Читать книгу Texas Takedown - Heather Woodhaven - Страница 13

THREE

She hated relying on Matt. This was not how she imagined experiencing the River Walk and the conference. In her mind, she was a strong, independent, single woman strolling confidently down the sidewalks. And little girls would look from the hands of their parents and wonder what glamorous job she had...

Okay, Isabelle was a dreamer and knew it. But still, this wasn’t going as planned. They emerged from the curved stone staircase onto the open River Walk. Music from a mariachi band filtered through laughter and trees to her ears. Colorful patio umbrellas lined the right side. Tree branches hung over the river that sloshed precariously close to the sidewalks, likely from the heavy rains last week.

Ducks squawked. One hopped onto an empty chair of an outdoor diner. It was like a hidden world underneath the city. Isabelle flinched as a man brushed past her. She stepped closer to Matt.

“We’re almost there,” he said. They passed the colorful tables, and the music faded in the background as he led her inside the waiting area of a posh restaurant. “See your party?”

On her tiptoes, she spotted the graying head of Darren Allen, the CEO of Endangered Robotics. He leaned back in his seat to talk to another man. Their plates held the remains of their meals. A waiter approached their table and handed them each a black book. “Oh, no. They’ve already got their bills.”

Isabelle was raised knowing that if you arrived five minutes early to an event, you were actually ten minutes late. Joining the party this tardy pained her. And to top it off, there wasn’t an empty spot for her to sit, if even for a few minutes.

Matt looked over her shoulder. “At least they aren’t completely done. Some of them are still eating. Look, there is an empty table right next to them. You can get a little networking in before they leave while you wait for some food.” He leaned over and spoke to the hostess.

The thought of sitting alone at the small square table put a pit in her stomach. She’d look pathetic to the rest of the attendees. No, she’d be better off cutting her losses and trying again tomorrow. But the hostess was already waving at her. “Right this way.”

Darren Allen caught her eye. Oh, great. If she turned around now, they would all know she was too chicken to eat alone. She gulped and looked over her shoulder. “Okay. Well, thanks, Matt.”

He nodded and touched her elbow. “See you in a bit.”

Darren waved at her. “There’s the new golden girl we’ve been hearing all about. Your presentation must be something else to get added at the last minute. We were hoping you’d have joined us for dinner to tell us about it.”

Every giant in the industry of oceanographic research and innovation looked up at her. “I’m sorry. I was held up.”

A man about her age turned in his chair. His blue eyes twinkled up at her. “Oh, so you must be the expert of fluid dynamics I keep hearing about.” He held out his hand. “Robert.”

“Struther,” she finished for him. “You were the youngest winner ever of the underwater robot competition before you were swept up as the lead researcher for Robotic Aquatic.” She cringed inwardly. She sounded like a fangirl, which she was, but she needed him to see her more like a colleague.

He shrugged. “Vice president now, but yes. I expect I’ll never fully leave the lab.” He gestured to her chair. “Please. Don’t let us keep you from ordering. We’re just wrapping up.” He nodded at the rest of the group. She waved awkwardly at everyone, but most of them just nodded back.

Struther stood. “Nice to meet you...uh...”

“Isabelle Barrows.” She shook his hand. “From Hayden Research Station.”

He stepped closer and lowered his voice. “Any spoilers you can give about your presentation?”

The unexpected heat from his proximity made her want to squirm, but this was exactly the kind of connection she needed to make for the institute. “Um, I think it would be detrimental to rush that conversation. Perhaps another time?”

He stared into her eyes. “I look forward to it.” He slipped a business card from his pocket and handed it to her, cupping her hand in both of his palms. “You have my number.”

Darren stood and shook her hand. “I hope you’re not eating all by your lonesome, sweetheart.”

She flinched at the term of endearment. But she supposed a lot of older men spoke that way.

Matt appeared out of nowhere and pulled out the chair on the opposite side of the table. “Sorry to keep you waiting, Izzy.” He held out a hand to the CEO. “Matt McGuire.”

Darren grinned. “Ah. Perfect place to enjoy young love.” He winked at Isabelle. “Until tomorrow.”

The group left, leaving Isabelle and Matt alone. “Where’d you come from?” she asked.

“Didn’t think I’d let you eat alone, did you?” He flashed a sheepish grin. “I realized I was hungry, and you looked uneasy. Did I overstep? Is it okay if I join you?”

Relief coursed through her body. “Yes, please.” She finally sat, keenly aware the men in the group were making their way out of the restaurant. Her pride wouldn’t leave Matt’s gesture alone, though. “I mean, I would’ve been fine, but...thank you.”

Darren and Robert stopped at the entrance doors. Through the window, the lights from above highlighted what looked like a tense interchange. “I wonder what they’re talking about.”

“Who are they?” Matt’s gaze remained on the menu.

“The older man runs a company I would’ve killed to work at fresh out of college. He leads Endangered Robotics. They use drones to keep poachers away from rare animals, but the cool thing is they’re expanding to underwater operations.”

Matt’s eyes widened. “And the other?”

“His company just landed a defense contract worth thirty million dollars.” She glanced over her shoulder. The interchange seemed to be done. “I shudder to think just how much he makes.”

“I take it not as much as you.”

Isabelle laughed aloud. “Please. You saw the hotel room my institute could afford. We’re a bare-bones outfit. But I hope to change that by luring some investors with my research.”

The waiter came and took their orders. Matt leaned on his elbows. “This is an oceanology conference, right? What could be worth millions of dollars?”

“You’ve heard about dolphins being trained for the government? Well, that guy, for instance, invented an underwater autonomous vehicle that does the work of the dolphins, only better.” For the briefest of moments it seemed the estranged years disappeared, and she was sharing everything with her best friend again.

Matt raised an eyebrow. “So, what about you? What are you working on?”

“Application of fish swarm behavior in an intelligent transportation system.” The familiar pulse of electricity when she talked about her passion made her sit up taller and talk faster. “I’ve developed a new algorithm that takes in new factors of thermodynamics, fluid dynamics and currents in a way never done before with the potential of driving systems with bottleneck and obstacle avoidance.”

Matt’s mouth parted slightly. His eyes flickered. “Uh... I don’t suppose you could repeat that in English?”

She deflated in her chair. “Drones. Think underwater drones.”

His eyebrows rose. “Oh. Cool.”

“My boss had to pull a lot of strings so I could present here. The goal is to network and share just enough of my research to get investors to partner with us.” And if she failed, who knew how much longer the institute, and therefore her job, would even exist?

Sure, she felt confident another company would hire her, but it was the last thing she wanted. Finally having a permanent home meant something, and she would do whatever it took to hold on to it. Her coworkers had become like family to her—with the exception of Hank, who already was—and she wasn’t about to give it up.

The waiter placed salads in front of them. Matt’s forehead creased in concern. “Is that why you wanted your laptop in the safe? Do you think the hotel-room incident could have something to do with it?”

“It’s probably silly to think someone would be after my research. My boss has taken every precaution to make sure no one even knows enough to want to steal it, but—”

“After the day you’ve had, you want to play it safe.”

“Exactly.”

They ate in awkward silence. He cleared his throat as the salads disappeared and the meals came. “Since I don’t know if we’ll have another chance to talk, I’d like to clear the air.”

She fidgeted with her silverware. “It’s not necessary. It’s not like those things you said were lies.”

“Izzy, I didn’t mean—”

“No, really, Matt. I get the Bro Code and all that. You were looking out for Randy. Besides, the whole thing was stupid. At the time, I wasn’t even interested in Randy.”

His mouth dropped. “You weren’t?”

“Nope.” What was she doing? She needed to stop her mouth, but the adrenaline from the evening and the combined exhaustion made her mouth run on and on. “I actually liked you. And then my girlfriends convinced me to try that stunt to make you jealous. But you know what’s the craziest of all? I ended up with Randy anyway. He said he never would’ve known who I was if it wasn’t for you. Isn’t that funny?”

Matt stared at her, his expression unreadable. “You what?”

“Randy and I ended up at the same college. He had a football scholarship.”

Matt pursed his lips. “Huh.” He coughed and rearranged the food on his plate.

“And he assured me the stuff you said about me didn’t bother him. So, see? We can move on.”

“Well, uh, that’s, uh...a relief. Are you still—”

“No. Don’t worry. My crush on you is gone.” She put a hand on her chest. “No threat here.”

He cleared his throat. “I was going to ask if you were still with Randy.”

“Oh.” Her face heated. “No. He got offered a job as a pharmaceutical rep. I just couldn’t do that kind of life.”

Matt’s eyes softened. “The traveling?”

His question caught her off guard. She managed to nod. “A long-distance relationship and moving are off the table. I want to stay somewhere for the long haul.”

Isabelle stared at her empty plate. She’d talked and eaten so fast, it didn’t register what the food had tasted like. The reminder that Matt knew enough to understand her desire without clarification rankled her for some reason. So much so, she wasn’t fast enough to pay for the check before he’d already taken care of it.

He escorted her to the door. A breeze wove through the River Walk. She shivered. The temperature must’ve dropped twenty-some degrees since the afternoon. In a heartbeat, Matt took off his suit jacket and handed it to her.

“For the walk back.”

She accepted. The jacket did more than provide warmth. It somehow made her feel safer, as if wearing armor. She looked like someone’s girlfriend. She hadn’t been one of those for over a year now.

Her ankle hurt less as she joined the throng of tourists. The ice and rest had done the job. Matt had to step behind her, single file, as there wasn’t enough room to walk alongside each other and still allow the traffic to flow from the opposite direction. The jumble of tourists merging onto the sidewalk separated them by a couple of people.

A hand snaked around her wrist and yanked her off the walkway and into the darkness. A glint of metal appeared at her waist. “Scream and you die.” The man pulled her up an incline and pushed her into a shadowed area behind a tree.

* * *

Matt nearly fell into the water when someone shoved past him. A woman grabbed his shirt and helped him upright. His focus had been elsewhere...specifically, on the fact that Isabelle had ended up with Randy after all. The incident in high school had been an immature ploy to get his attention? How ironic that he had responded with his own ploy by trying to drum up bad things to say about her.

So she’d come clean, but why couldn’t he? Why hadn’t he interrupted Isabelle and admitted he had liked her? Why hadn’t he told her he never meant those hurtful things? His lips had refused to cooperate. Pride had paralyzed him. Again.

He scanned the tourists ahead of him. He’d completely lost sight of her. He strained his neck in an effort to spot Isabelle. No sign. He called her name, but the music and talking and laughter from all the restaurants swallowed up his voice.

Something reflected a light. On Marriage Island—a tiny, unlit inlet that jutted into the San Antonio River—a couple stood in the shadows against the tree. He almost looked away, but the profile looked remarkably like Isabelle’s. He saw the outline of the man wrench a bag from her torso.

Matt vaulted through the crowd. As he rounded the tree, the man pointed a gun at Isabelle. “Hey!” As the man turned to aim the gun at him, Matt grabbed the assailant’s arm and twisted it until the weapon dropped from his hand. The man punched Matt in the gut with his other arm.

Pain vibrated down his legs from the impact.

The man pulled a knife from his pocket and stabbed it into Isabelle’s torso. She cried out and crumpled. Matt pulled his fist back and slammed it into the assailant’s jaw.

The man stumbled backward until he took off into a run, the messenger bag bouncing off his hip. He ran around the tree, pushed tourists aside and dashed up a flight of stairs to the upper level of stores.

“Stop him,” Matt shouted, but over the noise, he doubted anyone heard him. The creep didn’t even glance back before he slipped between two buildings and disappeared.

Isabelle’s hands held her stomach. Matt dropped to his knees. He looked past the tree and yelled for help at a group passing by. He reached for Isabelle. How badly had she been stabbed?

She coughed. “He’s getting away.”

He couldn’t call for an ambulance without his phone, which still resided in the inner pocket of his suit jacket. He reached for her and prepared himself for the worst as his eyes focused on the rip in his suit, where she’d been stabbed. He pulled back the jacket slowly, inwardly cringing at what he might find.

Instead of blood he saw only fabric. His eyes lifted to her face.

She pressed her hand on her stomach. “It didn’t pierce me. The force of it just hurt. Your jacket... Was there something in the pocket?” Her frown cleared as she pulled out his phone and wallet. Cracks radiated across the screen. In the center of the phone he could see the point of impact. If the blade had hit flesh... He gulped.

Her right hand reached for his wrist.

“Isabelle, you could’ve been—”

“But I wasn’t. You saved my life,” she whispered. Her eyes filled. “He got away with everything. My phone, my wallet, my tablet... It’s all gone.”

He squeezed her hand. “All replaceable.” Unlike her.

Two policemen ran up to the tree. One took a knee. “Ma’am, do you need an ambulance?”

Twenty minutes passed before the officers were finished with their questions. Matt half listened to their reassurances to Isabelle that if she came to the police station for the report, she would likely still be able to fly home without an ID.

One officer stepped away while he listened to his radio. He approached again. “Ma’am, you said you were pursued earlier today by two men? Was this attack made by one of the same men?”

“No.” She frowned. “I’m positive.”

“Were there any witnesses to the earlier event?”

She narrowed her eyes. “Just Matt.”

The officer gave him a long glance. “And you were the only witness to this altercation, as well?”

Matt leaned back on his heels. Was the officer implying they were making the incidents up? “We were surrounded by witnesses. Surely someone saw something.” He waved behind him to the sidewalk.

“If they did, they didn’t stick around to tell their story.” The other officer narrowed his eyes.

Matt threw his hands up in the air. “This can’t be a coincidence.”

The officer ignored him and addressed Isabelle. “I assure you it’s very unusual for one of our tourists to be a victim of so much crime in one day, ma’am. Were you carrying anything valuable that would draw attention?”

Isabelle grabbed her sparkling necklace. The temptation to ask who gave her that welled up in Matt again. “Only the usual conference-attendee stuff,” she said. “Wallet, tablet, phone—you know, basically my whole world.” She smiled weakly.

Matt recalled the way she’d begged for him to put her laptop in the hotel safe. She had been carrying it in her messenger bag. What if the people who tore up her room were looking for the information that was on her laptop?

The memory of the man shoving the knife into Isabelle made him flinch. If he’d been after the laptop and thought he’d grabbed it, then why stab her? His blood ran cold. Did someone want her out of the picture?

The police officers repeated their safety advice to her and walked away.

Matt met her eyes. “Why didn’t you tell them about the laptop?”

She looked uneasy. “It wasn’t pertinent.”

“Wasn’t it?” He crossed his arms across his chest. “I think it’s time you told me more about these underwater drones.”