Page 19 of Trust No One

“Then we’ll leave at ten, in case there’s an accident.,” she said. “Bad traffic. Or a motorcade closing a street. Get there in plenty of time to check out the pub. Figure out the escape routes from the place. Have a plan before Simon arrives.”

Dev snorted out a laugh. “Simon’s gonna do the same thing,” he said, turning to study her.

“Then we’ll all acknowledge that we’re being careful. Watching our backs.” Mel managed to steady her voice. Bury her emotions deep. Her expression was the one she plastered on when she had a Zoom meeting with a potential client. Calm. Even. In control.

Dev studied Mel for a long moment. Frowned. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong,” she said, speaking too quickly. She swallowed and looked away to steady herself. “Guess I’m getting nervous. I dug into Simon’s background pretty thoroughly, and he seems like a straight shooter. But you never know.”

Dev studied her for a long moment, reminding Mel of how well he knew her. “We’ll leave at nine forty-five,” he said after a long moment. “To make sure we’re the first ones there. Gives us lots of time to check out the place. Figure out where all the exits are. Where to park. Quickest route away from the pub.”

“Yeah, okay. Good idea.”

She grabbed her computer and slid onto the king-sized bed, leaning against the headboard. “I’m going to dig deeper into Simon. Make sure there are no odd socks in his information.”

“Good idea,” Dev said. “I’ll do the same thing.”

“Please do it in your own room,” she murmured under her breath.

“Yeah,” he said. “I’ll work in my room. But I’ll leave the connecting door open. In case, you know, you get nervous in here by yourself.”

At Dev’s teasing, some of her tension dissipated. “Ha, ha. Good one, Dev.” She waved him toward his room. “We’ll talk after we’ve both had a chance to vet Simon a little more.”

“On it,” he said, moving into his own room without looking back at her.

Thank God. She knew he hadn’t noticed her… awkwardness. If he had, being Dev, he would have ragged her about it mercilessly. She sat frozen until she heard him flop onto the bed in the next room. Then she googled Simon Livingston, pushing all thoughts of Dev out of her mind.

She’d gotten really good at that in the last three years.

* * *

At ten-fifteen the next morning, they pulled into the empty parking lot of Donohue’s Irish Pub. Dev squinted and read the sign next to the door. “Opened at ten,” he said.

“You think they’ll serve breakfast?” Mel asked, her stomach rumbling.

Dev shot her a grin. “Full Irish, I’m guessing.”

They drove around the pub, checking out the exits. A dumpster huddled close to what was clearly the kitchen door, with three cars parked close. Another door on the north side of the building looked like it wasn’t used much. “Probably the emergency exit,” Dev said as they drove slowly past.

Mel touched the gun beneath her jacket. They’d both come prepared for treachery, although she hoped they were mistaken.

Once they had memorized the locations of the other two doors, they parked in front of the building, backing the car into a spot that was a straight shot toward the street. The interstate was only a block away, in case they needed to make a run for it.

As they sat in the car, Mel studied the roads around the pub, paying attention to all the cars that drove past. She didn’t see any of them more than once, and she was beginning to relax when Dev jerked his head toward the road. “Another car pulling in. Let’s let them go first.”

An older model SUV turned into the lot and parked close to the door. An older couple got out. He held her arm carefully, and they toddled into the pub. Mel’s mouth curled into a smile. “I think it’s safe to assume that they’re regulars,” she said. “I don’t see them being assassins.”

“I thought you were the queen of ‘never assume’”, Dev said with a grin.

“Okay, maybe they are. But I bet either of us can outdraw them,” Mel retorted, smiling back.

“You’d win that bet,” Dev admitted.

Mel opened the car door. “Let’s go.”

Dev put his hand on her arm. Even through her jacket, his touch burned her skin. “We’ll sit between the front door and that exit door on the north. And far away from the older couple.”

“Agreed,” Mel said. “Makes sense.”

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