forget that.”
***
The plane would be touching down in Colorado soon. She could see the white-capped mountains stretching around her. They were heading to a private strip, in a town called Fortune. She’d never heard of the place before, but it was fairly close to Aspen on the map.
She’d done an internet search on the hotel—or rather, the lodge they were visiting. Very, very expensive. Very private. An exclusive getaway for the rich. If you wanted to disappear and escape from tabloids or from corporate chaos, you headed to Fortune.
Her phone rang.
Dex was up in the front—freaking flying the plane. They had a pilot, but Dex had taken over shortly after takeoff. His control issues were showing. As if she hadn’t already realized that Dex liked to be in command of everything and everyone around him.
Her phone rang again. She pulled it out. Saw Eric’s face on the screen. She answered the call and put the phone to her ear. “You checking up on me already?”
“Are you safe?”
“Yes. I’m good.” High in the air and far away from threats. For the moment. “But I do appreciate the call.” Very…family-like.
Because he was family.
His sigh drifted to her. “I think this is a mistake.”
She glanced toward the front of the plane. Dex had just left the cockpit. Interesting. She’d rather thought he’d land them. But he was approaching and frowning at her—no, at her phone.
He heard it ringing. He came to see who called me.
Control issues.
“There’s something you should know,” Eric continued grimly. “August Shay was attacked last night.”
She shot upright in her seat. August Shay had been the man who put his gun in her face. The perp who’d been stalking her recent client. The guy who—
Should have been in a maximum lockdown. “Was it other prisoners? Did they jump him?”
“No. The guards swear August was in a separate cell. And, no, the guards didn’t do it, either. But then, I can’t be sure who hit him because the security feed mysteriously cut right before the time of the incident.”
Dex strode toward her. “Who’s on the phone?”
She waved him away as Eric told her, “When Layla headed into see the prisoner this morning…”
Layla. She knew he meant Detective Layla Lopez. Lacey had become fast friends with the other woman since beginning her job at Wilde.
“When she went in, hell, he confessed to the murders of two women.”
“What?”
“August had stalked and killed them. Women who all looked just like Jessica Harper.”
The Broadway star he’d been after. “OhmyGod.”
“He even told the cops exactly where to find the bodies. Someone got to him last night, Lace. Someone scared the hell out of him. Scared him so much that August confessed everything. He’s going to be locked up for a very, very long time. I’d be surprised if he ever gets out again.”
Her throat had gone dry.
Dex slid into the seat across from her. “We’ll be descending soon. You should buckle up.” His hands went to his own seatbelt.
Her gaze lingered on his bruised knuckles. She swallowed. Twice. “Thank you for letting me know about August. I appreciate it, Eric.”
“Are you sure you feel good doing this mission with Dex?”
Good wasn’t the right word. And Dex was staring straight at her. “I’ll talk to you soon,” she promised Eric. Then she hung up.
Dex shook his head. “Afraid that’s going to be a no-go. When we leave the plane, that phone will stay here. I’ll give you a new one, don’t worry, but it will have some security upgrades, courtesy of the agency.”
The agency. He meant the CIA.
“Please don’t call Eric or anyone else at Wilde.” His tone dropped. “This is a very delicate situation, and I don’t need to be worrying about outsiders.”
She fumbled and managed to secure her seatbelt. “You didn’t tell me how you got those bruises.” She couldn’t take her gaze off them.
“Sure, I did. You asked if I’d hit something, and I said yes.”
Another swallow. “Did you hit something…” She dragged her eyes up to his face. “Or someone?”
He stared back at her. The pilot made an announcement that she only vaguely heard.
Then Dex said, “If you have a specific question for me, why won’t you ask it?”
Fine. But she’d start with a statement, not a question. “August Shay just confessed to killing two women.”
“Um. Yes. I know that already. Hate to spoil the reveal, but I tend to get intel very fast.”
Her breath hitched.
“Did you know…” He leaned forward. “That those two women were also petite brunettes? That he shot them