Blake Pierce - Taking

She asked, “Who’s paying for this trip, anyway?”

“I am, OK?” Crivaro grunted. “Of course I might get reimbursed if it turns out to be a real case.”

Riley said, “So you’re telling me—what? That we’re sort of on vacation together?”

Crivaro chuckled awkwardly. “Hey, the weather in Arizona this time of year is sure a lot nicer than it is in Virginia. Don’t bother to thank me for a change of scenery.”

“I don’t think this is funny,” Riley said, trying not to sound as irritated as she felt. “You could have at least told me from the start what this was all about.”

Crivaro said defensively, “Well, I was in kind of a rush. And it’s not like you were going to have any work to do in Quantico while I was gone. You might as well be with me, at least trying to get something done. We will be doing some investigating while we’re there. It might even be a good learning experience for you. So what’s the problem?”

“I’ll tell you what the problem is,” Riley said. “I’ve got a fiancé back home who’s pissed off that I’m taking off like this all of a sudden. Do you think he’s going to be less angry to hear I’m not even on a real case?”

Crivaro sighed guiltily. “And you’re going to tell him that?”

Riley was startled. She hadn’t even considered not telling Ryan all about her activities while she was away from him.

“Of course,” she snapped.

“Sorry about that,” Crivaro said. “I guess you’re right, I should have asked you first.”

“Yeah, I think so.”

Crivaro looked at her more sympathetically and said, “Look, if you want out of this whole thing, I’ll understand. When we get to Phoenix, you can catch the first flight back if you want. I’ll even pay for the ticket. Is that what you want to do?”

Riley felt startled anew by his offer, and she didn’t know what to say.

Shouldn’t I take him up on it? she wondered.

For a moment the choice seemed obvious. Crivaro had no business dragging her across the country on this possibly pointless errand. And heading straight back home might be a good way to patch things up with Ryan—especially if she wound up with another day or two before she really had to start work at Quantico. It might be just what she and Ryan needed.

Then she quickly remembered the anger in Ryan’s voice when he’d asked her over the phone …

“What about my car? How long am I going to have to do without it?”

Riley stifled a growl of irritation.

That damned car, she thought.

Not having that car around mattered more to Ryan than Riley not being there.

It really pissed her off.

Suddenly Riley didn’t feel in the mood to patch things up with Ryan. And as far as Crivaro was concerned …

Well, at least he’s showing some interest in me.

Besides, Crivaro was right about one thing. They’d surely be doing a little investigating, even if it was only to find out there was nothing to investigate. It might turn out to be a good experience after all. She might actually learn something.

Finally Riley said, “It’s OK. I’ll stay with you.”

Crivaro’s eyes brightened.

“Are you sure?” he asked.

Riley smirked a little and said, “I’ll let you know if I change my mind.”

Crivaro grinned. “Well, the offer still stands, if you want to get the hell away from me. At least as far as this trip is concerned. When we start working cases together officially, you’ll be stuck with me.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Riley said.

Crivaro leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, apparently about to take a nap.

Riley took a flight magazine out of the seat pocket in front of her and started to browse through it.

She found herself mulling over what she’d just done.

I chose work over Ryan.

And to her surprise, she felt good about it.

What does that say about me? she wondered. And our future?

Then her mind turned to speculation about the present.

Arizona.

She really knew nothing about it.

She’d spent most of her life in the green hills of Virginia. What might such a different part of the country have in store for her?

When the flight landed in Phoenix, Riley and Crivaro got their go-bags out of the overhead bin and made their way through the boarding bridge into the terminal. About twenty people were waiting for the passengers from their flight, but there was no question about who was there to meet them.

A hearty-looking guy with a ruddy expression was waving vigorously at Crivaro. Riley knew that had to be Harry Carnes. The equally sturdy woman standing beside him with crossed arms and a frown on her face must be Harry’s wife, and she was not looking happy at the moment.

The man welcomed Crivaro with a big hug, and Crivaro introduced Riley to the couple. The wife’s name was Jillian. Riley guessed them to be about Agent Crivaro’s age or maybe just a little bit older.

For a moment, she was startled to see that both of them were wearing T-shirts, jean short, and sandals. She and Crivaro still had on their jackets and clothes suitable for colder weather.

“Luggage?” Harry asked, eyeing their outfits.

“No, just these,” Jake replied, holding up his go-bag.

Harry laughed and said, “Well, that’s something you can take care of soon enough.”

She remembered what Crivaro had said during the flight.

“The weather in Arizona this year is sure a lot nicer than it is in Virginia.”

She definitely wasn’t prepared for the weather here. They’d been in so much of a hurry to leave, she’d given no thought to packing a different wardrobe. She wondered if she was going to have to buy some new things for herself. Her budget sure wouldn’t cover much.

Maybe it won’t matter, she thought. If they headed back to Quantico soon, she could probably make do with what she had.

Harry led the way to the nearest food court, where they sat at a table and ordered sandwiches for lunch.

Crivaro said to Harry, “So here I am. Now tell me everything you know.”

Harry shrugged. “I don’t know much except what I told you over the phone. A woman was found dead yesterday on a hiking trail near Tunsboro, a town north of here. Her name was Brett Parma. When I heard about it on the news, I got curious and called the Tunsboro police chief. I had trouble getting him to open up, but I managed to pry a little out of him. He did mention the slashes on the woman’s arms—and also that she’d bled to death somewhere before her body had been left on that trail. Then he basically told me to keep out of the way of his investigation.”

“Which is what we’re going to do,” Jillian commented.

Harry leaned across the table toward Crivaro. “Jake, it all just gave me the weirdest feeling. It was like Erin Gibney’s murder a year ago all over again. I started flashing back to how I’d tried to help the cops in Gladwin solve the case, and how we’d failed.”

Harry lowered his eyes and muttered, “We never even came close to finding out who did that one.”

Jillian sighed unhappily and said to Crivaro, “Harry’s feeling all guilty about this whole thing. He says if he’d solved that case back in Colorado, maybe this new murder wouldn’t have happened. Of course that’s ridiculous. Jake, can you talk some sense into him? Tell him he’s got no reason to feel that way.”

Crivaro gazed at Harry sympathetically.

He said, “Jillian’s right. You can’t beat yourself up about that. Even if there is a connection between the two murders—”

Harry interrupted, “Jake, there is a connection. I feel it in my bones.”

Riley could see a world of skepticism in Crivaro’s face.