Page 60 of Deception

Her hands were tied right now, and she’d have to trust that Nova could handle herself.

Nova was a highly trained, highly skilled operative with a well above average intelligence. She would know how to handle this situation.

But Olive didn’t understand why her colleague wasn’t answering the phone. They’d talked about this before she left.

What if something was wrong and that’s why she wasn’t answering?

The thought left her uneasy, and anxiety bubbled inside her.

Olive stared at her computer screen, trying to look busy. But in truth, her mind played out various scenarios. Scenarios where Nova was caught. Where she was questioned. Where this investigation was cut short because of one bad decision and one unanswered phone call.

Olive drew in a slow breath. She had to shift her thoughts.

She wasn’t usually one to feel so panicky. Maybe being back in this town had her at odds with herself.

Olive’s phone jangled, and she nearly jumped out of her seat. A middle-aged woman sitting a few chairs away glanced at her with a curious look in her eyes.

“I guess I was lost in my own world,” Olive said with a laugh. “Please, excuse me.”

That seemed to appease the woman.

Olive glanced at the screen. It was Nova!

Her heart pounded faster, and she quickly put the device to her ear, careful to keep her words in check in case anyone close was listening.

“How is everything?” Olive kept her voice cheery, though she tried to send a hidden message. “I heard Mr. Merryman was coming over. Did you see him?”

“Everything is fine. I got what we needed and left.”

Relief filled her. But she still had more questions.

“I tried to call, but you didn’t answer. I was getting worried.” Again, Olive tried to sound neutral, even though inside she was irritated.

“There was a camera outside, so I used a signal jammer to stop the camera feed. It didn’t let any calls go through either.”

Olive’s eyebrows flew up at the thought. “A signal jammer?”

The woman sitting closest to her shot her a look.

“It was the only thing I could think of to do since I was in a hurry,” Nova explained.

Olive felt the woman’s eyes still on her and said, “I’ve never heard of that band. But cool name.”

“Band?” Confusion stretched through her voice. “Oh, I get it. Someone is listening. The good news is that I think I may have found something. I printed out the bank records. Rebecca might have other hidden accounts I wasn’t able to find. But it’s a good starting place.”

Olive released the pent-up breath she’d been holding. “I’m glad something good came out of this. The party is going to be awesome.”

She glanced at the woman in the waiting room, noting she didn’t appear to be listening anymore. But Olive still needed to be careful.

“I’ll come back to the hospital now, and we can look at them.”

“Sounds great.” She ended the call, grateful Nova was okay.

She really did hope these financial records proved something. Not that they could use records obtained by illegal means to show the FBI and strike up a case against Rebecca.

But at least it would be a start.

Olive looked up in time to see Mitzi motioning to her from behind the desk.

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