Page 38 of A Rebel's Shot

“Yes, we were supposed to meet, but he never showed.” Dr. Erikson’s voice was tinged with regret. “When I found out about his death, I… I decided to lay low.”

Merritt closed her eyes, a wave of grief washing over her.

“Why are you calling now?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

“When I heard the mine was moving forward, I knew I couldn’t stay quiet.” Dr. Erikson’s tone grew urgent, almost desperate. “Merritt, there are things you need to know, things your father wanted to discuss with me.”

Her eyes flew open, her heart pounding in her chest. “What things?”

“Not over the phone.” Dr. Erikson’s voice dropped, as if he were afraid of being overheard. “We need to meet in person. It’s not safe to discuss this any other way.”

Merritt’s mind raced, a thousand questions swirlingin her head. What had her father discovered? Why hadn’t he mentioned it in his journal? And why did Dr. Erikson sound so afraid?

She glanced at Tiikâan again, her gaze locking with his. In that moment, she knew she couldn’t keep this from him. Not after everything they’d been through, not after the almost-kiss that still lingered on her lips like a promise unfulfilled.

“I’ll meet you in Fairbanks on Saturday,” Merritt said, her voice steady despite the fear that coiled in her gut. “Where and what time?”

Dr. Erikson rattled off an address and a time, his voice low and urgent. “Come alone, and make sure you’re not followed.”

“I’ll be there.” Merritt ended the call, her heart racing as she slowly lowered the phone from her ear. She stared at it for a long moment, trying to process the bombshell that had just been dropped on her.

Her father had hired a geologist to investigate the mine’s safety. The same mine that was now her responsibility. The same mine that appeared more and more like it led to her dad’s death.

“Merritt?” Tiikâan stepped closer to the desk. “You all right?”

She turned to look at Tiikâan, seeing the unspoken question in his eyes. He had been there for her through everything. But could she trust him with this? With the truth about her father’s message and the threats she’d received?

The words were there, hovering on the tip of her tongue. She wanted to tell him everything, to unburdenherself of the secrets that were slowly eating away at her. But something held her back, a fear that telling him would put a target on his back.

The safest thing would be to keep him from this mess.

She schooled her features and pulled on her icy façade, the muscles in her face feeling stiff and unnatural.

“Everything’s fine.” The lie tasted bitter on her tongue. “Just some business I need to take care of.”

Tiikâan studied her for a long moment, his gaze searching her face. “Okay.”

She tipped her head, raised one eyebrow, and took on the tone she used with Joni. “Anything else?”

His eyebrows furrowed as he shook his head. “I’m here if you need me.”

“Noted.” She turned from him and rounded her desk, focusing on papers stacked on her credenza.

A few seconds passed before he huffed. The door closed with a soft click. Merritt’s shoulders sagged, her vision blurring with unshed tears.

As she turned back to her desk, her gaze fell on the scattered geologist reports, the pages seeming to mock her with their secrets. She knew that nothing would be fine until she uncovered the truth.

But as she gathered the papers with trembling hands, she couldn’t shake the feeling that the price of that truth might be higher than she ever could have imagined. The question was, was she willing to pay it?

SIXTEEN

Tiikâan dramatically moaned in delight around the bite of sandwich, hoping to get a reaction from Merritt.

Yet Merritt stabbed her fork into her salad and didn’t even look at him. Thank goodness the restaurant in the hotel wasn’t that busy. No one to see her practically ignore his existence.

With her shoulders pulled back and the rod rammed where the sun didn’t shine, she was even worse than their first meeting. She’d been distant since that phone call in her office two days before, not talking to him and going home the minute they touched down in Barrow.

He didn’t get it.

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