Page 3 of Innocent Salvation

“In a manner of speaking yes, but I’m not the police.”

Snow eyed him and then the back of the head of the man who drove them, his brown eyes meeting hers in the mirror. “And he sent you to help me in the event of his death?”

“Yes.”

“How do I know you aren’t lying.”

“You don’t, but how else would I know you have a scar on your thumb from trying to squash a hornet, which you thought was a wasp when you were eight. That you have a knife wound on your shoulder blade from a close encounter with a security guard in a Polish private residence. Or that your mother is Dominique Dupont and that she handed you over to your father and asked him to end your life because she couldn’t afford the scandal.”

Snow gasped, her hand flying to her mouth knowing that nobody on this earth except her father had that painful knowledge. Nobody wanted to feel unloved, and while she hated her mother with a passion as white-hot as the sun, it still shamed her that she wanted her dead and that was why nobody but she and her father knew that. He’d only told her because he never wanted to risk her trusting the viper, as he’d called her, and falling into any trap she might set. Henri Goubert had been a wonderful father and not once had she questioned his love and loyalty to her. Even now he was protecting her and showing her a way out of the spiral of revenge that was taking over her life.

“Okay.”

Snow stuck out her hand for the man, a smile on her face that felt like the first real emotion she’d felt in a long time. He took her small palm in his and gave it a firm shake.

“Sabine Goubert, I’m Jack Granger and I’d like you to join Shadow Elite.”

“Then I accept your offer. Although we need to discuss salary, benefits, holiday pay, sick pay, etcetera etcetera.”

Jack threw his head back and laughed. “You’re going to be a breath of fresh air for the team.”

Snow hoped so because she was tired of being alone.

Chapter 1

“Snow, what can I do for you?”

Snow placed the printout she’d been looking at for the last two hours on Bás’ desk.

He picked it up and read the names on the list before his head raised to look at her. “What is this?”

“Watchdog found it in Doyle’s files.”

Bás leaned back in his chair regarding her as she tried not to fidget and show how much she had invested in this. “And?”

“You know who those people are?”

Bás snorted and picked up the paper again. “Dominique Dupont and Sebastian Alexander.” He looked at her again and motioned for her to sit, which she did. “Tell me what’s going on with you, Snow, and don’t fucking lie to me.”

Snow considered lying. She needed this job and Bás would go ballistic if he found out she was keeping secrets. It was the one thing he wouldn’t tolerate. “I want to know what Dominique and Judge Alexander are involved with.”

Bás showed no emotion at all when she said the woman’s name and she wondered if he already knew her background and guessed it was a possibility. “Why now? What caused this sudden interest?”

Snow produced a picture of a little girl no more than four years old, her sweet face smiling at the camera. Her heart clenched with pain, and she had to hold a hand to her belly to steady herself. Pushing the image toward Bás, she swallowed the bile in her throat. “Because that’s my niece that Judge Alexander is raising, and I want to know why.”

Snow thought Bás would react but still nothing, and it was frustrating.

“How is this Shadow business?”

Snow clenched her fist and released it, hoping she could remain calm. Her personality was bright and cheery, but she had a quick temper that got her into trouble. “Judge Alexander is leading the inquiry into the corruption trial against the men who helped Doyle. If he’s dirty, then it’s our business.”

“Is it just Alexander you’re interested in or Dominique too?”

Just her name made Snow see red. The woman swanned around like she shit roses, making speeches and acting as if she were the epitome of perfection and truth, and yet she was the dirtiest of them all. “She’s as dirty as hell, and you know it as well as I do.”

“I do know that but going after her isn’t something we’d do lightly. A woman like her will have her skeletons well hidden. She won’t take risks with her reputation, and you can bet your ass she has people to deal with these things for her.”

“Oh, I know that better than most but there’s one skeleton she can’t walk away from, and I can prove it.”