Page 31 of High Velocity

“I guess I am.”

“Good. You can—” Her voice suddenly falls away, but she’s back the next moment. “Oh, I’ve got a call I have to take. See you at home.”

Before I have a chance to respond, she ends the call.

I wonder if that is the colleague she mentioned on the other line. The one who asked her for a favor. Something about that doesn’t sit right. If she is here in Libby to take a break—find some peace and quiet, as she indicated—then why would a colleague not ask someone else for a favor? Unless, of course, he has a special connection with Stephanie; something to make him think he has a right to lay claim to her personal time.

Does this guy know why she is hiding out in Libby with shadows in her eyes? Or worse yet, did he have something to do with putting them there?

Not normally a jealous person, it takes me a moment to realize that’s why I’m grinding my teeth as I follow Stephanie back to the trailer. The thought she won’t share with me what some other guy already knows makes me even more determined to find out what brought her here.

“So was your lunch informative?” I prompt her when we walk into the trailer twenty-or-so minutes later.

She dumps the small purse on the kitchen counter and toes her shoes off before answering.

“Very. He’s in the area; she’s seen the suspect several times and he is staying close by. She has no clue who she’s dealing with.”

Stephanie plops down on the couch and I take a seat beside her.

“He’s dangerous?”

She glances at me from under her eyebrows.

“That’d be par for the course, with the FBI after him. He went away for armed robbery and aggravated assault for fifteen years, overcrowding and good behavior got him released in ten, he did not hesitate one single second to get right back where he left off—bank heists—except this time he went a little further and killed a police officer in the process.”

“Nice guy,” I observe.

“Right? I don’t know how it is possible, but he somehow managed to get on a dating website five years ago where he met Tracy. He’s been grooming her ever since. She believes he was wrongly convicted in the first place.”

“Let me guess, he told her he was set up?”

“Something like that.”

She abruptly gets to her feet and heads for the kettle sitting on the stove.

“I’m making tea. Want some? Or would you rather have a beer?”

“I’ll have a tea.”

Can’t remember the last time I had a fucking cup of tea, but I don’t feel like beer and I want an excuse to stick around longer.

“So what’s gonna happen now?” I probe. “Does this mean you’re back to work?”

I hate myself for pushing the moment I see her face fall.

“No. My boss would be pissed if he found out. Ben is coming here.”

“Ben is the friend who asked you for the favor?”

“Hmm, not a friend, a colleague.”

Interesting distinction.

“Why would the guy ask you to do something that could get you in trouble?” I want to know.

She shrugs and turns her back to grab a couple of mugs from the cupboard. “It’s complicated.”

This is where she shuts me down if I let her, so I get off the couch and walk right up behind her.

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