Page 51 of Unraveled

“Hopefully we’ll have an answer soon.” His breath stirred the hair next to her ear when he spoke. “The police will do whatever they can.”

All the thoughts over the past couple of weeks came spilling forth. “What if it wasn’t random?” she asked.

His expression darkened. “If by some chance someone actually meant to do you harm,” he replied, “I’m going to do everything in my power to put them behind bars for a long time.”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Anything.” His fingers trailed up and down her arm, sending ripples of pleasure through her body.

“You introduced me to a man the day I left your office. Who is he?”

“Edward?” he asked. She nodded. “He’s my boss, one of the partners. Why?”

Audrey lifted her shoulders in a shrug. “No reason. I just… He looked familiar.”

Carter took her chin between his thumb and forefinger and directed her gaze to his. “Did something happen? Did he say something to you?”

“No.” She shook her head, and his hand fell away, settling on her thigh. “Nothing like that. But I think I saw him at the VA one day.”

“Like, as a patient?” Carter’s brows drew together, and she shook her head.

“No, I… The day your dad was admitted to the hospital, I overheard Dr. Kellerman arguing with someone. I think it was him.”

“What were they arguing about?”

“I’m not entirely sure, but I think they were discussing a patient,” she admitted. “The guy—Edward—sounded like he was accusing Dr. Kellerman of not doing his job. Said Kellerman couldn’t just apologize and make it all go away.”

Carter’s expression turned pensive, and Audrey studied him. “Does that make any sense to you?”

“I don’t really know,” he responded slowly. “Maybe it was nothing—just a coincidence, or maybe it wasn’t even him.”

Audrey didn’t like the way it felt, but there was also no evidence of any wrongdoing. Edward hadn’t said a single word to her, hadn’t even really acknowledged her beyond their introduction that day in Carter’s office. Maybe she was overthinking things. Or maybe she really did have something to worry about. Either way, it was worth looking into. Better safe than sorry.

She smiled at Carter. “I’m sure you’re right. Like you said—just a coincidence.”

CHAPTER

TWENTY-FIVE

Coincidence, his ass. The fact that she’d run into Edward at her place of work, along with his strange behavior recently, threw up all kinds of red flags.

He’d managed to gently coax out of Audrey the details of the argument she’d overheard. They’d supposedly mentioned a patient—who could it be? No one in his immediate family had passed away that he was aware of, but he knew better than to dismiss anything. The details were vague, but he trusted Audrey, he trusted her instincts, and if she felt that something was wrong, it was.

He filled out the paperwork, then carried it back to the reception desk, where Vivi flashed him a grin. “I’ll let him know you’re here. Make yourself comfortable. It should only be a couple minutes.”

He inclined his head at her. “Thanks.”

He took a seat on the sofa along the wall, then crossed one foot over his knee and settled in to wait. The lobby was purely functional, not a single decoration on the walls except for the handful of knickknacks Vivi had scattered over her desk. Everything looked completely new though. From what Jaxon had said, they’d been in the building for a very short time and were just getting the business off the ground.

He heard the soft approach of footsteps along the carpeted hallway, then a dark-haired, dark-eyed man stepped into the lobby. He tipped his head at Carter. “Mr. Cross?”

As soon as Carter saw his face, it clicked. He’d first met Knox Castillo on an extraction they’d worked in Kabul. He rose and crossed the room to take Knox’s extended hand. “Carter Cross.”

He was sure Knox had already run a background check on him before conceding to this meeting, so he didn’t bother with more of an introduction. Knox released his hand and gestured down the hall. “Let’s head into the conference room, and you can tell me what you know.” Carter preceded him into the room, then took a seat at the small round table and waited until Knox sank into a chair across from him.

“How have you been?” Knox asked, acknowledging their prior acquaintance, brief though it was.

“Good.” Carter gave a tight nod. “I put in my time, then came home to go to school.”