Ellie turned to Nick then back to Flynn. Her shoulders slumped, and she shook her head. “Someone’s playing games.”
Nick lowered his hands but didn’t move closer. “Ellie, who was that woman on the phone?”
Flynn shifted his weight to his other foot and opened the screen wide. “Whatever it is, no one is safe out here in the open. Let’s talk inside. Zeke will keep the perimeter safe while we sort this out.”
“After you.” Nick gestured toward the door, his perfect Southern gentleman charm turned up, as if she were a stranger.
Ellie holstered her weapon but kept her hand near her waistband as she went into the cabin.
Flynn left the lights off as he led them to the bedroom in the center of the house. It was the only room without windows. Behind the closet door, Ellie knew the panic room was surprisingly big and well stocked in case of emergencies.
Flynn leaned forward and spoke quietly in Zeke’s ear. The other man nodded and slipped silently away, closing the door behind him. Flynn turned the bolt and dropped a heavy blanket in front of the gap beneath the door before turning on the light. The deadbolt was shiny and obviously newly installed. Flynn stayed near the door, leaning against the wall with a grim look on his face as his eyes went to Nick and back to Ellie.
“Now,” he said after a long silence. “Let’s talk about what the hell is going on.”
“I got a call tonight.” Nick turned to Ellie, his expression tight. Guarded. “The woman didn’t give me a chance to ask questions. She said that there were men heading here to hurt Valerie.”
“Why didn’t you call me?” Ellie folded her arms over her chest. “And are you sure you weren’t followed here?”
“Yes, and I tried to call you. Your phone went straight to voicemail. When I couldn’t get ahold of you, I came straight here. I didn’t want to waste time going all the way to your house first. The woman said you were already on your way.”
“I was. I doubled back a few times to make sure I wasn’t being followed, so it took longer than it would have.”
“I tried to call several times.” Nick frowned at her, his jaw ticking.
“She must’ve called you after I turned my phone off.” Both men blinked in surprise, so Ellie rushed to explain. “I didn’t want anyone tracking me through the GPS.”
“Okay, then why didn’t you call me first? Or Flynn?”
She pursed her lips, but before she could try to explain, a look passed between the two men.
Nick shook his head, his face darkening with rage. “You didn’t trust us.” His voice was quiet as he flung his hands into the air. Dropping them to his sides, fists balled up, he began to pace. “Damnit, Ellie, what’s happened to you? I can’t believe this. It’s one thing to suspect someone you hired, but me?” His volume rose with every word. “Me? Ellie, we’ve known each other since we were kids. What the hell?”
“I’m sorry.”
Nick stopped pacing, his eyebrows shooting upward. “You’re sorry? Are you serious? Ellie, you held a gun on me. I’ve supported you when no one else did, and I’ve suffered through this paranoia since you made detective last year. But this? Ellie, this is too much. If you can’t trust me, what are we even doing?” He shook his head, blue eyes welling with emotion.
Ellie’s heart clenched, the weight of his pain more than she could bear. “It’s not like that. This criminal enterprise reaches farther than I’d ever imagined. It’s not that I don’t trust you.”
He scoffed. “Right. It’s just that you thought I was here to hurt Valerie because you got a tip? That doesn’t make this better, Ellie.”
Flynn pushed away from the wall, his hands held out. “It’s late, and there’s been a lot of excitement. You’re both exhausted, and whoever this woman is, she’s obviously playing some kind of game. I think we should table this conversation until tomorrow.” He glanced at his watch. “Go home and get some rest.”
Ellie stiffened. “I’m not leaving. And I’m not exhausted.”
“Bullshit,” Nick shot back. “You have dark circles under your eyes. It’s obvious you haven’t been sleeping lately. Are you having nightmares again?”
She lifted her chin. “I don’t want to talk about this right now. Where’s Valerie?”
“She’s in the panic room. It’s probably best that she stay there until you two sort…whatever this is, out.” Flynn shook his head. “And the time for that is not now. Zeke and I will keep watch, then Ellie, if you insist on staying, you can take a shift in the morning while we get some rest.”
“If Ellie isn’t leaving, I’m not either.” Nick glared at her.
A muscle in Flynn’s jaw leaped with tension. “Great. Nick, you can take a shift. Then, when everyone is calmer, we’ll talk about this.”
Nick snorted, stuffing his hands into his pockets. “It won’t change anything. She doesn’t trust me. You can’t come back from that.”
Flynn’s voice was level, completely unbothered by Nick’s outburst. “You both need to cool down. We’ll talk about this in the morning.”
“Whatever.” Nick gestured to the door. “Can you unlock it? I need to get some things out of my car.” His glare returned to Ellie. “I’m sure there’s a spare room you can make use of. We’ll talk later.”
He left as soon as Flynn opened the door, angry footsteps heavy as he went down the hall.
When he was gone, Ellie let out a shuddering breath. “Thank you. That wasn’t going anywhere good.”
“You both need to cool down, and he’s right, you need rest. It’ll be easier to sleep soundly with us watching your back.”
She pursed her lips and nodded, wondering briefly if she should have just brought Jillian with her. If Katarina didn’t know where Valerie was, and she obviously didn’t, and neither of them had been followed…
But she couldn’t even text Jillian, not without giving away her location to anyone who might be monitoring
