Special Agent Finnegan (Undercover FBI Book 2) Read online

  SPECIAL AGENT FINNEGAN

  Mimi Barbour

  Sarna Publishing

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places,

  and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination

  or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead,

  business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.

  Special Agent Finnegan

  The Undercover FBI Series – Book 2

  No part of this book may be used or reproduced

  in any manner whatsoever without written permission

  of the author except in the case of brief quotations

  embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  Contact Information: [email protected]

  Cover Art by Steven Novak

  Edited by Tessa Shapcott & Amanda Beaty

  Proofread – Leandra Hanes

  Contents

  Title Page

  Graphic Marnie

  Front Matter Type = Dedication

  Back Page Blurb

  Praise for Special Agent Finnegan

  Also author of...

  Epilogue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Afterword

  Special Agent Francesca

  Vegas Series

  A word about the author:

  Contact me:

  Special Agent Finnegan

  Undercover FBI Series

  Book 2

  Mimi Barbour

  This book is dedicated to my best friend… the man I married forty-seven years ago.

  One evening, while sharing a glass of wine and a lovely meal (that he cooked), my husband asked me to write this book. He decided I should create an Irish hero, and he even came up with the name: Finnegan O’Reilly. He envisioned a strong man who hid a soft heart. One with a good sense of humor and who had honor as well as principles and depth. I hope I delivered. Personally, I feel that Finn is a man any woman would be proud to call her own. Bet you can’t guess who he reminds me of?

  ***

  I also want to mention another person who has my utmost appreciation–my nephew, Jake. Without his expert assistance, I couldn’t have written about gaming and have it make any sense at all.

  ***

  The pool-playing section was edited by my guy and, again, wouldn’t have been possible without his help.

  Undercover FBI

  Book #2

  Love for his father makes a man weak- what’ll happen if he gives his heart to a woman?

  When Special Agent Finnegan O’Reilly gets shot, and the news brings on his father’s heart attack, he decides to take leave from further undercover assignments. The O’Reilly has suffered enough and Finn can’t be the cause of more distress for this beloved old rascal. Then his boss forces one more case on him – to take place in their own pub. Acting as the target to expose serial, suicide killers rampaging through New York City, Finn must play the part of a wife-beater, a cheating husband and an all-time jerk. No problem, until he meets his make-believe wife.

  Renée Knight enjoys her job as a New York City cop. Her disguises have become a permanent fixture in her life, and no one knows what she really looks like. Except for the father she loves fiercely… the man, whose suicide makes no sense. If it means going undercover in an Irish pub where the culprits hang out, she’s their girl. Playing the wife of the bar owner to catch the killers—easy. But they never intend for her to fall for this guy, she does this all on her own. Now she has to hire the assassins to arrange his suicide. Can she catch them, before they complete the mission?

  Praise for Special Agent Finnegan

  “Gripping from the first page. Coming from an Irish speaking family, this captivated me with a wholly heart gripping, portrayal of the love between father and son. I can speak for Mimi’s level of authenticity in her use of the idiomatic dialect. In this engrossing novel, the father Joker is such a loveable character.” ~ Reviewed by Author Katy Walters

  “As far as I know, I have read everything Mimi Barbour has published, and I bought most of them. I keep coming back because I love her sense of humor and style of writing and I always fall in love with her characters.” ~ Reviewed by A. Chambers

  “Deserving of ten stars! There is such love between these characters – you can feel it deep in your soul. I have read every book by Mimi and each one is better than the last. I thought the Vegas series was my favorite but I think this one may just become my new Fav! Love this series and highly recommend any and all books by Mimi!” ~ Reviewed by Shirleen Miller

  “The action keeps you on the edge of your seat!” ~ Reviewed by United Indie Book Blog

  “As a writer myself, I think that one of the true marks of an excellent author is solid, believable character development, and in my opinion, Mimi Barbour is the master of character development!” ~ Reviewed by author Flo Barnett

  Also author of...

  Vegas Series

  — Action–Packed Thrillers! —

  Vegas Series – Complete Boxed Set

  Partners (Book 1)

  Roll the Dice (Book 2)

  Vegas Shuffle (Book 3)

  High Stakes Gamble (Book 4)

  Spin the Wheel (Book 5)

  Let it Ride (Book 6)

  ***

  The Vicarage Bench Series

  — Spirit Travel at its Best! —

  She’s Me (Book 1)

  He’s Her (Book 2)

  We’re One (Book 3)

  Vicarage Bench Anthology (Book 4 – Books 1-3)

  Together Again (Book 5)

  Together for Christmas (Book 6)

  Together Always (Book 7)

  ***

  Angels with Attitude Series

  — Angels Playing Cupid! —

  The Angels with Attitudes Series (Books 1-3)

  My Cheeky Angel (Book 1)

  His Devious Angel (Book 2)

  Loveable Christmas Angel (Book 3)

  ***

  Elvis Series

  She’s Not You (Book 1)

  Love Me Tender (Book 2)

  ***

  Undercover FBI Series

  Special Agent Francesca (Book 1)

  Special Agent Finnegan (Book 2)

  Special Agent Maximilian (Book 3 – to be released in the spring 2015)

  ***

  Other Titles

  The Surrogate’s Secret

  Mimi’s Mix (Box Set)

  ‘Tis the
Season (Box Set)

  Hearts, Flowers & Romance (Box Set)

  Ten Christmas Brides (Box Set with 9 other authors)

  Hearts & Kisses (Box Set with 11 other authors – to be released Feb 10, 2014)

  Christmas Runaway

  Hotshot Cowboy

  All Mimi’s books can be found on her website:

  http://mimibarbour.com

  Epilogue

  “Harry, finish him off, and let’s get the hell outa here. We’ve hung on too long as it is.”

  “Come ‘ere and watch. You know it’s more fun when you’re here with me at the end.” Harry’s whine grated, but Ruben listened. After all, without ‘the psycho’, his business would be shut down in a flash.

  Pretending to enjoy the murdering genius of Harry, Ruben stalked over to where they had a terrified man tied to a wooden armchair with soft cotton strips and gagged with the same material. The bald guy’s eyes flashed with fury and then entreaty, and finally closed with acceptance.

  “Why the hell do you always have to make such a big deal out of them dying? Just get it over with.”

  “Ruben, it’s an art. Haven’t you figured that out yet? I may be a loser when it comes to everything else, but killing is something I’m good at. It’s a pleasure I like to take my time with. You know—so it’s done perfectly. Making these crimes look like suicide ain’t easy, but I do have a natural genius, don’t I? It’s why you put up with me.”

  Harry’s occasional intelligent insights surprised Ruben. For a man who usually didn’t know his ass from a hole in the ground, Harry did have one God-given talent. He knew his way around a crime scene and what would work to fool the authorities. He took pleasure in murder and couldn’t be rushed or ignored.

  “Okay. I’m watching. Now put the poor man out of his misery and let’s vamoose.”

  The older captive moaned with intense anguish and nodded his head. He knew there was no way out of the hell he’d found himself in and his actions spoke louder than words. Just let it be over. Quickly!

  Harry grinned, showing his crooked teeth, one incisor so long it made him look slightly vampire-ish. His unexpected big, blue, angelic eyes glowed with the joy of his task, and his stare gave Ruben chills in places that affected his temper.

  “Harry, I swear to God, if you don’t hurry up, I’ll do it myself.”

  “Yeah, like that’s gonna happen. Never saw anyone as squeamish as you when it comes to a bit of blood. Oh, all right. See here. I have to angle myself around and behind him like this. Then I can put the silencer to his head so it’s at the perfect angle with his body and arm. Harry followed through and Pffutt! One dead body now slumped to the side. Quickly, and being careful not to smudge anything with his gloved hands, Harry unwrapped the victim’s arms from the chair, stuck the weapon in the dead man’s hand to print it and then let it drop and land where it might have if he’d shot himself.

  “Good job! Now, are you sure there aren’t any signs of us being here?” Ruben’s paranoia worked for him, and so far, had made it impossible for the cops to treat their various crimes as murders. The authorities had no suspicion of foul play, and that was exactly the way Ruben intended for things to stay.

  Harry’s hesitation lasted too long, and Ruben swivelled his head to see his partner fidgeting.

  “Okay, what did you take? Come on, you might as well tell me. I’ll search you if I have to.”

  “Aw, man, you’re so strict. What does it matter if I help myself to a little souvenir once in a while?”

  Ruben reined in his anger and breathed hard to stay calm. Now that the kill was over, Harry was reverting to being the village idiot he had to put up with the rest of the time.

  “Whatever you took, give it to me and I’ll give you the money to buy a new one. Then you’ll still have a memento. But I’ve told you—like a million times—if something is missing, they’ll notice and wonder if the guy really did commit suicide, or if he’d been robbed and shot. Our business depends on the authorities believing these dead people either had accidents or whacked themselves. If anyone suspects they’ve been executed they’ll start searching throughout New York City, and we don’t want that to happen. Right?”

  Harry nodded sheepishly and handed over a tiny crystal cat that he must have taken from the lavish display on the mantle.

  “Where did you find this—exactly? Come and show me.”

  Harry pointed his gloved finger to the spot on the end. “I liked the cat. It’s pretty.” He pushed his hands through his long black hair, which he kept surprisingly clean, and gave Ruben the full benefit of his big blues.

  Ruben patted his arm and spoke in a conciliatory manner. “Hey, bro, like I promised, I’ll give you enough money to buy the prettiest kitty you can find, a sparkly, crystal one just like this. Now put it back where you found it. As it is, we’ve already spent too long here tonight, and someone might have noticed unusual activity in the house. Let’s go and head downtown. I’ll buy you a beer in that pub you’ve recently taken a liking to.”

  “O’Reilly’s!” Harry brightened instantly, and like a child, he hurried to put back the ornament and then rushed to stand beside Ruben where he pranced in place. “I like that place. They have a great pool table there. It’s so cool. Can we play? Will you spot me five points so I can beatcha?”

  Ruben put his hand on Harry’s back to usher him from the room. “Sure, bro. I’ll even teach you some of my finer shots. You’re getting to be a whiz, ya know that?”

  “Can I get me some pizza? I’m starving now.”

  Not surprised, Ruben knew that Harry always had a craving for food after a job, and he didn’t have any problem with that, except for one thing. “Sure, I’ll buy you whatever you want, except for chilli. Man, you stink up the apartment so bad when you eat that shit.” He chuckled to show Harry he was teasing, even though he wasn’t.

  “I like you, Rubie.”

  “I’d like you better if you never called me Rubie again.”

  Harry’s hoot made the short black hairs on Ruben’s head curl tighter. Harry giggled just like a little girl.

  Chapter 1

  Dreading the showdown he anticipated, Special Agent Finnegan O’Reilly sauntered towards his boss’s slightly opened door at the agency where he’d worked for many years. When he heard voices inside, he stopped. Deciding he’d wait his turn, he leaned against the wall, crossed his arms and slouched. Exhaustion fought against the smidgen of stamina still lurking in his body.

  Recognizing his standoffish behavior for what it was—exhaustion—the other agents gave him space and he appreciated their consideration. All smiled and either winked, nodded or flashed a thumb. They were lucky to get a one-sided grin of acknowledgement. Finn had closed the family bar in the early hours and only managed to grab a short nap before he’d gotten the command to appear.

  A husky female voice, conveying visions of hot, sensual love-play, caught his attention and her ultimatum had him zeroing in on the conversation taking place in the adjacent room.

  “Stop calling me little girl. Either I go in undercover for you, or I go in on my own, Jack-short-for-Jackass. Take it or leave it. We both know my dad didn’t kill himself. It wasn’t his style and he sure as hell wouldn’t have used a gun. Especially since he knew I’d be the one to find him.”

  “Calm down, little… Renée. I told you, I’m taking care of it.”

  Finnegan had worked with Jack Stone for many years and had never heard this tone of weary affection in his voice before. Kinda made him seem more human. Jack-short-for-Jackass? Finn only knew the man as a hard-headed prick, who wouldn’t put up with excuses and expected more than a hundred and ten percent from his men. Seems that the more you expected the more you got as, surprisingly, most of his men would go the extra mile for him, and in the past they had, including Finn.

  Still annoyed, the woman wasn’t playing Jack’s game. “You’d better. It’s been a week and you’ve got diddly. I’ll give you until Monday to come up with a plan. Th
en I’ll investigate my way.”

  “Don’t threaten me, Renée. I’ll be in touch. Now get out and close that door or I’ll put you over my knee like I did a few times when you really were a little girl.” Jack continued to mutter, “Anyone else hears you calling me by that stupid nickname and I’ll have to fire them.”

  “So quit calling me little girl and we’ll have a deal. I’ll be waiting to hear from you.”

  Was that a kiss Finn heard being blown to Jack?

  He straightened when he saw the door moving and came pretty darn close to falling over. The cutest—no other word for it—the cutest chick he’d seen in a very long time strolled past him, wiggling her butt in a typical high-school girl’s uniform of short skirt, white shirt and blazer.

  Finn rubbed his eyes, thinking it was now imperative he catch up on his sleep. The female voice he’d overheard couldn’t have come from this little girl, who looked as if butter wouldn’t melt in her mouth. Speaking of mouths, hers was one of the finest specimens he’d ever seen, plump and inviting—and sweet. The dimple near it did something to his equilibrium and brought him upright.

  Bouncy blonde curls, a typical Shirley Temple kinda look, gave her the appearance of a child, one he’d like to hold on his knee and…

  He shot her one of his best grins, and liked the return smile and wink she sent him for his trouble. There again, that move sure wasn’t in keeping with her schoolgirl image. Something weird going on there!

  His eyes followed as she strutted up the hallway. Just as she went to pass an opening doorway, he noticed a prisoner step out, trailed by one of the agents. Before anyone knew what to expect, the prisoner reached out to grab at the girl, trying to haul her into his arms as a shield and a hostage, his manacled hands rough and hurting.

  Reactions—like those scripted in an action movie—resulted as she spun out of the idiot’s grip, leaving a window of opportunity for Finn. Sprinting forward, he managed to approach the dude, just as the girl let loose a kick that landed in Finn’s mid-section and put him on his ass. He ended up sprawling on the other agent and they both went down. Meanwhile, the culprit who’d started it all hadn’t given up on his original intention. Still wanting the girl, he bent over to make another move, and she felled him with a karate chop to his neck that would have stunned a horse. Finn winced. Ooooh… that must have hurt! Quickly, he scrambled to subdue the screeching fool now rolling on the floor. He hauled him up and passed him over to the red-cheeked agent. Muttering his thanks, the guard took out his embarrassment on the still moaning fool as he roughly hauled him away.