Page 48 of Covert Mission

Marsh, Knight, and Bowen stared at her and Violet.

“They’re members of a black ops team,” Noah said.

Knight whistled softly. “Nice. You’re still not going without us, Seth. We were part of the same unit overseas. We’re going with you whether or not your tech friend helps us. If we have to, we’ll confront Burnett in his office about your unjust dismissals and hand over our guns and badges.”

“If you do, you’ll be stuck with the same problem Noah and I will face. You could be viewed as traitors and dirty cops, especially if it’s known that you joined the militia. You may never get your jobs back if you do this.”

“We’re friends and battle buddies who have each other’s backs,” Marsh said. “We’re more interested in getting you out of the compound in one piece than job security.”

Teagan couldn’t fault them for their loyalty to a friend. Her teammates did the same for each other on each undercover mission.

She slid her phone from her pocket and hit her speed dial for Maddox.

“Yeah, Maddox.”

“It’s Teagan. You’re on speaker with Noah, Seth, Violet, and three other detectives from the Ardmore PD.”

“Elias Knight, Andre Marsh, and Grant Bowen?”

Her eyebrows rose. “Yes, sir.”

“What do you need?”

“Seth and Noah’s friends are insisting on going into The Brotherhood with the infiltration team. According to Knight, The Brotherhood works like Fortress. Invitation only.”

“I see. Gentlemen, we’ll run deep background first. If you pass muster, we’ll see about getting your background adjusted to fit the circumstances. The last thing we want to do is raise suspicion about why so many cops from Ardmore PD want to join The Brotherhood.”

“Sir, this is Elias Knight. I have friends and family already involved in the organization. They’ve been recruiting me hard. Perhaps your tech friend could adjust our files to show disillusionment with law enforcement. The five of us were in the same military unit. No one will be surprised if we show solidarity with Seth and Noah.”

“Background first, then we’ll see. Time line?”

“Yesterday, sir,” Violet said. “We made quite a splash at the station.”

“What happened?”

“While Seth and Noah were being dressed down by their commander, one of the other detectives cornered and assaulted Teagan. His partner was the lookout.”

“Where were you, Trevelyan?”

“Recording and preparing to intervene when Teagan took care of the detective herself.”

“How long did this go on?”

“One minute.”

“Never should have gone on that long,” Maddox snapped.

“I handled it, sir,” Teagan said, her hand tightening around her phone. She didn’t want her teammate called on the carpet in front of Seth and his friends. Besides, if she’d needed help to handle Wilson, she would have asked for it.

“That’s no excuse. You were supposed to have Teagan’s back, Violet. This doesn’t happen again. Understood?”

Violet’s face flamed. “Yes, sir.”

“Teagan?”

She stiffened, “Sir?”

“You have nothing to prove.”