Page 43 of Ace of Spades
“There is no us.” He walked out, unable to stay and see her reaction to his words. Nor did he want her to see the regret on his face.
“I want you to dig into Taylor’s mother’s murder,” Nate told Court. He’d called Court and Alex to meet him at his condo so they could talk privately. “The file is thin, but work on running down any of the cops or detectives involved and see what they can add to it. Get Rand to help you. Alex, I want you to personally interview anyone they think might have information.”
Court frowned. “So, these killings really do connect to Taylor and her mother?”
“I think the Polaroid is evidence of a connection of some sort. The question is exactly how? Did he accidently drop the photo, or did he want us to find it? And if the latter, why? Did he kill her mother, or didhe somehow come into possession of the photo? Does he know who Taylor is? It all seems like too much of a coincidence. Too many fucking questions that we need answers to ASAP.”
“We’re going to keep someone on her at all times, right?” Alex said.
“Yeah, and we’re sending Rosie and the girls to a safe house in New Jersey. Taylor’s not happy about either of those things, but she understands.”
“You think this dude might come after her?” Court said.
“Who knows, but I have a bad feeling about this one.”
“Why don’t you just move in with her, or better yet, bring her here?” Alex leaned back in his chair, giving Nate a thoughtful look. “Don’t tell me you wouldn’t like that.”
“For the last time, there is nothing going on between Taylor and me.”
Alex snorted. “Right, but your nose is growing, Pinocchio.”
“I’m going to miss you, baby brother, when he kills you,” Court said, laughing.
“Nah, he loves me too much to put a hurt on me.”
“Don’t count on it.” Nate put his foot on Alex’s chair, pushing him away from the table. “Go do something productive, both of you.” His brothers exchanged a look that he didn’t like, much less trust. “Whatever’s about to come out of your mouths, I don’t want to hear it.”
“Why are you being so hardheaded about Taylor?”
“Alex, shut it. We’re not talking about this.” He’d never told his brothers that he feared being like their father, and he wasn’t about to start now.
“We just want to see you happy, brother,” Court said.
“I am happy.”
Alex stood, staring down at him. “Liar.”
He didn’t like the worry in either of his brothers’ eyes, didn’t want their pity. Just because they were married and ridiculously happy didn’t mean he should run out and find a wife. But he had been happy forthe few short hours he’d spent with Taylor. He’d had a taste of what it would be like to be with someone special, and that had been a mistake. Because now he wanted more.
There is no us.Those words reverberated in Taylor’s mind like a broken record. Their friendship was broken, and she didn’t know how to fix it. That hurt as much as knowing that he’d never fall in love with her.
She didn’t do hookups, had never gone out looking for one night of pleasure. Doing that felt too much like her mother’s life. But being with Nate had seemed so right, as if they were meant to be. She didn’t regret it, not for one minute. Her only regret was that it would never happen again.
“You’re awfully quiet today,” Rand said as he pulled into Rosie’s garage.
“Just have a lot of things on my mind. You coming in?”
“No. I want to talk to Josh, see if he’s noticed anything unusual.”
“Okay. We won’t be long.”She glanced at the car parked across the street and waved at Josh—assigned to keep an eye on Rosie and the girls—then headed inside. Not being able to go anywhere without an escort was wearing on her already, and it was only the first day. It was also unnerving that there was an agent parked in front of Rosie’s house, but she wasn’t complaining about that. She wasn’t about to risk whoever this creep was getting to her family.
The plan to secretly get them out of town that Nate and Rothmire had devised was probably more elaborate than necessary, but the girls would probably see it as a grand adventure. It hadn’t been a problem getting approval from the girls’ case worker to take them out of state, since the request had come from the head of the FBI’s Miami field office.
When she walked into the house, she found Rosie in Bri’s room. “Need any help packing?”
“No, this is the last of it.” Rosie huffed out an annoyed breath. “Your phone call was very mysterious. What’s going on, and why do we have to go away? And exactly where are we going? All you said was pack their bathing suits.”
Taylor sat on the edge of the bed. “Is there anything about my mother’s murder you’ve not told me?”
