“With me,” he said.
The only thing missing was a snap of the fingers and a command to heel.
She instead screwed her smile on tighter and followed along behind the man.
She still didn’t understand what was going on. No one had a clear answer for her yesterday, and today seemed more of the same.
If she had one bit of constructive criticism for Robert and the senator, it would be to have clearer lines of communication. It was damn frustrating to be half a step behind and no idea what they were doing.
Then again, maybe that was on purpose?
“What’s the plan for today?” she asked.
Robert grunted by way of an answer.
That didn’t exactly tell her a lot.
The senator’s home was a sprawling, historical mansion of sorts. The intelligence she’d read indicated it was inherited, though not through family. There hadn’t been much in the way of details about that. She’d looked over the original floor plans, but it was obvious several walls had been moved and quite a bit of updating had happened. Recently, too, if the smell of fresh paint was anything to go off of.
She was glad to see that much of the original woodwork was still in existence. Decorative swirls and touches here and there marked the original doorways still in use.
The walls were stark white with wood paneling and deep, red rugs over rich hardwood floors that gleamed. Some of the old lighting sconces had been wired, giving off more charm than light.
It all felt very pseudo-presidential. Very trying too hard for her tastes.
“The senator has three offices in the home,” Robert said, bringing her attention from the interior decoration to him.
Kelsey picked up the pace to walk next to her boss.
“You will be in the front office receiving guests. I have work to do in the back office. And the senator will be taking meetings upstairs.”
“Is there an agenda? Some sort of schedule I should have?” she asked. Anything really to for her to look over, assess. She’d take it.
Robert didn’t respond.
Fantastic.
They neared the front of the house. Kelsey spied at least one man she recognized from the senator’s security detail.
Well, shit.
She mentally battened down the hatches and prepared herself to face Logan. No more putting it off. At least they both had a role to play. That would give her something to hide behind.
“You’re in here.” Robert gestured at great, wooden double doors thrown open to reveal a study.
Kelsey blinked at the grand room. It was all dark wood and leather.
She stepped inside, glancing around the space.
The bookshelves held volumes of red books sticking to the color scheme. She had to wonder if the books were even real or just props.
“Greet the guests and bring them up at their appointed time,” Robert said.
“So there’s a schedule?” She glanced at the bare desk.
“Our guests know when their appointments are.”
He turned and walked away from her.
“So, let me get this straight?” Kelsey muttered to herself. “People show up and I just let them in. Great. Sounds totally secure.”
Her irritation was quickly replaced with curiosity.
Once more Robert was giving her as little information as possible. Why? Was it possible that Dixon wasn’t the person Skilton was after? What if Robert was using the senator somehow?
She shook her head and crossed to the desk, looking for any sort of document.
Nothing.
Just like her desk in the office.
Kelsey circled the desk and studied the arrangement. There was a phone. A desk calendar with nothing on it. A few things that looked to be awards. And that was it.
She placed her bag on the floor behind the desk and gave the room a more thorough examination.
This was likely the original study of the house. There was woodwork similar to what she’d already seen at the windows and door. The fireplace was gas now, not wood. The furniture wasn’t new, but couldn’t be very old. The scent of leather was still quite strong.
Out of curiosity, she turned to the shelf behind her and pulled at one of the red volumes.
It didn’t budge.
She smirked and examined the rectangular block of fake books.
Appearances could be so very deceiving.
“I’ll handle that,” a familiar voice said in the hall.
Kelsey snatched her hand back. Her shoulders tensed and her stomach knotted. Every fiber of her being strained to hear him again, but all she heard were heavy footsteps on the hardwood walking away from her.
Logan.
She swallowed and pressed her hands to her thighs.
So much for not letting him affect her.
Kelsey shook her head.
This wasn’t like her. She was not the type to allow a man to twist her around like this, damn it.
She turned and stalked across the room, investigating every nook and cranny. Not that there was anything the least bit interesting. Mostly, it gave her something to do and to find her footing, so to speak.
Now, what the hell were they here for?
She returned to the desk and sat in the squeaky leather chair.
Two of the security detail were in the entry. They hadn’t left and didn’t appear to have anything else to do.
Were they the welcome wagon?
At least Logan wasn’t one of them.
She scooted back and opened the top drawer of the desk. There were pens, paperclips, rubber bands, a stapler and other typical office supplies. Nothing interesting or the least bit informative.
The other drawers were similarly uninteresting.
Kelsey took a notebook and pen from her tote. That at least gave her something to fiddle with. She started by sketching the house as she’d seen it so far. At the very least she could document the changes so if they had to return later, they’d at least know where things were.
No one had said anything about Oliver’s willingness to talk about why he was there. At least not to Kelsey. She could probably get information out of Logan, if she was willing to talk to him. That would be the mature thing to do, though she was fairly certain she knew what the answer would be.
There was a theme.
To date they’d apprehended several people, but none of them were willing to talk about who they answered to. Whoever this Skilton person was, they feared him more than anything else. And that made Kelsey worried. Just who was the guy? How much power did he have over the people he employed? And why hadn’t they heard of him until now?
“Good morning,” another male voice said.
She glanced up at the two security detail granting a small group of four people entry. Three men. One woman.
Kelsey stood and smiled, hands clasped in front of her, and watched.
The smaller, stockier security guard did a quick peak into bags while the other man waved a handheld wand over the guest’s pockets. Only once they received an all-clear did the security gesture into the office. At her.
That must be her cue.
“Good morning.” She circled the desk, hand out. “I’m the senator’s assistant, Kelsey Young.”
A friendly enough man greeted her enthusiastically, followed by the woman then the others. Introductions were made, and she filed those names away for later.
“Let me see if the senator is ready for you,” Kelsey said and pulled out her phone.
“We’re running behind, actually.” The friendly man glanced at his watch pointedly.
Kelsey screwed on her smile a bit tighter. “One moment.”
If she had a schedule, she’d know something like that.
She stepped away and hit dial on Robert’s number, all the while grumbling to herself.
“What?” he answered on the first ring.
“I’ve got four people here to see the senator, a Mr.—”
“Then take them up,” Rob
ert said with all the exasperation a person could muster.
“Right away,” she replied as cheerily as possible. Kelsey rolled her eyes and pocketed the phone before turning toward the guests. “If you’ll come with me?”
The funny thing about this was that Kelsey had no idea where she was taking them.
The whole situation was ridiculous to her.
None of that stopped her from pretending she knew what she was about. After all, one of the best pieces of advice she’d ever received was to simply fake it. So long as she appeared to know what she was doing, no one would question her.
No one except for the man with dark brown eyes headed straight for her.
Logan’s gaze only briefly landed on her.
“Morning ladies and gentlemen,” he said.
“We’re going up to see the senator,” she said.
Logan merely inclined his head, then turned to fall into step with her.
Kelsey was both irritated and grateful for his presence. It wasn’t like she knew where she was going. Logan would have scoped the whole place out by now.
Sure enough, he subtly sped up, turned and led her up a wide, grand staircase.
A pair of double doors were open just off the landing, and inside was Senator Dixon behind a cluttered, well-used desk.
Kelsey paused at the door and offered smiles to the guests as they filed in, their focus now on the senator.
Logan was the one who moved to close the doors.
Kelsey pulled her phone out and plugged in the first name she remembered. It was also a handy way to ignore the man now standing next to her.
“Huh.” She frowned at her phone.
“Who are they?” Logan asked in a low voice.
“Looks like pharma lobbyists.” She wrinkled her nose and tapped out a text in the secure app to alert Diha to those names.
“How’s it going so far?” he asked.
“This is all the excitement I’ve had so far,” she said. Without any other excuse to look at her phone, she pocketed it.
“Robert’s keeping us on a tight leash,” Logan said.
“You, too? I better get back to my post.” She headed for the stairs before he could say anything that needed a reply.
“Kelsey?” Logan said in a low voice. There was something about how he said her name that made her stop.
“Hm?” She glanced over her shoulder.
His brown eyes had gone from cold to blazing hot. “We will talk later.”
Her throat struggled to work, but eventually she managed to say, “I don’t think that’s really necessary.”
She fled down the stairs. There was no other word for it.
Running from this man was a terrible idea. She knew that, and yet it was all she could do.
7.
Friday. Senator Dixon’s Home. Annapolis, Maryland.
Logan could feel eyes on him. Unfriendly ones.
There had been no structure to the security team. No one was in charge. They had zero organization other than crowding around the senator. These were not professionals. Logan couldn’t help but notice none of the men from reputable agencies had been selected. If that wasn’t a red flag, Logan didn’t know what was. Half of them had been bouncers previous to this position. They knew nothing about bodyguard work.
Maybe he’d overstepped by taking charge, but Logan wasn’t about to sit back and do a piss-poor job of things. In hindsight, he should have eased into it. Though for all he knew, this was the right move. As yesterday proved, things were happening at an accelerated pace.
Kelsey breezed past Logan and the other two men in the entry without a glance at him.
She was avoiding him. Pointedly. And it had nothing to do with trying to maintain their cover. No, that kiss last night had changed things between them. This morning he’d wavered on his decision, but now? After watching her for a few hours? He’d made up his mind.
One way or another, he was kissing Kelsey again. Maybe not soon. They had a job to do, after all. He could be patient.
His phone buzzed against his hip. He pulled it out and glanced at the latest message.
Another guest list provided by Kelsey, no doubt created on the spot after introducing herself to new guests.
Damn.
Not knowing who Dixon was meeting with upstairs made it near impossible to gauge the threat against him. So far he’d met with lobbyists. That much was clear from the smattering of names Kelsey had sent through. One of which was very dirty. Diha had flagged that one and sent over more info Logan hadn’t the time to look at.
What was the point of hiring security if they weren’t allowed to do a thorough job?
“That’s one tight ass.”
If Logan had hackles, they would have risen right then and there.
Logan slowly turned his head and looked at Butters, one of the former bouncers. Despite his name, there wasn’t an ounce of fat on the guy. He had intimidating down to an art, but it was all for show. The guy was an over muscled meat-head with no brains.
Butters scowled at Logan. “What? Am I wrong?”
“Talking like that will get you fired,” he replied coolly. What he wanted to say was better done with a fist.
Butters rolled his eyes. “Ease the stick out of your ass.”
Logan grit his teeth. In truth, he had no power over these people. They had no professionalism. And he wasn’t certain that if he raised issues with Robert, it wouldn’t be Logan who was fired.
Shit, if only there was a clearer threat to Dixon so they could make an official move. This whole thing was a mess. Why would someone as controlling as Dixon’s chief of staff refuse to give them more information?
Because he was hiding something.
It was the obvious answer now, wasn’t it?
Logan glanced at Kelsey, but she was focused on something in her lap.
Her phone?
Probably.
Was it possible Dixon wasn’t as ignorant as they thought him to be?
What if he was aware that he’d narrowly missed a threat yesterday?
Damn it.
What they needed were some open lines of communication with the senator, but that wasn’t going to happen unless their hand was forced.
One thing at a time.
Logan drew in a deep breath.
He was never going to even think about being annoyed with Zora ever again. No, she might not give them the full picture or all of the information, but they knew enough to get the damn job done.
Chances were, Zora and the others had already come to the same conclusion as Logan and were working on it. Which meant he needed to settle into his job watching the senator and leave the rest up to them.
Talk about a raw deal.
Logan turned on his heel and began a circuit of the first floor. The house was massive, with lots of old windows and entry points. A full circuit of the house took a half hour, which included testing windows and trying some of the less visible doors.
As far as he could tell, everything looked clear.
Then again, Oliver hadn’t tried to sneak into anything. He’d been expected. On a damn list.
Logan’s frustration spiked again as he strode down one of the main halls running through the house.
Ahead of him, the entire security team clustered together.
Frowning, Logan picked up his pace.
Just what the hell were they doing? What was the point of security if they weren’t doing their damn job?
Kelsey stepped into view. She turned her head and looked straight at him.
“There you are,” she called out in an even tone.
“Something going on?” He tried to keep his tone as level as hers.
She nodded toward the stairs. “Dixon wants a quick meeting with everyone.”
After they’d been fumbling around?
He checked his watch.
Almost eleven. The morning was practically gone.
Logan watched the others file up.
Was it lu
ck or some other power that had Kelsey selected as the only other office person working here today? Was Dixon trying to take advantage of her ignorance? Or was he merely using the tools at his disposal?
Logan wished he knew something.
He brought up the rear, following the others into the senator’s upstairs office. The room had probably been some sort of entertaining space previously. There was still an old pool table in one corner, and the worn leather sofa in front of a TV proved that he spent a lot of time in here. But it was dominated by a desk and seating area.
Dixon and Brown hovered by the desk while the rest of the security team plopped on the furniture. Kelsey was a bit more discerning, choosing to sit in an armchair that maintained her personal space. Good. After what Butters had said, Logan didn’t want any of these assholes near her.
Logan opted to remain standing near the entrance. With his luck, these idiots hadn’t even secured the front door.
Dixon finished whatever he was saying to Brown and turned his focus on the room at large. Dixon’s face changed. It was like a lightbulb went on. A switch flipped, and he beamed at them all.
The change immediately made Logan uncomfortable. He glanced at the others and found Butters grinning back at Dixon like an idiot. And he wasn’t alone. Even Kelsey had a slight smile on her face and her focus on Dixon.
She was likely playing a role. Logan couldn’t imagine her being taken in by this charmer.
“Morning, everyone.” Dixon smiled and leaned back against his desk. He wore navy slacks and a pale blue button down with his sleeves rolled him. His tie and suit jacket were hanging from the back of his desk chair.
The room replied back in a chorus of, “Morning.”
“It seems like we’ve had a bit of a bumpy start so far. I wanted to take a few moments with Robert here and get on the same page.” Dixon slapped Robert Brown’s shoulder.
The stoic man didn’t so much as batt and eyelash. He could have been a statue.
Kelsey’s hand darted up, and she smiled warmly at the beaming asshole. “I’m sorry, sir?”
Dixon leaned toward her and smiled wider. “Yes, Kelsey?”
Yeah, Logan wanted to punch the guy.
Kelsey gestured with her hands as she spoke. “I fear the hiccups are all my fault. You see, I don’t have an agenda or any sort of list. Robert said to bring people up when they arrived, but it seems like things are overlapping this way. Is there a better way to do this?”
Intercepted Risk (Aegis Group Task Force Book 5) Page 9