"Oh God. Is he okay?"
"Yeah, he went to the Emergency Room to get checked over and he's fine. No concussion. Man's got the thickest skull I've ever seen, and I mean that as a compliment."
"Did he go for the safe?" I asked. "The thief, that is."
"Looks that way, from what I could see, but he didn't get a chance to open it. Not that he would find anything. We screwed up."
"Not really. We know either Ben or Justin fell for the ruse, and whoever it was, he screwed up too."
"Yeah, but there's a good chance they know now that it was a ruse. Your cover's probably blown," Solomon pointed out. "This case is done."
"We don't know that for sure."
"All the same, don't make any contact with either suspect. If they contact you, we'll discuss what to do. Right now, I don't want to take any risks. I'm one man down and I don't want to risk you getting hurt too."
"I'm glad Delgado's okay."
"Me too. He was the last person I expected to see in the ER last night. Your sister took him home to her house."
That was news to me. It was nice of Serena to pick him up. I made a mental note to check in on them both later. "Wait... you were at the ER too?"
"I had to take my sister there. She tripped on the stairs. Sprained her wrist and broke a finger."
"Your sister?" I frowned. "I saw you leave with Anastasia."
"Anastasia is my sister."
Holy. Guacamole.
"Anastasia is your sister," I repeated slowly, like a moron.
"You catch on quick," said Solomon. "I'm glad I hired you."
"Your sister. Huh. I thought..."
"You thought what?"
I looked up to see Solomon’s quizzical expression. Oh, how embarrassing. I was jealous of not the new woman in Solomon's life but his sister. "Nothing, I didn't realize she was your sister, is all." I shrugged like it didn't matter, but it did. It mattered, although I wasn't sure how, and I resisted being so selfish as to think about me right now.
"My sister is staying for a few weeks until she gets an apartment in the city. She got a job already and she starts soon, so I insisted she stay with me. She was going to help out in the office for a couple weeks, but now she's injured, I told her to rest up."
"That makes sense," I agreed, remembering Solomon had taken care of his sister and brother when their parents passed. Now that she was injured I felt worse for my less than charitable thoughts towards her. "It must hurt."
"She took two painkillers, but said it isn't too bad. Her finger is in a splint and she has an ice pack on her ankle. I'm gonna check in on her soon. You need some time off? You want to take the day off?"
"No, thanks, but I want to keep busy. There isn't much I can do for Lily and she's got Jord and my mom. I don't want to get in the way."
"If you need to leave, tell me. Sometimes family is more important than career," Solomon said, displaying the kind of wisdom I never associated with him before.
"Thanks, but if we don't get this guy, we may never get another chance," I reminded Solomon. Not that he needed reminding; I was pretty certain it was forefront on his mind. "I know this case is important to you."
"It would be good to have MPD owe us a favor. Combining the agency business with local law enforcement would be great for the agency, especially if they tell other districts. I told you from the start, this case isn't about the money. It's about building a network of contacts. Montgomery's a big town, but not that big. The higher value clientele will come from elsewhere. We'll take point here."
"Is that who's paying for the new floor?" I asked, indicating the ceiling.
Solomon deliberately ignored me, which I thought rude because I really wanted to know what was going on up there. The construction work seemed over, judging by the quiet, and I saw several guys and one woman entering the floor. What was going on, however, remained a mystery. "Write up your report for the file, Lexi. And let me know if you get a call."
"How do you know one of them hasn't left town already?"
"I put a tail on both of them this morning."
"Didn't you already have a tail on them?" I asked.
Solomon's shoulders dropped. "Would you believe that both of them gave the guys the slip last night? I've had men all over town looking for them."
"How many slip-ups have we had on this case?" I asked aloud, even though I didn’t mean to. I was just thinking it.
"Too freaking many," sighed Solomon. "But not any more. Ben Rafferty and the lord aren't escaping this town without my leave."
"Yes, Boss."
~
I set up office in the boardroom, or the bored room, as I called it today. With my laptop and cell phone sitting idly on the table, all I could do was drum my fingers and hope I hadn't been made. While I waited, Lucas buzzed around like a high-tech worker bee, waiting for the moment my phone rang so he could kick in with his recording equipment.
"Lucas, tell me what's going on upstairs," I said, fixing him with a stare and my straightest, no-nonsense approach.
Lucas halted like a bunny in headlights. "I. Don't. Know."
"Yes, you do!"
"I don't!"
"Oh, come on! I know you do. Solomon and I already had an argument about you leaving to go upstairs to the mystery control room."
Lucas pretended to pout. "I don't like it when Mommy and Daddy fight."
"Then tell me everything." I fixed him with my tell-me-everything stare; the kind that said if he didn't spill all the beans, I would make his life a living hell for the next two weeks, minimum. How I would do that, I didn't know, but neither did he, which was what counted. At that moment, however, when Lucas looked like he might just break under my bluff, my cell phone trilled.
"Thank God," muttered Lucas. We both leaned over to look at the screen.
"More like, thank Ben," I interjected. "Guess my cover isn't blown with him."
"Don't count on it. Give me a second before you answer." Lucas reached for his headphones and hit “Record” on his device. I waited for him to nod, then picked up the phone, hitting “Answer.”
"Hey," I cooed down the line, my heart beating fast. Was he calling to say hey, or just to boast how he foiled our plans?
"Hey, sweetheart," said Ben, sounding at ease with the world and not at all like someone who had just committed a crime. "How are you fixed for this evening?"
"No plans. I thought I'd just take it easy after..." I trailed off, remembering that if Ben were the thief, he would know all about the events of the night before. It would be odd if I didn't mention the break-in. It wasn't like I could have missed it. And if he didn't know...
"What's wrong?" Ben asked, his voice turning concerned. "Did something happen?"
Too right, buster, I thought, but maybe it was nothing to do with him. I felt a little better at that. I said, "Someone broke into my house last night."
"You're kidding me. Are you hurt? Are you okay?" Ben asked, anxiously.
"I'm fine, I was out of the house, so I only found out when I got a call from..." I paused and Lucas mouthed three letters slowly. Right. "MPD. Uh, the police department."
"Why didn't you call me? I would have come straight over. I don't like thinking of you alone in that big house especially after someone broke in."
"Oh no, I didn't want to impose. Besides, nothing was taken and I'm fine."
"What were they looking for?"
"I don't know," I lied, continuing smoothly, "but I guess they got disturbed before they could grab anything. The police think it might have been kids. Maybe they were looking for cash, or something easily pawned."
"I'm glad you're okay." Ben paused. "Why don't I buy you dinner later to take your mind off it? That is, if you're not worried about leaving the house empty. Are you staying there? Or do you prefer to check into a hotel?"
Lucas nodded. I nodded. We both waited, then it occurred to me to speak. "Actually, I am staying at my house and dinner would be wonderful."
"Great. I'll pick
you up at seven."
"I'll be waiting."
"And if there's any problems, call me right away, okay? Lexi, I mean it. I don't want you to think you can't call me just because we haven't known each other very long. If you call, I'll be there."
"I really appreciate it, Ben, thank you. Dinner will definitely take my mind off it."
"See you later then, Lexi."
"Bye, Ben." We hung up and I gently placed the phone on the table. I held my palms up to Lucas and shrugged. "I didn't get the impression he knew anything," I said.
"Kind of keen to get you out of the house," remarked Lucas, hitting “Stop” on his recording equipment.
"Maybe he was just trying to be nice."
Lucas arched one eyebrow. Damn it, I wished I knew how to do that. "Since when are people ever purely nice?"
"I'm always nice!"
"Five minutes ago, you were ready to spit in my coffee if I didn't 'fess up to agency secrets."
I leaned in, my elbows on the table. "So there are agency secrets. I knew it."
"Why don't you just ask Solomon?"
I grunted. It wasn't ladylike, but it did reveal my feelings. "He won't tell me anything."
"Maybe you should kiss him again."
I gasped and tripped over my words, making noises that sounded like “Burble burble... well... I never... how dare you... what? Burble.”
"Knew it," said Lucas, looking smug. "He looks at you like you're the wave he's ready to ride."
Awesome, but... "What kind of metaphor is that?"
"Who cares? It's accurate."
"He does not look at me like that!"
"He looks at your butt like that."
"Everyone looks at my butt like that."
"I don't."
"You're engaged."
"But not blind."
"You want to check out my ass, geek boy? You wanna surf my ass?" I started to stand; but what I really should have done was look over my shoulder before I opened my big mouth. Solomon chose that precise moment to enter the room. He gave me a look that didn't evoke happy thoughts, and I slid back down into my chair, my ass fully hidden from view and certainly not ready to ride like a wave.
"Progress?" Solomon asked, looking sour.
Lucas spoke while I mentally berated myself. "Ben called. He's taking Lexi out at seven. Seemed to want the house empty."
Solomon inclined his head towards me, his face still expressionless. "That your impression?"
"That we're going out, yes. That he wants the house empty, not sure. He seemed surprised when I said the house was broken into last night. He didn't mention the jewels I was supposed to have."
"Could be just good acting." Solomon shrugged. He was turning back to the door as my phone rang again.
Well, what do you know? "Lord Justin," I said, leaning in to see his name flash on my screen.
Solomon glanced over at Lucas. "You getting this on tape?"
"Yes, Boss."
"Let me know." Solomon left the room, shutting the door quietly behind him. He may not have been able to see my ass, but I got a pretty good look at his as he left. It was damn nice. Droolworthy.
"Your cell's still ringing," said Lucas, dragging me back to the task at hand.
I grabbed the cell phone as he hit “Record” and answered, "Hello?"
Lord Justin's smooth accent floated down the line. "Good morning, my dear. How are you today?"
"Very well, thank you," I replied, wondering if everyone in England talked so politely.
"I thought I might take you to afternoon tea," Lord Justin continued. "Show you a little English hospitality."
"Sounds delightful."
Sounds delightful, mouthed Lucas, who raised one pinky as he pretended to drink tea. I stuck my tongue out at him. Then, doing my country proud, I flipped him the finger.
"Shall I pick you up in an hour?"
"Actually, I’d prefer to meet you. I'm out... shopping right now."
"Any pretty baubles?" Lord Justin asked. My alarm bells rang as Lucas and I raised eyebrows at each other. What an odd inquiry, I decided, and curiously appropriate, after the attempted theft.
"I hoped to purchase some new jewels today, but alas, my house was broken into and I returned the jewels without making a, uh, purchase." Yikes. What was I saying?
"Goodness!" Lord Justin gasped. "What a violation! I trust you're not hurt?"
"Not at all. I was out when the house was burgled. Besides, nothing was taken. It was probably just a bunch of kids."
"The little beasts! The rogues! The audacious youth of today!"
"Um, yeah..."
"I'll protect you, my lady, don't you worry your pretty, little head. Diamonds, did you say?"
"Thanks." I made my excuses while taking down the address, and hung up before he offered to get his sword out.
"Have you heard yourself and your weird imitation of an English accent?" asked Lucas. He flapped one hand and squeaked "Alas! My house!"
I grimaced. "I wasn't trying to do it. It just came out!"
"Of your pretty, little head?" teased Lucas and we both rolled our eyes. "What a dick."
"Yeah, but he did mention the jewels. He even said diamonds."
"I have a little gadget for you to take on your hot date and fancy tea," Lucas told me, turning away to reach into his bag. He put a small device on the tabletop and pushed it towards me. I caught it as it skidded to the edge of the table and turned it over.
"What is it?"
"A phone cloner. You have to get Lord Justin's phone and plug in the device. You'll need approximately a minute for it to download, then we'll have full access to everything on his phone. It might just give us the clues we need to determine if he's guilty."
"I thought you'd already broken into his email account and accessed his phone records?"
"Yep, duh, that took minutes. This will give us a better picture. The cloner will copy everything from photos and notes to text messages and more." Lucas pushed a second identical box towards me. "And this one is for Ben. Same deal. Get his phone for sixty seconds and clone it. Bring them both back to me A-S-A-P and I'll extract the data."
"Okay, fine. I gotta shoot if I'm going to make this tea and take a nap." I yawned. I was long past the days when I could stay up all night and work. "What does one wear for afternoon tea? Should I wear a dress?" I mused, not really expecting an answer.
"I don't know. I guess a Downton Abbey-type dress is too much for this era."
"You watch Downton Abbey?"
"My fiancée makes me. I pretend to enjoy it."
"You totally enjoy it."
"And you totally checked out our boss's ass as he left the room." Lucas tapped his temples. "I'm not just a ridiculously handsome geek, you know. I notice stuff."
"Pffft." I blew a raspberry and left, though I was pretty sure I didn't win that round of teasing. Even worse, if Lucas noticed something was happening between Solomon and me, did the other guys also? My job never felt more precarious as it did now, and it usually felt pretty rocky. My only redeeming factor in their eyes would be for me to catch the bad guy. Even more so now, because of the sheer amount of screw-ups on this case already; and that's exactly what I planned to do. Right after I return to my apartment and put on a nice dress and pumps, because I wanted to look really good while I was doing it. I mean, come on, priorities, people!
Chapter Eighteen
Lord Justin waited on the steps of The Belmont, a small hotel tucked away behind the most exclusive part of Chilton. He wore a pink tie with a dark gray suit that had an actual pocket square, the hot pink silk peeking over the crease. He waved when he saw me pull up, and walked slowly down the steps, arriving on the sidewalk just as I handed my keys to the valet. I forlornly watched the Ferrari for a moment as it was driven away. What I wouldn't give for my bonus to be those cute wheels. It was the car my little VW would never be. On the plus side, my VW was all mine and unlikely to be the target of every car thief within a fifty-mile radius o
f Montgomery, so there was that.
"You look splendid," gushed Justin as he leaned in to air kiss me three inches from both cheeks.
"I know. I mean, thank you, so do you," I gushed in an equally superfluous manner. I was wishing I had a fan to direct some air at the sudden flush of heat on my face. It really wasn't okay to be so vain, but you know, he was right, I decided. I took his proffered arm and caught sight of my reflection in the hotel's shiny, streakless, glass doors. My yellow sundress, nipped in at the waist and flared to the knee, looked super cute, paired with my navy blazer and navy and white striped pumps. Not quite a bee, and not quite a sailor, but somewhere attractively in between. I was getting anxious for my first proper tea with the lord. As if on cue, the little finger of my right hand began edging away from the other fingers, as if ready to partake in a little tea drinking all on its own. It was just a shame that Justin was fifty percent likely to be a felon and one hundred percent likely to be dating a bunch of women.
04 - Shock and Awesome Page 22