him or be killed. She's in Tijuana. Don't tell anyone other than those four. I'll get you specifics once you're there but don't engage with her. Let me do that. Just watch her and stop Thompson. And get every detail from Ip on what exactly he told her. I'm gonna crack that boy's skull. Ain't his fault he's in love with her but he shouldn't be puttin' her in danger".
"I don't think he can tell her no", Tim said gently. "Probably not many men can".
Rev snorted. "I'm at the airport now. Call when you're there. See you soon".
...........................................................................
Rev kept checking his phone for news from Tim. It had been two hours and he probably had another eighteen or so on the plane. Plenty of time to think up a plan...or about what could be going wrong while he in the air and unable to help.
The nagging thought which kept circling his brain was- Why didn't she tell me?
It cut him deep, truly it did. Did she think he would prevent her from doing what she was doing? He would have, of course, but he wouldn't have completely stopped her from doing what she wanted, only curb her a bit. He thought her ideas were excellent but her methods were reckless.
No, that didn't feel like the right answer.
Rev closed his eyes, stretched out in his first class seat, and started considering strategies for extracting her safely.
Five hours later, he awoke with a jolt as his phone vibrated on his chest.
Tim.
"Yeah", he answered, immediately fully awake and full of adrenaline.
"Got eyes on your girl".
"I didn't even give you a location", Rev said, surprised.
"Didn't need to. As soon as we got to town, we saw that gorilla you mentioned, started following him, and he led us right to her. Don't worry, we got him into our custody before he got to her".
"Thanks, mate", Rev said gratefully. "I owe you".
"She's safe, man. We'll keep eyes on her till you get here".
"Still ten to twelve hours before I'm on the ground", Rev grumbled.
"We got this. See you soon".
By the time Rev landed, he was highly irritated from being confined for that long, and sick down to his soul from the realization he had come to about Paige: She didn't tell him about Brad because she was afraid he was going to be happy about it, and she was grieving too hard to handle it if he was. It wounded Rev deeply that she could think he would ever be happy about something, anything, causing her pain...but it was the only explanation which made sense.
With Brad out of the way, the only thing keeping them apart would be his job, and that could be adjusted for her. Rev knew it, Paige knew, and apparently Brad had known according to what he wrote to Andy.
What exactly did he write to Paige?
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* Thank you for reading the first chapter! After each chapter, I will remind you to vote by clicking the star. Voting helps my story to get exposure so other readers can find it. Please vote EVERY chapter! It's much appreciated! *