Page 22 of Secret

Jack frowned, glancing down and lifting his tie.

"I appreciate everything you have done for me, Jack. I'm just not used to this crap. I know you are, but I am not."

"We'll nail him soon, D. Always do."

"I'm not worried about you. I'm worried about me. A girl's got to pay the bills, you know."

"Maybe you should look into another line of work... if you don't mind me saying."

"Always do," Demarco said, echoing Jack's words.

"We think he was at The Dupont Circle Hotel, on the roof. But we're not a hundred percent sure yet because there were no casings."

"Casings?"

"We have the bullets, the one that grazed you and the one that hit the bench. The trajectory suggests the hotel roof, but no evidence so far... and a possible witness... from the ground—a FedEx Guy eating lunch."

"Hot."

"This isn't funny, Demarco."

"What do you want me to do, Jack? I can play damsel and I can play diva, but it's really hard to be myself right now."

Demarco looked toward the window, eyes welling.

Jack sat back down on the bed and took his hand. "I want you to get some rest. You're being discharged in the morning. I'll have a man outside your door all night."

"Where are you going?" Demarco said, trying to mask his disappointment.

"Home. I need a good night's sleep to keep up with you."

"Keep up? We going somewhere?"

"I'm your bodyguard, Demarco," Jack said with a smile. "My request."

"Call me Whitney."

9

"Why would they think you're the target?" said Alec.

"Because Abir was off the grid. No one would have known he was going to be there. Jack thinks we were followed."

The two were Skyping... Demarco from his hospital bed.

"That doesn't make sense. How would someone following you have gotten access to the hotel roof that quickly?"

"I don't know, Mr. writer-man. You tell me."

"Did Abir suggest the rendezvous location?"

"Yeah, he did."

"Then he's in on it... or he's the patsy."

"Does that make me Edina?"

"Ha, ha. I have to say this is all very exciting. I leave town and suddenly you're caught up in an international scandal."