Private Dublin

Chapter 70

I wasn’t entirely surprised at the revelation Finch was involved. Part of me wondered whether I might have discerned the truth sooner if Andi hadn’t been at my side, running interference. I thought back to every twist and turn I’d experienced since arriving in Dublin and realized that, in small ways and in large, Andi had been subtly steering me away from the truth, steering me away from Lawrence Finch.

And there was the attack at Kearney Stud, when the sniper had been trying to shoot me and I’d assumed Noah and Mary Kearney had been the true targets. Now I understood it was more likely Andi had summoned the shooter there and walked me into a trap, to have me killed by someone else and sustain her own cover. And the time she’d suggested we shake the tree by returning to see Lawrence Finch... had she taken me there so we could be followed as we left? The same was true of the house invasion at Fitzwilliam Square. She must have set that up.

Her influence throughout had been pernicious. Chance was not involved in any of this. She’d volunteered for the assignment when Emily Knighton had asked for someone from the London office to be my guide in Dublin.

“You okay, Jack?” Mo-bot asked.

“Yeah,” I said. “Just getting to grips with it.”

“I hear you,” she replied. “But you need to move fast. Find a drive and copy anything and everything related to Longshore Holdings.”

I did as instructed and found a solid-state drive in a nearby supply closet. I hooked it up to the machine I’d been using and copied across everything I found on Longshore Holdings.

A few minutes later, I climbed down the way I’d come. I couldn’t open the grille over the car-park entrance. Instead, I found a fire exit and stepped out, not caring about the loud alarm I triggered before running into the night.

“I’m away,” I told Mo-bot. “I’ll send the files as soon as I have access to a computer.”

“I’ll see what I can dig up in the meantime,” she replied. “Based on what we already know. Then get some rest, Jack.”

“Will do,” I assured her. “Thank you, Mo. For everything.”

We said our goodbyes and she hung up. I pocketed my phone and walked back to the place on Pigeon House Road, which took me forty minutes.

I showered yet again and settled into bed. Lawrence Finch was the key. Through him, I could reach Andi, Sam Farrell and Raymond Chalmont. Through him, I could find justice.

I woke to find a message from Justine, saying she was worried about me, and realized I hadn’t sent her anything before going to sleep.

Call me the moment you see this. No matter when, her message said.

My phone told me it was 7:06 a.m., which meant it was just after 11 p.m. in LA, a reasonable if late time for a call.

“Jack, please tell me you’re okay,” she said the moment she answered.

“I’m okay,” I replied. Then hesitated. I couldn’t lie to her anymore, whether by omission or overtly as I’d just done. “Actually, scratch that. I’m not okay, Jus. Andi Harris is a member of Propaganda Tre. She’s been working against us all along.”

Justine hesitated.

“Did she hurt you?” she asked at last.

“She tried. I had to move. I found out Lawrence Finch is in on it too.”

““Jack—” she began, but I cut her off.

“I know what you’re going to say. You want me to come home and to—”

It was her turn to interrupt me. “Actually, no, I wasn’t going to say anything of the kind. I was going to tell you that I never want us to be in this situation again. Caught off guard by evil. These people won’t stop coming for us until we stop them for good.”

I was surprised, but I shouldn’t have been. I loved Justine for many reasons and, right now, she was showing that her resolve was one of them.

“I don’t want you doing this alone, Jack,” she went on. “You have Sci and Mo-bot in your corner. And you have me. I might not be at full capacity physically, but my mind is as sharp as ever. You don’t have to treat me with kid gloves.”

“I love you,” I replied.

“I love you too, Jack, but right now, it’s all about work. It’s about putting a stop to these people so we can get our lives back,” she said. “Tell me what you know about what’s going on and let me figure out a way I might be able to help.”

I’d known what I wanted to do since the previous night, but Justine’s inspiring words made me more determined than ever.

“I want to get Lawrence Finch,” I told her.