Page 31 of John’s Yearning

“You want a drink?”

He shook his head. “I’m good. I’ll feed when I get home.”

She sat down at the kitchen table and he took the unspoken invitation and did the same. “I need your expertise.”

Deirdre raised an eyebrow, showing interest. Good.

“I’m working a case possibly involving a child trafficking ring. I’ve got a couple of people working on it besides myself, but there’s something that’s too sensitive to give to the others. So I thought of you.”

“Don’t trust your own men?”

It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Damian and Benjamin. He did. But this had to be handled by somebody else. Somebody with more experience.

“You’re the better person for it.”

“Shoot.”

“I need you to do a thorough background check on the mother of the last girl that disappeared. Her name is Savannah Rice.” He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out an envelope. “I need to know whether there’s anything about her that doesn’t gel.”

“You’ve met her?”

John nodded.

“So why not check her out yourself?”

He hesitated. There were plenty of reasons why he couldn’t do it. And the fact that he’d kissed Savannah and wanted even more than that from her, definitely played into it. “Let’s just say I’m too close to see everything. I need somebody who can look at her without prejudice.” Without lusting after her. Because if he performed a check on Savannah he was likely to dismiss something as insignificant, because he was already on her side. But it wasn’t how Scanguards worked. They always checked out their clients.

Deirdre reached for the envelope. “Too close, huh?” She cast him an assessing look.

John pointed to the envelope. “You’ll find a temporary access card for Scanguards in there. As well as my login information for the various systems you’ll need in the office.”

“Temporary access?”

John shifted in his chair. It was all he’d been able to rustle up behind upper management’s back. It was all the human staff that worked during the day had been authorized to issue without approval from the two co-chiefs of IT and Internal Security, Thomas and Eddie. Permanent access to Scanguards had to be vetted.

“If you do well on this case, I’ll be able to get you a permanent position.” What a lie. He hadn’t even spoken to Samson or Gabriel about Deirdre’s request yet.

Slowly, she nodded and opened the envelope, pulling out the access pass, a sheet with his usernames and passwords, and another one with the pertinent facts of the case and the person Deirdre needed to investigate. He’d briefly considered his actions when putting together the package, asking himself if he could trust Deirdre with all the sensitive information she would gain access to. But his gut had told him he would know if she betrayed his confidence. As maker and protégée they had a bond, albeit a tenuous one in their particular case.

The envelope also included a photo of Savannah, which he’d taken off her drivers license. Deirdre looked at it for a long while, and John couldn’t stop himself from looking at the photo too.

“Beautiful.” Deirdre suddenly lifted her eyes to him, and he wasn’t fast enough to tear his gaze away from the picture. Something in his protégée’s eyes flashed, and John realized that she was indeed a perceptive woman. A sly smile appeared on her lips. “Tell me what you want to know.”

“Everything. Acquaintances, habits, financials, whatever you can get your hands on. Use my office at Scanguards. You’ll find everything you need there.”

“When do you need it by?”

“Yesterday.”

She rolled her eyes. “Of course. Do I need a key to your office?”

“No. The access card will get you in. But make sure to be gone before sunset.”

She raised an inquisitive eyebrow, but didn’t comment. He appreciated that. She was discreet.

“I’ll be getting a few hours of sleep at home. Call me on my cell the second you find something that gives you pause.”

“Even if it means I have to wake you?” She smirked unexpectedly.