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“A little bit?” he asked.
“Maybe Dylan can look at that too when I take it in,” she said.
“You said you met Alice and Mac at The Lampstand,” he said. “I can’t believe either of them let you get in the car and drive knowing a storm like this was coming in.”
“Oh, they told me,” Hattie said, grinning. “But I decided to go for it.”
“Maybe next time a local gives you advice you should take it.”
“I’m thinking that’s probably a very good idea.”
Atticus’s property loomed ahead, at least the ten-foot privacy fence and the gate. Cameras were visible at the corners of the fence posts, and there was nothing welcoming about the entry. There was a discreet plaque that said Dynamis Security in the center of the gate.
“I didn’t realize he had an office here,” she said.
He wasn’t entirely sure how much she knew about what Atticus did for a living. “We’ve all got more acreage than we could ever use, so we can pass it on to our own children and grandchildren. And we can all do with it what we want except sell it to an outsider. This is a place Atticus can escape and be at home, but he’s running a major global company.”
Duncan didn’t necessarily agree with it, but the land was Atticus’s to do as he pleased. But Duncan wouldn’t have been happy with anything that brought more outsiders to this corner of the world, and Atticus definitely used his compound as everything from a retreat space to a place his agents could rendezvous before leaving for whatever it was they did. No onereallyknew what Atticus did.
“They don’t have walls this big at the offices in London or New York,” Hattie said. “But they’re well protected. You’d think royalty lived there with all the security measures.”
He didn’t bring up the slip she’d made that she’d seen both locations. She wasn’t British, which meant it was fairly good odds she was from New York.
“The compound serves its purpose for Atticus,” Duncan said. “His land is well protected on all sides, and it doesn’t block anyone else’s view.”
“But you don’t like it?” she asked.
“I don’t like to be closed in,” Duncan said. “But believe me, Atticus doesn’t take chances. Especially after what happened to Jane.”
“Jane and Anna were gunned down in broad daylight,” she said. “Atticus can’t be everywhere all at once. He’ll make himself crazy thinking he can.”
“Yeah, well,” Duncan said. “He blames himself. He’ll do everything he can to keep everyone as safe as he can.”
“It must be terribly stifling to live within walls like that,” she said. “Don’t you think?”
“The land goes on for thousands of acres,” he said. “It goes all the way to the mountains and then it becomes a national park, so it’s impossible to breach from that side. You don’t even notice the gates unless you’re right up on them. You’ll have plenty of space and no one else is here right now.”
He typed in the code for the gates and waited as they opened, then continued along the long, winding road.
“You said you were on Tribulation Pass?” he asked. “Which number? There are several cabins down there for guests.”
“Number three,” she said.
“That’s the best one,” he said, nodding. “That one has the most privacy. You’ve got plenty of space between cabins, but you’re sheltered between the trees and the lake. On a clear day, you can see my house across the lake.”
She sat up in her seat when he pulled into her driveway. “Oh, how cute. It’s a log cabin. I’ve always wanted to stay in one.”
“You’ve got your own dock, and there’s a skiff and kayak if you want to get out on the water. Though I wouldn’t recommend it in this weather.”
“So noted,” she said. “I can’t wait to see the view.”
“In this part of the country, you’re going to have a view anywhere you go.”
“I bet it never gets old,” she said.
“Never,” he agreed.
“Atticus said the keys would be under the mat to the kitchen door.”
