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Brandon leaned into the car and quickly swept his gaze over the woman huddled on the seat, getting his first look at her. She was around thirty, with dusky skin and long, black hair.
She stared up at him, frozen in place, the fear in her dark brown eyes vanishing under a flash of recognition. “Brandon.”
The sound of his name in that soft, accented voice did something odd to him. Tugged at something deep inside. She was definitely the woman who had contacted him, and she was also stunning. “Are you hurt?” he asked, watching her eyes as he slipped from defensive mode into medic mode.
Her pupils were dilated, her shock genuine as her gaze darted past him to the street, her expression etched with fear. “They’re after me—”
“They’re gone.” The SUV had taken off the moment he and Groz had raced up, right after the crash. “Who was it? Did you recognize the driver?” As far as he could tell, there had only been one man in the vehicle.
“No.” She continued to look past him, face pinched with fear.
Any suspicions he’d had about her being involved with whatever the hell was going on, or the hit team, were long gone. There was no way she would have deliberately crashed and risked her life just to dupe him.
Whoever had been behind the wheel of that SUV had wanted to hurt her. More likely kill her.
“My buddy’s standing guard,” he said. “If any more threats arise, he’ll alert us, and the police are already on the way.”
Her gaze shot to his and she shook her head. “No—no police.”
“Can’t avoid it.” The chase and collision had happened right out in the open in a crowded, downtown area. There was no way for them to avoid involving the police, and a crew of guys from the closest fire hall would be showing up any minute now too.
He crouched down to put them at eye level, studying her. She wasn’t anything like he’d expected her to be. “Were you supposed to meet me this morning?” He wanted her to confirm it.
“Yes,” she said shakily. Her breathing was starting to turn choppy, a slight tremor taking hold as her body coped with the flood of adrenaline. “But something felt off, so I...”
She had good instincts. Unfortunately, she had acted on them a little too late. “What’s your name?”
Those wide, dark eyes held his. “J-Jaia.”
Damn, she was lovely. “Jaia. Are you hurt anywhere?” Thankfully the passenger side had impacted with the lamppost, but it had still been one hell of a crash. The car was undriveable and totaled.
She blinked, paused a moment to take stock. “I-I don’t...think so.” She put a hand to the back of her neck, winced as she worked her jaw back and forth.
Her pupils were responding okay, but he needed to make sure she didn’t have a head injury. “What day is it?”
“Friday.”
There were slight friction burns on her chin and cheeks from the airbag, raw and angry against her smooth skin. He wanted to wipe them away with his thumbs. “Look at me.”
She did, a flash of surprise flitting across her expression as he took her hat off, then reached out and took her face in his hands to examine her more closely. Her skin was soft and warm.
“I’m just checking your C-spine,” he explained, palpating her cervical spine and watching for any sign of discomfort.
She gave a tiny shake of her head. “It’s just a little stiff.”
She was moving well, and without obvious pain. “What about your back?”
“It’s okay.” She pulled free of his hold, her gaze darted past him again. “Please, we need to get out of here.”
He straightened and pulled out his phone. “We will as soon as we talk to the cops.”
“But—”
“I’m going to call in a favor.” He dialed Noah and turned to face the road. Groz was still standing next to his car across the street, watching all around them. Sirens sounded nearby. The cops would be here any minute.
“Sheriff Buchanan,” Noah answered.
“It’s Brandon Whitaker. I’m in Portland, and I need a favor.” He briefly outlined what had happened. “Any chance you can run interference for us with the locals? I need to get her out of here.” Noah would immediately understand why he wouldn’t want the police here digging too deep.
“Let me make some calls, but stay put and cooperate or you’ll both dig holes for yourselves.”
“Got it.” But he was going to be vague while he answered any questions.
He glanced over as Jaia slowly climbed out of the car. Her hand was braced on the roof as she looked around, her alarm obvious as her gaze landed on Groz. “That’s my friend,” he said, stepping in front of her to protect her and block her from view. “He serves with me in the Guard.”
She met his eyes. He felt another invisible tug deep inside. “He’s a PJ?”
It shouldn’t surprise him that she knew what he did, but it was still jarring that she was a stranger and knew so much about him. “Yes.”
Her shoulders relaxed slightly. She wrapped her arms around her middle and stayed where she was, looking shaken. He had to fight the ridiculous urge to pull her to him and hold her. She was vulnerable, scared and in shock, and it triggered all his protective instincts.
The sirens grew louder, and moments later two patrol cars came speeding around the corner. They stopped on either side of the intersection and three cops got out, converging on them. Jaia visibly shrank into herself.
Brandon quit fighting himself and set an arm around her back, to physically bolster her as much as reassure her. “It’s all right. Just take out your license and follow my lead.” He pulled out his ID.
Jaia remained silent while Brandon spoke to the lead cop. He explained that an SUV had been driving erratically and caused the accident, that Jaia was a tourist from Florida, and after the crash the SUV had just taken off. The cops would likely verify everything via security cameras in the area later, but the story would hold up for now. Different story once the FBI got wind of it, but he would worry about that later.
The lead cop began questioning Jaia. She was quiet but answered everything exactly as Brandon had laid it out. Little tremors shook her frame. Brandon tightened his grip, pulling her closer to help calm her and let her know that she wasn’t alone. His chest tightened when she leaned into him, unconsciously seeking comfort.
The cop nodded and finished writing his notes. “We’ve got an ambulance coming.”
“Oh, no, I’m—”
“I’m a paramedic and already checked her out,” Brandon said. “She doesn’t need any further medical attention, or to go to the hospital.”
The cop looked at her. “Are you sure?”
“Yes,” she answered.
“All right. We’ll get your vehicle towed. Do you have a ride to wherever you’re going?”
“I’ll take her,” Brandon said. Jaia looked at him but didn’t argue.
Across the street, another cop was talking to Groz. Brandon had told him to say they had only witnessed the accident part before running to get to Jaia’s car. A rig from the local fire hall arrived.
Brandon took Jaia to his truck and put her in the front passenger seat. “You okay?”
She nodded once, looking a bit steadier.
“Stay here. I’ll be right back.” He shut her door and rounded the hood to meet the fire captain striding toward him in his turnout gear. Brandon recognized him. He knew a lot of the guys who worked in Portland.
“What’s the story, Whit?”
“Witnessed the accident. Driver’s fine, and the cops are looking for the suspect vehicle that caused the crash.” They spoke for another minute, then Brandon clapped the man on the shoulder. “I’m gonna drive her home. Say hi to the boys for me.”
“Will do.” He strode back to his truck, giving Groz a nod. His buddy climbed into his Mustang.
“Everything okay?” Jaia asked when he opened the driver’s door.
“Just following procedure.” He felt no guilt whatsoever about lying to the cops. They couldn’t prove any more than what he’d told them. “Take out your phone.”
“What?”
“Your phone. Or phones, whatever. Hand them over.” He wasn’t going anywhere with her until he was as sure as he could be that she wasn’t enabling anyone to track them.
Reluctantly she reached into her coat pocket and removed one, gave it to him while she reached into the bag at her feet. “They’re both burners,” she said, handing the second one over.
“Do you need anything off them?”
“No.”
“Good.” He had to get rid of them in case someone was tracing them. Because someone had tracked her here. “Hand me the bag and show me your pockets.”
She lifted the bag from the foot well, wincing a little. The muscles in her neck, shoulders and back would be stiffening up now, making her sore and probably giving her one hell of a headache.
He checked the bag for electronics, found a laptop but no other phones or devices. Her coat and jeans pockets were all empty. She could have some kind of tracker hidden on her somewhere, but short of strip searching her, there wasn’t much else he could do to mitigate the risk.
He turned off the phones, strode to the trashcan sitting on the corner and dumped them.
“Where are you staying?” he asked as he climbed behind the wheel.
“Nowhere. I checked out of my rental this morning and hadn’t made any other plans yet.”
“I’ll take you to my buddy’s place here in Portland until we can figure out what to do. You okay with that? I trust him with my life,” he added when she looked ready to argue.
“Is it safe for us both to be there?”
“Safe as anywhere for the moment,” he muttered, pulling away from the curb. She smelled good. Something light and fresh mixing with the scents of her laundry detergent and shampoo.
A tense silence filled the cab as he drove. Groz was right behind him, and neither of them would let their guards down. Jaia was constantly checking around them, looking in the side mirror.
“We’re still clear,” he told her. Though the guy in the SUV could easily have gotten his plate number. If they worked for the former Graystone owners, then it would only take a single phone call to have someone ID him that way.
Jaia didn’t answer, hands knotted in her lap while she continued watching around them.
“Did you see anyone following you before you got in the car?”
“No, but like I said, something felt off, so I decided to leave. I didn’t notice the SUV chasing me until it was too late. How did you find me?”
“My buddy saw you. He’d been watching outside for me while I was in the café and saw you double back. We weren’t sure if it was you, but when you left, we followed.”
“I’m glad you did.” She twisted her hands in her lap. “If you hadn’t pulled up right after I hit that pole, they might have...” She swallowed, staring straight ahead.
A shiver sped through her. Brandon aimed the air vents on the dash at her and turned on the heat. There were so many questions he wanted answers to, but she was scared and recovering from shock, and he needed time to think things through before he barraged her.
“Who else knows you’re here?” he said.
“No one. I didn’t tell a soul when I left Tampa. I don’t even know how they found me today, I thought I was so careful.”
Because they had resources at their disposal for that kind of thing.
His mind churned as he drove across town to Groz’s condo. He didn’t see the silver SUV once, and there was no niggling sense that they were being watched or followed.
He parked in the secure underground lot and escorted her to the elevator. Groz climbed out of his Mustang and strode over to them, his huge frame towering over Jaia. “This is my buddy, Asher,” Brandon said to her. “Groz, this is Jaia.”
They nodded at each other, not speaking, and Brandon completely understood his friend’s suspicion. “I tossed both her phones back at the accident scene. No one could have tracked us here that way.”
Groz didn’t say anything, just walked past them to put his key in the elevator keypad. The ride up to his floor was tense and silent. Groz led the way down the hall to his condo, while Brandon walked behind Jaia. She was a tiny thing, maybe five-four, with a slim yet softly curved figure.
Groz let them in. Jaia stepped past him and paused in the entryway, looking between them uncertainly.
“Go sit in the living room and I’ll bring you some Advil,” Brandon told her. “We need to talk.”
She held his gaze, nodded, then turned away and disappeared from view around the corner.
Expelling a breath, Brandon faced Groz. His buddy was watching him with an uncharacteristically grave expression. “I know,” he muttered, feeling guilty for putting him in this position. “But what the hell else am I supposed to do?”
“Let the cops or Feds deal with her?” Groz suggested, lifting an eyebrow.
Brandon shook his head. “I can’t.” It bothered him that she was facing this all alone, and that she had been targeted now as well. “She’s not safe, and I can’t just toss her out to fend for herself against whoever’s behind this.” Especially not when she’d potentially saved his life by alerting him about the hit team. “I owe her.”
Groz nodded, not looking too happy about it. “I get it. I’m just worried about you, man.”
“I know, and I’m sorry for involving you in this shit. After she and I talk, we’ll figure out someplace to go and get out of your hair. The Feds are gonna be contacting me as soon as they find out what happened anyway.”
Groz frowned. “You don’t have to lea—”
“Yeah, I do. Both of us,” he said, nodding toward where Jaia had just disappeared. “The sooner we go, the safer you’ll be.”
He was done putting people he cared about in danger. He was going to find out what the hell Jaia knew and how she was involved in all of this, then figure out how to end it.
