The black car’s door opened like a punctuation mark. Agent Reyes stepped out, all jacket and authority, flanked by two men in plain clothes carrying folders that smelled like subpoenas. She didn’t smile. She didn’t need to. The light from her headlamp cut the pier into truth and shadow.
Dominic let the little drama settle into the air before he spoke. “You brought friends,” he said, voice low and oddly proud.
“You set the stage,” Reyes answered. “We brought the warrant.” She glanced at the phones sequestered in the hem of my coat. “Live?” she asked.
Dominic gave me a look that was half apology, half boast. “Always.”
From behind the hulking SUV a second figure appeared—one I’d seen in worse frames, in hushed boardroom photos and ribbon-cutting shots. The mayor’s brother, Julian’s partne
