Page 10 of Echo, the Sniper (Men of PSI #2)
Don’t Give Up
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C OME TO FIND OUT, MY phone did need to be replaced, since the heat of the fire had all but drained the life out of its battery.
That took a ridiculous amount of time at the phone store, but eventually we were back on the road, heading toward downtown Denver.
When I said we needed to go to the Hyatt Regency to get a room with a view of the Big Blue Bear at the convention center, I couldn’t help but notice how Echo’s head snapped around.
So, he knew the basics about what had happened to Dane.
Good.
I wouldn’t have to explain myself when I started asking weird questions about how snipers set up a shot.
When we checked in, Echo took over with the particulars of checking in on the excuse that he had to put it on the business account, and within minutes we pushed through the door at the far end of the hall.
“Corner room, with a perfect view of the Big Blue Bear.” Brilliant sunshine streamed through the windows as I slung a brand-new backpack off my shoulder and took a quick look around the room. Desk, floor lamp, a bathroom immediately off to the left, credenza with minibar and coffee station, TV...
And one perfectly made king-sized bed.
Um.
A shocking wave of heat rose in tandem with alarm.
Mentally I pushed that wave down and tried for a calm tone.
“Is there a second bedroom?” Trying to appear as though I wasn’t freaking out like a virgin about to be sacrificed to a sexy demon who had designs on wrecking me in the most debauched and depraved way—a demon that looked surprisingly like Echo in my weird little mind—I turned and tried the closed door next to the credenza. Locked. “We could get another room—”
“See that couch?” He nodded at the fussy striped couch close to the door and near a half wall that separated the miniscule living space from the sleeping area. “It unfolds to a full-sized bed. Your bed, to be specific.”
Relief flooded through me before the words sank in. Slowly I turned to him, hoping I looked unruffled, when everything inside me was totally ruffled . “Gotta say, wanting to share a hotel room with me is sending mixed signals. Are you sure you’re not trying to spark a bodyguard crush?”
The look he sent me would have withered plant life. “We’re sharing a room, not a bed.”
I tried again, this time dropping all pretense. “Look, no offense, but I don’t really know you, Echo. I’m not comfortable sleeping in the same room with a man I don’t know, so I’d prefer a separate bedroom, if you don’t mind. I’ll be happy to pay the difference—”
“Nope.” Dropping the sleeve of key cards on the half wall, he moved to the windows and began pulling the blackout curtains closed, while clearly looking out at.
.. something... as he did so. “No extra room. No suite with a separate bedroom. You stay in my line of sight until all this is over and I know you’re safe. ”
I took a breath and held it, my go-to method I’d cultivated whenever I wanted to argue a point with Dane.
Worse yet, deep down I knew my argument didn’t have a leg to stand on.
Echo was the professional who’d done this a hundred times, whereas this was my first rodeo at being targeted for freaking death.
In the end, all I could do was accept this with as much grace as I could muster, and try not to think about any nocturnal wanderings he may or may not have in mind.
.. or that I might actually be interested in.
Slowly I let out my breath. “Okay.”
“That tight security should change once we’re out of Denver,” he added after a moment, as if he’d been waiting for something more, and the look in his eyes as he turned from the now-closed curtains was curious.
“When it comes to the safehouse, I’ve requested for it to be in a town or city that you’ve never visited with any frequency, with zero ties to you.
This hotel room is only a temporary stop. ”
“Most hotel rooms are. Well, except for Howard Hughes. And Zack and Cody and their awesome suite life in the Tipton Hotel.”
A corner of his mouth reluctantly curled. “I can’t believe I have to state this now, but we are not going to have any Zack and Cody adventures while we’re here.”
“Not even to look for buried treasure in a rock star’s suite?”
“Not even then.”
“Party pooper.”
“What are we going to do while we’re here, Rory?” He stayed where he was while his energy seemed to fill the whole room, sucking out all the oxygen. “What’s going on in that mind of yours?”
He didn’t want to know the answer to that. With a king-sized bed yawning between us and my hormones taking themselves out of suspended animation, all the thoughts traipsing through my brain were downright X-rated. “Could you be more specific?”
“Why this hotel? Why insist on a room facing the convention center? What are you hoping to find?”
“Answers.” Relief and embarrassment cascaded through me in equal measure.
All he’d been fixated on was the damn hotel, while I stood there thinking of ways to recreate scenes from Love Island .
Geez. Maybe he was right to be worried about a bodyguard crush.
“Someone’s after me. The attacks—from having my car vandalized, to being pickpocketed, then nearly killed and burned out of my own home—all point to an enemy waging war on me.
But I don’t know why. The only social life I’ve had for the past three years was one that was allowed by Dane.
I can’t imagine any of my rose society acquaintances wanting to kill me.
Generally speaking, flower-growing nature lovers aren’t the homicidal type. ”
“If they’re human, they’re the homicidal type,” he said without batting an eye, and with so much conviction it was clear he believed every word he said. “But I get your point.”
“That leaves Dane, literally the only other person in my life, as the source of trouble. He had more than enough enemies to go around. Whoever is gunning for me has to be one of his many, many enemies.”
He nodded. “That tracks.”
“And as much as I’d like to go to the police and say help, I’m in danger, I can guess what their response would be, since it’s been their response from the time my car was torn apart—you’re only getting what you deserve since your husband was a dirty crook.”
That brought his brows slamming down. “No one’s actually said that, have they?”
“They don’t have to, Echo. Their smirking attitude and their obvious lack of progress in uncovering who’s out to get me says it all.
” I shook my head, my whole body tightening with the impotent rage I’d been struggling with for weeks.
“I’m not the bad guy, and I never knew the man I was married to was an actual, committing-crimes-all-over-the-place bad guy.
But the authorities don’t believe that. And since they don’t believe I didn’t know anything about what Dane was up to, they’re clearly happy to just sit back and watch karma take care of me.
They won’t jump through any hoops for me now, or do I need to remind you that when my car was vandalized the police didn’t even ask for the home security footage? ”
He grimaced. “That is pretty weird, I’ll admit.”
At least he was willing to meet me that far. “I’m done relying on other people to save me. I’m the one who’s got to get myself out of this, whatever this is.”
“So what’s your solution, Sherlock? Where do you think you should start your investigation?”
My mouth tightened. Huh. So, maybe belittling my ability to think logically was just something all men did, and not just Dane.
“I read your resumé. I know you’re a military-trained sniper, and you know my husband was killed by a sniper as we exited the convention center across the street from here.
I want your expert opinion on what went into the planning of his death, where the sniper was when he made the shot, and who in your opinion could have made that shot.
I need to know right now if you have a problem with any of that. ”
He didn’t move. If I didn’t know better, I would have said he’d turned to stone. “What if I do?”
“Why would you?” I returned without missing a beat.
“We both seem to agree that someone’s out to do me serious harm, yes?
And we both seem to agree that this is probably coming from someone Dane knew.
Shouldn’t we both agree that gathering as much information about Dane and his death is a fine idea before deciding on the next step? ”
The stiffness in his shoulders seemed to unlock, and I knew then that I had made a point.
“We’ll scout the area later this afternoon, after you’ve rested and taken the meds the doc gave you for your hand,” he said, nodding toward the white gauze-wrapped hand I automatically kept elevated so the throbbing was kept to a minimum.
It wasn’t too bad, but second-degree burns were no joke.
“I’m going to go get some ice for the room, and then set up your bed so you can take a nap before heading out to the convention center. ”
“I’m not sleepy.”
“You didn’t sleep last night, Rory, in case you’ve forgotten. You’ve also got second-degree burns on your hand, a knot on your head and a sprained ankle.”
“I can barely feel the head and ankle.” Living with Dane had demanded a high tolerance for pain, a sad fact that made me want to cry.
Echo shook his head. “You’re running on adrenaline and fumes and you don’t even know it, but I guarantee you’re going to crash hard sooner or later. Might as well make the conscious decision to do it now, rather than wait for when it hits at the most inopportune time.”
That made sense. I just wasn’t sure I would be able to shut my brain down. I was so amped I was half-convinced I’d never sleep again. “Fine. This afternoon it is. I just have one more question.”
He went back to impersonating a statue. “What?”
“Why do you get the king bed and I get the pull-out?”