“Faith,” Jessica said in a warning voice.
Faith cursed.“You don’t get to print that.”
“I get to print whatever I want, Faith,” Bridgette replied.All pretense of friendliness was gone from her voice.“Iwon’tprint that, but Icould.That’s what you need to understand.I don’t work for you.I helped you because helping you benefitted me, but I’m not an asset.I called myself your friend on the show, but I think you’d be the first to admit that was the heftiest load of crap I could lift without straining my back.I want us to be allies, but that means we have to work together, andthatmeans that when I approach you for a live spot, you don’t insult and threaten me in front of millions of viewers, then refuse to throw me the smallest crumb.”
Faith’s left hand curled into a fist.Her right one shook slightly, unable to tighten since it was holding her phone.“So that stunt at the warehouse was revenge because I wouldn’t talk to you at the earlier scenes?”
“Don’t flatter yourself.That ‘stunt’ was good television.Since you need me to spell it out for you, I’ll make it abundantly clear.I can and will make this mess go away for you.I can make you and the Bureau look so shiny people will make pilgrimages to Quantico just to fall on their knees and worship you.But if I do that, you’ll have to do some things for me.”
Faith couldn’t stop herself.“Can you fix Craig Daniels’s life that you ruined for good television?”
“I’m guessing youreallydon’t think he’s your guy, or you wouldn’t have asked me that.But even if he’s not, he’s not worth anything.He’s a loser with a history of being a loser, and given some time, he would have torpedoed his own life again.”
Faith bristled, but before she said anything, Bridgette continued, “You can be angry with me all you want, but you’re smart enough to know where the cookie crumbles.Now, for fixing yours and your partner’s careers and making the Bureau look squeaky clean once more, what do I get?”
A vein throbbed in Faith’s temple.Sensing the presence of a threat, Turk growled at the phone.Jessica glanced over at Faith, still wearing a dark frown.
And Faith was caught.It was as simple as that.She was stuck firmly in the web, wrapped up nice and tight, a little package for the spider to consume at her pleasure.She needed this to go away, and she had no idea how to make it go away.Bridgette did.That meant Faith needed her, and that meant Faith was at her mercy.
“An exclusive.”
Bridgette laughed.“Please.I was practically guaranteed that already.I need more.”
Faith rolled her eyes.“Okay.What do you want?”
“An exclusive.”
Faith sighed.“Bridgette, I don’t have time for—”
“Relax, I’m not trying to tease you,” Bridgette said.“I’m telling the truth.I want an exclusive.I want the case too, but not just the case.I want the whole story.Faith Bold: America’s Agent.From troublemaking child to proud Devil Dog to firecracker agent to seasoned detective.I want your life’s story, Faith, in high definition.”
Faith blinked.“That’s it?You want a biopic?”
“Free advice, sweetie.Don’t ever use the phrase, ‘that’s it’, around a reporter.Now to answer you, yes, I want a biopic.You’re going to be a bestseller.I’m talking New York Times number one.We’ll put a picture of you and Turk on the dust jacket and weave a tale of determination, passion, and brilliance that will have people late to work in the morning from staying up all night reading you.”
Faith laughed.“Wow.So you’re big goal, the biggest thing you can think of right now, is to write a cheap rag about me.”
“Cheap rag to you, Pulitzer Prize to me.I don’t pretend to understand how you do your job, so don’t pretend to understand how I do mine.Just know that if you give me the rights to your biography, I will ensure that you leave Baltimore on a yearling colt that no man has ever ridden on.”
Faith’s brow furrowed.“What?”
“Forget it.Point is, that’s what I want, and I know I won’t get it if I don’t send you home to happy bosses, so if you don’t trust me to have integrity, trust me to act in my own self-interest.”
“Oh, I trust that.I one hundred percent trust that.”
“Perfect.So we have a deal?”
Faith’s hand curled into a fist again.She hated giving Bridgette anything, even if what she was asking for seemed innocuous on the surface.She hated knowing that Bridgette was going to get away with her crappy behavior.And deep in the darkest recesses of Faith’s mind, she hated that Bridgette had beaten her.
But she had.Not fair and not square, but the game was over, and the number on Bridgette’s side of the scoreboard was bigger than the number on Faith’s side.
Unless…
The game might not be over yet.Faith had an idea.It was a long shot, but if she played it right, she might have enough to get herself and Jessica out of this web after all.
She tapped the record button on her phone screen.Her Bureau phone recorded all phone conversations for safety purposes.It deleted the recordings immediately upon completion of the phone call, but if Faith pressed the record button, it would save that recording.
“Faith?”Bridgette pressed.