Page 11 of Known By You
“See you bright and early,” Kenny said, raising the remaining fingers of his left hand, then turning back to the table.
As I hunched against the cold and made my way down the street to the tiny apartment provided by my new, temporary workplace, an ache settled heavy in my chest.
Oddly, it wasn’t one of longing to be back at my usual job or even to be walking the familiar streets of Budapest toward my own apartment. And even though the sting of bitterness had crept into the way I’d been thinking about work and even the city, I did love it. I loved how capable I felt doing the job, the difference I made, and the respect I had there—or, used to have, pending the outcome of this investigation.
But tonight, something else entirely had taken up root behind my ribs and I had no explanation for it.
Once I nestled down into the surprisingly cozy reading chair with my computer, a fire in the gas fireplace, sweatpants and fuzzy socks on my legs, and a facemask coating my cheeks, I waited for the relief of solitude to settle in.
Funny enough, I waited all night, and it never did come.
CHAPTER SIX
Kenny
After a decent, albeit short, night of sleep, I rolled into the Saint Security parking lot at ten to five. Knowing what I did about Liz, I shouldn’t have been surprised to see another car idling in a spot close to the entrance.
Of course, she ran early. It wasn’t just the military that appreciated promptness, and Liz had always given me the sense she would work twice as hard and be ten times as successful. That said, she seemed to have enough raw intelligence and drive, so she didn’t spend her time trying to prove herself. She was more interested in doing good work because she believed in it and the results—whether in her success with her job or her connections she could exploit or whatever—revealed that.
We got out of our cars at the same time, and I grabbed my bag from the passenger side while she retrieved onefrom the seat behind hers. We shut our doors as though we’d choreographed it and walked toward the building.
Did I match my stride to hers? Yes, I did.
Did it give me a weird thrill to be walking in sync with her?
Sure enough, it did.
“Get some sleep?” I asked, voice still a bit gruff from disuse.
“It’s almost lunchtime in my brain, despite having over forty-eight hours on ground. I’m ready for my body to switch to mountain time.”
The door to the building opened and signaled Cookie was already here. He’d likely parked near the back entrance where the fleet cars were located.
“That’s rough. I’m sure this road trip will do wonders for your circadian rhythm.” We’d be crossing into Pacific time to pick up the package, then rolling right along back here. Likely wouldn’t do anything to help her adjust.
“I’m glad for the distraction.” Her gaze cut to mine, then away.
“What—”
“Glad you made it. Let’s get your weapons signed out and you can get on the road.”
Cookie smacked my hand where I held it high for a five. It might’ve been juvenile, but I got a kick out of the fact that he would literally never leave me hanging. I’d tested it more than once and he always came through, even when the time was far from right.
Call me sentimental, but it reflected who he was pretty accurately. Cookie would be there no matter what. He wasn’t the loudest of us, or the pushiest. He wasn’t particularly grumpy, nor was he full of optimism like me. The manwas solid, steady, and if you believe the ladies, too handsome to look directly in the eye.
He was a faithful, steadfast friend, and I loved him. And therefore, I forced a high five on him whenever I could.
We checked out minimal weapons for concealed carrying and gear we hoped we wouldn’t need. Cookie had already packed the car with an extensive emergency kit, AED machine, and more medical gear than we’d normally take, but for this mission, we wanted all bases covered.
“You’ve got rooms reserved at this hotel, which is a thirty to forty-five minute drive to the house where you’ll pick them up, and they’re planning on an oh-eight-hundred pick up tomorrow. You’ll stop in Vegas on the way back because the client needs to break up the drive rather than doing the full trip in one go.” Cookie tapped away on a laptop while he spoke.
We both nodded, already familiar with these details, but it was standard to give a pre-mission brief to make sure everyone was on the same page.
“Upon arriving in Silverton, you’ll take them directly to their chosen location. I’ll likely be the one to receive.”
We each nodded, the plan unchanged from when Bruce had briefed us.
“Good. Mission complete is at the listed address, ideally no later than three p.m. on Monday.” He held out the car keys between us.
