Chapter 11
11
A knock on the door startled Lorelei away from the file she was reading. She was so involved she didn’t realize how much time had passed. Or that she didn’t hear people walking around outside the apartment door.
“Lorelei! Open the door.” The knocking resumed after Karli’s shouts.
“Coming!” Lorelei called back, as much to let her cousin know she was okay as to tell her it would be a minute.
Lorelei stood and grabbed her crutches. She was more comfortable with them than when she walked out of the hospital, but she was still slow. She couldn’t wait to be done with them, but at least she could handle getting around.
Lorelei unlocked the knob and deadbolt, then opened the door for Karli to walk in. Karli’s worried look had Lorelei on alert immediately.
“What’s wrong?” Lorelei asked.
“I thought something happened to you. I texted you when I got here but you didn’t answer. I worried something happened. I’m glad I was wrong.”
“I’m fine,” Lorelei said, waving her hand toward the computer. “I decided to look at the computer Adam had sent over.”
“Did you remember anything?” Karli’s hopeful gaze made Lorelei snort.
“I wish, but no. It’s like drinking from a fire hose. There’s so much, and I can’t understand even half of it. I feel even more confused than before.”
“Do you want to talk it out? I don’t know if that’s allowed.”
Lorelei shrugged. “I don’t know either. But it’s not like you’re going to help the other side.”
“Definitely not,” Karli said.
Lorelei locked the door, and they moved to the couch. Lorelei pulled the laptop closer. She angled it so Karli could read the file.
“What am I looking at?” Karli asked.
“That’s what I’m trying to figure out. I have case files with information that’s collected from anyone who’s working on the case, so it looks like those are shared files. But these are my personal files. Things that were buried, but still on the network. Probably so someone could get to them if anything happened to me. Thanks past me for being smart enough to think of that.”
Karli hugged Lorelei to her side and squeezed. It was comforting, but not the same as when Vinnie held her.
Lorelei focused on the feel of her cousin and closed her eyes. She wasn’t alone. She was safe. Karli was there. It was all good.
The thought gave her the courage to keep digging into the confusing information on the computer. “Thank you,” Lorelei said.
“You’re welcome,” Karli replied. “I know all of this is weird, and I know I keep saying that, but I am here for you. I’m really happy you called me to be here today.”
“I have no idea if you have a job or somewhere else you need to be. It’s… this is all just so odd for me. Like, I know there are things missing, obviously, but I also understand the world.”
Karli nodded. “You know how to walk and talk and function. You understand that people work and drive and do all these things. You just don’t remember anyone.”
“Yeah. I guess it’s good that I know some things, but it’s so strange to me the things I don’t remember.”
“Have you talked to your doctor about that?”
Lorelei shook her head. “I didn’t think about until today. When I’m reading all of this stuff and have no idea what it means.”
“Then let’s look at it. Maybe I can give you some insight since I know you. Or maybe Adam needs to look at it. He might know what all of this means and you don’t have to struggle with it.”
“Maybe. But…” Lorelei chewed her lip and struggled to find the words.
“But what?” Karli asked. Her tone was gentle but cautious.
“I think I hid all this. I don’t think anyone else knew all this information.”
Karli’s brows shot up. “Not even your partner?”
Lorelei shook her head slowly. “Why would it be in some kind of code if I shared it all with Adam?”
“Maybe the two of you created the code together?”
“Maybe,” Lorelei said, but she knew that wasn’t it. She had secrets. From her partner and now from herself. And figuring them out could mean the difference between saving a life and costing her one.
“Let’s look at it. What’s the first one?” Karli asked.
Lorelei pointed to the screen and the gibberish in the file.
“What the hell does that mean?” Karli blurted.
Lorelei snorted. “You said you wanted to help.”
Karli chuckled. “I didn’t know it was going to be that confusing.”
Lorelei smirked. It was not going to be an easy day.
Vinnie reached for his phone to call Lorelei and shoved it away as quickly as he retrieved it. He was not going to bug her.
“You doing okay?” Damien asked, leaning against the wall next to Vinnie’s locker.
They’d just come back from a raid. A stash house was the center of a stand-off and their team was called in to help after the target refused to negotiate.
The whole reason Vinnie’s presence was requested was to take part in an early morning briefing about a high-profile visitor coming to the city and the need for extra security. Vinnie and the rest of his team were asked to be in charge of the operation, which meant they all had to be there.
After the meeting, there was a training session. Training was interrupted by the raid.
Now they were back, and Vinnie was itching to get the hell out of there.
“Do you need me here the rest of the day?” Vinnie asked his boss.
Damien sighed heavily. “What are you doing with this agent?”
“What does that mean?”
“It means she has her own team that can stay with her until her head is healed and she can be on her own. Why does it have to be you?”
“We talked about this last week. I thought you were okay with it.”
“I… I’m just looking for a timeline here.”
“Captain Patrick was going to assign someone to the team while I’m out.”
“He did. And it’s great to have a body, but that’s not the body I need. When we’re training and we’re preparing for ops, we need you here. Even when shit happens and we have to go, a new guy isn’t the same as someone who’s been a part of this team for a decade.”
“You’re making me feel old.”
Damien shook his head. “You and I both know this team is special. It’s different. You don’t get here just by being a good cop. And you don’t stay here by being a good cop. SWAT isn’t like everything else. We have to trust each other in ways no other group has to.”
Vinnie sighed, nodding. “I know. And I am coming back.”
“When?”
Vinnie scrubbed a hand down his face, thinking about Lorelei’s recovery. In a few days, she’d be cleared to be alone for periods of time. In just one day, her no strenuous activity requirement would be lifted, which Vinnie could not think about in front of his boss.
Karli was willing to help, but it wasn’t so easy with Lorelei on crutches.
“Give me the rest of this week. I’ll be back next week for the high-profile op and have a plan for going forward when I come back.”
Damien considered Vinnie’s offer. It was clear he didn’t love the idea of letting Vinnie miss out on more shifts, but it was better than Vinnie not being around at all.
Vinnie waited, knowing if he added something, it would only be to cave and do whatever his boss wanted him to do. When Vinnie tried out for SWAT, he knew his numbers weren’t the highest of everyone who tested. Marcus encouraged Vinnie to do it, and with Marcus’s support, Vinnie fought like hell and made it through.
But finding his spot on the team was different. Just because he was in didn’t mean he was going to stay there. Being a part of a team was harder than having a partner. Being part of the team meant navigating the emotions and opinions of everyone.
Damien was the one who made that possible. He gave Vinnie a place where he could thrive, a spot on a team that was more interested in who he was and his moral compass than where he came from. Their team was a blend of legacy cops, women who worked harder than everyone else, and men who had instincts that saved all their lives more than once.
Damien was a fair leader, and he was a good man. Vinnie didn’t want to lose his spot on the team, and he didn’t want to lose Damien’s respect.
But he also didn’t want to lose Lorelei.
“Okay. But you have to finish the shift today,” Damien said.
Vinnie nodded. “Deal.”
“Now, tell me about this agent. She seemed like a fierce one. Was that the real her?”
Vinnie shook his head. “She’s complicated. And it’s harder since her memory is shot. I think she’s unsure of who she is. But she’s still the strongest woman I’ve ever met.”
Damien snorted. “Don’t let Molly and Hannah hear you say that.”
“Say what?” Hannah asked, coming around the end of the lockers. Her shaved head and brilliant blue eyes gave her a sharp edge and a kickass look that had men and women either trying to get her number or steering far from her.
“Vinnie says that agent he’s spending time with is the toughest woman he’s ever met.”
Hannah nodded, bobbing her from head side to side. “I don’t know that I can argue that one. She was pretty damn badass when we were on that Davis Developments call. I’ve never seen someone take charge of a situation like she did, and get everyone out alive. That woman and her daughter were lucky to have someone like Agent Sloane there.”
“I don’t disagree, but you and Molly could give her a run for her money,” Damien said.
“Give who a run for her money?” Molly asked, showing up behind Hannah. Molly was tall and strong and surprised the shit out of most people when they learned who she was. She had a kind face and a soft demeanor that caught most criminals off-guard when she turned around and slapped cuffs on them. Or knocked them out with one hit.
“Agent Sloane,” Hannah said.
“Vinnie’s girlfriend?” Molly teased.
Damien turned to Vinnie with brows high. “Girlfriend?”
“No, it’s not entirely like that,” Vinnie defended.
“Not entirely? That means it’s partly like that. Come on, spill,” Hannah said.
“I don’t kiss and tell,” Vinnie argued.
“Oh shit, he’s making out with the agent. Hey, boss, why didn’t we get to go find her?” Hannah asked.
“He didn’t get to go either,” Damien said. “He just left.”
“Well, it’s a good thing he did, or she’d be dead, and we’d all still be wondering what the hell is going on,” Molly said.
“Without her memory, we’re still wondering,” Damien countered.
“Yeah, but a woman like her isn’t giving up until she finds the answers. We’ll know who’s behind all of this before we know it,” Hannah argued.
“I hope so,” Damien said. “We need our whole team back.”
“Well, we’re here today. Let’s grab lunch and Vinnie can share all the dirt.” Molly looped her arm through Vinnie’s and tugged him from the locker room. When they were in the hallway, she whispered, “I have a ton of respect for Agent Sloane, and I’m really happy you didn’t get in trouble for saving her.”
“Thanks, Mol.”
She winked. “Don’t expect me to take it easy on you later in the ring, though.”
Vinnie chuckled. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”
“We need to get out of here,” Karli declared after four hours of staring at the computer screen.
They were no closer to finding answers than when they started that morning. But Lorelei was definitely more frustrated. “Where do you want to go?”
“Lunch. I need food. I’m starving.” Karli put the laptop on the coffee table and stood. “Have you been outside since you got here?”
Lorelei shook her head. “The stairs aren’t easy on crutches. Vinnie’s been ordering groceries so we can just stay in.”
Karli looked around the apartment as if just remembering Vinnie lived there. Her eyes narrowed, seeing things Lorelei hoped would have gone unnoticed.
Like there being only one bedroom.
“Where are you sleeping?”
“In the bedroom,” Lorelei admitted.
Karli looked around again. “And where is Vinnie sleeping?”
“In the bedroom.”
“Does he have bunk beds?”
Lorelei snorted.
“Okay, we’re going to lunch. You need to tell me all about shacking up with the sexy SWAT guy.”
“Oh, please, you told me about you and Cade and how he protected you and it became more.”
“Exactly. I need to know if Vinnie is just some guy or if he’s going to be around for a while.”
“What if I don’t know the answer to that question?”
Karli grinned. “All the more reason to get out of here. Clear your head. Get some food. Indian?”
“Do I like Indian food?”
Karli nodded. “Yep. Let’s go.”
It wasn’t as easy for Lorelei, but she got herself up and out the door. She used the keys Vinnie left for her to lock the apartment and made sure to note where things were so she could check when they came back.
The stairs were a slow process, but Karli was patient with Lorelei’s speed. When they made it downstairs, Karli led the way to her vehicle and opened the door for Lorelei to get in the front.
“I’m not sure I’ll fit,” Lorelei said.
Karli shook her head. “Try. If not, you can go to the back and I can chauffeur you around.”
Lorelei laughed and positioned herself to sit in the front. She got to the seat easily enough, but getting her casted ankle in was a little tricky. But it worked, and Karli laid the crutches across the backseat before getting in behind the wheel.
Karli was quiet on the drive to lunch, something Lorelei was learning meant her cousin was trying to find words for whatever she was thinking.
“Just say it,” Lorelei said when Karli parked in front of a small restaurant.
Karli chuckled. “I hate that you can still read me. You don’t remember me, but you can read my thoughts.”
“I don’t want to have to. Just tell me what’s going on. What do you want to say?”
“I planned to talk you into moving in with me and Cade, but now I’m not so sure I should do that.”
“Why? What changed your mind?”
“I think your connection to Vinnie is stronger than I realized. I think you’re falling for him.”
Lorelei shook her head. “I barely know him. Hell, I don’t know anyone. How could I be falling for him?”
Karli opened her mouth to argue, but Lorelei held up a hand.
“Let’s go eat. I need food, and so do you. I know you know me better than I know myself, but a few orgasms are not going to make me fall in love with a man I’ve known for two weeks.”
“A few orgasms?” Karli shouted. “Okay, we’re going in, and you’re going to tell me exactly what’s been going on with you and Vinnie.”
“Crap.”
Karli snorted. “You’re the one who said it.”
Lorelei shook her head and waited for Karli to get the crutches out of the backseat. Lorelei opened the door to get some fresh air and was surprised when she heard her name.
“Lorelei? Lorelei Sloane?”
She was trapped. And cornered. And had no way of defending herself against the woman who was coming at her. The woman who was reaching into her bag.
Was this it? Was this the end?
Was she going to kill Karli, too?