Page 18 of Imminent Danger

Tank considered her words. He trusted Joey beyond a doubt, but he had not expected her to withhold information like this. “And now?”

Joey winced. “I should have dug deeper. Kaylie was running from a bad situation, but I didn’t realize how bad.”

Dread pooled low in the pit of Tank’s stomach, waiting for the other shoe to drop. His eyes flicked to the screen where the single photo from Kaylie’s social media was on display. Next to it was an image of an entourage coming out of some sort of nightclub.

“Kaylie is running from the Moreno family.”

Tank felt a little nauseous at the revelation.

Joey continued, “I’m not sure exactly what her involvement with them was, but records from the New Jersey FBI have her listed as a known associate, and her last known address was owned by the family.”

Tank blinked, staring at the photo of the young girl. It hardly looked like Kaylie. Instead of the yoga pants and baggy shirts that drove him crazy, she was in a slinky dress and three-inch heels. She had heavy makeup on, and her hair had streaks of purple in it. But it was her, without a doubt. The Moreno family? This was… not good, to put it lightly.

Joey wrung her hands and leaned her elbows on her knees. “I’m so sorry, Tank. I should have made the connection. There’s no excuse.”

Tank shook his head. “No, it’s okay.” Joey had been dealing with a hundred other things at the time, and the housekeeper inquiry was such a minor thing.

Truthfully, he was glad Joey hadn’t made the connection because it probably would have made him refuse to hire her. Too many bad memories from his own childhood. He knew exactly what kind of people associated with families like the Moreno family, because they were the exact same kind of people that stayed close to the Olson family.

“Are you going to be okay?” Joey’s question was soft and caring. “I know you care about her.”

Tank nodded, finally admitting to someone that he had feelings for Kaylie. “She left them, though.” He was clinging to that truth. She hadn’t stayed. Maybe she was more like him, not wanting to be part of that world anymore.

“She did,” Joey confirmed. “I still don’t know exactly what her role within the organization was. She never got arrested, so it’s hard to say. But it’s possible they are looking for her and that’s what got her so spooked the other day.”

Tank nodded absently, still staring at the picture and considering all the new information. “Thanks, Joey. This helps.”

Joey stood up and wrapped her arms around his shoulders awkwardly, giving him a half hug while he remained seated.

“I’ve gotta run to this next meeting, but we can talk more later, okay?”

Without looking away from Kaylie’s photo on the screen, Tank grunted an acknowledgement and heard Joey leave the room. He steepled his hands under his chin, his elbows resting on his knees. Kaylie Richards or Kaylie Hawkins, it didn’t really matter. She might have disappeared for a few days, but she had already come back.

If only she trusted him enough to tell him the truth, maybe he could help. She didn’t know a lot about his job or his own past. But he’d cut ties with the Olson family, leveraging his knowledge and skills to secure his own future. He could do the same for Kaylie, if she’d let him.

He knew that, for now, he’d just have to keep being her friend. And now that he knew about her past, he’d be on the lookout for warning signs too. He had some contacts in New Jersey. Would it be out of line to reach out and get some updated intel on the Moreno family?

Tank ran his hands over his face and took a deep breath. For now, he was just going to be grateful that Kaylie was back from wherever she’d gone. He’d hated not knowing, and after her cryptic text, it was as if she had just disappeared. Her cell phone went completely offline. Joey had tried to track it but couldn’t find it. Which now made sense because Kaylie was apparently far less naive than he’d thought.

She’d left him a note last Thursday, claiming she lost her phone and got a new number. But now, Tank was even more confident she’d ditched her phone because she was scared. Then on Tuesday, when he’d come home early to see her, she’d seemed really run down. Maybe she was still recovering from the incident the previous week. Or maybe she wasn’t sleeping well.

Tank grumbled to himself. He didn’t like that idea. The woman was so focused on taking care of Lia and carrying the weight of all her secrets on her shoulders, it was no wonder she was exhausted.

He glanced at his watch again. If he left before four, he could catch her at his house and make sure she was okay.

But when he made it back to his office, Marshall pulled him into a discussion about QuinTech Missiles and why they might be interested in Marshand Chemical Group in the first place. Marshall even brought in one of their analysts with a chemistry degree to brainstorm.

By the time their impromptu meeting was over, it was nearly 6pm. He’d just have to catch Kaylie next week and hope she took care of herself over the weekend. But when he slid into the front seat of his Range Rover, he realized he hadn’t gotten the usual message that the alarm system had been activated. Kaylie was always very careful to arm the system for him when she left for the day.

He pulled up the app and it confirmed that motion detectors were currently registering activity. A glimmer of anticipation ran through him. Kaylie and Cecelia were still at the house. She’d never taken him up on his offer to drive her home after dark, but maybe tonight was the night. It wasn’t like she was trusting him with her entire story, but it was a start.

CHAPTER

ELEVEN

Tank parked in front of the house, noting the cheery glow of lights through the front windows. The sun had already dipped below the horizon, and the brisk winter air was an unwelcome contrast to the warmth of his SUV. But knowing that someone was inside, even maybe… waiting for him? That feeling might be enough to keep him warm in a desert foxhole overnight. Not that he had any plans to relive that experience again. At least Miranda took better care of them than that.

He opened the front door and pushed inside, dropping his work bag by the door.

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