Thus far, the journey of the Paladin Courier had been fairly uneventful.
The Observer did not expect that to last much longer.
Chapter Eight
Jack woke in a dark, unfamiliar room and wondered where he was for about two seconds. His recent memories rushed back in. The bachelor auction. Cyberpunk Chick. Madelaine. The sixteen-hour road trip to Suspicion, Minnesota. And, finally, The Secret Keeper.
He sat up on the comfortable bed in the nice quarters the Secret Keeper had provided for them and snapped on the table lamp next to the bed. Well, really, the Secret Keeper’s assistant, Chester, had taken care of the details for their guest rooms.
It was odd that Madelaine’s meeting with the Secret Keeper, while not arranged in advance, seemed expected. Which was, well, odd. Then again, every visit he’d ever had with the Secret Keeper had been odd in some way.
He shrugged it off. Standard operating procedure for this town.
Jack grabbed his phone from the nightstand to see how long he’d slept. Four hours? Wow. That was much longer than he thought they were going to stay in Suspicion. He’d taken a quick shower before his nap to wash off the long trip.
Madelaine was in the room next door. Jack had been grateful they didn’t have to share a room or a bed because he was still too heartbroken to think in that direction, especially after the disastrous almost-kiss in Liberty. A kiss he’d really wanted. It was likely a good thing she’d broken away from him after the horn sounded. But it didn’t feel that way.
Clearly, he needed to remain wary of his feelings.
Stretching his neck, first one way and then the other, Jack realized that he felt much better after his four-hour power nap. He hoped the sixteen-hour return trip went quickly.
But then the terrible notion that Madelaine had left him behind in Suspicion crept inside in his mind. He got off the bed, went to the adjoining bathroom to use the facilities and splash water on his face several times to ensure he was wide awake.
He exited the guest room, intending to knock on her door. To his surprise, it was open and a housekeeper was inside cleaning it. That was not at all reassuring.
Jack made a beeline for the Secret Keeper’s office and found Madelaine in the outer office, chatting with Chester.
Relief poured through him and he vowed to be more amiable on the return trip. Amazing how a little bit of shuteye improved his attitude. Maybe Madelaine had a lot to answer for, but his feelings for her had not changed. He loved her. He wanted to help her in any way he could, regardless of what the future held for them.
“Hey, Jack,” she said, looking and sounding like she was glad to see him.
“Hey. Did I oversleep?”
“No. I’ve only been here a couple of minutes.” She smiled at him and he smiled back. He couldn’t seem to help himself.
“Would you like me to find the two of you something to eat?” Chester asked cheerfully. “I could order something to be delivered.”
Jack shook his head. “No, but thanks. We can get something on the road.” He looked at Madelaine for her agreement and she nodded. He suspected she didn’t want to wait any longer to get back to hererrand.
He turned to Chester. “Is the Secret Keeper available for a couple of minutes? I wanted to ask him something. I’ll be quick, I promise.”
Chester perked up. “Yes. I’ll let him know you’re coming in.”
Madelaine’s eyes narrowed and he could see her wondering why he wanted a quick meeting. Her face relaxed and, without a word, she moved over to a chair along the wall to wait for him.
“Don’t worry. I won’t take long,” he told her.
She nodded and started to rifle around in her bag for he knew not what.
“Go on in,” Chester said.
Jack thanked him and strode through the door into the Secret Keeper’s office. He’d barely closed the door behind him when the Secret Keeper said, “No. I cannot tell you what Madelaine Archer and I discussed.” He didn’t even bother looking up from the orderly piles of paper laid out on the desk before him.
“Bummer. But that isn’t what I wanted to ask you.”
The Secret Keeper straightened in his chair and pinned Jack with a calm gaze. “What can I help you with?”
“I was hoping we could keep this meeting and me being here today with Madelaine a secret from the Big Bang Truck Stop personnel and leadership.”
