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“You set off your alarm, Tanner?” Dawn stared at Tanner in confusion, as did Scheme. Where the hell was an alarm?
“Oh God,” Jolian whispered, staring at Cabal beseechingly now. “I swear to God, Cabal, I was just looking for those notes. ”
Jolian looked like she was going to start crying any second.
“She was up here without clearance. ” There wasn’t a shade of remorse in Tanner’s voice. “Take her downstairs until I can question her. ”
“Jolian?” Dawn stared at Tanner in shock before staring back at the young Breed. “Searching your room?”
“Cabal?” Jolian whispered his name faintly. “I was just looking for those notes. ”
Scheme glanced at Cabal. His expression was closed, cold as he stared back at her.
He repeated Tanner’s order. “Take her downstairs, Dawn. And put a guard on her. ”
Jolian’s face went white, her blue eyes darkening with something akin to agony. Scheme knew that look well. Betrayal. If she was a spy, then there was no damned wonder she had stayed hidden in Sanctuary for so many years.
“Come on, Jo. ” Dawn shook her head as she gripped the girl’s arm, confusion and a shadow of disbelief in her eyes as she glanced at the shorter girl. “Let’s go downstairs. I’m sure we’ll figure it all out. ”
Dawn stared at Cabal for one long, silent moment, until he turned his back on her and moved to stand on the other side of Scheme.
Interesting. Very interesting.
Jolian’s shoulders fell before she lifted her gaze to Tanner. “You left the notes on the table,” she said faintly. “I forgot them. I didn’t want to disappoint you again. ”
“Then you should have asked me for them. ”
“Come on, Jo, we’ll figure this out downstairs. ” Dawn led her to the door before glancing back at Tanner. “Don’t take all day, okay? I have work to do, and if I don’t get it done, I’m not going to be in a good mood. ”
Tanner chided her then. “Are you ever in a good mood? I’ll be down later. Make certain Jonas is around as well. I need to talk to him about his guard’s lack of diligence in letting unauthorized personnel on the family level. ”
The door closed behind Dawn with a snap as Scheme felt the tension emanating from both men now.
“Not her,” Scheme muttered as Tanner stalked to his dresser, jerked the electronic bug detector from inside and began running it over the room.
Cabal moved to the small table and began sorting through the small stacks of paper there.
“You don’t know it’s not her,” Cabal responded, his voice grating. “You didn’t see a name on those files, remember? And she was trained in infiltration. ”
“And failed. ” Scheme rolled her eyes in exasperation. “Do you have any idea how many kill orders I shredded on that girl? She failed every program they put her in. What is she? Twenty-four now? She was lucky she didn’t have a stroke during the rescues. The girl is terrified of her own shadow. ”
“No, she’s not. ” Cabal flipped a notebook to the love seat beside him. “There’re the interview notes. ” His gaze was cold as they latched on to Scheme. “Don’t let her fool you. I’ve seen her when no one is watching. She’s rather organized when she thinks she’s alone. ”
Scheme shook her head. “It’s not her. ”
“Drop it,” Tanner ordered firmly. “You don’t know who it is and neither do we. ”
“Cabal just found the notes she was looking for. That poor girl, you nearly scared the life out of her, you know. ”
“And she could have nearly fucking killed you. ” Tanner gripped her arm, turning her to face him as the fury in his eyes lashed at her. “Stop protecting someone you know nothing about. ”
“And stop treating me like a twit that doesn’t know any more than that scatterbrained little Panther you just terrorized. ” She jerked away from him, striding across the room before facing both of them with cold resolve. “I’m a profiler, Tanner. I know my job. And I know that girl is the last one who would ever attempt to spy on anyone. The damned notes were on the table, just like she said. ”
“Convenient. ” His lip lifted in a snarl.
“Convenient or not, you’re wrong. I know my stuff, and I know it’s not her. ”
“Good, you know your stuff, Miss Profiler,” he growled. “Use it. Tomorrow evening Callan and Merinus are hosting a little party for our mating and upcoming marriage. Find our spy, then I’ll stop suspecting every Breed trained in espionage and infiltration that I catch going through my personal room. How does that one suit you?”
