Page 42 of Trust No One

Mel studied the map. “This small pullout here,” she said, “There’s a space about half-way between the two parking areas. It’s next to a little pond. Probably so people can pull over and look at the pond.”

“We’ll park there. Gives us more time to get situated,” Dev said.

“How do we figure out where they’ll go to talk?” Mel swiveled in her seat and studied him.

“We look for where there’s the most cover,” Dev said immediately. “No path. Lots of trees and bushes. Rugged. The kind of place hikers would avoid.”

“Like finding a needle in a haystack,” Mel muttered.

“I suspect we’ll be able to figure out where they’ll be. They’ll want to be far enough from the road so no one sees them, but not far enough to make it a trek to get back to their cars. And they’ll want lots of cover.” He reached over and touched her hand. “I’ll figure it out.”

“Okay,” she said. “Good.” She trusted that he’d find the most likely hiding place. It was the kind of thing Dev had done all the time on his missions for the CIA.

Eight minutes later, he pulled the rented SUV off the road near the pond. Looking around, he backed up to the very end of the wider part of the pavement, then backed a little more. He only stopped when branches began slapping at the car doors.

“This should work,” he said. “We’re not completely hidden from the road, but we’re not as visible. I’m hoping that Kingsley and Larrimore are too focused on finding that parking area on the other side of the road to pay close attention to this side.”

“Smart and cunning,” Mel said. She leaned toward him and patted his cheek. “The perfect combination.”

Dev whipped his head around to watch her as he brushed his fingers over the place she’d touched. “Thanks,” he finally said, his voice a little rough. “High praise coming from the Queen of Devious.”

Smiling, Mel exited the car, shut the door then checked to make sure her gun was secured at her hip. She wore a lightweight jacket to conceal it but knew she could access it instantly.

Dev slid out the other door, and also checked for his gun. Then he looked at her. “You ready to do a little walking?”

“Yeah. Let’s go get into place.”

They hiked close to the road so they could spot the parking area Kingsley had mentioned. As soon as they saw it ahead of them, Dev veered off the road and into the stand of trees.

“The creek should be in this little ravine,” he said in a low voice. “They’ll probably follow the creek, close to where they parked. Easiest way not to get lost.” He scanned both sides of the ravine. “They’ll probably stay on the other side,” he said. “There’s a defined path on our side, so it’s more likely to be busy. I’m sure they don’t want to be overheard. Or seen.”

“Makes sense,” Mel said. “Should we get closer to the ravine? We’ll have to stay concealed, but we need to be as close to them as possible, if we’re going to try and video their meeting.”

“Yeah, that would be ideal. But we may not know exactly where they’ll go.” He scanned trees and bushes in front of him. “Stay here,” he said after a moment. “Let me go take a look.”

Mel rolled her eyes at his back as Dev slid into the greenery, his movements eerily silent. He wove through the shrubs and swiveled around the trees like he did this every day. In moments, he’d disappeared completely. She strained to listen but heard nothing. He’d vanished into the shrubbery.

He was damn good at this.

Five minutes later, he reappeared. “I found the perfect place,” he said, taking her hand and leading her downhill. “Close to where I think they’ll be, but enough foliage to camouflage us and keep us hidden.”

They picked their way down the slope, Dev holding her hand tightly to steady her. He finally stopped at a fallen log that was close enough to the creek that she could hear the water burbling.

Drawing her down onto the log, he said in a low voice, “There’s an old bench on the other side, near the creek. It’s dilapidated, like no one remembers it’s there. I’m guessing that’s where Kingsley’s going. It’s close enough to the rim of the ravine to hide them from anyone driving past. And the sound of the creek will help cover their conversation.”

“So what do we do if they go somewhere else?” Mel said, sliding her hands beneath her thighs.

Dev’s gaze dropped to her thighs for a moment, and he gave her his one-sided smile. “We use their voices to follow them and get close enough to film them.”

The sun went behind a cloud, and Mel shivered without the warmth. Dev put his hand over hers. “I know you’re not an ops person,” he said. “But we’ll be fine.” He unleashed that grin on her again, the one that always made her hormones stand up and take notice. “If they get close to use, we’ll roll onto the ground and pretend we’re a pair of lovers making out.” He pulled the knit hat she’d worn the day before out of his pocket and handed it to her. “Stuff your hair inside this, so Kingsley won’t see your hair and get suspicious.”

“You thought of everything,” she said as she stuffed her curls into the hat.

“My job as the ops guy,” he said with a shrug.

Moments later he grabbed her wrist. Put a finger over her lips. “Here they come,” he breathed into her ear.

Mel pulled her phone out of her pocket and prepared to take a video. She reached into her bag and grabbed one of the directional mics, then handed the other one to Dev. They both turned the volume all the way down, in case their phones rang. They both focused on the area across the creek. Fiddled with the settings, then held their phones and the attached mics loosely in their hands.

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