Page 40 of Misdirection

Olive stood near the park bench where Ryan had told her to meet him.

It was cold outside, and she wasn’t sure her coat was sufficient for the weather. But she’d push through. After all, Chicago was known as the windy city. The breeze came off Lake Michigan and funneled through the tall buildings, making the cold feel even colder.

She glanced at the people milling about. Many were businessmen and women who’d gotten off work and were now hurrying to their cars or to dinner. Some were tourists exploring the area and anxious to see the famous “Bean” nearby.

Chicago was the third largest city in the US, boasting nearly three million residents. It had eight major sports teams, two hundred theaters, and seventy-four music festivals.

The average wind speed here was ten miles an hour, and the windiest month was January—in other words, right now.

This was only Olive’s second time in Chicago. She and her college friends had come up here once for an Ed Sheeran concert and enjoyed exploring for the weekend.

Despite the rising crime rate, the city was nice enough. But Olive had never been much of an urban girl. Though she’dthought she hated small towns when she was a teenager, now she could see the appeal.

It was safer for her to live in places where she could blend in more easily.

That was why her home base was now in Indianapolis—where Aegis was based out of.

As the hair on the back of her neck suddenly rose, she glanced around.

Why did she feel as if unseen eyes were watching her? Olive had been careful when she left work. She’d made sure no one was following her.

Jason had given her a look as she exited the building, but she’d ignored him. Then Sonny had started to rib him again about being a grump. Their banter was a welcome distraction.

Ignoring Jason was the best thing she could do right now.

She hated the fact he’d been hurt by her father’s actions. Though Olive wasn’t the one who’d done him dirty, she still felt guilty.

She couldn’t blame Jason for being skeptical about her. She’d feel the same way in his shoes. Plus, he wasn’t wrong.

She was there for other purposes than her job title implied. However, Duncan was the only one who could know her real identity.

But someonehadbeen on her computer. She still didn’t know who or why. She’d be wise to be cautious. Her job required her to always be on guard.

She couldn’t remember the last time she’d let down her guard and relaxed.

She scanned everything around her again. Saw the bus pulling up. People getting off, not giving her a second look. Saw a man amble past with his dog. Saw a woman with a stroller and a red-cheeked toddler seated inside.

But she didn’t see anyone watching her.

She glanced at the time. Ryan still wasn’t here. Where was he?

He was only ten minutes late. Maybe he’d gotten caught up with something at work. Olive would give him another few minutes before she became too concerned.

The breeze blew across the concrete jungle and swirled around her again, and she pulled up the collar of her brown wool coat.

She’d had to dress many different ways in her job as a PI. But dressing professionally with every hair in place was probably her least favorite. She hated fussing over her appearance, but she had to sell herself as a professional, and this was what it meant.

However, she’d been doing undercover assignments for so long that she wasn’t sure what her real style even was. But she felt the most comfortable wearing her favorite jeans and a sweatshirt. Casual wear.

Her thoughts drifted to her dad again. Would he be proud of her? After all, he was the one who’d taught her the value of charm and charisma. Who’d taught her how to adopt different personas in different situations.

But was he a government operative buried so deep in his undercover work that the government paid him off-the-books? Or was he a con man who swindled people out of money?

Olive wasn’t sure she wanted to know that answer.

But she also knew she’d stop at nothing to find out.

When this assignment was over, maybe she’d take some time for herself. She’d dig deeper into her father’s past.

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