Breaking the Rules Read Online Free PDF

confirmation.
    She turned away from them as she opened her phone and put it to her ear. “Maria?”
    “Jenn.” Maria had on her pure-business voice. Terse and to the point. “Where are you?”
    “I’m over at the shelter, with Jack and some of his guys,” Jenn reported. “We’re just about to go to Starbucks.” She glanced over at where Jack was now being questioned by his men, and raised her voice a little. “My treat.”
    He shook his head but two of his buddies seemed to like the idea. Jenn let them work on Jack as she focused her attention on Maria. “Where are
you
?” she asked her boss and longtime friend. “Because we could use you down here. These guys need a solution and—”
    “I’m still in Albany,” Maria cut her off. “Jenn, you need to go into the ladies’ room or somewhere private. Immediately.”
    “That’s … not possible right now,” Jenn said. The facilities had been over near the kitchen, where the blaze had done the worst of its damage. “I’m kind of in a meeting with Jack. We’re actually inside the shelter.”
    “Pass him the phone,” Maria ordered.
    “I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Jenn lowered her voice to say. “Whatever you’ve heard, I’ve got the situation mostly under control.” Or she would have, if she could continue to appeal to Jack’s honor, his down-to-earth sanity, and his strong sense of right and wrong. Friends
didn’t
hold friends hostage, and he knew it.
    “Damn it, Jennilyn,” Maria said in a rare burst of temper. “Pass. Jack. The phone.”
    “Jeez.” Jenn turned back to Jack, holding her cell phone out for him. “The assemblywoman apparently wants to talk to you quite badly.”
    He took it. “This is Jack Ventano.” He was silent then, just listening, frowning in response to whatever Maria was telling him, glancing over at Jenn and then away, down at the floor. He finally spoke. “She’s going to want more information.” He paused again, listening, then, “Okay. Yeah, I’ll … Yeah. No, it’s bad timing, but when is it ever good timing for … Yes, ma’am, we’ll get her there. I’ll have her call you back in just a few.”
    He hung up the phone, handing it back to Jenn, even as he turned to his posse. “Let’s get those boxes out of here. We’re standing down and moving it out. We’ll fight this fight another day.”
    There was grumbling among some of his men, but the two who’d wanted Starbucks leaped to gather up their supplies.
    Jack gestured toward the door as he told Jenn, “Let’s go.”
    She hesitated for only a second or two before she followed him. “What did Maria promise you?”
    “Nothing,” he told her as he led the way out the door.
    There was only one police car out there. But on second glance, Jenn realized that Mick Callahan’s unmarked car was also double-parked in the street. He was leaning against it, and as he saw her and Jack emerge from the former shelter, he pushed himself up and came to meet them.
    Jack, meanwhile, was giving orders to his guys. “Take the stuff back to my place. I’ll meet you over there in about an hour.”
    Now Jenn was really confused. “I thought we were all going for coffee.”
    Mick didn’t greet her. He just nodded to Jack, talking over her—which was hard to do because she was so tall. “I got it from here.”
    But Jack shook his head. “I’m coming, too. She’ll have questions that I can maybe answer.”
    Mick, always such a hardnose with something of an oppositional personality, was actually nodding in agreement as he reached to open the back door of his car. He put his hand on Jenn’s shoulder as if to usher her in, but she stopped.
    “Guys. What’s going on?” She turned to Jack. “Whatever Maria has planned, she didn’t share it with me. Where are we going?”
    “Jennilyn,” Mick answered for Jack, “just get in. Then you can call Maria back and she’ll, um … Explain.”
    “Honey, she wants you to be sitting down,” Jack