The Outlaw Prince's Captive - Holly Rayner Page 0,5

to stay on the case even now that it had escalated in importance, but she didn’t want him to see that she cared about his reaction. She kept her attention on Laird.

“Stay in touch,” she called out to him as she headed toward the door. “I’m going home to pack. I’ll meet you at the airport in a few hours.”

Laird nodded. “Don’t forget your sweaters,” he said. “It’ll be chilly over there!”

Francesca gathered all the case evidence she had been given and arranged it in her briefcase alongside her laptop. She had to force herself to walk at a professional pace toward the door. The child in her wanted to break into a joyful run.

I’ll show all of them they were wrong to doubt me.

The drive home felt magical. She had dreamed of this for so long, imagining the day she would finally have the opportunity to prove herself. Now it was here, and she was going to make the most of it.

Packing was difficult. She didn’t know how long she was going to be in Konäs, nor did she know how often she might have the opportunity to do laundry. In the end, she selected her largest suitcase and filled it with as many things as she could. She would have to hope that it would be enough.

And if it isn’t, Voles did say that I would be getting a per diem. I can always buy new clothes if I have to.

She wondered if there would be some kind of hard limit placed on her time abroad. If eventually Voles would bring her back whether she had been successful or not.

Don’t start thinking like that, she told herself firmly. Of course you’ll be successful. She would do whatever it took, and she would bring Lindström to justice.

Maybe there’ll even be a promotion in it for me once I’ve gotten him back here.

Wouldn’t it be something if she could be promoted to hold a higher rank than Chuck Stevens? It would absolutely kill him. But he wouldn’t be able to disrespect her just because she was a woman anymore. If he tried, she would be able to create actual professional consequences for him.

When her suitcase could hold nothing more, she zipped it closed and wheeled it over to the door. Then she pulled out her phone to check her email, hoping that there’d be one about her flight arrangements.

The email was waiting in her inbox.

Agent Bellucci,

You will be flying from the FBI’s private airfield adjacent to JFK Airport, and you will not be able to gain access to the facility with your own identification. A car will be sent to pick you up, and an officer will escort you and Agent Laird to your flight.

An officer escort! Francesca had assumed they would be flying commercial. But if they were flying from a private airfield, that meant she and Laird would be the only passengers.

Francesca couldn’t help feeling thrilled. It felt as if Voles and the department were finally, for the first time, taking her seriously. They were making a big investment in her case. She was important enough to be collected by a fellow officer, driven to a private airfield, and flown overseas on a private plane.

She returned her attention to the email.

The plane is scheduled to depart at nine o’clock this evening. It will not leave without you, but I advise you not to make the pilot wait. You will arrive in Konäs early in the morning, and you’ll be able to rent a car. Hotel reservations have been procured for you and Agent Laird.

Assistant Deputy Director Voles is expecting you to check in once you’ve landed and arrived at your hotel. He is also expecting to hear from either you or Agent Laird once a day with a progress report on the case.

Safe travels, Agent Bellucci.

Francesca closed the email, went to her window, and looked out. A black town car was already waiting for her on the street below, and she could tell by the tinted windows that this was the officer who would be escorting her to the airfield.

She took one last look around her apartment, double-checking that she hadn’t forgotten anything. Who knows when I’ll be back, she thought with a thrill of anticipation. Who knows when I’ll see this place again.

Grabbing her suitcase, she headed down the stairs to the car that awaited her.

The agent saw her coming. He got out of the driver’s seat and walked around to the trunk to help her load