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“Mr. Marks,” she eventually went on, “I need your help.”
Now she’d lost him again. “Excuse me?” He studied her face, saw the lines of worry he hadn’t noticed at first. Had he arrived at a bad time? Though they hadn’t met before, they had spoken several times by phone. What he saw definitely didn’t mesh with what he’d heard in her voice previously.
“Not so very long ago, a very cunning man named Cole Danes taught me that things are not always what they seem and that at times human emotion can be a considerable weakness.”
Daniel flared his hands. “That’s true in a military setting, as well. There are times when one must set aside human emotion and react on basic instinct, much as an animal does when going after prey or making any other survival decision.”
She nodded. “Then you know what I mean when I say that I’m certain the most thorough investigations are conducted by those who have no personal stake in a matter.”
“Of course.” No question there.
The strength he’d sensed absent in her tone this afternoon was suddenly there, in her eyes. “Mr. Marks, there is no question that I will be offering you a position at this agency. Coming to terms on salary is only a technicality.”
Daniel relaxed marginally. “Excellent.” Now this is what he’d thought he was coming here for today.
“But first, an unexpected necessity dictates that I hire you as a private contractor to conduct an investigation outside the realm of this agency.”
His gaze narrowed as he attempted to read what he saw in her eyes now. She was too good. Whatever fear or uncertainty she felt, she kept it hidden. Was this some sort of test? “What kind of investigation?”
“My son is a suspect in a murder investigation,” she told him without elaborating. “I need you to find the truth.”
He found the way she summed up her needs rather interesting. “Do you have reason to believe he’s guilty?”
She moved her head from side to side. “To my knowledge, he doesn’t even know the victim.”
“But…” he prompted.
Visibly bracing herself, she responded to his prod, “But there are extenuating circumstances. A lapse in his memory has left him without an alibi.”
Daniel felt certain there was more related to the lapse, but he didn’t pursue that avenue just now. There was another, more crucial question to be asked.
“What makes you believe the police won’t conduct a proper investigation?” There had to be a reason she didn’t trust the cops. For that matter, it seemed, she didn’t even trust her own staff of investigators. None of which fit with what he’d learned about her or this agency.
“The victim is one of their own,” she said somberly. “They want revenge, Mr. Marks. I’m certain most of them won’t be thinking clearly or pursuing all the possible avenues. They’re not going to be satisfied until someone takes the fall for this. The sooner, the better.”
According to his research, the Colby Agency maintained an outstanding relationship with local law enforcement. This couldn’t be an easy dilemma.
“All right,” he told her. “You give me the facts you know, make whatever assets you have available to me and I’ll do what I can to clear your son.”
For three beats, she held his gaze, hers unblinking. “You misunderstand me, Mr. Marks,” she said, something in her eyes turning bleak for a mere second before sheer determination defeated it. “I don’t want you to simply clear my son of guilt. I want you to find the truth, whatever it is.”
Daniel had known the moment he’d walked into the lobby of this agency that there was something different about it. The very air was charged with something beyond the usual energy of bustling activity. It felt alive and vibrant on a level that transcended the norm. It seemed like the kind of place where things happened, where lives were changed.
He wanted to be a part of that, couldn’t imagine taking a position anywhere else now that he’d met this woman. She, he understood with complete certainty, was the heart and soul of this place.
The challenge she had tossed out before him said all that needed to be said. This woman, the one who’d made the Colby Agency what it was, was desperate and yet she knew exactly what had to be done.
“I’ll find the truth for you.”
She nodded. “Thank you.”
Raised voices sounded outside the door, postponing whatever she might have said next.
The door burst open and both Victoria and Daniel turned to see who’d barged in.
“…in a meeting,” Mildred Parker, Victoria’s secretary, was saying.
“I don’t care! I have to see her now.”
A young woman, long dark hair bouncing around her shoulders, stormed into the office, Mildred trailing right behind her. Daniel allowed his gaze to take a tour of the intruder’s form. Even though she was as mad as hell, she was a looker—tall, slender, a brunette with hazel eyes flashing with fire.
Apparently he was about to witness one of the less gracious Colby Agency moments.
“I’m sorry, Victoria, I couldn’t stop her.”
“It’s all right, Mildred.”
His curiosity piqued, Daniel’s gaze slid from the woman who would be his boss to the younger, clearly furious woman who’d strode across the room and planted herself directly in front of Victoria.
“Miss Hastings,” Victoria said, “I’m sure you’re distraught—”
“I’m more than that, Mrs. Colby-Camp. I’m confused and hurt,” she snapped. “Your son killed my father. I want to know why.”
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