Open Chapter 2
True Lies
"My name is Jonathan Blackwood," Thomas said, the words feeling foreign in his mouth after so long. "Not Thomas Elliot, as I've been telling you all."
No one looked particularly surprised. They'd all assumed each other's names were fabrications anyway. It was the details that followed that would matter.
"I was an accountant for Harrington Global Investments until eighteen months ago." He paused, measuring his words carefully. "I specialized in their offshore holdings. The kind that don't officially exist."
"Tax evasion?" Aisha asked, leaning forward slightly.
Jonathan shook his head. "That would have been relatively benign. No, I handled accounts that moved money for people who needed certain... services. Untraceable services."
"You laundered money for hitmen," Michael translated bluntly.
"Among others," Jonathan admitted. "I didn't know that's what I was doing, not at first. The accounts were coded, compartmentalized. But I'm good with patterns. Too good, as it turns out."