Page 27 of Echo

However, Wizard’s concern was valid. Over the past couple of weeks, she’d been making more and more comments about Ash’s future in politics and wanting to introduce him to the heads of prestigious law firms. I’d begun to worry about her motives as well. Especially when it had become clear that she was getting frustrated that he hadn’t taken her up on her offer to go back to her place or come back to his.

But Ash had been confident that she was still on the con, so we trusted his judgment.

“Are you alright, sweetheart?” Cynthia asked as she rubbed his back in slow circles.

“Sure, darlin’,” he croaked with a fake laugh. “I was a little distracted by your beauty, and my drink went down the wrong way.”

She batted her lashes at him, and a blush stained her cheeks as she played with the diamond necklace circling her throat.

There was no way that woman had a single thing to blush about.

“I would say I’m sorry, but I can’t pretend I’m not flattered.”

Ash grinned and slipped his arm around her waist. “It’s not flattery if it’s true, sweetheart.”

“Elias…ummm…would you mind terribly holding this for me?” She held out her small clutch and batted her fake lashes again, and I couldn’t help but think that it was weird hearing anyone call him by his full name. The few people who didn’t call him by his road name used Eli. “I don’t know what I was thinking of bringing that old thing. I completely forgot that the wrist strap was broken.”

Ash frowned at the clutch, then gave her a charming smile. “You shouldn’t be wearing things that aren’t as beautiful as you, darlin’. How about we go shopping tomorrow?”

Cynthia giggled again, making me wince. “Oh, Elias. You are the sweetest. You don’t need to take me shopping!”

“I know I don’t need to, sweetheart. I want to. You deserve everything your heart desires. Now, let me take that for you so you don’t have to worry about a thing.”

She patted her blond updo and blushed before leaning up on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

Yeah, Violet had been right to blow a fucking gasket about me being the bait. Any man who put his lips on her was gonna be staring down the barrel of my gun right before they closed their eyes for good. So I couldn’t blame her if she’d clawed the woman’s eyes out for kissing my cheek.

Ash’s eyes came to the camera again, and I saw the desperate plea in them before he managed to shutter it.

“You know what she’s after, Ash. Figure out how to give it to her fast, and I’ll get you outta there.”

“Thank you,” she said softly, looping her arm around his. “I realized something this morning as I was picking out my dress.”

“Oh? What was that, darlin’?”

“I don’t know what your favorite color is!”

Ash laughed and glanced down at her blue silk dress. “Lucky for me, you wore it.”

“Say it, Ash,” I growled.

“I love blue,” he added quickly.

“Really? That’s amazing! It’s my favorite, too.”

“Just keep talking now that you’re holding the purse,” I instructed him. “As soon as you’ve given her all the sounds she needs for the voice key, I’ll page you for an emergency.”

He gave me an almost imperceptible nod, then launched into what was probably the longest conversation he’d ever had. Other than in the courtroom, Ash was a man of few words. But Cynthia needed a passphrase recorded in Ash’s voice to get into his servers. She had a tech guy on the payroll, and he’d told her all she needed was the specific sounds, and he could piece them together to fool the lock.

“Just a few more. Try to fit bench, moon, trigger, and warrant into your answers. That will give her everything.”

“That should be easy,” Wizard said drolly.

“Not fucking helping,” I muttered.

Ash managed to get in a couple of those words, then found others that would give her the final sounds she needed.

I sighed. “Got it. Give me five minutes.”

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