"Yeah, that too. Sorry."
She exhaled a long breath as she merged onto a larger road. "I know. I shouldn't have overreacted." And yeah, now that her adrenaline was subsiding, she replayed the last minute with more clarity. She really did overreact. A bullet would've broken a window. Her panicked brain hadn't computed that.
This was embarrassing. She panicked? This was new.
Why? Because of the gunshots? Was it PTSD from being shot? Or was it because the thought of losing Knox terrified her so much?
Not that he was hers to lose. He wasn't, of course. But she still cared about him. And the thought of . . . Okay, she needed to pivot to work-mode. Now was not the time to analyze her feelings about anything.
She checked her rearview mirror. Not being followed. Good. She took a deep breath to help her refocus. "Please tell me you got some clear footage of the shooters' faces."
She sensed him relax a little. "Yeah," he nodded, "that I did." He reached into the backseat and grabbed the laptop. He flipped it open, and she heard his fingers flying over the keys. "Oh yes, Jason is going to love this. Four guys. The two guys with rifles, plus two others. Rowan will be able to run their faces. The images are clear."
He sighed and closed the laptop. "Knowing who is on Byron land will be helpful in figuring out what these guys are up to. However," he leaned back in his seat with a humorless laugh, "I doubt shooting a low-flying drone over your private property isa crime on Isadora. The government and the resort owners value privacy above anything else."
He returned the laptop to the back seat. "By the way, in case it wasn't obvious in the briefing this morning, the resort owners own the government on the Morghana islands."
"So there's no reason to report them for shooting down the drone?"
"Not unless we want to get laughed at and told we shouldn't have been flying a drone over their property. The resort owners want us to find something substantial on Byron. They're not going to poke the bear for something like this."
"Got it." She glanced at him. "Back to the hotel?"
"Yeah. Rowan needs to get started on analyzing that." He jabbed a thumb toward the laptop behind her seat.
A comfortable silence filled the next couple of minutes, but the closer they got to the hotel, the more she felt Knox's earlier tension returning.
When they arrived, she chose a spot near the back of the hotel, away from most of the pedestrian traffic. Because—
"Hey," Knox said before she could open her door.
She was right. He wanted to talk. She was thankful for the private parking spot she had found. She would've felt like they were on display parked in front of the hotel.
He reached toward her hand, then drew back. The motion pricked her heart—she wasn't used to seeing a less-than-confident Knox Coulter.
He cleared his throat. "Listen, Allie, we need to get this laptop to Rowan ASAP, but afterward, unless Jason needs us for something, we need to talk. Okay?"
She felt herself nod. "Yes, okay."
Relief trickled through her. Even though she was unsure what Knox was going to say, and she was certain it wouldn't be a comfortable conversation, she was definitely looking forward toquelling the awkwardness between them. She wouldn't be at her best on this assignment until the tension dissipated.
Chapter 4
Knox walked into Room 336 with a white box in his hand and a smile plastered on his face. Allie led the way, holding a cold Red Bull.
Rowan, headphones on, shoulders hunched, sat behind one of his laptops.
"Hey there, Rowan," Knox said. "Where's Jason?"
The young IT genius pulled his headphones down to his neck. "Huh?"
"Where's Jason?" Knox repeated, purposely keeping the friendly smile on his face.
Rowan shrugged. "Said he'd be back. I think he's making some calls in his room. We didn't find anything interesting with our drone. He said you texted him. Said you guys are bringing some footage I need to work on? You found something?"
Knox had texted Jason about what happened with the drone. And he wasn't surprised that Jason decided to let Knox break the news to Rowan.Thanks, buddy.
"Yes, we have some footage for you. We need to ID four different men, if you can."
