Page 63 of Enigma (Pros and Cons Mysteries #6)

O live had been pretending to contemplate her phone call when she heard it—the subtle sound of movement near the loading docks.

Her heart leaped as she recognized Jason’s silhouette slipping between shipping containers, followed by Mitzi and a third figure she couldn’t immediately identify.

They’d come for her. Her pulse quickened.

They hadn’t died because of that tripwire. In fact, somehow they’d managed to follow her here.

But she knew they weren’t out of danger yet. They were seriously outnumbered.

Had they brought backup?

“Time’s up,” Sarah announced, walking back toward Olive with Elena and two armed guards. “What’s your decision?”

Olive snapped her gaze away from her friends and stared at the phone. Again, her mind raced through impossible calculations.

Tom had saved her life, given her a future when she had nothing left. But if she didn’t make this call, he’d walk into their trap anyway—completely unprepared.

“I can see you’re struggling with this.” Sarah’s voice took on an almost maternal tone that made Olive’s skin crawl.

“But think about it logically. Tom’s already a dead man.

We know his schedule, his routines, where he lives.

The only question is whether he dies confused and alone, or whether you give him a fighting chance by warning him what he’s walking into. ”

White hot anger rushed through her veins. “You’re asking me to betray him.”

“I’m asking you to save him,” Sarah countered. “Make the call. Use code words he’ll understand. Tell him it’s dangerous. A man like Tom Greer didn’t survive thirty years in federal law enforcement by being stupid.”

Elena pressed the phone into Olive’s palm. “Tick tock, niece. He leaves his office in three minutes.”

Olive’s hands trembled as she held the device.

She could picture Tom in her mind—the way he’d looked when he’d first taken her in, grief-stricken and determined to give her stability.

The pride in his eyes when she’d graduated from college.

The worry in his voice every time she called him from a dangerous assignment.

“What’s the address you want me to give him?” she asked quietly.

Sarah smiled. “Smart girl. There’s an abandoned grain silo on Route 47, about twenty miles north of town. Tell him you found something there—evidence about your mother’s survival.”

Olive’s finger hovered over Tom’s contact. Maybe she could word it carefully, make him understand the danger without alerting Sarah and Elena. Tom was smart. He’d pick up on the subtext.

She dialed.

The phone rang once. Twice.

“Olive?” Tom’s familiar voice filled her with both relief and guilt. “I wasn’t expecting to hear from you again so soon. How are you holding up?”

“Tom, I . . .” Her voice cracked slightly. “I found something. About my mother. About what really happened that night.”

A pause. Olive could practically hear him processing the significance. “What kind of something?”

Sarah nodded encouragingly, but Olive caught the way Elena’s hand moved toward her weapon.

“Evidence that she survived. Documents, photographs. I’m at the old grain silo on Route 47, about twenty miles north of Oasis.

I need you to come alone, Tom. Don’t tell anyone where you’re going.

” She put emphasis on the words, praying he’d understand.

“It’s not safe to trust anyone else with this. ”

Another pause, longer this time. When Tom spoke again, his voice carried the careful tone of someone who’d spent decades reading between the lines.

“Olive, are you in immediate danger?”

Elena’s gun cleared its holster.

“I’m fine,” Olive said quickly, her eyes locked on the weapon. “But Tom, please hurry. And be careful. Things aren’t what they seem.”

“I understand. I’ll be there in a few hours.”

The line went dead.

“Very good.” Genuine approval stretched through Sarah’s voice. “See how easy that was?”

Elena kept her gun trained on Olive. “Though I noticed you got a little creative with the warnings.”

Olive raised her chin. “I told him to come alone. That’s what you wanted.”

“True. But I also heard you tell him to be careful.” Elena’s finger moved to the trigger. “That sounds like you were trying to tip him off.”

Olive’s heart hammered against her ribs. “Of course, I told him to be careful. If something happens to him on the way, your whole plan falls apart.”

Elena’s eyes narrowed, clearly debating whether to believe her.

“Enough.” Anton stepped between them. “The call is made. Tom Greer will be at the silo within a few hours, and then we can resolve this situation permanently.”

“What about her?” Elena asked, her gun still pointed at Olive. “She’s served her purpose.”

“Actually,” Sarah said slowly, “I think Olive should be there when Tom arrives. She can be leverage.”

The cold calculation in her aunt’s voice made Olive’s blood freeze.

“In fact, maybe we should rough her up a little before she meets him,” Elena suggested. “That way Tom will know we mean business.”

Anton eyed her before nodding. “Not a bad idea.”

Elena grinned. “Perfect.”

She drew a knife from her boot.

Olive swallowed hard, knowing she was in no position to defend herself.