Page 37 of Smokescreen

“Only three years—I’m older.”

“And how old were the two of you when you became stepsiblings?”

“I was twenty, and she was seventeen. We didn’t get along then, and we don’t get along now.”

Olive stored that information to the back of her mind. “I can have Tevin look into this lawyer she hired. He’s great at finding information.”

Reid raised his burger, ready to take a bite. “Have you heard from him lately?”

“I know he’s getting ready to come to the ranch to do your geological survey. Otherwise, we’ve exchanged a few text messages, and he’s followed up on a few things for me.”

Reid tilted his head as if impressed. “You guys really are top-notch, aren’t you?”

“That’s why you hired us.”

He grinned again. “Yes, it is. You came very highly recommended—and at a very steep price tag.”

“I don’t set any of the prices. I just do the work. But I do know that Rex invests heavily in his agents when he brings us on. He puts us through the best training, some of which the FBI even goes through.”

Reid’s eyebrows rose. “That is impressive. Do you learn defensive driving?”

“We sure do—as well as handgun training, personal combat, interrogation techniques.”

“It sounds like you might be even more well trained than an FBI agent.”

“There are good and bad things about what we do,” Olive said. “We don’t have to operate under the rules the FBI does, which gives us more leeway. But we also don’t have the authority the FBI has, which is a handicap.”

“Are you guys a small, close-knit team or is Aegis larger than I think?” He took another bite of his burger.

“We’re a pretty small team, and it works well that way. We could grow larger, I suppose, and take on more cases, but that’s not what Rex wants. He needs to fully trust everyone who’s involved.”

Reid studied her a moment as he swallowed. “I must say, it seems like you could have done anything you wanted for a career. Why join an elite private investigative firm?”

Funny, most people didn’t usually ask her that. “The opportunity sounded exciting. I didn’t want to be behind a desk, and even though I was good at sales, I didn’t feel fulfilled. I thought I’d give this job a whirl and see how I liked it. I’m still here three years later.”

“Very interesting.”

“Isn’t it?” She picked up a fry and dipped it into her spicy ranch sauce.

As she did, the bell on the door behind her jingled, and she glanced back to see who’d come inside.

When she saw the tall, thin man, she sucked in a breath and lowered her head.

Work Boots was here.

Inside the restaurant.

On a mission.

Edgar Seller walked to the table nearest the door and thrust a paper into someone’s face. “You ever seen this woman?”

Olive’s stomach sank.

She instinctively knew this guy had come here trying to find her.

CHAPTER 16

“Olive?” Reid stared at her.