Saving Serena (Hawk Security #1)

Chapter 17

CHAPTER 17

Serena

Duke turned in at the entrance to the federal building parking lot.

My nerves had built steadily during the quiet ride as I sat with Constance in the back of his SUV. He’d given me only the briefest of glances in the rearview mirror during the trip.

He pulled to a halt in front of the employee entrance. “Let me know when you’re ready to leave,” he said.

Constance opened the door. “Copy that.”

I followed her after thanking Duke for the ride, as was proper to do.

While we waited in the security line, my stomach took the opportunity to gurgle and announce my hunger.

Constance smiled. “Sounds like you should have had some of Duke’s cooking after all.”

“Maybe,” I admitted.

“He made that omelet especially for you,” she added.

My mouth dropped open in a gasp. “He did?”

“He told me you deserved the best after yesterday,” she whispered.

Suddenly, the day looked brighter. I nodded. “I’ll call and thank him for thinking of me.”

“He might growl at you, but ignore that. He’ll appreciate the gesture. Somewhere under that tough hide, he’s human.”

“He’s sort of bossy,” I observed as we inched toward the metal detectors.

She shrugged. “It’s the type, an overachieving SEAL. Be the mirror.”

I followed her forward. “I don’t understand.”

“When he gets out of hand, let it bounce off you and send it right back to him. Don’t be a wimp.”

Don’t be wimpy, I repeated silently to myself. I had to remember that. I’d been wimpy this morning in the kitchen and probably gotten the wrong impression from Duke. Only a conversation would clear that up, and I desperately hoped for the right answer.

“Remember, you don’t know me,” Constance murmured as we moved forward.

A few seconds later, she was next for the metal detector.

I laid my purse on the conveyor for the X-ray machine. She didn’t. Instead, she showed the gun in her holster and flashed credentials.

“What’s the Secret Service doing here?” the marshal asked.

“Classified,” she said sternly.

He got the message and ushered her through, no purse search, ignoring the beeps. “LEO,” he told the marshal behind him.

I’d watched enough NCIS episodes to know LEO was their lingo for law enforcement officer. I showed my ID and walked beep-free through the arch. “What’s with the Secret Service?” I asked.

The marshal shook his head. “Who knows? They don’t tell us crap.”

Constance chose the left-most elevator, and I took the one on the right.

When I reached my floor, Constance was nowhere to be seen. I marched on to my cubicle, taking the route away from Powell’s office, just in case he still had a bad attitude from yesterday.

Even before I went for my first cup of coffee, I settled into my chair, opened my cell, and dialed Duke. I had to talk to the man, even if the conversation was monitored by Jordy.

He didn’t answer, and after a few seconds, I got a text that he was busy and would talk to me later. My heart sank.

“Meeting in the big conference room, everybody.” Powell’s voice boomed over the space. Yes, the tyrant of our time had struck again.

I got to the room in time to choose a chair far away from the one at the head of the table, otherwise known as Powell’s throne. Distance was my friend. The rest of the department filed in, buzzing with questions. “What’s the meeting about?” Everyone wondered, but nobody had an answer.

Powell walked in, followed by Constance and Isaac Tramell, the local special agent in charge of our criminal investigative division.

Powell sat. “Get the door, please.”

Nick walked over to close it.

Tramell and Constance stayed standing.

“We have a guest who’ll be joining us for a while,” Powell announced. “Agent Evers is with CID.”

Constance raised her hand in a wave. “First, you can call me Constance, and I’ll make my best effort to be unobtrusive.”

Murmurs rose in the group. CID was the arm of the agency that took down bad guys, the polluters we filed criminal charges against.

“Who are we after?” Remy asked.

Powell deferred to Tramell with a hand motion.

“Agent Evers is on loan to the inspector general’s office,” he explained. “She’ll be reviewing some files and interviewing a few of you as well.”

“Why?” Remy demanded.

Constance motioned to Remy. “What is your name?”

“Uh, Remy, Remy Laurent.”

“Mr. Laurent.” She opened a binder, checked it, and closed it. “Yes, I’ll start with you.”

Remy’s mouth gaped open as he slumped back into his chair.

People shifted uncomfortably and murmured to their neighbors. The inspector general’s office concerned itself with internal investigations, not external ones like CID. That meant the office, or someone in the office, was under suspicion.

“I’m on loan to the IG,” Constance repeated. “That is all I have to share at the moment.”

But Powell wasn’t satisfied. “For how long? How long will this interruption continue?”

Playing the part well, Constance answered in true bureaucratic fashion. “That is indeterminate at this time. As soon as I’m settled, I’ll start the interviews with you, Mr. Powell.” She pointed at Remy. “Mr. Laurent, you are now second.”

White as a sheet, Powell stared at the table.

I bit back a smile, as did a few others in the room. Constance had settled the power dynamic with Powell beautifully.

Tramell stepped forward. “I expect everyone to give their complete cooperation to Agent Evers.” The meeting ended as he turned and left.

Back at my desk, Katelyn and Nick crowded into my cubicle.

“What do you think they’re investigating?” Katelyn asked anxiously.

“No idea,” Nick said. “I hope it’s Powell’s management style.”

“Don’t we all,” I agreed.

Katelyn took the conversation down to a whisper. “Did you see how she put Powell in his place?”

I grinned. “Priceless.”

“I don’t want to get on her bad side,” Nick noted.

Katelyn nodded. “No way. She’s armed.”

Nick poked his head up to check. “Yeah, that’s hot. Maybe I’ll ask her out.”

“Pervert,” Katelyn said, punching his shoulder.

Personally, I agreed with Nick. Duke was armed, and I thought he was hot.

Remy arrived. “The fro-yo truck is due any minute.” The group dispersed as that news trumped the gossip.

I stayed, itching to get a call back from Duke.

An hour later, still no word from Duke, but Katelyn had returned.

She nodded toward the small conference room, which had a view of the entrance to my cubicle. “Why did she have to set herself up so close to us?”

I lifted from my chair and with a quick glance saw that Constance had chosen a seat that gave her a direct line of sight down the aisle of our cubicles. I shrugged. “It makes more sense than the large conference room.”

“I guess, but she gives me the creeps.”

“Me too,” I lied. “What do you think she’s after?”

“I hope it’s Powell.”

It was almost lunchtime when I got the message.

CObrA: What do you need?

I dialed his number.

“Cobra,” he answered coldly.

Katelyn wasn’t in her cubicle, but I whispered anyway. “Hi, this is Serena?—”

“I know who it is. Is everything all right?” he asked. “Constance told me she’s in position.”

So he’d answered her call but not mine. “I wanted to talk,” I explained.

After a pause, he said, “It’s not a good idea for OPSEC. It should wait until after work.”

From TV, I knew OPSEC meant operational security . “I’ll be brief,” I promised.

“Still—”

“Thank you,” I started before he could object further. This was not going the way I’d hoped, but I couldn’t let him off the line without an answer. “Con…” I stopped myself from saying her name out loud in case somebody heard me. “The lady at breakfast said you made the omelet special for me, and I wanted to say thank you. It’s always proper to thank people for thoughtful gestures, and yours was very thoughtful.” I stopped myself from blathering further.

It was an agonizing second before he answered. “You’re welcome.”

“Also, I appreciate you taking care of me.” It was time to take a chance and see where he stood. “Last night, after the note scared the crap out of me, and before the guys showed up, before the pizza, you know…” That should make it obvious enough.

“I told you, it’s my job to patch you up and take care of you, keep you safe.”

That wasn’t a definite response. Maybe he didn’t get the clues, so I laid myself bare. “I don’t want to go to the hospital. I want you to change my bandage when I need it. Quick or slow, either way, is good. If you’re up for it, that is, with a spoiled princess.”

He laughed. “I never called you spoiled.” Still not a concrete answer.

“And my bandage? I think you were right that girls who say it has to be pulled off slow are wrong.” If he didn’t get it, I was going to smack him over the head with a frying pan tonight.

“Anything you want, Princess. I can pull the bandage off fast or slow. You just have to tell me what you want.”

I nearly jumped out of my seat with joy. That was a yes. I think. “What I want is for you to stop calling me Princess.”

“Too late for that, Princess.”

“Serena?” Katelyn called from behind me.

I had no idea how much she’d heard and hoped it had been nondescript enough. “I gotta go. Bye.” I hung up and turned.

She cocked a brow. “Your hunky boyfriend?”

Without any other option, I nodded.

“I think Princess is a cute nickname.” A hint of wetness shone in her eyes. “Leo used to call me Contessa.”

“That is sweet,” I agreed. “Maybe I can get used to it, but I don’t think my guy means it the same way.”

She scooted her chair closer. “What do you call him?”

I shrugged a shoulder. “We’re kinda new. I don’t have a name for him yet.” Then I remembered. “Except for Cobra.”

“I hope that’s a reference to his size, you know where.”

I blushed, afraid to touch that one.

“Leo was sort of average, but it’s true what they say about Italian men. They know how to wield it.”

My blush flamed hotter.

“What about your guy?”

Yes, what about my guy?

Remy interrupted us. “Watch yourselves,” he mumbled. “She’s a ball buster.” He shifted his eyes in Constance’s direction.

“Hey, want to go to Disneyland this Sunday?” Nick asked. “I scored some tickets.”

“Jacques and I have plans,” Remy said.

“I have to get back to work,” I told the pair.

That got rid of Nick, but not Katelyn. “That sounds great. What do you say, Serena? We could make a day of it—the two of us. I mean, when else could I go? I can’t exactly afford a ticket since…” Her expression drooped as her words faded. She couldn’t even say since I lost Leo . “Please?”

I wanted to agree. It would be nice. But with Black Jacket Guy out there, I couldn’t. “Sorry, I’ve got a family barbecue this weekend.” The barbecue was on Saturday, but it was the best excuse I could come up with to not insult her.

“The good kind of family get-together or the other?”

“A mix. It’ll be good to see everyone, but my parents might invite my ex?—”

“I thought you were seeing Duke the hunk.”

I realized I’d stepped in it. I rolled my eyes. “That doesn’t always matter. Dad has his own ideas.”

Katelyn’s face contorted. “Yuck. A meddler, huh?”

“Big time,” I agreed.

“Tell him to stuff it. Is it all day? Maybe we could do the afternoon.” She was clearly eager to get some time with me.

“Middle of the day and probably go late, sorry.”

She plastered on a fake smile. “No biggie.” She abruptly turned and left. Clearly, my decision had stung her.

Swiveling back to my screen, I tried to work, but found my thoughts hijacked by a very muscular, very tattooed bodyguard and my hope that we’d be alone tonight. Yes, alone, and with what I’d already experienced with him, I didn’t care about quick versus slow, not one damned bit. I just craved more.

An hour later, a message arrived, and my pulse spiked with hope that it was from Duke. Then, I turned over my phone, and dread filled me.

UNKNOWN: You didn’t obey. There will be consequences.

I dialed Constance’s cell. “I just got a message.”

“I know. Jordy is on it. Just go about your day.”

My heart refused to slow down. Just go about my day? With a psycho after me?

One thing was no longer a question—Jordy monitored my phone.