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“Since I didn’t want the publicity that would come with catching him, I knocked him out and handcuffed him to a light pole. I used his phone to call the police and told them where he was.”
“Why didn’t you want credit? It would have given your security business a boost.”
“I don’t want that kind of boost.”
“But you were found out anyway?”
“Yes, but not for a while, and thanks to Kate’s connections, the ones who know agreed to keep it quiet. Or at least I thought they had.”
“Don’t worry, your secret is safe. I’m surprised you didn’t ask if it was Kate who told me.”
“Kate doesn’t divulge secrets.”
“Very true. So based upon that experience, you decided you were good at finding serial killers?”
“Not really…that was a lucky break. But I did decide to test the territory. I’ve only been involved in five cases.”
“And apprehended three on your own.”
She stared at him for a long moment and then nodded slowly. “You really do have connections.”
“That shouldn’t surprise you.”
“It doesn’t. I knew you did, but I’ve worked hard at keeping myself out of the limelight.”
“That’s not going to change. If you don’t know already, I’m not big on getting attention either.”
“Thank you. So what now?”
“Not so fast. How’d it happen? Why this kind of career?”
She seemed to sink into her chair as she sighed. “It’s simple, really. After I recovered from my ordeal in Europe, I knew I couldn’t go back to who I was before. I wasn’t the same person. And I swore I’d never be that helpless again. I’d had no training. No way to fight these people. Neither did April.
“My parents indulged me—how could they not? They were so grateful to have me back safely. I told them I wanted to make sure it never happened to me again. So instead of pursuing a career in design, I devoted all of my time to becoming the type of fighter that would never be taken again.”
“And you became some kind of avenging angel?”
She gave a dry laugh. “Not exactly. I wanted to save lives, stop bad guys.”
“But not through any kind of law enforcement agency. Those pesky rules again.”
She just shrugged, smiled.
“Kate was the one who gave you the idea to go out on your own?”
“Yes.”
“So why does someone with such a stellar reputation want to work for a secretive, off-the-books organization like OZ?”
“I think you might be overstating my reputation.”
“I don’t think so. According to my sources, besides helping apprehend serial killers, you have single-handedly saved the lives of schoolchildren, government officials, and average citizens.”
“‘Single-handedly’ is definitely a stretch. I have a few trusted associates who have helped.”
“So again, why do you want to work for OZ?”
“Because I want to do more.”