Page 32 of The Negotiator

Instead of breaking down or yelling—both would have been understandable—she shook her head and inched back from the now invisible outline of blood. “That sounds like a terrible job.”

“But necessary.” He went to her this time. Rubbed his hands up and down her arms. “Anything obvious?”

She gave the area within view a quick look. “No. Could this have been a false alarm?”

Anything was possible but Garrett didn’t believe in coincidences. “We set up motion sensors. Something set one of them off.”

Her eyebrow lifted. “How did you manage that?”

That tone he recognized. She brought it out when dealing with business matters and when she thought he was trying to walk over her. It bugged him at first but now it was one of his favorite things about her. It meant Lauren was Lauren. She wasn’t locked in the past or swept away by anger or grief.

“Carl came here for a reason, possibly to look for something since he waited until you weren’t here to come in. If true, I thought the person who killed him might come back looking for the same thing.”

“Whatever that was.”

“Exactly.” Garrett wasn’t used to explaining his actions. Wren gave him a lot of room to maneuver. Garrett had worked Kayla’s case with Matthias and had his trust as well. “There was a small chance, so I took it.”

“Smart.”

The tension pinging around the room died down. “Thanks.”

She stepped into the kitchen and opened a few cabinets. “Any chance you set up cameras, too?”

He guessed there was a right answer to this. He knew what it was. He hoped she did. “Actually...”

Her head shot around and she looked at him again. “Really?”

“A few. I called Wren. He’s checking the feed.”

She treated him to a small smile. “You guys take this stuff seriously.”

“Your being in danger? Yes, I do.”

She started to say something but stopped when the front door opened. Matthias stepped in wearing a suit without a tie, further convincing Garrett the guy didn’t own anything else.

“Hey.” Matthias kept his hand on Kayla’s elbow as he ushered her inside. “She insisted on joining me.”

“Of course I did.” Kayla glanced at Garrett. “But I couldn’t convince him to wear the casual clothes I bought him.”

Garrett winked at her. “Next time.”

“What are we looking at here?” Matthias asked as he stepped further into the living area.

Lauren pulled a water bottle out of the refrigerator and motioned to the rest of the room. They all shook their heads and she kept it for herself. “Matthias, I don’t understand how someone got around your guys and got in here.”

Matthias smiled at Garrett. “You didn’t tell her that part?”

Confusion spread across Lauren’s face. “What?”

Garrett had figured this was part of the setup he and Matthias discussed. Now he had confirmation. “When you want to trap someone inside, you lure them in. You don’t make it hard.”

“Did you leave her door open?” Kayla asked.

“That would be a rookie move. Too obvious.” Matthias shrugged. “Cracked two hard-to-reach windows in different locations in the house and someone took the bait.”

Kayla leaned up and kissed Matthias on the cheek, not an easy feat since the guy was about six-four. “That’s pretty hot.”

Since Garrett would rather be anywhere but at the house that held all the bad memories for Lauren, he kickstarted the conversation. “We had an alarm in the bedroom and one in here. The place is clear of intruders but who knows what else we might find.”

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