She paused, not wanting, while simultaneously needing, to continue. The smell of their fresh coffee filled her senses, as if it was trying to egg her on with a jolt of caffeine. Though, as she fought to figure out her next words, it didn’t seem to be helping. Nick picked up on her hesitation.
“Lara, what’s this about?”
“You and I. We’re partners,” she stated.
“Yes, we are, but what does that have to do with this?” He motioned to her obvious discomfort. Lara shuffled her weight from one foot to the other. She was taking a huge risk, but she didn’t know who else to trust. Nick’s eyes roamed across her face. His concern egging her on.
Bite the bullet, Lara.
“Cass,” she said, hesitating at the relief that pooled at the simple fact of saying the name aloud. “She’s been going into my father’s house. Twice now that I know of.”
“Okay...”
“Without my knowledge or permission,” she added. “And without any reason why she should.” That changed his tone.
“Wait, our Cass? As in Cassandra McDonner?” Lara nodded. “Why?”
“I don’t know, but I’d really like to,” she admitted.
“You haven’t asked her about it?”
“No,” she replied, firm. Nick’s eyebrow rose in one perfect movement. It made her think about the night they’d shared a passionate moment. Right before she’d fled. It led to the idea of other memories they could make together. Ones with no clothes and certainly more contact. Lara rolled her shoulders back, trying to refocus. Nick unknowingly had a way of distracting her when she least expected it.
“Why wouldn’t you ask her? Is that why you wanted us to leave the office?” Lara heard the sigh before she felt it leave her lips. “Lara, what’s going on? You have to give me more to go on here.”
“I didn’t want to talk about it there because I didn’t know who I could trust. I think Cass is involved, in some part, in this case.”
“Connected? Again, you’re going to have to give me more to go on than that.” Nick was starting to get frustrated. Join the party, she thought.
“A few days ago I saw Cass at Battery Park. She was talking to a woman, definitely intently. There was no doubt that they more than knew each other. Before they left, they even hugged. The entire exchange seemed intimate, familiar. A friend for sure.”
“Okay.”
“I recognized the woman but couldn’t remember where from until later. Her name is Katya Auerman.” She paused, seeing if the name carried any weight for the man. His expression didn’t change. Lara hadn’t expected him to know all of the faces surrounding the Moretti crime syndicate and its lengthy run. “Katya was held by the Moretti organization for six years as a trafficking victim, brought in when she was seventeen.” Nick’s face hardened. “I had read up on her—her dossier—and she seems to have adjusted well to life post-syndicate. No criminal record, works as a hostess at an upscale restaurant. Seems as okay as you can be, given all that she’s been through. I assumed Cass sought out a former victim for information or some kind of closure for what happened to her sister Allie.”
“But now you don’t think so,” Nick guessed.
“The security footage we saw today, the woman that Mason Moretti was all over...” She didn’t finish. His eyes widened a fraction.
“That was Katya.”
Lara nodded.
“I think Cass has been playing some dangerous games with me as some kind of payback over Allie’s death and the Moretti case.”
“Why?” he asked, clearly confused. “You brought down her sister’s murderer. Something no one else was close to doing any time soon. Isn’t that one of the reasons she transferred over to the task force? You’re her hero. Why would she want to fuck with you?”
Because she might know everything.
Lara didn’t respond aloud. If she answered him in any way she’d be betraying a secret she’d wanted to keep buried.
She needed to keep buried.
Nick picked up on the pregnant silence. “Ah, this is the ‘more’ you haven’t been willing to tell me.”
Lara hated the way his tone had gone cold. It truly bothered him she wouldn’t wholly confide in him. I can’t, Nick. Not yet, she thought, hoping he’d understand without her having to explain.
Then again, wouldn’t she be upset if he wouldn’t have enough courage to trust in her? Hadn’t she already felt that when she’d found out that he and Mei had briefly been together?
“I’m sorry,” she whispered, barely able to keep eye contact as Nick stood and walked close.
“When you’re ready to trust me—really trust me—with what’s in there, Lara—” he placed his hand against her chest, over her heart “—I’ll be here for you.” The gesture both surprised and touched her, but she couldn’t find the words to apologize again. For a moment all she could do was feel the warmth of his hand seeping through her shirt. She was almost sad when he took a step back. “But, until then, I’m just your partner.” He took another step back, emphasizing the distance he was putting between them. “So, what do we need to do with Cass?”
Relief and appreciation created a cocktail of emotion Lara was more than happy to drink. Another pro on the Nick checklist? He could compartmentalize. That was a trait she’d used tenfold while undercover. It was one she valued in their line of work but hadn’t often seen.
“I don’t know what we should do, really,” she answered, body already loosening. “What I do know is that confronting Cass could go sideways on us quick.”
Nick agreed. “If she’s mixed up in any way to either Moretti or whoever is pulling the serious strings, then having our personal tech guru know we’re on to her could make us the vulnerable ones.” He shook his head. “Cass is a serious asset to our team. I don’t want to have her against us. At least, not with the notion she has nothing else to lose.” A new thought occurred to the agent. “You don’t think she had a hand in Mei’s death?”
Lara shook her head adamantly. “No, Cass wouldn’t kill someone. She may instigate and help perpetuate mind games, but killing someone in cold blood? I don’t think she’d do that.”
Nick agreed again, though she could have sworn she saw a glimmer of doubt behind his eyes.
“She was stabbed and seemed genuinely scared because of it,” he added. “She might have bitten off more than she could chew. Maybe the puppeteer became the marionette.”
“That’s what I was thinking.” Lara’s phone vibrated in her pocket. It didn’t vibrate again. “Whatever hand she’s had in this case so far doesn’t seem like it’s a means to an end but more of a way to throw us—me, really—off-kilter.”
Nick ran a hand through his hair. A deep exhale in the motion’s wake. “Joining this task force I knew I’d most likely get into some difficult cases, but this one...” He let out a low whistle. “It has more twists and turns than a corn maze.”
Lara paused from opening her new text to look at the man. She raised an eyebrow. “A corn maze?” she asked, before letting out a small laugh.
“Hey, I saw a movie where a cop said that once. I thought I’d give it a spin.”
She smiled and returned to the screen of her phone while Nick expanded on whatever movie had taught him the Southernism. Its origin didn’t intrigue her quite as much as the incoming text.
It was from Lola and set Lara on high alert.
I caught that redheaded chick trying to get into your dad’s house again. I told her you know