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Dupont forced a smile. “That’s why I don’t play poker,” he joked.
“Brad,” she pressed when he’d remained quiet too long.
“There was an incident I happened along when I got off work last night. I stopped to get gas and drove into a robbery or a carjacking, or I don’t know what. As I pulled in, some dude shot another guy. Then he turned the gun on me.”
“Oh my God, Brad,” she gasped. “What did you do?”
“I floored the accelerator and hit him, smashed him between my car and the parked car he stood in front of.”
Without thinking, Laura Lee embraced him. “Brad, I’m so sorry. You’re not in any legal trouble, are you?”
“No, none. Shepherd and Cooper have been great, plus there were security cameras that caught it all. It clearly showed that I acted in self-defense.”
“Then why did you look so upset when you were talking with Shepherd?”
“He just told me he died. The guy who was shot is in critical condition.”
“Are you okay?” Laura Lee embraced him more tightly. She wasn’t sure if this was the first person Brad had ever killed in person. Working in Ops, both at Shepherd Security and while he was with the CIA, he’d seen people injured and killed. But it had to affect a person differently if they were directly the cause of that person’s death and had physically been there.
Dupont was uncomfortable with the physical closeness, because of his own body’s response from it. He took a step back and held her a foot away. He absolutely didn’t want her to feel his growing erection. He made eye contact with her. “He was a scumbag who’d just shot the other dude and would have shot me, too. I did what I had to, what he forced me to do.”
The fact he’d pushed her away wasn’t lost on her. She felt foolish that she’d held him the way she had in such an overfamiliar embrace. “I know, but that doesn’t mean you’re, um, okay with it,” she stammered.
Dupont nodded once. “I didn’t think he was injured that seriously, so it was a shock when Shepherd told me he died. Thanks for your concern, Laura. I’m fine.”
“And I’m fine too,” she said. “I better let you get going, and I need to get to sleep. I have an early morning.” Her tone of voice matched his, curt and matter of fact.
Dupont took a step back towards the door. “Good luck with your interviews,” he said, his tone softer. “And don’t be intimidated by Garcia. He’s a good guy.” He smiled and then let himself out of the apartment.
Laura Lee stared at the closed door. His departure had been abrupt. He hadn’t even given her the chance to say good night or thank you. And she wanted to ask why he thought Garcia intimidated her. Lassiter had said something similar. Were her thoughts apparent to everyone?
She pushed the awkward end to their conversation from her mind as she packed and then got ready for bed. But after she’d settled into bed and tried to go to sleep, she couldn’t help but replay the entire evening. What had happened? He’d invited her for dinner, and they seemed to be getting along well. Friends, yes, and maybe a bit more. During the call with West, he’d held her hand. He’d certainly acted as more than a friend. Or was she reading more into it than had been there?
Why hadn’t he told her about what had happened at the gas station? Wasn’t that what a friend would do, share his upsetting day? She couldn’t help but re-evaluate their relationship as she lay awake for hours.
Hotel
It felt to Laura Lee as though she’d just fallen asleep when the alarm woke her. She dragged herself from the bed and splashed cold water on her face to wake up. She made herself a quick cup of coffee and ate a protein bar as she dressed. She hoped she could catch a nap while en route.
When she entered the Team Room at zero five twenty, Garcia was within. Several magazines of ammo were lined up on the bench and he was placing them into his backpack. “Good morning,” he said.
“Morning,” she replied.
He held two magazines towards her. “You’re still carrying the nine, aren’t you?”
“Yes,” she said, taking them from him. Her Glock was in her backpack. She placed the spare ammo beside it.
Even though she hadn’t submitted her coursework to be issued her badge and creds, she had obtained her Illinois Concealed Carry License. Twenty-nine other states recognized it so she could legally carry while in those states. Their destination was one of those states.
She followed him from the Team Room to the SUV he had parked near the door. They went through the drive-thru of a coffee shop on their way to the airport. So much for that nap she was hoping for. With the large coffee she ordered, she’d be way too caffeinated to sleep.
Arriving at the Shepherd Security hangar at Chicago Executive Airport, they watched the Lear taxi towards them. It had just landed. After it parked, the door opened, and Laura Lee was surprised to see her teammates from the PGP Install Project deplane. She was even more surprised by the warm greeting they gave her.
“What are you guys doing here?” she asked.
“Our next gig is in Iowa. We’re finally getting to the Red Rock Plant in Pella, which we’ll drive to,” BT said.
The installation at the Red Rock Hydroelectric Plant, which was about fifty miles southeast of Des Moines, had been pushed out three times that Laura Lee was aware of. It had been deemed a low-risk installation. “I thought that one had been pushed to the bottom of the list?” she asked.
