The Outlaw Prince's Captive - Holly Rayner Page 0,14
not getting inside if I don’t,” Francesca said. “He’ll never let me in. And do you really think the royal family is going to allow us to get a warrant to search Lindström’s house? They’re probably waiting for the request. I’m sure they’re already planning the most diplomatic way to tell us to go to hell.”
“Voles will be able to make them comply,” Laird said.
“Voles would rather see us handle this on our own,” Francesca said. “You know how he hates having to get involved in agents’ investigations.”
“I do know,” Laird agreed. “And he’s going to hate it even more if he has to bail you out of jail.”
“I’m not going to jail,” she said. “I’m just going to poke around a little bit.”
“This is a bad idea,” Laird said. “But you’re not going to let me talk you out of it, are you?”
“No, I’m not,” Francesca said. “I think this is what needs to be done, Matt. I’m sorry.”
He sighed. “I should have known you would be like this.”
“Be like what?” she asked.
“Insanely thirsty to prove yourself, to the point where you’re nearly impossible to work with.”
Francesca felt a stab of guilt. “Matt…”
“What do you think Voles is going to say to me when I tell him you’re going rogue like this?” Laird asked. “He’s going to want to know why I couldn’t bring you under control, that’s what.”
“So don’t tell him,” she said.
Laird was quiet for a minute. “You want me to lie for you?”
“You don’t have to lie,” Francesca said. “It doesn’t need to be that dramatic. Do you even really need to call him again tonight?”
“I told him I would check in when you got back to the hotel.”
“Okay, well, so check in when I get back.”
“And what if he calls before then?” Laird asked. “What am I supposed to say? How can I explain that you’re not back after three hours?”
“Tell him I stopped to shop for winter clothes. Tell him how we underestimated the cold.”
“You said you weren’t going to ask me to lie.”
“It won’t be a lie,” Francesca said. “I will stop and pick up some clothes on the way back, and that will make it the truth.
Unless I have Lindström in custody, of course. Then I’ll have to skip the shopping trip.
“What are you going to do?” Laird asked. “How are you going to get into the house if he won’t let you through the front door and you’re not planning on breaking in?”
Francesca sighed, relieved that he appeared to be backing her up at last. “I don’t know,” she admitted. “I don’t know what to do. Do you have any ideas?”
“I guess you might stand a chance at getting him to let you in if he felt like you were someone safe,” Laird said. “You could pose as a mail delivery person, if you had the uniform for it.”
“Great idea, but I don’t.”
“You could pretend to be a neighbor,” Laird suggested.
A van pulled up on the opposite side of the street and parked. Francesca watched as a young woman in green-and-white maid’s attire climbed out.
“Stand by,” Francesca said, lowering her voice automatically even though she knew the woman wouldn’t be able to hear her through the car windows. “I think I have a plan.”
“A plan? What plan?”
“There’s a maid service that just arrived,” Francesca said. “I think he has a housekeeper.”
Laird was silent for a moment. “Tell me you’re not going to get the housekeeper to let you in.”
“I bet she’ll do it. If she sees the badge—”
“Voles would kill you,” Laird said. “I haven’t entirely ruled out killing you myself.”
“You’re going to feel differently about it if I come back to the hotel in a few hours with the suspect in custody,” Francesca said. “Think about it, Laird. We could be on the plane back home tonight.”
“Damn it, Frannie, we don’t have to rush this. For the last time—”
“Listen,” she said, cutting him off. “I’m going to go out there and catch the housekeeper before she goes inside. I’ll check in with you in an hour, one way or another. You’ll hear something.”
“You’re going to drive me crazy.”
“Just keep me off of Voles’ radar for a little while longer, okay?”
He sighed. “You’re going to get us both fired. You know that, don’t you?”
“I’ll take full responsibility,” she promised. “If there’s going to be trouble, I’ll tell Voles it was all my idea and that you told me not to do it. I’ll be the only one who takes the heat.”
“That