Page 53 of Obscurity (Pros and Cons Mysteries #5)

M ax grumbled that Olive and Jason needed to stay put for a while.

He arranged for dinner to be brought to them as they sat behind the old pharmacy. The meal arrived courtesy of the same overwhelmed catering staff, and it was every bit as disappointing as everything else about the festival experience.

Two paper bowls containing what appeared to be canned chili, plus a bag full of stale crackers and warm sodas—hardly the “gourmet wilderness dining experience” that had been advertised.

Olive and Jason sat side by side at an old picnic table. She picked at the congealed mess, while Jason ate mechanically, his attention clearly focused on something other than the disgusting food.

The silence between them stretched uncomfortably until he finally set down his plastic spoon and looked directly at her.

“Why didn’t you tell me about what happened at the gas station?” His voice was quiet but carried an undertone of hurt. “I asked you if you had any problems getting here, and you said everything was fine.”

Olive’s stomach clenched—and it wasn’t because of the questionable chili. “I didn’t think it was relevant to our investigation.”

“A man tried to assault you, and you had to physically defend yourself. How is that not relevant?” Jason’s tone grew more intense. “What if he’d had a weapon? What if there had been more of them? What if?—”

“I handled it,” Olive interrupted. “I’ve been handling things like that for years.”

“That’s not the point.” Jason pushed his plate away, his food barely touched. “The point is that we’re supposed to be partners, and partners don’t keep secrets that could affect their safety or the mission.”

The irony of his words hit Olive like a physical blow.

Here he was, lecturing her about keeping secrets when she’d been wrestling with the biggest secret of all—the connection between his father’s business and her family’s house, the questions about whether Jason himself might somehow be connected to her parents’ murder.

“Or is it because you don’t trust me?” Jason continued, his voice growing quieter but more pointed. “Because that’s what this feels like, Olive. Like you still don’t trust me enough to be honest about what’s happening.”

Olive stared at her untouched dinner, her mind racing. How did she respond?

The hurt in Jason’s voice was genuine, and Olive knew he had every right to feel betrayed by her omission.

But how could she explain that trust wasn’t the issue—that it was love that made her keep secrets? That she was so terrified of losing him again that she’d rather suffer in silence than risk discovering he was connected to the worst tragedy of her life?

“What aren’t you telling me?” Jason asked, his voice soft. “Because I know there’s something. I’ve known since the day I started at Aegis. You’ve been keeping me at arm’s length, and I can’t figure out why.”

Olive’s hands trembled slightly as she gripped her soda can. This was the moment—the conversation she’d been dreading and avoiding in equal measure.

She could tell him about the house, about the investigation into his father’s business dealings, about her suspicions and fears. She could finally be honest about why she’d been so careful to maintain professional distance between them.

But sitting behind an abandoned building in the middle of a music festival scam run by people willing to silence anyone who was a threat, surrounded by enemies and uncertain allies, seemed like the worst possible time to have a conversation that might destroy whatever trust they’d managed to rebuild.

“Jason . . .” she began, then stopped, unsure how to continue.

“It’s about my father, isn’t it?” Jason’s voice was resigned rather than angry. “Something you found during your background investigation of me.”

Olive’s breath caught. “How did you?—”

“Because I know you, Olive. And I know you’d never trust anyone blindly, especially not someone from your past who suddenly reappeared in your life.

” Jason’s smile was sad rather than bitter.

“I figured you’d run a full background check on me and everyone in my family.

The question is what you found that made you decide I might be dangerous. ”