She started up. At first, he stayed just behind her. Until he realized watching her backside scramble up the rocks was not helping him focus on the mission.
He navigated the climb next to her.
When they reached a small perch, he stopped. “This might work. I can stay tucked behind these rocks with a good view of the path and the pier.”
Her face scrunched up.
“What’s wrong?”
“What are you planning on doing? You’re not going to shoot them, are you? I thought this was about arresting Gus’s killer. How are you going to confront anyone from here?”
“We will be armed. But no, shooting anyone is not plan A. Or plan B. Depending on what Gus’s video shows, and how things play out on the pier tonight, we may, or may not, intervene at all.”
“So, you might just watch them load up and take the stuff? Like Leland suggested?”
“If a small army of armed men show up? Yes. We don’t have the resources to combat odds like that. And we can’t call the police because, if what is happening is what wethinkis happening, these guys are stealing stolen goods.”
She let out a sigh full of understanding and frustration. “Goods that Drakos—your client—and Frederick are still arguing over.”
“Exactly. We were hired to protect Drakos’ life, not his stolen goods. And, not to sound all Indiana Jonesy, but by the looks of that collection, some of it probably belongs in a museum.”
“Can’t we do anything about that? I mean, if valuable artifacts were stolen, can’t we report it to somebody?”
Jason nodded. “We can try. Knox knows a guy on the FBI’s Art Crime Team. He’s going to reach out.” He couldn’t stifle his humorless laugh. “That won’t make Drakos or Frederick very happy, though.”
“I realize that. But it’s the right thing to do.”
He respected the certainty in her voice. A lot. He needed to be careful. He needed time to think through whatever was going on between them. But everything she said or did only made her more attractive to him.
She still looked troubled. “But what if Gus’s killer is here? You’re not going to let him get away, are you?”
“No. We’ll follow him. We’ll tag the boat.” He brushed her arm with his finger. “Hey. Don’t worry. We do this for a living. Knox, Leland, and I can handle this. Tonight, Rowan will be watching the cameras, letting us know about anything he sees that we can’t. He has face recognition software and all kinds of technical marvels to help us. Leland, Knox, and I will be spread out in the rocks. We’ll monitor the situation and decide how to proceed.”
She faced the ocean. “I’ll be watching too.”
Without warning, the worry and uncertainty in her eyes resurrected long-buried insecurities in his mind.
If they did explore what was between them . . . if it led to a relationship . . . could it survive the dangers of his job? She’d worry. And she’d worry alone, because he’d be gone so much. She’d resent that. And he could never guarantee he’d come home in one piece.
Cracking the door to those doubts allowed the ice-cold hand of his real fear to snake around his hope—if she was in danger . . . maybe he’d protect her like he had the past few days . . . but he hadn’t been able to save Leah. He’d been right there. Next to her. She died in his arms.
He should have been able to save Leah.
He forgot where he was for a few seconds. His mind jerked him back to the worst night of his life and held him there. Until all he could see was Leah’s blood on his hands.
“Jason?Jason!“ Tayla’s voice pulled him from the nightmare. She gripped his hand. “Are you okay?”
He cleared his throat. “Sorry. Yeah. My mind was . . . I was thinking about something else. Sorry.”
Her face softened. “Are you sure you’re okay? You look worried.” She scanned the area around them. “Is it about tonight? Are you sure they won’t see you? Where will you park? You’ll have to hide your car.”
He tried to transition back to the present. Tayla’s face was so beautiful. And troubled.
She deserved better.
He shook off the dark memories the best he could. “Everything will be fine. Rowan will drop us off. There’s no good place to hide the car.”
He watched her glance around again. He could practically see the gears spinning in her head. She was smart. And kind. And a relationship with him would not be fair to her. “Are you ready? We should place the cameras at the orphanage and get back.”
