She barely kept from staring at Knight’s scar.
Knight shook his head. “I’m not sure. He was talking when we left. Able to identify his shooter. Recognized Jones, too.”
“So why are you here instead of doing your knightly duties elsewhere?”
“Simple. Whatever Barnes sent you in that email today—apparently, it’s enough to get you killed. So…just consider me another guy for your collection. Seems you have a few new ones lately. So…tell me…you and Barnes?”
Miranda just sank into her chair and stared.
The man was serious.
“What is going on around here?” Then something he said clicked. “I…haven’t checked my email yet today. I had…something else going on.”
“Maybe you’d better do that now.” He sent her a gorgeous smile. “Before something else happens around here. It’s just a barrel of fun around PAVAD lately, isn’t it?”
112
Eugene had taken the time working the scene at Jaclyn Jones’s home earlier to study every entry point and exit. She had an alarm system in place. It was new, the sister had said, when Eugene had interviewed her at the hospital yesterday. A prototype for Lucas Tech or something that Jaclyn Jones had been asked to test out for the head of computer forensics.
Natalie hadn’t even realized he was grilling her for information, as she’d stared at him from Felicia’s eyes. Silly girl had trusted him.
He’d wanted to be the one to talk to Natalie Jones himself. To see just how much killing her would hurt Boyd.
The girl looked nothing like him. Up close, though, she looked a good deal like her father, and like the other sister she didn’t even know about.
He’d found that amusing.
He’d found the code to the security system written down in Jaclyn’s kitchen drawer.
She should know better than that. He’d tested the alarm when it was just him and his team on scene, after the forensics van had left. Just a few minutes of their time, and he had all he needed.
He followed the younger girl to the park. Watched as she worked with her dogs. Intensively. She put them through their paces, and it was obvious the girl knew her stuff. Bright, talented, capable—just like her father.
Her real father, anyway.
Colonel Boyd Jones was just a screw up who’d networked his way into his position.
For a moment, he toyed with the idea of just letting things go with Boyd. Just taking off for Mexico before anyone even realized he hadn’t clocked in for the next shift.
Maybe even coming back and finishing with the girl later. Planned better, anticipated more.
Or leaving Felicia’s daughters alone.
Let them have their perfect PAVAD lives. It was only a matter of time before the elder ended up in Dr. Jones’s bed. Until the younger found some PAVAD superhero of her own to shag and snag.
Felicia’s daughters hadn’t done a damned thing to him, after all. She’d even bought him a cup of coffee there in the hospital cafeteria yesterday, very sweet in a quiet way. Graceful.
Once again just like her mother.
He really was a rank bastard anymore.
But no.
He hated Colonel Boyd Jones, after all. Had told himself that so many times over the years that he almost believed he could feel that hatred. He wanted to get one more blow in against that bastard while he still could.
That was why he’d signed up on this special little team in the first place.
He followed Natalie Jones back to her sister’s place.
Watched as she released her dogs into the fenced backyard.
And waited.
113
Jac had a piano in her den. It had been their mother’s prize possession. Nat always loved to sit at it and immerse herself in the old memories.
She had been three and a half when their mother had died. She had no real memories of the woman; not like Jac had. But she remembered her mother at the piano.
Her fingers touched the ivory keys. Jac had had it tuned recently, she’d said, though Nat doubted her sister had much time to play now.
Jac had once been a very talented pianist.
Nat, too.
Until life had taken the time for such pursuits from them.
Nat made herself a vow; she was going to build herself a real life again.
It was what James would have wanted.
He had been larger than life, so full of humor and fun.
He’d made her forget the darkness they saw every day on the job. The way people hurt each other.
The way her father had hurt her, hurt Jac.
Damn him. Her father would always be her nightmare.
He had called again that morning.
The colonel would be in St. Louis in two days. The colonel had demanded she meet with him. Said he had something important he wanted to discuss.
She was going to be a coward—she was going to take Jac with her.
Maybe even see if Max could go with them.
The one time they’d introduced Max to the colonel the colonel had actually behaved himself.
Max had growled at him after the one nasty comment directed at Jac that the colonel had made. Max was rather protective of her sister. It was beautiful to see—Jac had spent so long being the protector, she deserved people to protect her now.
Nat ran through the warm-up scales absently, lost in the memories of her childhood.
The nightmares.
It hadn’t been all bad. She’d been granted opportunities most people weren’t. All the top schools, the best connections, that only an upper-class childhood could bring. Barriers hadn’t existed between her and what she had needed or wanted in life.
Just the Colonel and his fists.
She’d have traded every single advantage if she and Jac had just been safe. With people who didn’t hurt them for the slightest wrong move.
She was still dealing with the trauma of her father. She probably always would be.
Losing James had set her back years. She finally felt like she was starting to come out of the fog. He would not have wanted her to just turn into a ghost like this.
She had to remember that.
If nothing else, she would build a life again—for him. They should have decades together.
He’d given her the ring a week before he’d been murdered.
A week. That had been
