Page 32 of Island Holiday

He shook his head. “No, people don’t ask, because they don’t know. You’re the only person I’ve talked to about it since I got out.” He studied the view through the window, his throat clogged with emotion. “The only people I wanted to talk to were my family. They aren’t interested in anything I have to say anymore.”

“That’s not fair—”

“It’s on them.” He gave her shoulder a squeeze. “Prison sucks. Simple as that. I wasn’t in long, but it affected me. I spend as much time as possible outside. It’s like every day I wake up and need to see a sky that isn’t framed by concrete walls and fencing crowned with barbed wire. I need some confirmation that I can go and do whatever it is I want to do. I’m not a big fan of tight spaces. And I am careful as hell about my work.”

Her brow furrowed and she was quiet for a long minute. “You wouldn’t have been traced back the way Zimmer caught me.”

The topic change left him behind for a second. He expected her to ease away from his touch or tell him to get lost. But she was still right there at his side, though her mind had clearly wandered back to the case.

Connor snorted. “That’s not a given. And neither one of us believes Zimmer did that.”

“Probably not. But someone caught me.”

“I don’t think you made a mistake, Sonya. I think he has another ally. Someone with serious computer skills. Makes sense, considering he has hired muscle too.”

“Here’s hoping we can identify the computer expert and rescue those girls.” Her gaze slid back to the window. “Whoever traced my snooping must’ve gotten lucky. No one in my past has the skills.” She nipped her lip. “No one would even care enough to bother me.”

He didn’t like the misery in her eyes. “Sonya, talk to me. Trust me.”

“I do trust you,” she replied immediately. “Talking about old baggage?” She shook her head. “I don’t see how that helps.”

“Come on. It’s me,” he said, his tone going sharp. “I built a file on Zimmer and the people he’s used, not just the women who are missing. You built a profile from his finances. Together we can sort this out.”

“Maybe.” She scooted away from him. “As a kid, I was a pest, a snitch, and a problem. I’ve worked hard to go unnoticed. It’s been working. I’m a shadow slipping along through life. A shadow with the perfect bosses and a couple of amazing friends.”

“Is that enough?” he asked.

“Has to be.” She sighed. “My point is that my past isn’t the real issue. Missing a tripwire or leaving a trail is a big screw up.”

He recognized the worry on her face. “You’re worried about your job.”

“Not sure how you do that so well, but yes.”

He read her so well because he paid attention. First to the big things, but since meeting her in person, all the little things as well. “Well put that concern away,” he stated. “Gamble and Swann haven’t lost faith in you.”

“What about you?”

“Not a chance.”

“You don’t need to spare my feelings,” she said. “Most of my life has been one trap after another. I didn’t serve time, but that was luck more than anything else.”

“Not buying it,” he said. “You’re you.”

She dropped her head back against the seat. “I am. Given a choice, I always side with law enforcement. The habit didn’t make me popular with my family.”

“Which is why you found a new family.”

“True.”

He wanted to be included in that tight circle. Eventually. “We have some time, let’s talk it through.”

“Okay.”

She was clearly skeptical, so he approached it as he would any other research task. “Who knows how you work well enough to catch you? A jealous college classmate, an ex-boyfriend…” He paused, waiting for her to fill in the gaps.

She didn’t. “I’ve told you, no one from my past has the skills. My family isn’t overflowing with scholars or computer geeks.”

No, he wasn’t surprised, he just needed her to think. “What about more recently?”

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