Page 17 of Stone Coast

"So, you think that my boss might have concerns that I'm a liability now? And I need to watch my back because someone might retaliate against me for something I don't even remember doing?"

He nodded. "That's exactly what I'm saying."

I blew out an exasperated breath. "Just when I thought my day couldn't get any worse."

"I'm not trying to scare you. I just want you to be aware that you're in a precarious position. And you shouldn't trust anyone."

"Except for you, of course," I snarked.

"What does your gut tell you about me?"

I was silent as I looked him up and down and tried to connect with that voice deep inside me. My gut told me I could trust him. I don't know why. But he just felt solid. A stand-up guy. No bullshit.

"I don't know a lot of people at this point, but I do know that I feel at ease with you,” I admitted.

"There will be few people who have your best interests at heart. I'm always wary of people who say ‘trust me,’ but I mean it when I say you can trust me. But trust is earned. And I don't expect you to trust me right away. All I’m asking is that you proceed with caution."

“How do I proceed?"

"You get yourself healthy. You get your strength back. You get out of here as fast as you can and get into a secure environment."

"You don't think this hospital is secure?"

He scoffed. "Anybody can walk in here wearing a pair of scrubs and inject a toxin into your IV while you sleep. No, this place is not secure."

"Well, that's a pleasant thought," I said dryly. "Maybe you should leave me your gun."

"If the nursing staff catches you with a gun, you’ll have a lot of questions to answer."

"It's better than being dead."

“Look, I think you’re safe for now. If someone wanted to kill you, they had ample opportunity while you were unconscious.”

He was right about that.

"I think your boss is taking a wait-and-see approach. You’re a valuable field officer. Someone of your skill takes years to train. The Company has a lot invested in you. At some point, they'll bring you in for a debrief. They'll want to know everything you remember, and they’ll attempt to assess your integrity. They’ll hook you up to a lie detector and ask you all kinds of invasive questions and insinuate that you’ve been compromised somehow. They’ll want to see if you're still functional. If not, they will cut you loose. If you’re a threat…”

He didn’t finish, and at this point, I didn’t need him to.

"When you say I've made a lot of enemies, you mean…"

"Criminals, foreign intelligence agents, terror groups. People who might be willing to do whatever it takes to get information from you."

"Like torture and kill me?"

"Torture you and keep you in a box somewhere."

"Gee, you sure know how to make a girl feel good."

He chuckled. “You mentioned a boyfriend. Can you trust him?"

I shrugged.

"Do you have a feeling one way or the other?"

I shrugged again. "I mean, he seems like a nice guy."

"But the spark’s not there," he said, reading my tone.