“No, you’re right, I’m on it.” She blew out a sigh. “Sorry, it’s been one of those mornings.”
“No problem.”
“Hey, so Jeremy, any chance you have a car here?”
“Yes.” He picked up her bike again. “Tell me where we’re going.”
Kira Vance wanted nothing to do with him, and under normal circumstances, that might have intrigued him. Right now, though, it was all he could do to keep his eyes open as he navigated the traffic-choked streets of downtown.
“Hang a left at the intersection,” she instructed.
Jeremy ran a yellow turn light.
“Pull over up here by the bank. Anywhere is fine.”
He cut around a delivery truck and whipped into a no-parking zone.
“I’ll just be a sec.”
“Wait.” Jeremy hopped out and went around to her door, glancing at the bike now strapped into the bed of his pickup with a bungee cord. Kira was already out of the truck, and he scanned the surrounding area as she crossed the sidewalk to the ATM vestibule. It was empty, and she walked straight to a machine.
Jeremy stationed himself beside the door as she shoved in her card.
“Are you guys always this attentive?” she asked.
He looked at her as she tapped at the screen. She was short and slender, with dark hair that cascaded down her back.
“Attentive?”
“You know, hovering.” She glanced at him. “It’s broad daylight, and there’re about three security cams in here.”
“Standard procedure. Which you would know if you hadn’t skipped the meeting.”
She shot him an annoyed look as the machine spit out bills. She briskly counted them before tucking the money into the front pocket of her jeans.
“Like I said, I’m in a rush today.” She stepped past him. He caught her arm, and she gave him a startled look.
“Wait.”
He pushed open the door and checked the area before walking her back to the truck, where she climbed in and yanked the door shut.
Jeremy went around and slid behind the wheel. Looking at her phone, she rattled off an address as he pulled away from the curb.
“Okay, so catch me up, since I missed the meeting,” she said. “Are you guys really going to be shadowing Logan’s team through the entire trial?”
“That’s the plan.”
“Sounds like overkill.”
Jeremy didn’t comment. The plan wasn’t up for debate, and she wasn’t a decision-maker anyway, so it wouldn’t have mattered. He kept his mouth shut and his eyes open as he cut through downtown. Tall office towers gave way to low-rise buildings, which then gave way to strip centers and warehouses. They reached a vast parking lot surrounded by a fence topped with razor wire.
“This is it,” Kira said.
Jeremy turned into the entrance and rolled over a strip of tire-shredding teeth. He crossed a potholed parking lot to a dilapidated shed bristling with satellite dishes and security cameras.
“I hate this place,” she said.
“You’ve been here before?”
“Unfortunately.” She pushed open her door. “You coming?”
She hopped out and approached the shed, where a guy in an Astros cap was seated behind yellowing plexiglass. Jeremy eyed the property’s security measures, which weren’t much. Then he eyed the line of cars parked toward the front of the lot—presumably the recent drop-offs—and tried to guess which one was hers.
After handling the paperwork, she returned to where Jeremy stood waiting. She looked up at him, using her hand to shield her eyes from the sun, and again he noticed the bruise on her cheekbone beside a small cut. Looked like she’d caught some shrapnel last night.
“So what now?” she asked. “Are you really going to follow me around all day?”
“I really am.”
Annoyance flashed in her hazel eyes.
“Is there any chance I can talk you out of this?”
“No.”
She blew out a sigh and glanced over her shoulder as a battered white car rumbled to a stop beside them. The Astros cap kid slid from behind the wheel and shot a wary look at Jeremy before disappearing back into his shack.
Jeremy looked at Kira. He’d been off by a mile.
“This is you?”
“Yep.” She stepped over to the car and tossed her bag inside.
“Hold up.”
“Why?”
“You’ve got a knock in your engine, and your tires are low. Not to mention bald.” He eased past her and ducked his head to check out the car’s interior. The engine light was on, which might be something minor, but still. He switched off the ignition and pulled out the key. “New plan.”
“What? Why? I’m already late.”
“You’ll be later if you break down on the side of the road. I’ll drive.”
“But what about my car?”
“I’ll have someone get it.” He handed her the key and nodded at the attendant. “Let him know.”
Jeremy turned away before she could protest and made a call to Trent. When he got off the phone, Kira collected her bag and stalked back to his pickup, clearly pissed.
Jeremy got behind the wheel.
“What time is your interview?” he asked.
“Two. That’s in twelve minutes. There’s no way—”
“Substation or main?”
“Main.”
“Buckle up. We’ll make it.”
Ollie’s phone buzzed from the depths of Kira’s bag, and she pulled it out. It was a text this time. Again, she didn’t recognize the number, but she took out a notepad and jotted it down. She was starting a list.
“Don’t know the passcode?”
She looked at Jeremy. “It’s Ollie’s phone.”
He lifted an eyebrow.
“What?” she asked.
“Withholding evidence in a homicide investigation could land you in trouble.”
“Not something you need to worry about.”
He didn’t comment, just kept his gaze trained on the road. He wore mirrored sunglasses, and it was hard to read his expression, but she definitely sensed some disapproval.
Kira looked away, irritated. It was none of his damn business. Anyway, she’d turn the phone over soon, but in the meantime, she needed to get whatever she could from it. Ollie had definitely been distracted by something on his phone last night. Kira took out her own cell phone and did a search for the number that had just texted. No hits.
Why had she promised Brock an update so soon? She didn’t have a clue what Ollie was working on, and there was no way she’d figure it out by today. She’d be lucky if she had anything by tomorrow, especially when all her time was being sucked up by errands and police interviews.
Maybe she’d been wrong to take this assignment. It seemed too soon. Disrespectful, somehow.
And yet she wanted the job. She needed the job. And if the roles were reversed, she knew Ollie would have jumped on this assignment. He would have gone to the ends of the earth to investigate what happened. Knowing Ollie’s skills, he would have figured it out, too. He wouldn’t be sitting here clueless right now, wondering what to do next.
She slipped Ollie’s phone into her bag, wishing she had access to his voice messages. Or his email password so she could check his inbox. Ollie was always forgetting passwords and usernames, so he jotted them down on sticky notes that he stashed in the top drawer of his desk.
Kira looked at Jeremy. “We need to make a detour.”
“I thought you were late.”
“It’s important.” She glanced over her shoulder. They’d just passed the street she wanted. “Hang a right at the next light.”