Torn - Cynthia Eden Page 0,2

nodded briskly. “What time do we leave?”

“Seven A.M. tomorrow,” Gabe told her, and approval gleamed in his eyes. “Be packed and ready to go.”

And that was an order. Right.

“You’ll take the private plane to Savannah, and then you’ll have an SUV rental waiting for you,” Gabe added. “Don’t worry. My assistant will take care of all the details.”

Not worry? Right. She excelled at worrying.

The team members filed out—­not that those assembled were the only agents at LOST. The organization was growing by leaps and bounds these days, and she knew that Gabe was even talking about opening a second office, maybe one along the West Coast. Currently, LOST was in a high-­rise located in downtown Atlanta. But if Gabe really had his eye on expansion, she knew a second office wouldn’t be a dream for much longer.

What Gabe wanted, he got.

Victoria grabbed her manila file and hurried toward the door. Sarah was lingering there, and, even though Victoria considered the woman her friend, the last thing she wanted was for Sarah to start poking around in her head. Sarah was a perfect profiler—­

I just don’t want her profiling me.

Because maybe, just maybe . . . Sarah might stumble upon all of those dark spots that she tried so hard to hide from the rest of the world. Once, she’d thought that Sarah might be like her. That she might understand just how hollow she was on the inside.

But the last case had changed that idea. Sarah had fallen in love, she’d battled her demons, and even made peace with her past.

Sort of, anyway . . . if facing off against your serial killer dad counted as making peace. Because Sarah had faced him—­she’d gone up against the infamous Murphy Jacobs and come out alive . . . and stronger.

Murphy the Monster. The serial killer had escaped from jail. Most folks thought he was dead, killed in the fire that had lit up New Orleans on their last case. But . . . Victoria wasn’t so sure. A guy like Murphy would be smart enough to cheat death. And at the scene of the deadly inferno that most believe had killed Murphy . . . I thought I heard him humming . . . humming as he slipped away.

Did Sarah worry that her father was still out there? Victoria didn’t know for sure. What she did know . . .

I’d never want to face off against my father again. So it’s a good thing he’s under six feet of dirt.

“Viki,” Sarah began, her voice hitching just a little, “we should talk—­”

Victoria forced herself to smile. “Definitely. We definitely have to do that. How about as soon as I get back from this case? Because, wow . . .” She glanced down at her watch. A move she’d totally stolen from Gabe. “I have got to hurry home and pack if I’m going to be ready by seven A.M.” Such a lie. She always kept a bag ready and packed. An old habit. “But as soon as I get back . . .”

Worry flickered in Sarah’s dark eyes.

She hurried away from her—­okay, she pretty much ran down the hall toward the elevator. She wasn’t going to waste time stopping by her office. If she did, someone else might snag her. She was getting out of there. She’d review the file, get her bag, and be at the airport—­ready to board LOST’s private plane—­just in time for that seven A.M. departure.

She jumped in the elevator and jabbed the button to close the doors. She had to get out of that place. It was so hard to breathe and as those doors slid closed—­

A body bag, zipped up around me. No air. Can’t breathe. I’m—­

“Viki?” A man’s hand flew through the elevator doors, activating the sensors and sending the doors flying back open. His deep, dark voice also vanished the nightmare that had tried to swirl around her.

Not a nightmare, though. Not really. Just a memory.

As the doors opened fully, Victoria squared her shoulders and pasted a false smile on her face.

Wade frowned back at her.

Wade . . . big, strong, dangerous Wade. He’d made her feel nervous from the moment they met—­he still does.

He stepped inside the elevator. “You leaving for the day?”

“Yes.” Her voice came out too high. She cleared her throat.

“Me, too. Guess we’d better both get packed and ready.” He pushed the button for the bottom floor. The doors closed. They started to descend and—­

And he hit the button to