Kade woke to the scent of pancakes and bacon. He rolled over, a lazy smile crossing his face when he saw Renee standing in his kitchen, a spatula in her hand, her damp hair pushed behind her ears.
Her feet were bare, the long shorts she wore barely visible beneath the T-shirt he had loaned her.
He propped himself up on his elbow and watched her slide three pancakes from the frying pan onto a plate before pouring out more batter.
Kade climbed out of his makeshift bed and moved to stand behind her. He slipped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on her shoulder. “You smell good.”
She turned her head enough to look at his face, her answering smile leaving him oddly satisfied. “I smell like pancakes and bacon.”
“I like pancakes and bacon.”
“Good, because that’s what’s for breakfast.”
Since she didn’t seem to mind his presence, he kept his arms linked loosely around her waist while she finished making breakfast.
Memories of his parents standing like this warmed him, and for once, he was able to remember a past that went beyond the plane crash.
“It’s about ready. What do you want to drink?”
“I can get it.” Kade released her and retrieved two glasses from the cupboard. “Do you want orange juice or milk?”
“Milk, please.”
Kade poured milk for both of them and carried their glasses to the table. “What time is it?”
“Almost ten.”
He picked up his phone from where he’d left it on the table and dialed. Ace answered a moment later. “We’ve got a lead,” Kade said, then related the events from the night before and explained the results from facial recognition. “Do you want me to have this guy picked up, or do we watch him instead?”
“Have the FBI pick him up. If he was inserted nine years ago, who knows what kind of damage he’s been causing.”
“You think he’s a mole?”
“If you’re right about his identity, he would have to be. It would explain some of the intel leaks we couldn’t trace,” Ace said. “His plastic surgery must have been planned months in advance.”
“If not years,” Kade agreed.
“Since we know the last attack on the guardian program was for profit, it could be any number of countries behind this.”
“I’ll let you know when the FBI has him in custody.”
“How are things going with your latest client?” Ace asked.
“Fine.” Kade bit off the word, irritated at Ace’s classification of Renee as a client rather than coworker. Then again, Renee didn’t date coworkers. And he didn’t date clients.
He shifted his gaze to where Renee was turning off the stove. Deep in his gut, he ached for more mornings like this, but his lifestyle was a far cry from what most women wanted for their future, even in the short-term.
Ace’s voice interrupted his thoughts. “She can’t be that bad.”
“I said it’s fine,” he reiterated, realizing Ace mistook the reason for his abrupt tone. “I’ll call you when we have any news.”
“Do that.”
Kade hung up and set his phone back on the table.
Renee moved toward him, the platter of pancakes and bacon in her hand. “How long does it normally take the FBI to pick up a suspect?”
“A couple hours, tops. I’ll message Hannah so she knows to watch for activity.”
“I can do that.” She set the food on the table and took a seat.
Kade sat across from her. “I’d rather have you continue researching Sean Caspar. Anything we can use to identify who he’s working for could be key to figuring out who else might be involved.”
Renee slid two pancakes onto her plate and nudged the platter closer to Kade. “If that’s what you want.”
What did he want? A flurry of images crossed his mind, Renee at the center of them all. Dreams combated reality, and his voice was shorter than he intended when he said, “Yeah. That’s what I want.”
* * *
Renee tucked a foot up under her as she flipped through the various photos and notes she had printed out. She knew it was more efficient to protect intelligence when it was all stored electronically, but for her, paper was what helped her organize and analyze information in a way not possible when flipping through computer files.
Kade had spent the day moving from some gadget he was working on at his worktable to taking phone calls to monitoring surveillance video. At the moment, he was in the bedroom on the phone.
She still couldn’t believe they’d managed to coexist in this small space for the past two weeks. Most evenings, she looked forward to curling up on the couch with him and watching something on television. She wished they had the luxury of always watching a movie, but often surveillance videos filled the screen while they wound down their day.
Today her task had been to research the real Sean Caspar’s possible disappearance, and she had made more than her share of phone calls in the process.
The bedroom door opened, and Kade approached her. “What have you found out so far?”
“I interviewed Sean Caspar’s remaining family. No one has seen him since before the death of his father.”
“Not even at his father’s funeral?”
“No. One of the uncles said he received a text message from him the morning of the funeral that said he couldn’t handle being there. No one has heard from him since. His phone was disconnected a few days later.”
“Did anyone think to file a missing-person report?”
“His uncle did, but the case was closed three days later when the police were informed that Sean Caspar was working for the government. They assumed he dropped off the grid intentionally.”
“Which could have been verified with a call to the CIA.”
“Exactly.”
“Any idea where Caspar’s girlfriend is now? She was in photos with him the day of his graduation.”
“Her social media accounts went quiet at the same time Caspar’s did.” Renee picked up a photo from the table and handed it to Kade. “She wasn’t nearly as active as the boyfriend. Most of her activity was being tagged by other people, so it’s hard to tell if anything changed for her since he was the one who usually tagged her in posts and on photos.”
“This is her?”
“Yeah. Tamara Cordelius. When I searched for her online, I couldn’t find anything for her after Caspar’s graduation day either.”
“You think she’s another victim?”
“I think it’s a good possibility. They were together when Caspar posted his last photo. If the impostor decided to take him out and they were together, I doubt he would have hesitated to kill her too.”
“And then kill the father to make sure no one knew an impostor had taken the son’s place.”
“I know it sounds elaborate.”
“Elaborate but feasible,” Kade countered. “Any word yet from the FBI on apprehending the impostor?”
“No. I checked a few minutes ago, but I didn’t see anything.”
“In that case, let’s go for a walk.”
“A walk?” Renee looked at him suspiciously. “You’re volunteering to go outside in the heat?”
“A storm’s rolling in, so it’s cooled down a bit. Besides, I need to check the cameras before the rain starts.”
“Now the truth comes out.” She stood and slipped on her shoes.
Kade put a hand on her waist to keep her in place. “Maybe I’m making excuses to hold your hand.”
Renee grinned. “You don’t need an excuse to do that.”
“Good.” He leaned down and kissed her, and Renee couldn’t help but lean into him. How was it possible, she wondered, that she could feel so right in his arms even though so many secrets existed between them? The moment was all they had together, yet as each day passed, she could feel hopes and dreams settling over her, into her.
Dazed and a little dizzy, she pulled back to find him staring at her, his eyes dark and mysterious. The question that popped out of her escaped without thought. “What are you thinking?”
“I . . .” He shook his head as though clearing his thoughts from his mind. “Nothing.” Kade edged back and opened the hatch. “Come on. Let’s go before it’s too late.”
Her heart stuttered in her chest, and she followed him outside. When he took her hand in his, she wondered if it was already too late for her.