Chapter 17

chapter

seventeen

Gage could see Nia was still visibly shaken. Instead of calming down in the safety of the hotel room, her nerves seemed to kick in even more.

He nodded at her water, encouraging her to drink more. The last thing he needed was for her to pass out.

Not with that guy after them.

He’d committed the man’s image to his memory.

Gage was nearly certain the gunman was part of Dagger, a rival private security agency—one with less than honorable tactics. Many Dagger members were former special forces. Or they were guys who had been special forces before being kicked off their teams for inappropriate behaviors.

He’d encountered Dagger before, and he knew those agents would do whatever was asked of them—for the right price.

It was a miracle he and Nia hadn’t been shot.

Were those guys responsible for Rob’s death ?

Or was this unrelated?

He needed more information before he could draw any conclusions.

“What are we going to do?” Nia’s voice sounded scratchy.

“I wish I had my computer with me, but I don’t. I’ll need to use my phone.” He began typing something onto the screen.

“What are you looking up?” She squinted as if desperate to see, to know his thoughts.

“I want to look into Darius and Brittany. I sent an email asking some colleagues of mine to investigate them also. Several of them are excellent at researching things on the web and getting into sites that others don’t even know exist. I want to find out all we can about them.”

“Do you think either Brittany or Darius is responsible for Rob’s death?” Nia cocked her head to the side as she waited for his answer.

Gage shrugged and kept typing on his phone. “Right now, I’m just gathering information. I honestly don’t know. But Darius and Brittany are our best leads. I mean, I don’t have anyone else in mind. Do you?”

She frowned. “I guess not.”

“Then we start by ruling them out, and then move on if it’s not one of them.”

Nia tucked her legs beneath her and took a couple more sips of water. “So the people who shot at us were somehow connected with Darius or Brittany?”

Gage swallowed hard, trying to stick with the truth. He didn’t want to tell Nia there was a possibility trouble had followed him here. That those gunmen could be after him .

After all, it didn’t make sense that gunman would go after Nia. She was most likely the killer.

It didn’t make sense right now, at least.

“There’s a good possibility they were hired.” He glanced at his phone screen, still waiting for results. “That maybe when we talked to Darius, he got spooked.”

Nia rubbed her throat and stared out the window as if lost in thought. “I feel like I’m tangled in a web I won’t ever get out of.”

“If you get caught in a web, all you have to do is cut the line. You might drag part of the fibers with you, and they might slow you down, but at least you won’t be trapped anymore.”

She stared at him another moment before nodding. “Interesting perspective.”

Gage’s phone rang. It was his former colleague Jonah Gray. Gage had called to ask for his assistance earlier. Even though Jonah wasn’t officially with the Shadow Agency anymore, Gage knew he could depend on Jonah. The two had been friends for years.

“Any updates on who killed Rob?” Jonah asked.

His friend had heard him talk about Rob before and knew how close the two were. Jonah had lost a childhood friend last year, so he understood the pain of it.

He glanced at Nia again. He didn’t say the words aloud, but she was still the one who made the most sense as the killer .

Even if she did look vulnerable and scared as she sat across from him.

Gage cleared his throat. “I have someone in my sights. Someone I want to explore.”

“Then you should keep all your options open.”

He continued to stare at her. “That’s what I plan on doing. But I’m going to have to talk to you more later. You got the picture I sent, right?”

He’d sent his friend a picture of the knife used to kill Rob. It seemed like it could be significant. Jonah had a connection, an old friend who collected knives. Gage hoped Jonah might talk to his friend and find out anything noteworthy about the weapon.

He glanced at Nia again.

If Nia was behind this, then Gage would find out . . . if it was the last thing he did.

What was that conversation about? Nia wondered.

There was definitely more to Gage Pearson than he let on.

She’d been a fool to trust him even a little.

In fact, what if this had actually been a setup? She couldn’t shake the thought from her head. What if that gunman had purposefully missed them? Just so she would trust Gage? So she would come here with him?

After all, she already knew he’d been in Rob’s apartment .

It was twisted . . . like something from the plot of some action-adventure movie.

But this was real life.

Whatever happened with Rob, Nia still couldn’t remember any of it. For all she knew, Gage had been a part of last night’s deadly shenanigans. Maybe he’d killed Rob, framed her, and then come back to plant more evidence.

Or maybe he’d killed Rob and now he wanted something from her.

Information on the app Rob was developing? What if someone else wanted to profit from it?

Nia didn’t know. But her thoughts rushed so quickly she felt like she might pass out.

At the first chance, she’d escape.

And what then? That gunman could still be out there, waiting to finish her off.

There was so much she didn’t know.

The only solution was to find out answers about Rob.

“What are you thinking?” Gage shifted before taking another sip of his drink.

Nia didn’t dare tell him the whole truth. “I want to know what happened in the time between when Rob met with me at the office and when he called around four to set up dinner. Something appears to have spooked him.”

“I agree. We need to figure out what that was.”

She nibbled on her lip as she thought. She needed to make it sound as if she was working with Gage still, even though she planned on escaping as soon as possible. “I wish we had access to his phone or his files. That might tell us something.”

“The police have those. They’re not going to share any of that information with us. What about this Sigmund guy you mentioned earlier? The other tech broker trying to woo Rob?”

Nia sighed and shrugged. “I don’t know what there is to say. The guy is a good businessman and my biggest competition. But not necessarily a killer. He’s smart enough to know that contract was iron-clad.”

“Then who else could it be?”

“The only other people I can think of to talk to are Hector, Rob’s lawyer, or Cormac.”

Nia watched Gage’s face to see if he recognized Cormac’s name. If the two of them were truly friends, he would.

“His friend and assistant?” Gage said. “Yes, I’m surprised he hasn’t been around.”

“Rob mentioned yesterday something about Cormac having a trip planned, so he could be out of town. Otherwise, I’d think we would have seen him today.”

“Agreed. I think we should pursue both of those angles.” He paused, his gaze drifting in the distance with thought. “I’m still curious about Brittany and Darius as well. I can’t believe Rob didn’t tell me he was dating someone.”

“And Darius definitely seems suspicious, like someone you don’t want to get on the wrong side of.”

Gage stood. “It sounds like we have some good places to start. I just need to clean up this cut. Give me ten, and we can leave.”

Nia’s heart skipped a beat. This was her chance to escape.

She kept her voice even as she said, “Sounds like a plan.”

As soon as Gage disappeared into the bathroom, Nia quietly stood. Not making a sound, she walked to the door, moved the chair, and turned the locks.

Hesitating only a moment, she twisted the knob.

Opened the door.

Glanced up and down the hallway.

Empty.

Nia looked back at the closed bathroom door one more time. She could still hear the water running inside.

She’d really wanted to trust Gage. Wanted to believe he was one of the good guys.

But trusting him had been a mistake.

Quietly closing the door behind her, Nia jostled into action.

She darted down the hallway and punched the button to the elevator. As she waited, her heart fluttered out of control.

She glanced back down at the doorway, halfway expecting Gage to emerge.

He didn’t.

Finally, the elevator dinged.

It was empty.

Temporary relief filled her, but she couldn’t afford to let down her guard.

She rushed inside and hit the button for the lobby. As the elevator doors closed, she prayed it didn’t stop on any other floors, that no one else stepped inside.

Images of that gunman filled her thoughts.

What if he found her? Cornered her here in the elevator?

What would she do if that happened?

She didn’t know.

But she knew she wasn’t safe with Gage either.

She was better off taking her chances on her own.