by Chloe Barlow
“A ‘federal agent,’ or you?”
“Does it matter?”
“It matters to me.”
“You know what matters to me — that you stop playing with me, because none of this is a game to me. Don’t you get that?”
“Of course I do.”
“Really? Because if you did, you wouldn’t do this…you wouldn’t keep lying to me and hiding things from me…like…like I don’t matter.”
“Fuck! How come you don’t get it? I did all of this because you matter too much to me. I fell in love with you even before I met you. I figured out you were following up on that ridiculous lead. I saw your picture and I was toast. You were so beautiful and brave and brilliant.”
“And you thought that was what? Bad? Loving me? Respecting me?”
“Christ, no! It’s not that I didn’t want to love you. I knew that was a given. I didn’t want you to love me!”
Claudia reached for him, and held his face in her hands. She looked so small, delicate, yet at once strong as steel. The effect was hypnotic. He could tell she felt like him — as though they’d survived a car crash and were blood drunk on residual adrenaline and fear.
Trey took her hands in his and kissed each palm, bringing a smile to her face, before letting her go.
Claudia rubbed her forehead with her thumb and index finger and stared at the lake for a few torturous moments. She shook for a moment, almost like a sob, and rested her forehead on the wall of windows.
Without looking at him, she pleaded, “Why did you sneak away to see him?”
“I met with David all the time. What’s the big deal?”
She spun on him, and he barely recognized the icy face of resolve she brought.
“Damn it, Trey. It’s a very big deal. You have to realize how bad this looks.”
“I’ve got this, Claudia.”
She stalked toward him.
“No…you…don’t. And the best thing you can do for the both of us is to accept that. My boss is an idiot. And he hates you. Do the math. This means I need to know about David, and every goddamned thing that brought you there to see him.”
“I was worried about you planning to meet with him.”
“Why?”
“Because he was going to put you in danger.”
“Stop giving me bullshit. I need facts. You’re fixated on this Lexis-Australia link. Was that why you went there?”
“I didn’t want you in a room with David again, not after you’d been asking around about Australia. I couldn’t risk Lexis knowing you were in there with him again.”
“So you go behind my back to do what? Did you kill him?”
“Did you see me in there killing him?”
“I couldn’t access all the footage for that night, so you’ll just have to tell me, won’t you?” After a beat, she asked cautiously, “When you said you’d do anything to protect me did that mean you’d kill for me?”
“Claudia…”
“Damn it! Talk to me. I can’t help you if you won’t let me. You have to know this is just the beginning.”
“Fine. Yes, I would kill for you. But I haven’t…not yet.” He stepped closer, placing his hands on her arms. “Believe me, I sure as hell didn’t murder David. He was too valuable.”
“Which is, of course, why someone else did,” she muttered to herself, deep in thought. “The best thing is that you did leave…”
The burner phone in Trey’s pocket began ringing and they both jumped a little.
“It’s Stephen. I have to answer it so he knows we’re okay.”
She nodded, nibbling absently on her thumbnail as she paced back and forth.
“Hey. It’s only been a few hours since we last talked. What’s up?”
Claudia stared at Trey, her face streaked with worry. Without breaking eye contact, he moved the phone away from his ear and put it on speaker. The look of relief on her face at his openness with her made him smile a little.
“The FBI has the footage of you visiting David shortly before he died.”
“I figured that wouldn’t take long.”
“Then after you’re seen leaving his cell, someone using your computer at the FBI hacked in and disabled the camera in there for twenty-five minutes. Once it was back online, you see David hanging in his cell.”
“Fuck,” Trey blurted. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Claudia rushing back to her computer to sit down, apparently attempting to access additional FBI information. “Stephen, hold on a minute. Let us check something.” After a moment, Claudia turned in her seat and nodded at him severely. Trey swallowed and continued, “So, I guess the FBI isn’t dumb enough to buy it was a suicide anymore?”
“No. It was deliberately shoddy. The noose was tied by someone left-handed. David was right-handed.”
“And I bet it didn’t take the feds long to remember I’m a lefty?” Trey asked, running a hand through his hair roughly.
“You got it. This whole thing reeks of a setup,” Stephen answered.
“The steel mill bomb was prepared by someone left-handed, too,” Claudia interjected.
“The bomb you and I decided to keep to ourselves?” Trey asked gently, and he could almost hear her grinding her teeth in frustration.
“Is that Claudia?” Stephen asked.
“Yes.”
“It’s good she knows about this, because, frame job or no, you are definitely a prime suspect, Trey. I told your dad for you.”
“Christ, man, I don’t want him dragged into this.”
“Too late. He’s gotten you a great lawyer. I think he’s more pissed you were helping the feds than you being suspected of murder.”
“That sounds like my dad all right,” Trey muttered dryly. “Aldous Adler hates the government, but he likes you Stephen.”
“Of course he does. I’m incredibly likable… Think about this man, you and Claudia being unaccounted for isn’t helping things — especially since you threatened David when Claudia interrogated him. You look like a jealous and violent lunatic.”
“Which is probably why I’m the perfect person for the real killer to blame.”
“What are you going to do? You know how it will look for Claudia, too, if she stays with you, right?”
“I know all too well. Thanks, Stephen.”
“I still have a spot for you on my team, you know. That’s one way to get you out of this shit.”
“Stop trying to recruit me,” Trey answered with a laugh. “And I seriously doubt how safe your team is. I’ve seen your methods, dude.”
“They’re no worse than yours, man.”
“True. Talk to you soon.” Trey ended the call and walked to Claudia slowly.
She stood and held him closely to her.
“Fuck. I’m going to need to get you somewhere else that’s safe. With someone else,” he finished.
She leaned away from him. “Why?” Her eyebrows squeezed together under her crinkled forehead, revealing her honest confusion. Trey looked down at her, his chest hurting at what he knew he needed to do.
“I’m a prime suspect in the murder of an FBI captive. You’re going to have to distance yourself from me.”
“No,” she answered, almost nonchalantly.
“I’m not joking. Staying here with me now could destroy your career. I know being an agent is everything you want. They’re going to say you should’ve brought me in.”
“Stop trying to guess what I want in life. You dumping me off could be exactly what the killer hopes you do. If Lexis’s team is behind it and she’s as connected as you say, then they may be trying to flush us out this way. They probably figure you’ll be willing to compromise yourself for me.” Claudia kissed him briefly, before continuing in a matter of fact tone. “You told me you’re innocent. I believe you. Once I can prove you’re telling the truth, everything will all be okay. And if it’s not, so be it. You’re too important to me.”
“Claudia…”
“Shut up. You need me. I’m not going anywhe
re.”
Trey walked across the room and unlocked a file cabinet. He breathed deeply before opening it.
“All the paper files on Lexis are here.” He explained, before moving to his main laptop and entering the password to open the electronic files for her. “And everything else is here.”
“Why are you giving me all this?” she inquired.
He crossed the room to her, meeting her eyes to state, “Because I finally figured out I trust you almost as much as I believe in you.”
Trey wrapped his arms around her, resting his chin on the top of her head.
“Thank you,” Claudia whispered against his chest. Looking up at him, she added, “But you know I need more than this. You’re going to have to tell me everything you know. No secrets, okay? Because I do love you, too, whether you like it or not.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“You know what I’d like to do?” Claudia asked delicately, pulling a sweater over her head.
“Dive into my brain and swim around until your fingers get all pruney?”
“No,” she answered over an awkward laugh, grabbing a hoodie for Trey before taking his hand and pulling him past the stone patio and out toward the dock. “I’d like for us to enjoy this world you created for me.”
“I thought you wanted me to tell you…everything.”
“I do. But we have time, and you went to all this trouble to buy this fancy hideout,” she added, waving her hand around them, after dragging him to the corner of the pier with her. “I mean, it’s got an impressive dock, and a speedboat, and a seaplane… Christ, Trey, has anyone ever talked to you about overkill?”
He blushed, his fingers curling slightly into her palm, and Claudia thought she might cry.
“I just want to use everything I’ve worked for all these years to keep you safe.”
He looked away, but she pulled at him until he was face-to-face with her again.
“I’m with you, Trey. That’s how I know I’m going to be okay…because I believe in you, and I know you’ll do everything in your power to keep me around.”
“How?”
“Because I’d do it for you.”
“Yeah?”
“That all you got, tattoo boy?” she queried with a cocky tone broadcasting far more confidence than she actually felt.
“The best I have for you at the moment.”
“Works for me, but you know all the money and control in the world…they have limits, too,” Claudia took a breath, feeling almost oppressed from the weight of the moment and the memory of those stolen moments her mother had with Claudia’s football star dad before he ran off the final time, leaving only his debts behind.
“Claudia?”
She sniffed for a moment and smiled bravely.
“Sometimes you just have to have faith…and iced tea — hold on, I’ll get it. Wait for me out here.”
“And do what?”
“Relax. As we say in Texas, sit for a spell.”
Claudia ran from him, releasing his hand at the last possible moment, such that their arms were fully stretched between them before she left. Her heart was trampling inside her little chest, until she walked into the kitchen and had to clutch the handle of the Sub-Zero fridge to still her trembling hand.
She’d learned numerous methods for interrogating witnesses while at Quantico, and was more than ready to utilize those tools. Theoretically, she knew it was just a matter of calming Trey down, and then to sell to him that opening up to her about a past he clearly hated was as awesome as a free concert in June.
It didn’t matter, because none of that knowledge or training could’ve prepared her for this. She was stupid in love with the guy waiting for her outside, and willing to do anything to make sure nothing happened to him. Anything.
After a few more breaths, she returned with a tray, featuring the pitcher, along with a baguette and some cheese she’d found. Claudia grinned broadly even before she saw him.
His back was to her, his right hand rubbing the back of his neck. The motion pulled up the sleeve of his tee shirt, revealing the edge of the Sanskrit tattoo on his shoulder. Claudia wished she could just hold him until all this passed.
Trey turned and caught her eye. Claudia took a deep breath and smiled forcefully, swaying her hips as she walked past him. When he followed her as he slipped on his hoodie, her nerves began to die down.
She led the way toward the edge of the wide pier, which overlooked most of the lake. A real smile started to play on her lips at the thought she might be Trey’s Latina pied piper.
After setting down the tray on the wooden planks, she kissed him on the cheek. He tentatively took her face in his chilly hands, stilling her so he could kiss her fully on the lips. Her arms slid around his waist, allowing her to lean fully against him.
Trey broke the kiss, but kept his hands on her cheeks, resting his forehead against hers. They both became lost in the moment, with nothing but the lapping of water against the dock’s wooden supports to compete with the sound of their gentle breaths.
Easing away from him, she turned to take in the multi-colored leaves overhanging the rippling dark blue water as he sat down. Claudia could tell the delay was helping put him more at ease, and she didn’t want to interfere with this progress.
“You do know how to put together a great picnic, Claudia.”
“It was easy — that skill is a requirement of my Texas citizenship. Besides, between what you bought last night at the store and Stephen having this place stocked for us… It makes me feel very special — cared for.”
Trey smiled sheepishly in response, warming her heart even more.
On a whim, she took off her Converse low tops and dipped one foot in the water. She quickly yanked it back onto the dock, shivering and cursing in response.
“Why’s it so cold?”
“It’s a mountain lake, little one,” he responded with a chuckle. “You basically just put your foot into melted snow. If you put it back in and wait a little, the water will start to feel warmer to you.”
“I don’t know about that…my people like heat.”
“Aren’t you half Irish?”
“Only in name,” she grumbled. “Wyatt’s the one who looks anything like our dad. He hates it. Let me sit on your lap so you can warm me up.”
“I’m framed for one murder, and now you get to boss me around?”
“Sounds about right.”
Trey moved to sit cross-legged, and guided her on top of him. Claudia wriggled into position, so she could see his face.
A deep rumbling erupted from Trey’s throat.
“If that’s your method for making me talk, it’s a good one.”
“Whatever it takes. The sooner we get this done, then we can get back to everything else we like to do.”
“Does this mean you aren’t mad about me hiding my visit with David from you anymore?”
“Keeping you out of prison and finding the people who set you up has given me a lot of perspective.”
“You were right to be so pissed.”
“I agree. Though, I may have overreacted a tiny bit. I’ve always had a hell of a temper. I hope that’s not a problem.”
Trey smiled slightly, resting his hands on her waist. “I’d love nothing more than to get through this and have many chances to get you all worked up again.”
“Good. But I don’t want any more lies or secrets. You hear me? It’s more important than ever you be open with me.”
“Right.”
She leaned into him, smiling at the feeling of his arms around her waist. Shifting again to meet his eyes, Claudia slid her right hand over the edge of his face, running her thumb over his bottom lip. His eyes were as dark as the cold water around them, but his flesh was beginning to heat under her caress.
For weeks now, all she’d wanted was to be able to touch him freely like this, but she didn’t really have the luxury to enjoy it.
“Trey, are you ready to talk, yet?”
He nodde
d slightly, worrying his lip ring back and forth with his tongue.
Claudia gave him a quick kiss and held his face to meet her eyes again, before saying, “I want you to know…no matter what you tell me, it won’t change how I feel about you. That’s your past. We are our future. This is just…a detour, something we need to go through before we can move on… together.”
“You think you can have a future with me? Isn’t that a little foolish?”
Her shoulders stiffened. “I’ve never given up on anything before, and I’m sure as hell not going to start with you.”
“It looks like I have no choice then. Where do you want me to start?”
“At the beginning, or at least whatever you believe is the beginning.”
“I guess I need to go back to Stanford, then.”
Trey turned his face away from Claudia’s. It worried him too much to look at her, even though her presence usually brought him peace.
The sun was warm against his skin, but the breeze was cool and smelled faintly like rain may come. He swallowed, and began to speak.
“Before it happened… I mean, when we were together, A.J. always wanted more.”
“More what?
“Just more. More respect, more success, more than I could ever give her, but I wanted to try. I wanted to impress her, so I had the crazy idea we should make our own virus. She named it Starling. Then she secretly went and made it more powerful, before selling it on the black market.”
“And you had no idea what she was up to?”
“I knew she was acting strangely, but I tried to ignore it. My dad screwed up everything with my mom by being too controlling. I didn’t want to lose A.J., the same way, so I just convinced myself everything was fine, when the whole time she was actually auctioning it off to Russian gangsters.”
“Why did she assume you wouldn’t want to sell it?”
“How about you tell me what you really think of me,” he bristled, his hands clenching against her waist.
Claudia shifted and stroked his hair. Trey flinched a little, and he could hear her pained intake of breath in response.
“It’s not like that at all,” Claudia said quickly. It relieved Trey to hear her turn off her interrogator mode for a second. “Look, I know this is hard, but if you really think it somehow started with this Starling virus, we need to figure out how.”