Page 180 of Enigma: The Complete Collection
“Regina?” I fill in when her reply comes up short.
“Sorry, she’s off the table as well.”
I scowl so hard, wrinkles indent my forehead. “Why?”
Regina retired from the force a few weeks ago. She has no connection to the case or with Isaac, so there’s no reason why I can’t stay with her.
I’m proven wrong when Regan says, “In preparation to lower her workload, Regina studied forensic science, meaning she’s the best person to squash inferior evidence. Since she’s working on your case, you can’t stay with her.”
“I lived with her for weeks, doesn’t that already cause a conflict of interest?”
Regan shakes her head. “No, because that was never public knowledge. Just like her relationship with Tobias, Regina kept her relationship with you off the department’s radar.”
A smile curls on my lips. My heart was pained when I didn’t spot Regina in the court chambers earlier today. We only officially met six months ago, but she treated me like the mother I never had, and we’ve kept in regular contact since I moved out, so I was somewhat upset I was left to face my battles alone. Now I have more understanding as to why I felt abandoned. They didn’t do it to hurt me. They were just putting my best interests first.
“What about blondie?”
I stare at Regan with my brow arched high. “Brandon?” When she nods, I huff. “We must have our Isaac Holt’s confused. The one I know wouldneverlet me stay with Brandon.”
“Then, we won’t tell him,” she says with a shrug.
“I’m not lying to him.” The mortified expression crossing my face should tell her how stupid I think her idea is, but just in case, I add words into the mix. “I haven’t regained his trust from the first time I broke it, so there’s no chance in hell I’ll do it again. I’d rather go to jail than deceive him again.”
The sternness on Regan’s face softens from my admission. After sucking in a big breath that puffs her chest out, she murmurs, “If worse comes to worst, you can stay with me until we find a more suitable arrangement.”
“Thanks.” I roll my eyes, detesting her lack of enthusiasm. “But wouldn’t it be more suspicious if I roomed with Isaac’s lawyer than a friend who happens to be dating an acquaintance of his?”
A blinding smile stretches across Regan’s face. “I’ve worked for many pseudonyms of Isaac Holt, but I’ve yet to officially work fortheIsaac Holt.”
“How many aliases does Isaac have?” The healthy beat of my heart is heard in my tone.
Grinning like a mouse with cream-slathered whiskers, Regan stands from her chair. “I’ll go get your bail sorted. For now, I’ll put my details on your application. Then once you’ve cleaned up and rested, we’ll finalize the rest of the arrangements.”
I fake a smile before nodding. Her and Isaac are on par for evading conversations they don’t want to participate in.
I’ve been alone for barely a minute when I detect I’m being watched. When I swing my eyes to the door, my breath snags halfway to my lungs. The person standing in the doorway isn’t who I was anticipating. “What do you want?”
Alex’s ocean blue eyes glide down my body, absorbing the gritty stains on my clothes before returning to my face. When they suspend on my bruised cheek, the shadow of hair on his jaw can’t hide its tick.
“I came to show my support. Even suspended, you’re still a part of my team.” He paces into the room, leaving the door open to show this isn’t a formal visit. “I’m not the enemy, Isabelle.”
“You’re not?” I pad closer to him so I can look him in the eyes when I reveal that I know about all the dirty little tactics he utilized the past six months. “So, paying for me to fly business class isn’t something an enemy would do?”
His brows scrunch, but before he can force any of the denials I see in his eyes, I keep talking. “I know all about yourspecialtreatment—”
“Special treatment?” He steps closer to me, his walk as arrogant as the expression on his face. “I treated you the way I did, Isabelle, to ensure you utilized this.” He taps his index finger on my right temple. “Instead of this.” He glides his hand down my body. “Did I bring you onto my team as a piece of eye candy for Isaac? Yeah, I did…initially.But with some pushing, your investigative abilities were unearthed. Who discovered the real identity of Isaac’s bodyguard? The connection between Isaac, Henry Gottle, and Col Petretti? That was all you, Isabelle. Not some floozy all the male agents at the academy couldn’t stop flapping their gums about.”
I try to formulate a response, but I’m so shocked, I can’t produce a single word, much less an entire sentence.
“Does that mean I’m unaware of your relationship with Isaac? No, it doesn’t. I’ve known since the night he took you home from the skanky nightclub you and Brandon went to months ago.”
I balk, my pupils widening.He knew all along?
“But for months, your focus remained on the task at hand. You showed true signs of a capable agent because you ignored your feelings and thought with a rational, cool head.” He stands so close, his latte-scented breath flutters my lips with warmth. “You could still be a top agent in our field if you repress your feelings, so you see people for who theytrulyare.”
I cross my arms in front of my chest. “You should listen to your own advice. You judge Isaac on the shoddy evidence in his file instead of the man standing before you.”
“Just you saying that reveals he hasn’t told you why he was arrested.”
