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14
Zeke followedthe hostess through the front dining room of the upscale restaurant, Plate It. The farther back they traveled, the sparser the people and the dimmer the lighting. A perfect place to have a private conversation.
“Here’s Liv,” the hostess said, indicating a high-backed booth where the agent already occupied one side. “Your server, Hailey, will be with you in a moment. Will you need a menu?”
Liv dropped her phone into her handbag. “Not this time, Andrea. Thank you.”
Zeke slid into the seat opposite Liv. “Nice place.”
“Yes, it is.”
“You must come here often, if you’re on a first-name basis with the staff.”
“What makes you think we didn’t introduce ourselves?”
“Tone. Your voices held a friendliness that’s absent in strangers.”
A grudging smile appeared, but she didn’t offer an explanation.
“How’s your head?”
“Sore, but okay.”
“No lasting headache or dizziness?”
“I have a very hard head. No need to worry about me.”
“Did you send Brodie to school today?”
She nodded. “School is the most secure place for him while I’m at work. Mitch contacted the APD. The police chief agreed to have an officer drive by the school once or twice a day until school’s out in a few weeks.”
“Any ideas on your attacker’s identity?”
“None. Based on the parking area’s security tape, he’d been lying in wait for me for a while. He kept his face hidden from the surveillance cameras, but we could see enough to determine that he’s Caucasian, close to six feet.” She cleared her throat. “I failed to thank you for your intervention yesterday.”
“All I did was yell at him.”
“It was enough to spook him and get him off my back.”
“Good timing. I came out of the public parking garage just as you turned down the sidewalk.” He drummed his fingers on the table. “What did he say to make you believe your son was in danger?”
“Zeke, there’s no reason for you to get involved in this any further.”
“The hell there isn’t. What did he say?”
“I can see why you were selected for the job. You don’t give up.”
“We all have our talents.”
When he stared at her expectantly, she sighed. “He complained about me causing him a lot of trouble, then warned that he’d keep an eye on my son’s school.”
“Besides mine, who else’s life have you screwed with lately?”
Her eyes flashed. “I didn’t screw with your life.”
“What do you call sneaking out of my hotel room before dawn?”
A flush shot up her throat and into her cheeks, though she didn’t break eye contact. “Believe it or not, I don’t have a great deal of experience with—” she paused, waiting for a server to walk by “—one-night stands.”
