Allyson leaned back in her chair and ran her hands down her face.
“That doesn’t look good.” Sal dragged a chair over and sat by her desk. He hissed out a breath.
“You okay?”
“Old injuries.”
Before she could ask more about it, her phone beeped. She leaned down and read the subject. “My boss wants an update on the FFL robbery from last night.”
Sal was quiet for a second. “We didn’t stay that late.”
“Doesn’t mean I’m not on the case.” She shrugged. “Among others.”
“I’m still looking at your friend’s info. So far on Bridget McNamara I’ve got nothing except an executive assistant working for a pharmaceutical company.”
He told her the name of the company, and she typed it into her computer. Found the website. Pulled up the page of employee bios.
“She’s not on—”
She scrolled down. A picture of her redheaded college roommate stared back at her.
“It’s her.” Ally chewed her lip. Could Vanessa really be on the run and in trouble? “I can’t believe someone missing all this time can suddenly be here—and also nowhere to be found. It makes no sense that she was fine and still she didn’t contact me all these years.”
“No social media friend requests?”
“I’m not on social media, so I’ll have to use one of our dummy accounts to look.” Most ATF agents weren’t present much online. As a small agency they did undercover work, and it just wasn’t worth the risk of being targeted. “I’ll call and find out if she turned up to work this morning.”
“Is it worth having the FBI pay the office in San Francisco a visit? Get them to ask about both her and the missing coworker.”
She nodded. “Someone local should go, at least.”
“The fact that she reached out is good. You can help her.”
“I’m going to try. But if I can’t find her, then how can I make sure she’s safe? I don’t even know where to start looking. And I doubt I’ll be able to track her down after all this time unless she contacts me again.” What if she had waited all these years to finally find Vanessa, only to have her turn up out of the blue right before something even more terrible happened?
“I sent everything to Talia and Haley. I’ll let you know what they come up with.”
Allyson nodded, even though she didn’t like the idea that his coworkers were part of this. She was going to accept the help, regardless of her opinion of them.
Her phone buzzed with an email.
“Is it her?”
“It’s the list of guns that were stolen from the store.” Which would help when they tracked them down. Or after they were used in the commission of a crime. She sighed.
“What is it?”
“I’m tired, that’s all.” Or she needed a change. Too bad she’d never thought of what she might want outside of the ATF. “Maybe I’m getting too old for this.”
“No, that’s not it.”
How did he know? Whatever his tactic for getting a result, it seemed like he always knew what she was really thinking.
“Need help on this case?”
“Which one?”
He actually smiled, something he didn’t often do.
“You have a nice smile.” She realized what she’d said. “Doesn’t your team need you?” They were his priority. Always had been, always would be.
She saw something in his eyes then. Like maybe no, his team didn’t need him right now. And he didn’t seem like he thought that was a good thing.
Allyson glanced at her monitor. She stared again at the photo of her friend and swallowed her pride. “I’d appreciate whatever help the task force can give me.”
. . .
“This isn’t about the team.” She did know that, didn’t she? Sal leaned closer to her, over the corner of her desk so she’d hear his low voice. “I’m going to do what I can to help you.”
“Thanks.”
After he’d satisfied that promise, he would be free to leave. Free to spend time alone, in the mountains, working her out from under his skin. He was good at being a marshal. He had enjoyed working on the task force, for Victoria, the past few years. But he had to admit, at least to himself, that he was ready for the next stage of his life. This need for change wasn’t going to be satisfied with two weeks doing nothing, going crazy. He needed to make a move somewhere else. Do something else.
“What’s that on your face?”
He frowned and shrugged one shoulder.
She understood enough to say, “It looked nice. Maybe wistful, even.”
“You ever just want to go do something else?”
She frowned.
“Change your life. Quit. Move away. Go a totally different direction?”
“You want to leave?”
“Sometimes.” He needed to be honest, despite how she might react. What they had was truthful, and they had upheld that unspoken arrangement for years. “Not just that the grass is greener on the other side. More like, I just need something…different.”
“Is it like wanderlust?”
“Maybe.” He still leaned in, close enough to whisper. “Where do you go on vacation?”
She frowned. “My dad’s cabin.”
“Have you ever been outside the state of Washington?”
She shrugged. “For work, sure.” But there was something in her gaze.
“There’s a wide world out there.”
“And I should be going to visit all those places?”
“Maybe it’s just that I don’t let myself settle. I refuse to be satisfied with the same thing for decades. Probably because my father never aspired to anything other than exactly what he was.”
“The sheriff of Arapoe County.”
Sal blinked. “Did you do a background check on me?”
“Uh, no…Google.”
He laughed. All the while he did so, Victoria’s caution from last night rang in his ears. She thought Allyson didn’t fit in with the team? That was fine. They weren’t looking for anyone else to join.
Given the conversation they’d just been having, he wondered if the fact Allyson wasn’t part of the team might make her all the more attractive to him. She could be some of the “different” he’d been eyeing for a while now.
Sal sat back in his chair, realizing he often felt more at home in the ATF office than he did in the task force office. He could say the same for a few of the police stations throughout Seattle. He enjoyed the camaraderie, but not when the people around him were at odds.
Like Victoria and Allyson.
There was enough of a battle going on inside him that he didn’t need to be in the middle of those two women and their conflict as well. And yet, here he was.
“So you’re ready to leave Seattle?”
Sal shrugged. Honest, but not necessarily something he wanted to say out loud to her. Not when words had power.
Allyson turned back to her computer, biting her lip. It was almost like she was hurt. Great. He’d made her mad. Or upset. Or this was about her being so tired and having no filter.
He poured her a cup of coffee, then one for him too, and delivered it to her.
“Peace offering?”
She gave him a small smile. “Thanks, Sal.”
He couldn’t help being drawn to her. Especially considering she needed support.
He was between cases, and his team had resources. Her people weren’t who she’d gone to for assistance on this. He was. Victoria’s opinion of her said more about Victoria than it did about Allyson.
The fact Allyson was so by-the-book probably rubbed up against his boss’s former career as a spy. Victoria had been trained to be independent, to color outside the lines. Spies had to make the situation work in their favor, using whatever resources they had.
Sal wasn’t so sure he’d have been able to do that. He had skills he employed undercover, but there was always procedure. He had plenty of lines he wouldn’t cross.
&nb
sp; Living with no boundaries would be a nightmare. Allyson was all cop. Victoria and Allyson, a spy and a cop, and not likely able to find a middle ground considering the places they were coming from. He was a hunter. Where did he fit? Definitely not between them.
Sal didn’t think he’d ever be able to figure out a common ground. Not the least because they were two women.
“Are you going to sit by my desk all day?”
Sal sipped his coffee. “Are you going to be here all day when you’re supposed to have taken the day off?”
“No one else is taking the day off.” She held her hands over the keyboard, fingers poised and ready to continue typing. “Besides, I have work to do.”
“And I should leave?”
“I was just curious why you’re still here when we both have stuff—”
She was interrupted by his cell phone ringing.
Sal dug it out of his pocket and flipped it open. “Alvarez.” He grinned at Allyson, who grinned back and then went back to her work.
“It’s me.”
Dakota. “Hey. What’s up?”
“When will you be in the office? I need to talk to you about something.”
It was on the tip of his tongue to ask if it was about Allyson, but he bit the words back. That wasn’t something he needed to say out loud in the ATF office. “About what?”
“About something. That’s what I said, right?” Dakota sighed. “Plus the coffee pot is broken. Will you be much longer?”
“I’ll be there in twenty. Is something wrong?”
“It’s not a case,” Dakota said. “It’s personal.”
Sal’s stomach clenched. What could have gone bad since he’d seen her last night? “Is something up with Josh?”
“No, of course not. Nothing’s wrong. But it is related.”
But she wasn’t going to just spit it out? “Just—”
“I’m not talking to you about this over the phone, okay? I just need to know when you’ll be in the office.”
A dog barked in the background, a familiar sound considering Josh had a former marine canine, and she’d pretty much been taken on as the task force dog.
“UPS is here.”
He smiled. “I’ll be there as soon as I get there.”
She ignored the comment and just said, “Good.”
Urgent, but not life threatening. Not work, personal. What was it? Had to be something significant considering she’d just let go of a serious chance to pick on him about that comment. I’ll be there when I’m there. Something was up if she’d let that go.
A part of him didn’t want to be drawn into whatever problem she had. That was for Josh to solve, right? And her fiancé was more than capable of handling her. That was the job he’d signed on for.
“Hang on.” Dakota went quiet for a second, then said, “Talia needs to tell you something.”
“She’s in—”
“Hey.” Dakota had to have handed her the phone.
He said, “You’re in the office?”
Talia answered, “Uh, yeah.”
Sal took a breath. Apparently showing up to work today wasn’t as surprising as he’d thought, considering she and Allyson had both done it. “Everything okay?” Maybe she knew what was up with Dakota.
“Question.”
“Fire away.”
“I need Allyson to confirm. Is the woman she knew in college, the one who went missing, the same woman that works at the pharmaceutical company?”
She knew he was here? What was he thinking—of course she knew. “Allyson said it was.”
The woman herself glanced over at him. Sal said, “One sec. I’m putting you on speaker.” He hit the button, then said, “Go ahead, Talia.”
“Bridget McNamara’s coworker, the chief of operations, never showed up to work yesterday.”
Allyson leaned closer to the phone. “I saw the police report.”
“The cops found his body. He’s dead.”
Chapter 4
“Your office has a security code?”
“Yours has swipe cards.” Sal tugged down the handle and pushed the door open.
“Yeah.” Great. Now she sounded dumb. She swallowed down the embarrassment and took in the Northwest Counter-Terrorism Task Force office.
And gaped.
The wall to the right was all windows, beyond which was the Seattle skyline. Inside was all red brick and electronics. There were a few key things that indicated it really was the office of a federal law enforcement agency. However, they clearly managed to get the best of most everything they needed.
No wonder they kept it so secret.
The whole gang was here even after the major operation yesterday. Niall, the NCIS Special Agent. Haley, his girlfriend, who was the office manager—and former Navy Intelligence. Talia, the NSA analyst and computer whiz. Dakota, with her Native American coloring, was Homeland Security Investigations, and Josh—who Allyson had never actually officially met—was the DEA agent.
A dog barked.
The animal was a German Shepherd, tall and slender. It stopped a few feet from her and barked, its whole body leaned toward her.
“Good girl.” Dakota smirked but didn’t look over from her computer.
Was Allyson supposed to be impressed? “You teach her to do that?”
Josh strode around his desk to the waiting area. “She’s had what amounts to guard dog training.”
The dog had stopped barking but still leaned toward her. She expected to see a flash of teeth at any moment.
“Neema, place.”
The dog gave her one last death glare and then moved to the wall, where a dog bed had been placed in the morning sunshine. The dog sat. Not restful, but completely alert.
“Platz.”
She lay down with a groan.
“Josh Weber.” He stuck out his hand.
“Allyson Sanchez.”
“Nice to meet you.”
Huh. Maybe they weren’t all so bad—
Allyson caught the death glare Dakota shot her before she glanced at her fiancé, lips pressed into a thin line.
“I’m Haley.” The woman stood shorter than Allyson, her gaze assessing. Brows drawn together like she was trying to figure Allyson out. She had gorgeous dark features, and eyes that sparkled.
“Nice to meet you.” Maybe she should just stick with this line until kingdom come. It seemed to be working for her.
Talia looked over from her computer and eyed her. “Victoria should be here soon.”
“Thanks.” Sal touched her back, between her shoulder blades. He pretty much shoved her forward, but she covered it well—she thought.
She didn’t care much if they all gave her dirty looks. This wasn’t her team, and she already knew they were close. Probably it wasn’t just about outsiders though. Probably it was just her.
Had she really taken half an hour convincing her boss this missing persons was an ATF case, not just a personal matter, only to come here and be party to this?
Talia’s smile was proof enough. She hadn’t managed to hide her reluctance at all.
Allyson said, “How are you doing? I heard you caught a bullet yesterday.”
Several people in the room shifted. Tense movements. They didn’t want to be reminded of what had happened?
“Graze.” Talia shifted, and Allyson caught the edges of pain in the skin around her eyes.
“I’m glad it wasn’t too bad.”
Dakota’s head whipped around. “She got shot. There’s nothing not too bad about that.”
Allyson stared her down. She wasn’t going to cave.
Sal stepped in the laser beam of their locked gazes, breaking the tension. “Dakota, why don’t we have that conversation now?”
Allyson didn’t get a chance to hear her answer. Talia motioned to a chair and told Allyson to “take a load off.”
Allyson sat to the sound of Dakota scraping her chair back. The two of them walked to the kitchen area at the far end of the open office, besid
e a hallway where the bathrooms were and a closed office door with a strip of masking tape on the door that read VICTORIA in permanent marker.
“You have information about Vanessa’s coworker?”
Talia leaned back in her chair and nodded.
“Sure you’re okay?”
“Mason told me to take two weeks off.” Talia glanced at her. “I told him that if he wasn’t going to, then neither was I.”
“Didn’t he just get promoted to acting assistant director?”
She smiled, the softening of someone thinking about the person they loved. “He’s a shoo-in for the permanent position. I’m sure he’ll get it.”
Talia seemed happy. Content. Healed. Allyson didn’t know her well enough to say something and share in that fact. Her opinion, or pleasure, didn’t mean anything to the NSA analyst. She hadn’t even thought the woman liked her—personally or professionally.
Maybe Talia was only being nice because Victoria wasn’t here, and that was why Talia had told them the boss would be there soon. Allyson couldn’t deny that might be the reason the atmosphere in the office wasn’t full-on hostile.
She glanced at Sal and Dakota, who appeared to be having a heated and hushed conversation over by the coffee pot.
Talia said, “Are you okay?”
Out of the corner of her eye she saw Sal turn and look at her. She figured ignoring it was best. “Long night.” Not to mention the fact that one of their agents had been shot in the warehouse. These people were all back at work, while others were trying to pick up the pieces.
Allyson stood. “Maybe you could just…email me everything.”
She started to walk away. These people were going to do whatever they were going to do, and she didn’t have the emotional energy to shore up her defenses. She didn’t want to wind up bitter at them. They didn’t need that. Not when they actively worked to turn the tide of crime and terrorism. They saved innocent people’s lives, just like she did, and actively sought justice for wrongs that had been done.
Talia called after her. “Sit back down, Special Agent Sanchez.”
A thought occurred to her as she turned around. “Because you’re not done cloning my phone?”
Fourth Day Page 3