**
Adrian hung up the phone. Megan had her hand on herhip. He said, “You gonna put that gun away?”
“Maybe.”
She kind of looked like she was thinking aboutshooting him with it. Why, he had no idea, considering he’d justsaved her life—as well as kept her from being kidnapped.
“Hank is on his way.”
“Good. He can clean up and we can get out of here.”She pulled out her phone to glance at the screen. “We have twohours until my mom is going to land. I want to know where Zimmermanis before then, so I can call her and tell her it’s all good forher conference.”
Adrian stowed his own gun, then searched the dead manclosest to him. Found a phone. A wallet. He looked at the driver’slicense and read the name aloud. “Lives inAustin.”
“So, not Venezuelan. Or at least not right now.”
“Or it’s a fake.” Though ifit was, then it was a really good fabricated ID. He did the samewith the other two while Megan watched, alternately switching whichhip she had a hand on and sighing. Mad, but still uncomfortable.She probably needed another pain pill.
“Something you want to say?” He didn’t look up fromthe last man. He could feel her stare on him like a laser aimed atthe top of his head.
“You did that on purpose.”
“Saved your life?”
“That isn’t what I’m talking about, and you knowit.”
He straightened. “I do?”
The sound of car engines drew his attention. Threeblack SUVs pulled off the highway. She said, “You forced thatgunfight.” He turned back to Megan. She said, “Those guys wouldhave left you alone.”
“And kidnapped you,” he said. “You think I was goingto let that happen?”
“You should have.” She huffed again. “That wasdangerous, and stupid. Now we have zero shot at figuring out whereEl Cuervo is. You could havefollowed me.” She waved at the dead men lying on the ground. “Youcould have left one of them alive for questioning.”
Before he could reply, Hank called out, “Both of youokay?”
Adrian didn’t take his gaze from Megan. “We aren’thurt.” This time.
She pressed her lips together.
“Megan?” Hank said, closer now.
“I’m as fine as I was an hour ago.”
Adrian figured that meant she was still irritatedbecause of her injuries, in pain and lashing out at him because hewas there.
“At least,” she said, “until Adrian decided he wasn’tgoing to let the situation ride, so he started a gunfight that lostus our lead.”
Before Hank could say anything, Adrian said, “Thiscould be completely unrelated. We’re supposed to be catching up toZimmerman, and you think getting kidnapped will help get us moreinformation? We know where he’s going. This little side trip wouldonly have cost us time we don’t have.”
Megan’s face hardened, and she took a step towardhim. “You think I’m going to risk my mom’s life on a whim? We knowEl Cuervo and the blackmailerare connected. I could have found out who it is!”
He took a step toward her. “You want to put yourselfin that situation all over again? I guess last time wasn’t so bad,if you’re in such a rush to repeat it.” She looked sick, but hekept going. She wasn’t backing down, and neither would he. “Itturns out you still don’t care what happens to your partnerbecause you’re too busy doing your own thing. Again.”
He watched that cut through her like a blade. He wasnot about to admit that it hurt him to see it. To know he’d donethat to her.
“Special Agent Walker, go make yourself useful.”Hank’s voice was hard.
Megan didn’t evenblink.
Adrian wandered off mostly to clear his head. To dosomething physical, but also simple. His brain spun far too much toadd more to what was swirling in there. She thought gettingkidnapped was a good idea? That was just insane.
He’d saved both of them. But did she thank him? No,she didn’t. Megan acted like he’d put them at a disadvantage.
Maybe she liked having her life in danger. Living onthe edge like she was some kind of adrenaline junkie.
He didn’t need that in his life. It wouldn’t helpthem end the threat of Zimmerman and the stolen weapon, or ID theblackmailer. Why did she think it would? Had she really lost somuch of her FBI training that she couldn’t see the advantages inprocedure and professionalism? Adrian wasn’t going to let that draghim down. Not when he’d succeeded this far by following the rulebook—the FBI plays they already knew would work.
Megan was just far too much of a maverick for this towork. Any of it.
Getting mad and blaming him? No.
One of the local agents stuck his hand out andintroduced himself. “You look like you had a rough day.”
Adrian shook his head, even though it was true on allcounts. He shook the man’s hand. “I need to get moving, get to theairport.”
“Denver?”
Adrian nodded.
“Cromwell already alerted the Denver FBI office.”Left unspoken was the fact this agent knew his job here wasclean-up of this scene. Not racing somewhere else.
The agent said, “I’ll need your gun.”
Adrian cleared it and handed it over. He’d used it tokill one of the men here, so the gun was bagged as evidence. Fineby him, he’d be cleared. The only variable was whatever Megan said,which he could not control. He had to trust that she’d tell theseagents the unbiased truth.
He didn’t know what reason she’d have for sayingotherwise, but he also wasn’t entirely sure he could trust her.
He’d been with her to protect her. To be the FBI’seyes and ears, find out what she knew. See where Megan Perkins andher connection to all of this took them. It had been working,getting them to Remy—whoever that woman was, the agent looking intoher hadn’t come back with anything—and the link between all thepeople targeted by the blackmailer so far.
Maybe she would even be able to find the name of theblackmailer, something the FBI had yet to manage. And not for lackof trying.
He glanced back and saw Megan and Hank still in lowconversation. She glanced at him. He held her gaze for a second andthen looked at Hank. Shook her head.
Adrian turned away. He couldn’t help
