keep him here.
An immediate hush fell over the room and all eyes shifted first to Agent Grace and then to him.
“Mr. McBride.” Special Agent-in-Charge Randall Worth stood and crossed the room to meet him. His elegant dress and sophisticated comportment announced who was in charge before his badge got the chance.
Mid-fifties. Receding hairline and most likely burdened by a Napoleon complex considering his small stature. A yes-man of the highest order. McBride knew the type and wasn’t impressed.
Worth extended his hand. “We appreciate your willingness to help us find this little girl.”
McBride’s attention bypassed the SAC’s offered hand and zoomed straight across the room to the timeline the task force had created. “What’ve you got so far?”
“I’ll walk you through it.” Worth indicated that McBride should precede him, with the same hand he’d failed to shake.
A picture of six-year-old Alyssa Byrne and the time she was last seen was the first entry on the board. Four hours later the school was searched, every teacher questioned, and the parents were interviewed. Two hours after that the Bureau was contacted. Worth explained that the father, Allen Byrne, owned the two largest construction companies in the state of Alabama, and Fiona, the mother, was a stay-at-home mom and volunteer who worked with various fund-raising organizations.
“By the time the e-mail came in,” Worth summed up, “the Byrnes’ entire extended family and network of friends and business associates had been identified and prioritized for questioning. That process is ongoing.”
“The e-mail?” McBride looked from the timeline to Worth, who snapped his fingers, and a hard copy of the e-mail was promptly provided by the nearest agent. Worth passed the document to McBride, then planted his hands on his hips and looked away as if expecting an unpleasant reaction.
Dear FBI,
This e-mail is to inform you that Alyssa Byrne is safe and in my custody. You have forty-one hours to find her or I will have no choice but to do the worst.
To level the playing field I will provide clues to assist you in finding her. However, not just any agent will do. I will only give my clues to Ryan McBride.
Reinstate him so that he may save this child. Forty-one hours … not a second more. Starting now.
A Devoted Fan
McBride reread the signature line, a charge of anger pulsing inside him like a ticking bomb. He pivoted to align his gaze with Grace’s. “You didn’t feel it was relevant to mention the ‘Devoted Fan’ part?”
Grace glanced at Worth.
Oh, hell no . Outrage tore through McBride. He got it. Three years out of the loop had made him a little slow on the uptake, but he was there now.
Worth cleared his throat and explained, “Agent Grace wasn’t authorized to reveal certain contents of the e-mail. We didn’t want that information to leave this room.”
“You sent your rookie agent to get a status on me,” McBride accused, his fingers clenched into fists, crushing the e-mail. “Whether or not I came back with her was never the point, was it? I’m a suspect.”
He hadn’t been just a fool, he’d been a fucking idiot.
“You’re wrong about that, McBride,” Worth insisted with a quick survey of the room as if gathering support. “We need you. You read the e-mail. The unsub will only give the clues to you.”
“I need a smoke.” McBride tossed the wadded e-mail onto the conference table and strode out of the room. He didn’t slow down until he had reached the elevator.
“McBride! Wait!”
The elevator doors opened and he stepped inside.
Grace dashed in just before they closed. “You have to look at this like an agent,” she urged him. The elevator lurched into motion, making her sway.
Like hell he did. He’d been relieved of that grade three years ago. The Bureau wouldn’t even be talking to him now if he weren’t a suspect. He wanted out of here. The only thing on his mind was getting on a plane