My eyes widened. To my knowledge, Jones didn’t swear; it was a bit of a shock, to say the least. “Well, that won’t happen if I never see Parker again.” My chest tightened at that thought. To never see the man that I loved...we hadn’t been together for long but I knew that I wasn’t strong enough to deal with that.
I MADE my way up the steps towards the FBI building, before I was stopped by Agent Cross once I rounded the corner.
His jet-black hair was messy like he had been finger combing it all day. “Checking me out, Miss Price?”
My jaw clenched. Under normal circumstances, he and Parker would get along well. “I came to deliver this to you,” I said, ignoring his question.
His sparkling brown eyes glanced at the large box in my hands.
“It’s from Devin.” I handed him the package.
Cross frowned. “He knows where you’re living?”
“Yes.”
“And you still live there because...”
“Because it’s my home. Devin won’t show up,” I explained, crossing my arms under my chest.
“How can you be so sure of that? Look at what he’s done already.”
“Because I know him. Devin Tate is a sadistic fuck, but he won’t come back to me until he wants something.”
“Doesn’t he always want something?”
I searched Cross’ face. “You asked me who Devin is. By the questions you’re asking, it sounds like you already know.”
He kept a straight face. “I was waiting for you to tell me more.”
“So not going to happen.”
“Miss Price.”
“Goodbye, Agent Cross,” I said, spinning on my heel.
“Keely.” Cross grabbed my arm.
I looked at his fingers on my arm before meeting his gaze.
He cleared his throat, releasing me. “Listen. I want to help you but I can’t if you don’t tell me what’s going on.”
“I don’t even know what’s going on,” I cried, startling a few pedestrians as they walked by us.
Cross’ eyes softened. “We can grab lunch and chat in my office.”
I held back an eye roll. “Isn’t that a little unprofessional?”
“It’s just lunch.”
“Sorry. I’m taken.”
“Parker is dead.”
I glared up at him. “Not in my heart.” I turned and headed back to the limo, parked a block away.
Seeing Parker’s name and the tributes to him in the tabloids and newspaper made my heart clench. I knew he wasn’t dead. Jones and Colin Vain, Parker’s security guard, knew that he was very much alive. But no one else knew. It broke my heart seeing his friends and staff mourn their loss and I couldn’t do a damn thing about it.
Past
NEED you to help me die.”
“Excuse me?” I stared wide-eyed at Parker sitting across from me on the bed. “You want me to help you with what?”
He sighed and scrubbed his hands down his face a couple of times before meeting my gaze. “I need to disappear and the only way I can do that is if we allow the public to think that I’m dead. Devin needs to think that I’m no longer in the way.”
“But won’t that just make him come after me sooner?” I asked, my heart racing against my rib cage.
“No. You and I both know that Devin will never believe that I’m actually dead but we need to put the idea in his mind. It’ll drive him fucking crazy. And when he starts seeing it all over the news, he’ll have to believe it eventually.”
I jumped from the bed, pacing back and forth. “I can’t do this. I can’t help you die, Parker. That’s too close to home. It’s…no.” I shook my head. “I can’t.”
“Yes, you can. You’re strong. You can do this. For me. Please.”
I stopped pacing and glanced his way. “How can we do this? I’m a hacker. I know nothing about faking people’s deaths.”
“The CIA can make people disappear. Colin has already agreed to help me.”
“But you need me to help as well,” I finished for him.
He nodded slowly. “I could have done it without telling you but after everything you have been through, I didn’t want to do that to you.”
“You don’t think my fragile mind can take it?”
He frowned. “I never said that.”
I looked away. “You didn’t have to.” The hairs on my body tingled when I felt him come up behind me.
Parker placed his large hands on my shoulders, squeezing, pouring the strength from his very being into me. He was so strong. I couldn’t do this. I refused. But I didn’t have a choice, did I? If he did it on his own and then I would never know if he was alive