Chapter Forty-Three

Chapter Forty-three

There was traffic on the way back to the city. Of course there was traffic, Amelia thought. This was Southern California. The result was that it was midafternoon by the time Gideon pulled into the parking lot of her apartment complex.

By mutual, if unspoken, agreement she and Gideon had avoided the subject of their relationship. They had focused on what they had learned in Lucent Springs. That had given them plenty to speculate about, but underneath the surface conversation she was still asking herself why she had insisted that Gideon take the crystal.

No, it was not a souvenir. Souvenirs were throwaway things, like a beach towel with the name of a seaside hotel on it or a tiny umbrella from a fancy cocktail. The crystals were important to her. They were not cheap souvenirs.

She had been shocked and hurt when she discovered he was considering the possibility that her nightmare-free night had been caused by the crystals. He was grasping at straws—or, in this case, rocks. Maybe he was afraid to acknowledge that the two of them had forged a bond last night. That they were at the beginning of a promising relationship, not a casual hookup. Okay, maybe it was doomed to be a very short relationship, but it was not a casual affair. It was important, at least to her.

Or maybe he had simply lost interest. Had she misread him?

There were a lot of uncertainties involved, but the one thing she was absolutely sure of was that she did not want him crediting the crystals for whatever had gone right last night.

Yet she had given him one of the stones and told him to think of it as a souvenir. Why? Maybe, deep down, she simply wanted him to have something of hers to keep. A symbol of their possibly short-lived connection.

“Oh, good,” she said as Gideon shut down the engine. “There’s Irene’s car. She’s home.”

Gideon glanced at the vehicle parked in a nearby slot. “Her car’s here. That doesn’t mean she is.”

“You really are a negative thinker, aren’t you?”

“Goes with the job. And my talent.”

Amelia cracked open the door. “I’ll check her apartment as soon as we get upstairs.”

Irene appeared just as they reached the second-floor landing. Amelia breathed a sigh of relief. Irene’s face was drawn tight with worry but otherwise she looked fine. She was definitely not a hostage.

“Irene.” Amelia rushed up the last two steps, hauling the suitcase behind her. “You don’t know how glad I am to see you.”

“I heard you on the stairs,” Irene said. “I’m glad you and your friend are back. I didn’t know whether to panic or not. I’m so confused.”

“About Falcon?” Amelia asked.

“Yes.” Irene grimaced. “He showed up at my front door after you called last night. He said the mission had gone bad. He had to disappear.”

“I’ve called you several times today,” Amelia said. “Why didn’t you tell me you’d seen him?”

“Because he said I shouldn’t tell anyone. He said his life was at stake. He wanted some cash because he couldn’t use his credit cards. He was scared, Amelia. Really scared. I’ve never seen him like that. Honestly, he was a nervous wreck. I’m surprised he was able to make the drive back from Lucent Springs without crashing. I wasn’t going to tell you but now I’m really worried.”

“Why now?” Gideon asked.

“He promised me that he would text or phone to let me know he was safe,” Irene said. “I haven’t heard from him. I don’t know what to do.”

Gideon reached the landing. “What, exactly, did he tell you about his mission?”

“Just that his cover had been blown and he was in terrible danger. He said the cartel boss had discovered that he was a cop and had put out a contract on him.” She turned to Amelia. “See? You were wrong about him. He was telling me the truth.”

“Maybe,” Amelia said.

Gideon glanced down the stairs. Amelia followed his gaze and saw a tenant walking her dog on the garden sidewalk.

“The last thing we need is an audience,” Gideon said quietly. “Let’s go inside Amelia’s apartment and talk about this in private.”