Michelle Karl - Fatal Freeze

This left Shaun with just one option: Find the Wolf and take him into custody before he could hurt Lexie or anyone else. First things first, though. He had a question, the answer to which might provide some insight into the situation.

“The security team should be here in a minute,” he said. “But before they get here, I’m curious. What made you pick this ferry? Specifically, I mean.” He wasn’t entirely sure where he was going with this, but his gut told him it might be important.

Lexie raised one eyebrow at him. “If you must know, though I don’t think it’s any of your business, we received an anonymous tip at Lead Me Home. The tipster saw Maria’s photo on our website and called to tell us he saw someone matching her description at the last gas station on the highway before the ferry terminal. Logic followed that she might be headed to Newfoundland, as there isn’t really anywhere else to go from here. And the small community of North Sydney, Nova Scotia, isn’t the kind of place a person can run to in order to disappear. It’s not unusual for us to get tips like this. Folks call in sightings of people we’re searching for, or report whispers and rumors. Sometimes finding a person is as simple as a friend knowing where their buddy has gone for the weekend, or an employee at a rehab facility letting us know the person has checked in. This one came in about Maria, so I followed it. I didn’t pick this ship for any particular purpose, just got on the road as soon as I could after the tip came in.”

Buzzers went off in Shaun’s ears as he listened to Lexie’s explanation. As a CIA operative, he relied on leads from anonymous sources on a regular basis, following up on promising tips and using the intel to assist sensitive investigations. The kicker here? He’d undertaken the voyage to Newfoundland for a similar reason, after receiving a tip that possible suspects with ties to the Wolf might be operating out of Argentia. It could be a coincidence, but in his experience, very few happenings in life could truly be chalked up to coincidence.

Had the same anonymous tipster provided intel to the CIA and to Lexie’s missing-persons organization? It seemed unlikely and far-fetched, but then again, so did the fact that he’d bumped into Nicola’s sister on a ferry to Newfoundland, far from both of their homes.

And even more bizarre? That Lexie might possibly be targeted by the same man he’d been trying to bring down for the past three years.

* * *

Although he stood on the other side of the room, Lexie felt keenly aware of Shaun’s presence. His concern for her safety had softened the edges of her anger, though allowing herself to pursue any line of thought regarding why wouldn’t serve any purpose. Better that they remained far from each other, especially after the embrace he’d given her when they found the braid and photo on the bunk. They’d fit together too well.

She had to stop thinking about him that way. She wouldn’t be the second Reilly sister to have her heart broken and her life shattered by this man. Lexie squeezed her eyes shut and pressed the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger.

“Knock, knock?”

Several raps on the door frame followed the question, and three men in navy blue security uniforms entered the room. An older, stocky gentleman who looked as if he’d spent a lifetime on the open water strode over to Shaun and extended his hand. “Tim Parsons. We spoke earlier about the incident on the parking deck?”

“Tim, thank you for bringing your team in here. We’ve got a bit of an unusual situation.” Shaun took the man’s hand in a firm grasp, and Lexie noted with mild annoyance that all the security officer offered her was a curt nod.

“Call me Parsons.” He jabbed a thumb over his shoulder toward the two men behind him. The shorter of the two had a lanky build with arms that went on for days, and bright orange hair to complement it. He stared at the floor and the walls as though wishing he could be anywhere but inside a passenger’s room. The other security officer, however, looked familiar. “Reed and Josh are my main team. We’ll do what we can, but as you know, we have our hands full with the recent announcement. What’s the situation here?”

Josh seemed to sense her gaze on him and met her look with a nod of acknowledgment. They’d met him in the computer room. Well, a familiar face was a good thing, right?

“Lexie, why don’t you have one of the officers escort you to the lounge?” Shaun’s question sliced through her brooding thoughts. “I’ll meet you there after we get things sorted here.”

Escort her to the lounge, as if she was a child? Not likely. “I can see myself there, thank you very much. But this is my room, so I don’t see why I should leave.”

Parsons cleared his throat, waving his hand in her general direction. “Sorry, miss, but judging by what this gentleman has told me, we’ll need to move you to another room while this one is under investigation.” He turned back to Shaun. “There’s no Royal Canadian Mounted Police on board today, but we’ll close off the room until we reach harbor.”

Lexie shuffled closer to her bags, away from the door. Being pushed out of whatever was going on wouldn’t help her investigation or give her the answers she needed regarding Shaun’s latest suggestion. Human trafficking? It sounded absurd, and yet deep in her heart, she knew that some people were fully capable of evil. Was kidnapping people and forcing them into menial labor truly that far-fetched?

“Won’t moving me to another room cause the same problem? If somebody got in here, they could get into that room, too. I don’t see how that’s any safer.”

Parsons smiled at her as though she’d lost a few brain cells. “It’s a matter of protocol and safety, Miss...”

“Reilly. Lexie Reilly.” She didn’t bother to cross the room and shake his hand. “Forget about the room. I don’t need sleep.” She reached down to pick up her bags, but a hand on her arm stopped her mid-motion. She straightened to find Shaun next to her, a sheepish smile on his face.

“It’s a good idea, Lexie. Humor me on this and take a different, safer room for the night. The person who accessed your room may have hacked into the passenger list and found your room number there. Your new room won’t be on file, so you should be able to get a good night’s rest.”

Lexie scolded her heart, which threatened to melt at his sincerity. She matched his gaze and held it for a few seconds before realizing that he did, in fact, make a good point about the passenger list. “Fine. But I still want an explanation for how you know all that stuff you told me...understand?”

He nodded and took a step back, easing the growing tension in the air between them. “I’ll tell you as much as I can, and that’s a promise. But you’ll have to meet me halfway. I have some questions for you, too. Meet in the lounge in a half hour or so?”

She agreed, picked up her bags and headed to the door. What could he possibly have to ask her? Compulsion moved her to look back at Shaun one last time before following Reed to her new cabin. He and Parsons were discussing the photo left on her bunk, and despite the lumberjack getup he wore, Shaun’s demeanor looked too smooth—too professional for him to simply be a passenger who’d stumbled across her path. And while this thought left her with more suspicions than reassurances, she couldn’t help but wonder why she’d felt so much safer in his presence than she had in the few moments she’d been on board alone.

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