“We’re fine, Sheriff.” Lane’s father loosened the knot of his tie and picked up a piece of paper from his desk. “I was just about to give Deputy Lynch the arrest warrant.”

“Thank you, Judge.” Sheriff Huggins locked eyes with Lane before his attention went to Charlie. “Agent Edmonds is waiting for you.”

Charlie acknowledged the sheriff before turning to Lane. His hand caressed her cheek. “We will get to the truth. Trust me, Lane.”

TWENTY-SIX

ADRENALINE PULSED through Charlie’s veins, forcing his mind to focus on the mission in front of him and not on the way he left Lane at the courthouse. He couldn’t stop thinking about what she had said to her father about wondering if everyone would be better off without her—so desperate to break free of her illness that she swallowed a bottle of pills—and lost her husband. Charlie’s heart ached for the guilt she bore on her shoulders.

“Hey, are we, like, supposed to wear masks too?”

Frost’s question hauled Charlie’s mind back to the present. He and Frost stood outside the circle of DEA agents with black knit caps pulled over their faces in the loading dock of an abandoned warehouse three blocks from the Bohemian Signature Gallery. Agent Edmonds was briefing them on their mission to infiltrate Annika’s gallery in search for answers.

“Just them.” Sweat gathered at his brow. Charlie’s gut told him that uncovering the drug-smuggling ring would provide the answers to help them solve Sydney’s murder. And to figure out Miguel’s role. Charlie had already begun forming theories and the end result to all of them had Sydney as an innocent girl caught in something bigger than even he could imagine.

“This is my first sting operation,” Frost whispered. “It’s kinda cool.”

“Listen and do whatever they tell you.” The flak vest added bulk to Frost’s small frame but didn’t impair his nervous energy. “You’ll do fine.”

Agent Edmonds broke free of the group. “You ready?”

“Heck yeah.” Frost slapped his vest.

“Good.” Edmonds cast an amused look at Charlie. “We have two unmarked vans. Both of you will be riding with me. We’ll be breaching the front entrance. My boys will secure the rear.”

“What about civilians—or, uh, customers? Pedestrians on the street?” Charlie asked. Summer was here and so were the tourists. He needed to assess such risks on every mission.

“Metro Police will be patrolling the blocks on either side of the gallery as well as the nearby parks. They’ll be there to assist if necessary.”

“I want first opportunity to question her.” In the short time since Edmonds’s call and his arrival in Savannah, they hadn’t established who would get to question Annika first. Charlie wanted to make sure the steely DEA agent understood they both had vested stakes in the mission.