Page 8 of Embedded
They were all dressed in flashy suits, shoes polished to the point where they caught the sun, and their skinny, trendy ties were outdated by a decade. They looked important but ridiculous. “I wasn’t planning on fucking around with them, believe me. They look like they work for James Franco’s security team,” I snapped, and he hid his amusement with a light cough.
“You must be Nicole Winter.” The guy who spoke was quite handsome in his suit and tie. He held out a hand. “I’m Cooper Colin. Nice to meet you.”
“I’ll be the judge of whether it’s nice or not.” I set the tone that I wasn’t one to be fucked with. I’d been through enough.
“I heard you were a pistol.”
“Then you know you should get right to the point.” Chase pushed his feet into my thighs and let out a cry.
“So, you’re the famous little boy who has all of America in tears. I watched your video, little fella, and that’s why I’m here.”
Boy? I never once said he was a boy.
“You watched my video and have swooped in to save this little one?” I couldn’t keep the sarcasm from my voice.
He grinned, but it felt off, almost like a cat grinning at a mouse before it attacked. “That’s right.”
I shook my head, tired of playing these games. “And you just happened to know we were in this very spot?”
“It’s part of my job to know where you are.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, I’m FBI.” He pulled back his jacket and showed me his badge. No way. These guys weren’t in the usual black FBI garb. Even his sunglasses were Gucci. No way the FBI would have the money to dress like this fool.
“And I was the Easter bunny a few years ago, and before that I was an astronaut.” Sarcasm dripped from my lips again. Chili chuckled and Agent Colin cast him a nasty glance. “Am I being arrested for something?”
“No.”
“Then why not identify that you’re FBI when you introduced yourself?”
“Didn’t my suit give me away?” He huffed in an attempt to be funny, but I wasn’t amused. The guy rubbed me the wrong way. Something about him felt off.
“Actually, no. It comes off more like you’re giving information to TMZ about some B-list celebrity.” More like A-list, but I didn’t want him to take it as a compliment. His brows went up as I stood with Chase in my arms and began to head for the truck. Chili moved with me, right on my heels. “We’re done here.”
“Okay, so we got off on a bad foot. I apologize.” He moved to block my path. “What can I do to make it right?”
“Get me some children’s Tylenol.” I pointed to Chase. “He’s sick. If you do that, I’ll give you five more minutes of my time.” He nodded over his shoulder, and one of his men approached. He spoke to him, and he raced off toward his car.
“Please, Nicole, take a seat.” I studied him for a minute then went back to the table and lowered myself onto the bench.
Chili moved to lean against the trunk of the tree. He seemed relaxed, but his gaze was fixed on Colin. It was interesting that he hadn’t said a single word since the man introduced himself.
Colin’s phone must have vibrated because he pulled it free and held up a finger, then turned to answer it. I looked at Chili again and saw he kept one hand close to his gun. Who the hell are these people? The last I checked this wasn’t how the US conducted business, especially with missing people in trouble.
The agent who left to get the Tylenol returned in record time with an unopened bottle of medicine. He set it down then stepped back as Colin hung up.
“Good news,” he said as I made quick work getting the medication into Chase. He didn’t like it and cried as he swallowed it. “I’ve been instructed to bring the kid into custody.”
The panic flooded inside me as I tucked the medicine away and my arms tightened around Chase. “Under whose orders?”
“My boss’s.”
“And who might your boss be? Because I too have orders.”
His smug smirk only pissed me off further. “My orders trump yours.” Agent Colin took a step toward me, and Chili did the same.
There is no way Chase is going with any of these guys.
