Secret Sisters(5)
“No, there was no problem,” she said. “It wasn’t pretty, but it’s done.” She hitched up the strap of her shoulder bag and walked briskly toward the elevators. “There was no need for you to escort me here today. William is a lot of things, but he’s not the violent type.”
Jack fell into step beside her, shortening his stride to match hers. He seemed to loom over her, even though she was wearing her highest heels.
“Anyone can become the violent type under the right circumstances,” he said.
She shivered. “Yes, I know. I’m not naïve. But I honestly don’t believe that William will be a problem.”
“You’re probably right.” Jack looked back toward the office door. “He’s not accustomed to having his target turn on him. He’ll move on.”
“Uh, target?”
“That’s what you were to him at the start.”
She winced. “I suppose so.”
“His type prefers easier prey.”
“You sound like you know his type,” Madeline said.
“Met a few in my other life.”
“That would have been when you were some kind of consultant for the FBI?”
“Right.”
“I accept your analysis of William Fleming. Nevertheless, I would appreciate it if you would stop using words like target and prey to describe me.”
Jack ignored that. “Make sure you don’t accidentally take one of his calls. Don’t respond to any texts. Don’t agree to talk to him or meet him for coffee so that you can talk things out.”
She stopped in front of the elevators and punched the button. “I know the drill. As it happens, I’m leaving town tomorrow morning, anyway. I’ll be gone for a couple of days.”
“Where are you going?”
“Cooper Island.” Not that it was any of his business, she thought. “It’s one of the San Juan islands in Washington State. My grandmother had a property there. It’s mine now.”
“The Aurora Point Hotel.”
She glanced at him, genuinely startled. “You know it?”
“Came across some property-tax records associated with it when I did my initial research on your company.”
She took a deep breath. “Your research was very . . . thorough.”
“I asked Edith about it. She told me that she wasn’t concerned with security for the hotel. She said it was personal property—not part of Sanctuary Creek’s portfolio.”
“That’s right.”
The elevator doors opened. She moved inside. Jack followed her in and pushed the lobby button.
“Are you going to Cooper Island to take some time off?” he asked. “Not a bad idea. You’ve been going a hundred miles an hour ever since your grandmother’s death. You look like you could use some R-and-R.”
She groaned. “First I’m a target and now you tell me I look like hell warmed over. Got to hand it to you, Jack, you really know how to flatter a girl.”
He frowned. “I just meant that you need to give yourself some downtime. You’ve been through a lot in the past three months. Edith left you with a solid management team. They’re more than capable of handling things for a couple of weeks or even longer now that the initial shock has worn off the company.”
“Forget trying to explain what you meant. I don’t think that’s your forte. But to be clear, I’m not going to Cooper Island for a vacation. Something has come up regarding the Aurora Point property, that’s all.”#p#分页标题#e#
“Something that needs your on-site attention?”
“Evidently. I got a message from Tom Lomax, the caretaker my grandmother paid to look after the hotel. He said he wanted to speak to me in person.”
“He wouldn’t tell you on the phone?”
“Tom doesn’t trust phones, or email either, for that matter. He’s a little old-fashioned.”
“He sounds paranoid.”
“Okay, Tom is rather eccentric, I’ll give you that.”
“So you’re going to fly all the way to Washington to talk to this Tom Lomax about a problem related to an abandoned property your grandmother didn’t even care enough about to insure,” Jack said.
She glanced at him. “Yes, I am. As you pointed out, my management team is perfectly capable of handling company business while I’m out of town. If you have any questions relating to security issues, feel free to contact Chuck Johnson directly.”
“Johnson is a good man.”
“I know.”
Jack looked at her. “You’re not going to tell me why you’re dropping everything to fly to Cooper Island, are you?”