Page 5 of Tracing Her Stolen Identity
Her arms went up in the air as she stretched, and he forced his gaze away from how her chest jutted into his space. “How long have I been asleep?”
“About two hours,” he answered, turning down the driveway and hitting a button on his truck console. “Secure Watch, Riker.” They used the same greeting eachtime they made contact with each other. If they ever got a communication from a team member who didn’t use the code greeting, they knew that the team member was under duress and to send help.
“Secure Watch, Whiskey.”
“Mina, we’re at the house.”
“Garage in three, two, one,” she said as the garage door opened. Reece couldn’t hold in his laughter as he shook his head.
“Thanks, Mina. I’ll be in touch as soon as we’re settled.” He hit the button again on the console to hang up and pulled into the darkened garage, his headlights illuminating the space around them.
“That’s high-tech,” Skylar said, glancing at him. “Is she going to shut it, too?”
He held up his finger until the overhead door slid back down behind the truck. “Yes,” he answered with a wink. “The house has digital passcodes to lock and unlock the doors and open the garage. Mina has unlocked everything,” he explained as he shut off the truck. “Once we’re inside, she’ll turn the passcode and security protocols over to me. If anyone breaches the security system or cameras, then Secure One takes control of the house to keep the occupants safe until they can get out.”
“As I said, high-tech.” She lifted a brow at him, and he shrugged.
“Secure One and Secure Watch are in the security business. It’s what we do, and considering Secure One’s track record with picking up cases that end up putting team members in danger, Cal stopped taking chances with his people. He now has places all over the area to stash people who need safekeeping.”
“Safekeeping.That’s a nice way of saying hiding out, I suppose.” She worked at one of the Velcro straps holding her thighs together.
“Life is always about how you look at things, Sky.” He winked. “Wait here while I grab your chair.”
“Where am I going to go?” she asked, her head tipped sideways until he did a facepalm that brought laughter to her lips.
“Sorry, habit. I’ll be right back.”
Reece slid out of the truck and stretched his long legs for the first time in hours. The ride had been uneventful, and he hoped his time here at the safe house would be equally so. At least until Mina could tell them who this Binate person was. He’d do his own digging while they waited, and with any luck, he’d have Skylar back home and out of his life by tomorrow. Would that be his luck, though? He’d lived the last decade holding on to the occasional glimpses he’d get of her from a newspaper article or a clipping his mom would send him about her artwork. He’d always assumed that one day when his Google Alert went off about Skylar Sullivan, it would be because she had made it big. Not because she was wanted for vandalism. The thought struck him, and he grabbed his phone. After he opened the alert again, he checked the date of the warrant. It had been issued forty-eight hours ago. She was out of town then, so the police would have waited for her to return to the city. He tucked his phone back in his pocket and grabbed the wheelchair. As of forty-eight hours ago, Skylar Sullivan had still existed. That was an essential part of the timeline.
He lowered her wheelchair to the ground and pushed it to her side of the truck. His truck was twice the size and height as hers, so he’d had to lift her from her chair intothe seat when they left. The sensation of having her in his arms again almost short-circuited his brain. She was soft, warm and smelled of lemons and tangerines. Whatever the scent was, it was a far cry from the overpowering perfume she wore in high school. This new scent fit her aura. She was always about nature and the soothing vibes it offered. He’d noticed the soft, breezy linens in her home also reflected that. It was like Skylar Sullivan had come into her own while he’d been away, and it excited him to think he’d get the chance to know her again.
The door cracked open, and she peeked out. “Are you going to stand there all day?”
His daydream broken, he jumped and stepped forward, nearly tripping over the chair but righting himself at the last moment. “Sorry,” he said, clearing his throat as though it would be as easy to clear his mind of thoughts of her. “I was checking something on my phone. I’ll tell you about it once we’re inside.”
He moved in to scoop her up and noticed she’d unstrapped her legs while he was getting her chair. Guilt lanced him. It had been fourteen years, but he remembered every second of that night in slow motion. He relived those seconds in his dreams at least two or three times a week. If he was overtired or saw something that reminded him of her, he braced himself for the dreams to come.The Friday night lights. The crowd loud and rowdy. The breeze on his face as he grabbed her waist, ready to lift her into the air.He gave his head a shake and cleared his mind of those memories. She’d admitted she trusted him, and he wouldn’t let her down this time.
He lifted her off the seat with a smile and cradled her against his chest. He’d been right. Her curves were soft,and when she’d thrown her arms around his neck, his chest tightened, reminding him that Skylar Sullivan still had a hold over him.
Wishing he didn’t have to, but knowing he did, he lowered her into the custom manual wheelchair. It looked new and fit her like a glove. The seat reclined slightly, which he knew would make it easier for her to remain upright in the chair, since not all her abdominal muscles worked after the accident. Her legs were supported at the calves by a strap, and her footplate was tilted just enough to account for the tilt in the seat back. The custom backrest wrapped around her ribs to offer her support there, and the wheels were thin, black and, if he had to guess, fast. Sky always loved to go fast, whether on a bike or his go-cart. The frame and back of the seat were painted bright white, and he’d noticed on the way out to his truck earlier that the front rollerblade wheels lit up in rainbow colors with every turn. What he loved the most was the floral overlay on the frame. He ran his hand over the decoration, surprised when it was raised under his fingers.
“I painted it,” she answered as though she knew his question. “That’s why I went with a white frame. I needed a blank canvas to do my work. Otherwise, white would be a bad choice living in a city where it’s impossible to keep it clean half the year,” she added with a wink.
“Stunning work,” he said, standing and slamming the truck door. “I thought it was a decal, but I should have known better.”
Her laughter lit up the garage as though night had turned to day. “You really should have,” she answered as she wheeled up the ramp.
Reece pushed the door open for her from behind thechair, and she wheeled into their home away from home. As he brought in their bags and shut the back door, he realized how true that statement was about too many things concerning Skylar Sullivan. He should have known better.
Chapter Five
Skylar studied the man who had dropped everything to run to her aid. It made her insides gel to accept that he was even more handsome now than in high school. It upended her a bit, since she never dreamed that was possible. She’d been wrong. He’d put years on, but those years had been kind. Age had changed him from the beautiful boy he’d once been into a ridiculously handsome man. Then there was the heterochromia iridum—a fancy way of saying two different-colored eyes. Fewer than one percent of humans had two different-colored eyes, and he’d always said that when he got old enough, he would buy a contact lens so that his eyes would finally match.
She couldn’t help but smile at the memory of how mad she had gotten about that statement. After his suggestion, she’d given him the silent treatment for two days until he finally agreed never to wear a colored contact. From what she could tell, he hadn’t broken his promise to her.
Speaking of the silent treatment, that’s what he’d been giving her since they’d settled into the house.Aloofwas a word that came to mind. He’d given her a necessary tour of the house, showing her the modifications that would help her and what to do if something happened to him. Therewas a basement, but that wasn’t where she was to hide. There was a room behind a panel in the main bedroom closet. It wasn’t large, but it was big enough for two people, including her chair. It also held the necessary computer equipment to access help if the situation arose. However, Reece had made it very clear that once she was in it, she wasn’t getting out until someone opened it from the central control room when it was deemed safe. She supposed he’d told her that knowing about her claustrophobia, but in a life-or-death situation, she’d take being trapped in a small room over dying. Besides, it wasn’t likely to come to that. Sure, whoever this Binate person was had tossed her place, but no attempts had been made on her life, and let’s face it, she was easy enough to find. It wasn’t like she could outrun anyone for very long. This house, and finding out there were several more around the state, not to mention the underground bunkers, had made it sink in how much danger she might be in. Secure One had battled sex traffickers, serial killers, mob bosses and everything in between. The fact that they had taken her on as a client without needing to be convinced told her she was in hot water. Sure, Reece had been her childhood friend, but if his team had thought for half a second that things weren’t as bad as they were, they never would have given him the go-ahead to bring her here.
Reece acted like this was nothing but a job, but she knew the truth. He’d been acting like this since the night of the accident. One moment, he was warm, loving and laughing, and the next, he dropped a curtain of distance and pain between them. It might have had something to do with her pushing him away and telling him they could never be more than friends.
