was halfway to the elevator, but otherwise there was no movement. His shoulders knotted with tension. He got behind the wheel of his pickup and took a deep breath.
“It’s going to be okay.” He kept saying that and yet it never was okay. Everywhere Robin went it seemed like danger was lurking in the shadows, ready to jump out and attack her.
Kill her.
He shoved the car in gear and pulled out of the garage, gripping the steering wheel with more force than necessary. Would her attacker be waiting on a nearby side street? Tail them and make another attempt on her life?
“Can you talk to me?” she said.
“About what?”
“I don’t care, you know, small talk? I’m spinning again and need to stop it.”
“Spinning?” He headed north on State Route 99 and kept a keen eye on the rearview mirror.
“I get stuck in a bad head space and spin like a top. I’m afraid I’m going to have a full-blown anxiety attack.”
“Don’t beat yourself up for that. You’ve had more threats against your life in the last thirty hours than the average person has in two lifetimes.”
She sighed and glanced out the window. Light rain tapped against the glass.
“Sorry, that didn’t make you feel better, did it?” he said. “Okay, small talk.” He searched his mind. “The Mariners look good this year.”
She tipped her face to study him. “Tell me something about yourself.”
He redirected his focus to the traffic ahead of them. “What do you know so far?”
“You’re a war veteran and federal agent.”
“Was a federal agent.”
“You’re too young to have retired.”
“I took personal leave to help out my mom.”
“So, now I know you’re a good son.”
He shrugged. If he’d really been good, he would have defended her long before the cancer took hold. He would have stood up for her instead of hiding when the old man swung his way through the house.
“You have brothers and sisters?” she asked.
“One sister. Older.” Always absent. Jake understood. Amy had to take care of herself. She’d done pretty well in life, earned her degree, married a decent man and had kids. She’d settled in eastern Washington, far enough away to be safe from the old man.
“Your parents?” Robin asked.
“Old man’s been gone for five years, and Mom passed in January. Cancer.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay. She’s in a better place.”
“That expression never makes me feel better.”
“You remember hearing it before?” He winked, trying to lighten the moment.
“Yeah, I guess I have.”
A minute passed. She fidgeted next to him, and he guessed the silence made her uncomfortable.
“So,” she started up again. “You took a leave of absence from…”
“Homeland Security.”
“Do you intend to go back?”
“Probably not. I’m doing pretty well as a P.I. and private security.”
“You mean, for me?”
“I’ve done private security for other people.”
“How much do you charge?”
“Depends on the case.”
“What about my case?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“Jake—”
“Really. Don’t. I figured pro bono work into my operating costs. I won’t starve by helping you out.”
“Are you…?” Robin hesitated.
“What?”
“Never mind.”
“Aw, don’t tease me like that.”
“I was going to ask if your family will be upset with you for spending so much time protecting me.”
“Nope.”
“Your wife and children?”
“No wife. No children. Why did you think I was married?”
“You just seem the type.”
“Yeah? What type is that?”
“The settling-down type.”
“If there’s one thing I’ve learned in my thirty-one years, it’s never to assume you know someone.”
He thought he knew Mom, but some days she was a mystery. After all, why would the woman stay with an abuser?
Cassandra, his near-fiancée, wasn’t any easier to understand. She’d said she’d wait for him to return from his tour of duty. She’d said a lot of things that had turned out to be lies, but not everything. Like her accusation that he had violent tendencies. She’d hit the mark with that one.
“Why did you join the military?” Robin pushed.
He understood her need to keep talking, even if he was uncomfortable answering her questions.
“Couldn’t afford college,” he lied. He was offered a few scholarships, but he carried so much anger inside of him he figured he’d put his violent tendencies to good use and fight for his country, maybe exorcise some of his angst.
“Your turn,” he said.
“I can’t remember anything, remember?” She shook her head. “That sounded dumb.”
He wanted to remind her she remembered something about last night, but the goal was to keep her calm, not upset her again by stirring up the memory of the man she called Death Eyes. He’d bring that up later, after she calmed down.
“I think you remember more than you think.” He smiled, hoping to ease her anxiety. Maybe this was a bad idea, but he had to try. For her sake. “What’s your favorite color?”
“Blue,” she said, raising her eyebrows in shock. “How did I know that?”
“See, you do remember some things. How old are you?”
“Twenty-nine.”
“Where do you live?”
“I can’t tell you.”
“Afraid I’m going to stalk you?”
“No, I saw my address on my driver’s license. That would be cheating.”
“You’ve got integrity. Add that to the list of things you know about yourself. How about, favorite movie?”
“Sound of Music.”
“Book?”
She nibbled her thumbnail and gave it some thought. And for a few seconds she didn’t look so scared. The tension eased in Jake’s shoulders.
“Nope,” she said. “I’m drawing a blank.”
“Well, two out of three is good.” He exited 99 and slowed at the stoplight. He punched the safe house address into his GPS and glanced in the rearview mirror. No cars behind him. He wasn’t followed.
“Try another one,” she said over the monotone voice of the GPS.
“Favorite food.”
“Easy.