How could she have a relationship with a man who was even a minor celebrity when she tried so hard to keep her own identity and occupation a secret? But she had to take the chance. Jason was worth it.
He was even worth quitting for, if that’s what it took. There were other ways to serve the cause, but hopefully it wouldn’t come to that.
As she stood in the receiving line after the service, worry that Jason’s parents would turn him against her, or that their time apart would make him realize he deserved better, frayed her nerves. With no idea when he’d return to LA, Emma was desperate for a distraction. Thankfully, she had a meeting with an informant on the Fisswert Games case at a bar in Eagle Rock in just over an hour.
When she reached the head of the line, she gave her condolences to Nat’s family in a grief-induced haze of platitudes and hugs before escaping into the bright parking lot.
The end of July was hot in LA, and her black dress absorbed the midday sun’s radiation like the asphalt shimmering under her feet. Momentarily blinded, she was digging in her bag for her sunglasses when her phone vibrated. She slipped on her shades and checked the screen, her heart soaring at the sight of Jason’s name. She’d missed his first call during the service. “Hi.”
“Hey.”
Opening her car door, she slid in and started the engine, rolling down all the windows to let out the heat until the A/C could kick in. “I didn’t have a chance to listen to your voicemail yet. Are you back?” she asked, not caring if she sounded too eager, even as grief tempered her voice. “I just got out of Nat’s service, but I’d love to see you.”
“I’m sorry. How was it?”
Through the windshield, she watched mourners in subdued shades of clothing trickle into the parking lot and back to their normally scheduled lives. “Beautiful. Horrible.”
“I’m sure her family appreciated your presence.” His voice was odd, flat.
“Maybe.” She wasn’t so sure. Especially since she’d left Natalie to die alone. That was unforgivable, even in her own eyes. “I’m just grateful they let me attend.” Rolling up the windows to keep the now-cool air inside, she asked, “Where are you?”
He cleared his throat. “Still in Walnut Creek.”
“Oh.” Hearing from him was great. Seeing him would’ve been so much better. “How’s your family?”
“Not great.”
She waited for him to elaborate but he didn’t. “I’m sorry. I hope they’re not taking it out on you.”
She imagined him shrugging as he said, “No more than I deserve.”
“Jason, none of this is your fault.”
He scoffed. “Really? According to you, it couldn’t have happened without me.”
Whoa. Where had that come from? “It couldn’t have gone down the way it did without you, no. Not on that timeline. Maybe never if Renfro had his way.” She tried to choose her words carefully but her rising panic at his tone made it hard to think. “It would’ve been harder, taken longer. More people might have been hurt.Imight have—”
He made a pained noise. “Stop.Just stop, Em.”
Heart pounding, she clamped her mouth shut.
“How many of these kinds of stories have you uncovered?” he asked.
The change in direction had her reeling. “Quite a few. Um, maybe fifteen or twenty.” If only she had the go-ahead from her team she could tell him more, but the relationship was too new, too shaky for them to trust Jason with the mission and their lives.
“Do you publish them under an alias?” he asked. “I couldn’t find more than a few recent stories with your byline, and none of them were particularly noteworthy.”
Oh, God. He’d finally gotten smart and looked her up. Or maybe someone else had.
“And the true ownership of FPP,” he said, “is hidden inside a dizzying number of shell corporations and equity transfers. So many that Valerie couldn’t quickly unravel them all. Seems totally legit,” he said, heavy on the sarcasm.
“It’s complicated.” She swallowed hard, her throat suddenly dry as talc.
“Are you even a reporter anymore, Emma?” he asked, his voice hard and cold.
“Yes.” Her throat tightened. “Iwason staff atLA Today, just like I told you. Now, I investigate stories that would otherwise get swept under the rug,just like I told you.”
“And you’ll do whatever it takes to get the story.”
