This was the woman meant to be his. He knew it with every fiber of his being. It was more than possible Whitney had engineered the pairing as he had so many others, but that didn’t matter to Gideon. In fact, if it was so, he welcomed it. Whitney might be able to enhance the chemistry between them—and he was quite all right with that aspect of their relationship being enhanced. Whitney couldn’t force emotions between them. The man was a cold fish and didn’t understand emotions. Gideon knew his feelings were already involved when it came to Rory. He’d developed them rapidly, and the more he was in her company, the stronger they became.
It was entirely possible Whitney had programmed Rory and sent her out to be an unknowing spy for him. Or worse, if she was programmed to kidnap Sebastian, Gideon couldn’t allow that door to be opened.
Abruptly, he took his hands off her and reached for a cold beer. “I think I’m going to have another piece of chicken and contemplate the merits of bartending.”
“You sound like Lydia. She lives at the apartment building andhas a three-year-old daughter. Ellen has a disorder called selective mutism. Lydia is working with the people at UCSF Medical Center. She doesn’t have the best insurance to cover the cost, and she works for a software company, troubleshooting for their customers so she can work from home. She says she thinks she would prefer bartending. She watches YouTube videos all the time and has me show her tricks and how to make various drinks. She’s getting fast at some of them.” She set the picnic basket between them. “It would help her make more money to pay the bills for Ellen’s care. I’ve watched all the videos on how to work with a child who has selective mutism and have been learning how to help get little Miss Ellie to talk.”
That was so like the Rory he was coming to know.
“Where’s the baby’s father?”
“He left Lydia the moment he found out she was pregnant. She decided to have the baby on her own. Lydia lives frugally. In fact, she rarely leaves the apartment building. Ellen has cute clothes and lots of toys, but Lydia doesn’t have tons of things that I’ve noticed. She’s not a buyer. I think she’s paid a good wage. If she didn’t have the medical bills, she would be fine. I could get her on part-time, and if she’s not on the same shift with me, I could watch Ellen. She’d be asleep, so it wouldn’t be any big deal.”
There it was. An immediate offer to help someone else without reservation. That was Rory’s true nature. This was killing him. He took a swallow of the beer and stared out at the gathering fog. He wasn’t a bitter man. He didn’t sit around and think about the shit hand life had dealt him. He didn’t moan and groan and complain. He was considering changing that. He might even get drunk.
He took another bite of chicken and kept his gaze on the fog as it formed an ominous dark bank that spread across the water. “Are you looking at that?” He indicated the very gray mass with the half-eaten chicken.
“I am now.”
“One of the reasons I like sitting on this rooftop is seeing that. It was clear five minutes ago. San Francisco weather changes in a heartbeat. Life does as well. We learn acceptance if we’re going to get through it gracefully.” He took another slow sip of beer.
“Is that what you do, Gideon? You accept the changes in life gracefully?”
She sounded curious. He glanced at her. She was looking at the thick fog bank. He’d diverted her attention from the strange phenomenon she’d revealed to him—the second skin. He needed a little time to puzzle it out and talk to the others about it. With all of them considering possibilities, they might come up with answers fast.
“I try. What other way is there to live large?”
“I like that.” She glanced at her watch. “I can’t stay out too much later, although this has been nice, especially after the horrible interrogation by the cops. I swear Detective Westlake has it in for me for some unknown reason. I realize he lost his partner, but it isn’t my fault. I didn’t shoot the man. I was only in the room with him for a minute. Westlake acted like I’m a suspect in his murder or something. I finally threatened to call a lawyer if he didn’t stop. That’s why I was so late. If he hadn’t been so mean and kept at me, I would have been here on time.”
“Sometimes grief can make men act like idiots,” Gideon said. “I’m sorry he was ugly to you.” He had the unexpected urge to visit Westlake at his home and teach him some manners, but then who was he to give anyone a lesson in etiquette? He was about to commit the biggest betrayal of them all.
He finished off the chicken and spring rolls and washed them down with beer. Everything suddenly tasted like ashes. He wanted to sit with her for the rest of the night. Just sit quietly in the dark without speaking. Breathe her into his lungs. He wasn’t certain when he would ever have this chance again.
“I’m going to walk you back to your apartment, Rory,” he said decisively.
“That isn’t necessary. It isn’t that far. I’m used to walking at night.”
“I don’t like you walking alone. I’ve got a bad feeling. I always go with my gut, so if you don’t mind giving me this one, let me walk you home.”
She gave him one of her smiles. “I’d like that.”
7
Mack McKinley was all muscle, built solid. He had dark eyes and charcoal hair. He was the urban GhostWalker’s team leader, responsible for all of them in the field and off it. He took that responsibility very seriously. The entire top floor of the enormous warehouse was the home he shared with his wife, Jaimie. She had been one of the children they’d grown up with, going to school with them at far too young of an age because of her intelligence. Mack and the others had looked out for her.
Mack didn’t take his gaze from Gideon’s face the entire time he explained everything he knew of Rory Chappel to the others. When he was finished talking, his gaze jumped to Javier, who gave his report, citing what he’d learned from his in-depth research on the computer.
“You’re certain Whitney has paired you with her?” Mack asked.
Gideon nodded. “Absolutely. But I’d spent time with her prior to knowing all this. I watched her and studied her. I didn’t have aclue she was a GhostWalker. I liked her then and I like her now for who she is.”
“Is it possible she’s putting on an act?” Marc Lands, one of his teammates, asked. He had lived on the streets as a child along with Gideon and Javier.
Gideon shook his head. “She’d have to be the greatest actress of all time. Javier vetted her up close several times before I met her personally. I took her out and talked with her. We were alone together, and she showed me the tattoo on her ankle. That led to the revelation that she didn’t remember getting the tattoo or who the artist was, even though it was her favorite piece of artwork. I could see it really bothered her, so I pushed a little. At that point, she was rubbing her left temple. It wasn’t the first time she’d done that. There was no way she could fake that. I just don’t see how, Marc. And why bring it up? Why give herself away?”
“I was in the bar with her a few times,” Ethan Meyers said. “Sat at the bar and talked with her. I didn’t get the GhostWalker vibe from her, but I think she could repeat verbatim what any customer said to her.”
“So, let’s say she’s telling the truth,” Kane said.
