Already Gone (A Laura Frost FBI Suspense Thriller—Book 1) by Blake Pierce (notion reading list .txt) 📗

She knew she was never going to begranted full custody of Lacey after all of the problems she’d had. Heralcoholism was a matter of court record, and she had to accept that. But she’dhoped that at least visitation might be possible one day—that she might atleast be able to see her!

Tears welled up behind her eyes andstreamed down her cheeks as Laura buried her face in her hands. No. Shewas so close. A few more weeks, and she would be there. She would reach thegoal that Marcus had set after he’d taken custody of Lacey.

Behind her eyelids, the last time she’dseen her daughter replayed in Laura’s mind. The way Lacey had looked soconfused, so upset at her mother’s tears. The way Marcus had lifted her andcarried her away, their daughter looking back over his shoulder. That had beenthe last time she’d been allowed to speak to her daughter.

The last memory that Lacey had of herwas of a woman streaked with mascara and tears, crying great sobs that broughther to her knees, her hair a mess, her clothes stained with vomit, an emptyvodka bottle still in her hand.

Laura couldn’t let it be that way. Shehad to fix it. She reached for her phone, intending to call Marcus right away,but she paused and then put it down again. No. If she contacted him some otherway, it would only prompt him to block her there, too. She needed to be smartabout this. She needed to stay strong. If she proved herself, Marcus might comearound. And if he didn’t, the court system would.

Marcus didn’t understand any of this. Hedidn’t know about her visions; she’d never found the courage to tell him. Andwhen she’d had the vision of him breaking it off with her and taking theirdaughter away, she’d only been able to drink herself to unconsciousness toblock it out. That hadn’t stopped it from becoming reality.

She had never been able to give him anexcuse for her behavior. He didn’t know the burdens she was carrying. The onlything she could do was prove to him that she was fighting them—and that would onlybe achieved by bringing him that ninety-day chip.

Laura needed to distract herself withsomething else, stay busy. Prevent the devil from getting to her idle hands.

She sat down on the uncomfortable, lumpysofa and opened up her laptop again, lifting it from the coffee table. Shefired up the tabs she’d last opened in her browser, trying to get her head backinto the game.

She needed to do something about Amy.Lacey was out of her reach just now, and that hurt like hell, but there wasnothing she could do except wait. She might be able to help Amy today. If shecould, she was going to have to.

Laura brought up a search on the governor,looking for as much information on him as she could find. He’d been in variouspolitical offices for a few years, rising through the ranks. There were plentyof news stories about him, even some vague whiffs of scandal involving aprevious secretary of his. But nothing about violence or abuse, no hint of anout-of-control temper.

Laura tucked her blonde hair back behindher ears, trying to think. She worried her long, slim fingers together,twisting and turning them. If she didn’t figure this out, Amy was in for ahorrific existence. She needed to do something.

Impulsively, she picked up the phoneeven though it was late in the evening. Those who worked for the FBI quicklygot used to never really being off duty. That was part of the job. The techdepartment was no different.

“Yeah?”

Laura half-smiled to herself, in spiteof the seriousness of the situation. Dean Marsters always answered the phone inthe same way. “It’s me. Just wanted to pick your brain on something, if you’renot busy?”

“For Christ’s sake, Frost, it’s nearlymidnight.” Dean paused, then sighed. “Yeah, I’m not busy. What do you need?”

“I’m looking into someone,” Laura said,trying to keep it sounding as casual as possible. Maybe she would be able toslide the bombshell of the person in question’s identity under the radar. “Iwanted to know if there’s any dirt on him.”

“Dirt?” Dean sighed. “Okay. What scumbagare we dealing with this time?”

“His name’s John Fallow,” she said,inwardly bracing. “I’m a little concerned about his behavior behind closeddoors.”

“John Fal—wait. Governor JohnFallow?” Dean repeated, almost blasting her ear off. “You must be kidding.Frost, this is so far above my pay grade!”

“Please?” Laura asked. “Look, the safetyof a little girl might be at stake, okay? And, you know—I have my sources, butI need something that will stand up in a court of law.”

“I know, I know,” Dean replied, sighingheavily down the line again. “You should tell your sources to bring you real,legal evidence instead of having to come to me for it all the time.”

“I do tell them,” Laura lied. “It’s justnot always possible.” It was a convenient cover story. Dean believed she hadsome kind of underground network of informants. He never talked to Nate, andshe never told Nate who her contact in the tech department was either, andeverything worked smoothly. She was able to follow up on her visions from timeto time without alerting anyone that she knew things she shouldn’t. This one,she knew, was a big risk. There was no source that would have been able to tellher what she’d seen; the family was alone in her vision. But she had to takethe risk. Amy needed her.

“All right, leave it with me,” Deanagreed. Even though he always sounded grudging, like he was doing her a hugefavor—which he was, considering he was putting himself on the line for her—healways came through in the end. “I’ll get back to you as soon as I havesomething.”

“Thank you,” Laura said. “I owe you acoffee at lunch tomorrow.”

“You owe me a coffee and amuffin,” Dean corrected, before ending the call.

Laura closed her eyes for a moment,leaning her head back on the sofa cushions. She’d set the wheels in motion forAmy. She’d tried, and failed, to contact Marcus, and she knew what she had todo now. Still,