Page 95 of SEAL's Promise
The sniper snorted. “My gut says this man is Falcon, not Nichols. Since he’s into blackmail, Nichols would love to wave this picture in Falcon’s face and demand a payout to remain quiet.”
Eli made a call, putting it on speaker.
Maddox answered seconds later. “What do you need, Wolfe?”
“Clint Nichols. He’s involved in an attempt to frame Rachelle and hand her to the feds.”
“Explain.”
Eli told Maddox about the photos and the proof that they were photoshopped. “Nico volunteered his team to grab Nichols and check his back.”
“The feds want Nichols,” Rafe said. “They’ll be happy to have him gift wrapped and left for pick up. An anonymous tip should take care of the rest.”
“That’s not enough to send a team to nab this guy.”
“Nichols heads a human trafficking operation that specializes in providing minors for hire, especially for the rich and powerful,” Cal said. “We think Rachelle saw a man known as Falcon the night before the attack at the hotel, a client of Nichols.”
“Proof?”
“Thin,” he admitted. “That’s why we need Nichols. If he doesn’t have a falcon tattoo, then he knows who this man is. He’s probably using the photos for blackmail. It’s what he does.”
Maddox said, “If we do this, the feds will owe us a favor. I like them in our debt. All right. Done. I’ll reroute Shadow to Antigua.”
“Tell them to be careful,” Rachelle said. “The terrorists might be in the area.”
“We need to talk about the gunmen.”
Cal frowned. “What about them?”
“Zane has camera footage of the men involved in the attacks at the hotel and the hospital. They aren’t terrorists. They’re connected to human traffickers in the area.”
“In other words, they’re connected to Clint Nichols.”
“You got it.”
“Human traffickers again.” Jackson scrubbed his face with his hands. “Why come after Rachelle? She’s not a threat to their operation.”
“If she connects Clint Nichols and the girl in the photos to Falcon, their whole operation is in jeopardy,” Cal said. “He won’t go down alone. He’ll take Nichols and his operation with him. Yeah, Rachelle is a definite threat.”
“Especially if this man is a well-known power broker,” Maddox added. “Rachelle, what are your thoughts?”
“The man knows Amy. How would he identify me otherwise?”
“Nichols is American,” Jon said. “Falcon could be American as well.”
“I was thinking the same thing. If you connect Nichols to the gunmen who attacked the hotel, shot Hoss, and killed Garner, he’ll leave the federal penitentiary in a body bag.”
“Nichols is well protected,” Rafe said. “Shadow might need help.”
“Copy that. Need anything else, Wolfe?”
“Keep the feds off our backs,” Eli said. “Meyer and company had more questions for Rachelle. They won’t be happy when they discover we left town. They’ll send law enforcement after Rachelle if her location is leaked.”
“Rachelle, do you need anything?”
“No, sir.” She glanced at Cal. “I have exactly what I need.”
His heart skipped a beat. If they didn’t have an audience, he’d kiss her senseless for saying that. He prayed she meant what she said.