Page 42 of Ace of Spades
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Nate hated how Taylor had closed in on herself, hated even more that he was the cause. Her face was a blank page, not a hint of emotion showing. But she’d let the situation affect her judgment, and he couldn’t allow that to pass. This would have been easier to deal with before last night. Now all he wanted to do was drag her onto his lap and hold her close, giving her whatever she wanted.
There was a wall between them that had never existed before, and that was his greatest regret. He’d lost his best friend. Although too late in coming where she was concerned, lesson learned. Never let his desires come before the job. She was a fellow agent, and he should have never given into temptation. It might be different if something could come of it, but he had nothing to offer her, even though the idea of a life with her sent a longing through his heart that he was having trouble ignoring.
“Tell me something,” he said. “And be honest. If you were the lead on an investigation and you learned one of your team ... let’s say Rand. If Rand had a connection with the bad guy, but you didn’t know who your suspect was, didn’t know if he knew where Rand lived, the placeshe went, who his family was, or what your bad guy’s intentions were, what would you do?” He held up a hand. “Before you answer, add to that mix that the case, for whatever reasons, turned personal for Rand, which would mean that you couldn’t predict his behavior. Now you can answer.”
Anger flashed in her eyes. “Are you implying that I won’t do my job? That I can’t be trusted?”
“We’re not talking about you yet.” He scrubbed his hand over his jaw, which was in much need of a shave. With everything that had happened since Rothmire had called with the news of another body, he hadn’t even made it home to shower and change the clothes he’d been wearing since yesterday. He resisted the urge to sniff under his arms.
“Answer the question, Taylor,” he softly said. There was no reason to remind her to be honest. He knew she would be, and hopefully, her answer would sink in and the proverbial light bulb would go off.
She made circles on the table with her finger. He waited her out, letting her work his hypothetical question from all the angles. Taylor Collins was one of the smartest people he knew, and if she could separate her emotions from her brain, she’d realize he had no choice in his decision.
Finally, she sat up straight, looked him in the eyes, and said, “I’d put him at a desk, out of sight. Is that what you plan to do with me?”
“Yes. You’ll still be involved with the investigation, but behind the scenes.” He let out a relieved breath, thankful that they’d successfully jumped the first hurdle.
“I’m not happy, but I understand. It’s better than being taken totally off the case, I guess.”
He hated that defeated voice. She wouldn’t be any good to them if she didn’t believe that she was a valuable member of the team, so he needed to restore her confidence in herself. But first, he had some more heavy shit to drop on her.
“It’s likely that our killer knows who you are. And if so, he might know about Rosie and the girls.”
Her face paled. “Oh, God. I should have considered that.”
“Yes, you should have. That’s why you need to step back and regroup.” He leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. “You have to stop seeing your mother in each of these dead women. It’s clouding your vision.”
She covered her face with her hands. “I think I’m going to be sick.”
“Look at me, Taylor.” When she raised her eyes to his, he said, “No, you’re not. What you are going to do is your job. I want you to work with Court on searching for similar murders. Also, I want you to work closely with Pauline on keeping her profile updated as we get new information. I was going to call her this morning with what we learned last night but haven’t had a chance. You need to do that as soon as we’re finished here.”
“What about Rosie and the girls? We can’t leave them unprotected.”
“We’re not. Josh is sitting in front of their house right now. But I think we should send them on a vacation so we don’t have to worry about them. We have a safe house in Jersey that’s only a few blocks from the beach. The girls would love it there. You on board with that?”
“What about school?” She shook her head. “Don’t answer. That was a stupid question. Their lives are more important than anything else.”
“Nothing’s going to happen to them, Taylor. That’s one thing I can promise you.” The gratitude shining in her eyes, as if he were some kind of hero, made him uneasy. He wasn’t anyone’s hero. Not his brothers’, as he hadn’t been able to protect them from their father’s fists and worse, and not hers. Not when he’d crossed a line he shouldn’t have.
“Thank you. I’d die if they were hurt.”
“I know. So you’re on board with sending them away until this is over?”
“Absolutely. I’ll go see Rosie as soon as we’re done here.” Her eyes shifted away, then landed back on him. “I was out of line, but it won’t happen again. As for my new assignment, you know I’ll give it my all.”
“I do know that. There’s one other thing you’re not going to like. You don’t go anywhere without a partner.” When she opened her mouth, he was sure intending to protest, he shook his head. “That’s not negotiable. This is no reflection on you or your abilities. We don’t know what this clown is capable of or what he has planned. I’d put the same rule in place if it was any other member of the team.”
“Okay. Just do me a favor and catch this bastard fast so I can get out of jail.”
“That’s the plan. Let me know what Pauline has to say after you talk to her.” He pushed away from the table.
“Nate?”
“Yeah?”
“What about us?”
