Page 54 of Freeing Camila

“I’ll explain when you get here,” he answered cryptically.

“Is everything okay?”

She heard his heavy sigh even over the phone line. “Yeah, sprite. Everything is fine. Just dealing with some shit.”

“Oh. Okay.”

“See you soon?”

“Yeah. I’m off at three.”

“Okay. Till then.” He hung up before she could say goodbye.

The rest of her shift, her stomach churned with anxiety, a knot of dread tightening with each passing moment as she anticipated their conversation. She wondered what stuff he was dealing with. And did it involve her?

She wouldn’t get any answers worrying, so she tried to stuff it down. When her shift ended, she grabbed her bag and walked the few blocks to where she knew the Condor’s Overwatch offices were located.

Wade met her in the lobby. His expression was guarded, closed off, and that knot in her stomach tightened.

He led her to a conference room where the guys she’d met at the bar as well as a few others sat around a long table. Her nerves ramped up. This couldn’t be good.

Wade held out a chair for her to sit in, then sat beside her when she was settled. The man at the head of the table spoke first. “Hello, Ms. Pierce. I’m Flint Condor. I own Condor’s Overwatch.”

“Nice to meet you. Call me Cammie,” she replied, hoping her voice didn’t sound as shaky as she felt. She observed Wade’s boss, taking in his imposing stature and the way he carried himself with an air of authority. He possessed a certain sharpness, a quality evident not only in his impeccably tailored suit, a stylish garment in its own right, but also in his demeanor and overall presence. She once heard Marilyn talking about a silver fox, and this man definitely qualified as one. With the dusting of silver at his temples and his striking blue eyes, Flint Condor was hot.

“Cammie. I’ve heard you’ve met the guys, but not Haley.” He gestured toward an attractive brunette, whose hair was pulled back in a knot atop her head, held in place by?was that a pencil? She was the only one at the table with a laptop in front of her.

“Hi, Cammie,” the woman said with an awkward wave. “I’m Haley Lamb.”

“Haley’s our computer guru,” Wade clarified. That explained the laptop.

She didn’t know what to say, so she just nodded. As she sat with her hands resting in her lap, she began to nervously thread her fingers together, twisting them repeatedly.

“You’re probably wondering why you’re here, so I’ll get right to it,” Flint said. “Baker Rawlins called me a few weeks ago and asked a favor.”

“Oh,” she whispered, suddenly aware where this was going. “So you know who I am?”

“Yes.”

She wanted to look at Wade, to gauge his reaction, but she resisted. Keeping her eyes on his boss instead. Suddenly, she remembered the conversation she had with Wade about what Condor’s Overwatch did. Particularly the investigations part. “I don’t know anything,” she blurted.

“We know. Baker told us. He also told us what you’ve been through. I’m sorry you had to experience that.”

Still not knowing what to say, she gave another nod.

“But we didn’t bring you here to talk about that.”

“You want to talk about my father,” she assumed. “But I really don’t know anything.”

“That’s okay. We don’t need anything from you. This is simply to provide you with an update on what’s been happening. Baker, together with Haley?”

Haley snorted. “Second billing again. Geez, boss.”

Flint ignored the woman’s outburst and continued, “Have been digging deep into your father’s affairs. What they’ve uncovered is disturbing, to say the least.”

“Man’s a monster,” Haley muttered.

Cammie felt like laughing. They weren’t telling her anything she didn’t already know. From the moment her mom left her on his doorstep, she knew he was a monster.

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