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Quill bared his teeth at the video as it replayed. “Who is that guy?”
“No idea,” Manning finally said when no one else spoke.
Quill swiveled his head toward Brendan, pursing his lips. “I don’t want to be right, bro, I really don’t, but this reeks of betrayal.”
“No way.” Brendan tightened his grip on the chair, fisting his suit jacket between his fingers. “There’s an explanation. Somehow, this is Jed Marshall’s doing. I’m sure of it. The audio jammer is suspect. We need to pull up the footage and track them.”
The surveillance officer shot a frantic look toward Farris and Manning, tensing before he met Brendan’s gaze through his round lenses. “Mr. King, I tried, but we can’t determine what vehicle they left in. The camera facing the exit door that Ms. Hart left through was broken, and there were multiple cars that left the garage around that same time due to a conference letting out. Probably a hundred vehicles or more.”
Not a coincidence. “It was orchestrated,” Brendan said with full confidence. “The camera was broken?—”
“A couple of weeks ago,” the surveillance officer interjected, shaking his head. He shot another worried look toward Farris, followed by Manning. “I’m sorry, Mr. Cole. We’ll check in with maintenance as to how this oversight didn’t meet our same-day repair regulations.”
“She loves me,” Brendan whispered. “I know it.” Doesn’t she? Or is it just hopeful desperation at this point?
Quill sighed like he was dealing with a toddler. “She loves you? Really, Brendan? In the span of a week?”
“It’s in her eyes every time she looks at me. She?—”
“Are you listening to yourself? This woman learned to outwit Jed Marshall with her acting skills. You seriously don’t think she used those same tactics with you to get what she wanted?”
“The evidence doesn’t align with that.” Brendan dug his fingers into the back of his neck. “An audio jammer, Quill, why?”
Quill groaned. “We’re pros at analyzing issues from every angle, but you, my friend, are not. The audio jammer could have been used so that you didn’t know where she and her man friend,” he emphasized, making quotation marks with his fingers, “were headed. I think if you opened your eyes, what you’d see is that Genevieve played us for protection, and now that this guy, whoever he is, was finally able to stealthily rendezvous with her, they ran off together. You think she cares for you that deeply after a little over a week?”
“You keep saying that,” Brendan clipped back, beginning to pace, “but I’ve known her for over two years.”
“You’ve never known her. You still don’t.”
Brendan thrashed his head from side to side. “You’re wrong about this. It took you years to trust me without ever having a single reason to doubt me. You lost trust in her before she even gave you a reason. You’re letting your own past experiences taint your judgment.”
“Oh, yeah, I’m wrong because of my past,” Quill said sarcastically. “That’s your answer. Deny logic and what’s right in front of you for the first time in your life. You never do that.” He tossed up his hands. “Your head is in the lovesick clouds. Look at the facts, man. She’s hugging this guy like he’s her lifeline.” Pointing at the video screen, he gritted his teeth. “Who the fuck is he, bro, and why didn’t she tell you about him? She’s had a week to mention him. Instead, she ran off with him without notifying you. People you trust don’t do that, especially when they’re being stalked by their psycho ex.”
Quill released a frustrated sigh before continuing, “I wish I could reach into your brain and disconnect your impeding emotions, but all I can do is try to spur your frontal lobe into action by repeating the same frustrating shit.” He began to tick points off on his fingers. “Why didn’t she tell you about this guy? Why didn’t she tell you where she was going? Why did she risk her safety by going shopping alone in the first place? Why, Brendan, when she claims to love you?”
All good questions and the same ones I have myself. “She meant it when she said it,” Brendan whispered, sounding less and less confident even to himself. “I saw it in her eyes.” Didn’t I? Or am I just a naïve sap who got played for what I was worth until she reconnected with an ex-lover and ran? Or could it be that she felt trapped in her relationship with me and bolted because of that? He’d done everything he could to not act anything like her scumbag ex, though he never would have, regardless, even if he wasn’t already self-conscious about it.
Swallowing through a budding ache in his throat, Brendan locked eyes with his new friend. “What’s your opinion, Manning?”
“Of Ms. Hart’s devotion to you?”
“Yes.”
“From what I observed since you’ve been at The Golden Star, I’d be inclined to believe her.” Manning tilted his head, tightening his eyes.
Brendan drew in a slow, tense breath. “But?”
“But I witnessed her in action at various high society events in Reno before I met you. I witnessed her hang on the arm of Jed Marshall like he was her own personal miracle.” His mouth spread into a grim line. “So, unfortunately, Brendan, considering this new evidence, I agree with Quill. Before I saw this, she had me convinced she’d been trapped in a world she wanted no part of. I thought her worrying about your safety and prodding at you not to live in Reno was proof of that. Now”—Manning shook his head—“walking off with this man when she knows Marshal is desperate to get his hands on her. It’s too suspicious. It doesn’t make sense for her not to have alerted you.”
Brendan slouched his shoulders, his heart crumpling in defeated pain, and flashed his eyes to his most trusted friend. “I love her, Quill. I want to believe there’s an explanation. I can’t…I can’t imagine what we’ve shared not meaning something to her.”
Quill braced his hand on the back of his neck, letting out a string of profanity. “I want you to be happy. You’re the best man I know. More than anyone, you deserve it, so let’s hope I’m wrong.” Nodding firmly, he repeated, “Let’s hope I’m wrong,” though his face still expressed concerned doubt. “Let’s finish this. I’m the one who’s convinced you that she’s playing you, but what if I am wrong? I’ll never forgive myself if I get in the way of your happiness. We’ll take down Jed Marshall in the courts and see what happens from there. We won’t stop until we’re sure of her intentions and you have closure. That’s what you want, right? You want to see this through?”
Brendan nodded, his stomach somersaulting. “Yes, I have to know. I’ll never give up on her until I know for sure.”
“She’s one lucky lady to have your interest—that’s all I can say.”
“It goes both ways,” Brendan whispered. “You’re still making assumptions.”
