Page 67 of Unmasked

That niggling feeling at the back of his brain kicked up again, and he honed in on it. What was he missing? He’d watched the video dozens upon dozens of times, breaking down each frame and analyzing every detail. The man had pulled something from his pocket and slipped it into Beaumont’s drink, then disappeared.

From the other cameras, they tracked him back to the kitchen and out the back door. He’d discarded his white coat in the laundry bin, but even then he kept his back to the camera. The only glimpse of him they’d gotten was as he’d turned away from the bar.

Something about that moment stuck in his mind, but he couldn’t figure out why. No one else had recognized him—none of the employees from the country club or the manager. Cade would circulate the picture, but who knew how long it’d take to ID him? By the time they got a name, would he have struck out again—and would he go after Everleigh this time?

He couldn’t figure out the connection, and it was killing him. From what Tate had told them, an unnamed source had contracted him to take photos of Everleigh and leave them for her, seemingly as a scare tactic. But why? Though they’d found photos in Beaumont’s office, he still had a difficult time believing he was in any way responsible for hurting Everleigh. Blackmail made more sense, but again the question was, why?

There’d been no overt threats to him that Cade had found. Nothing out of the ordinary in any of his emails, phone calls, or text messages. It was possible, of course, that Beaumont had a burner phone as well, but he hadn’t found anything in his search of the office. All they had were the photographs.

The hairs on the back of his neck lifted, and he shifted in his chair, sitting up straight. The photographs… He pulled her file from his desk drawer and began to flip through them. Though he’d seen them a hundred times, he looked at each with new eyes. He examined the background thoroughly, looking for any common denominator. But more than forty minutes later, he came up empty. Still, he knew he was on the right track.

Another photograph of Everleigh flickered into his mind, twisting his stomach into knots. Everleigh in a wedding dress, next to her husband. Ex-husband, he thought viciously. He couldn’t begin to imagine why Beaumont had kept it, especially after they’d been divorced. If⁠—

Suddenly, his breath caught in his lungs. In his mind, the photograph and the image from the camera footage merged, and the man’s face clicked into place.

A foreboding sense of dread curdled in his stomach. Somehow he just knew he was involved with the photographs being delivered to Everleigh. How, he wasn't entirely sure, but he was going to find out. For some reason, he’d been driven to attempt to kill Conrad Beaumont, and if he wasn't mistaken, he’d killed Tate as well. He didn't have proof... yet.

Standing abruptly, he strode from his office and made for the bullpen. The chatter immediately ceased the second the door swung open, but he paid no heed as his gaze swept the room in search of Aiden Taylor. He stood next to Mason, and he tipped his head, indicating they both join him. He moved toward Aiden's desk, and he threw him a questioning glance. “What's up?”

“Did you ever hear back from Montgomery’s receptionist?”

“Not yet.” He shook his head. “I actually meant to follow up with her but after the incident with Beaumont...”

He trailed off and he nodded. “We need to speak with her.”

“Sure thing.” He palmed his phone, then tapped in the number. As soon as it connected, he hit the speakerphone function. He motioned for the others in the room to be quiet, and silence fell as one ring rolled into two, then three. His heart beat harder with each passing second, more certain than ever that they were on the right track.

There was a click on the other end of the line, followed by a woman's voice. “Debra speaking, how may I help you?”

“Good afternoon,” Aiden greeted. “Would you happen to know if Fletcher Montgomery is in the office today? I'd like to speak with him if possible.”

“I'm sorry, sir, he's currently unavailable.”

“Darn, I was hoping to catch him. Is he still in Europe?” Aiden asked, fishing for info as he pretended to know the man's schedule.

“No, sir,” she responded. “He returned a couple weeks ago, however he's currently taking a sabbatical.”

At her news, every muscle in his body went taut. Mason’s gaze cut to his, concern etched into the lines of his face.

“Any idea when he may return?” Aiden asked.

“I'm sorry, sir, I don't know.”

Blood rushed in his ears, and the rest of the conversation faded into the background as Aiden hung up, the events of the past few weeks lining up in his mind. Someone sabotaging Everleigh’s car, running her off the road... poisoning Beaumont. Montgomery was a loose cannon who continued to escalate. He'd made it perfectly clear that he'd stop at nothing to get to Everleigh—even murder.

“What now?” he heard Mason ask.

His heart slammed against his ribs as he gestured to Aiden’s computer. “Can you pull up their website?”

“Yep.” He deftly maneuvered to his recent searches, and he waited impatiently for the site to load.

“Check their staff. I want to see if Montgomery is still listed.”

If he thought the request odd, he didn’t say a word. But he had to know. He needed to see his face again while it was fresh in his mind. The page loaded and his blood ran cold as Aiden scrolled down to Fletcher Montgomery’s picture. There, staring back at him, was the same man he’d seen on the video from the country club barely an hour ago.

Montgomery had eliminated Tate. Attempted to kill Beaumont. And Everleigh was next.

CHAPTER