Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
Aven
When the girl couldn’t get Jim to give up her secret admirer’s identity, she turned to me.
She’s begged and pleaded all morning, but I’ll be damned if she ever learns I was the one in that ridiculous suit.
Then she had the nerve to personally request another visit with him to make up for what went down. Yeah. I think not.
Jim suggested I take her into the park to enjoy some of the activities and get her mind off the stranger.
He wants her to continue participating in the retreat as if she’s one of us, and he seems completely unconcerned with the attempt on her life.
And whether or not he wants to admit it, what happened last night was definitely a shot taken.
We conferred with Chef Maurice and learned his scampi has never contained turmeric, which means someone else put it in her dish.
What I didn’t discuss with Jim was the odd comment Quinn made about her father.
It’s still eating away at me, even as she and I walk the garden trail that leads us toward the amusement park.
She couldn’t have inherited an allergy from her father, because Daddy Carter has no known allergies.
It’s in his profile, which I’ve read from front to back.
The FBI knows everything about him, aside from his current location and appearance.
The man is a chameleon of sorts, and his last confirmed sighting was over twenty years ago.
But the point still stands. That would have been in his file.
I’ve wanted to ask Quinn more about it, but an opportunity hasn’t presented itself. For now, I plan to keep my ears open for anything else that raises the hairs on the back of my neck.
As we draw nearer to the amusement park’s front gates, I spot Bennett, Cat, and Eve standing by the turnstiles and chatting. I’d hoped to avoid the others and keep Quinn sequestered from their nonsense, but it appears it can’t be helped. Especially not when the girls spot us and come rushing over.
“Are you two here for the coaster demonstration or the popcorn-eating contest?” Cat asks when we meet them.
“Which were you guys attending first?” I ask.
A wide smirk slides onto Bennett’s face. “The coaster demonstration, naturally. But I suppose you and your friend are headed off to the popcorn stand, huh?”
Quinn looks up at me. “Well, we hadn’t discussed what we planned to do first, but—”
“But we’re doing the popcorn-eating contest,” I interrupt. “Off we go. Don’t want to be late.”
“Aven, cut it out,” Quinn whispers. She snatches her arm from mine and returns to the other three. “I’d kind of like to see the coaster demonstration. Who doesn’t love thrill rides?” She grins at me over her shoulder.
The last thing I want to do is spend time in a fucking group setting. I have to find a way to get her to come with me.
“Wasn’t there someone you wanted to meet over by the popcorn stand?” I ask, hinting that I might actually reveal the identity of the green invader.
She tastes the bait and swallows the hook. “On second thought, popcorn does sound pretty good right about now. Maybe we could all meet up afterward?”
“Don’t bet on it,” Bennett mutters with a scoff.
“Of course we can.” Cat kicks Bennett in the shin with the toe of her sneaker. It isn’t a hard enough blow to hurt him, but it’s enough to shut him up. “What he said wasn’t directed at you. It’s just that . . . See, Aven . . .”
“She’s trying to find a nice way to say that I don’t play well with others,” I offer, “and she’s right. I don’t. I make no pretense otherwise.”
Quinn offers a snarky glare my way before turning on the charm for Cat. “Well, I’m sure I can convince him to join us after the popcorn thing. He doesn’t exactly have a choice. He’s required to follow me around like my cute little guard dog.” She reaches back to give my head a condescending pat.
I let it happen.
Why? I don’t fucking know, but when her hand comes back and pats my head, I’d wag my tail if I had one. This little crush is getting out of hand.
Eve looks at her watch, then glances at me before saying, “Let’s not leave it up to chance, honey. Let’s make a plan. The next round of events isn’t due to start until after lunch, so we’ll meet at the pool at one and do the next game together.”
“Okay, pal. We’ll see,” I say as I try to lead Quinn away.
“One o’clock,” Eve shouts behind us. “Don’t be late!”
Once we’re through the turnstile and into the park proper, Quinn folds her arms over her chest and looks increasingly nervous. Her green eyes dart around, and the clang of a bell nearly sends her out of her skin.
“It’s just the sound to let the bloke know he won a teddy.” I point toward the game booths, where a staffer hands a cheap red teddy bear to Ice Pick. I try to get us moving again before he notices us, but it’s too late. He comes rushing over with the bear tucked under his arm.
“Where are you two headed? The coaster or the popcorn?” he asks. “I’m headed to the popcorn event.”
I nod my head and look around, checking our surroundings for anyone who might be watching Quinn from the shadows. “Yeah. Should have figured you’d be headed that way too.”
“Here you go. I won this for you,” Ice Pick says.
I look down, thinking the squat bald man is speaking to me, but it’s Quinn’s hands that he shoves the teddy bear into. She smiles sweetly at Ice Pick and hugs the bear to her chest.
“He’s very cute. Just like you.” She gives Ice Pick’s nose a little boop with her finger, which is enough to turn his face the same shade of red as the bear.
It’s harmless flirting, but she’s very convincing. For Ice Pick’s sake, I hope he knows that this is just part of her job. Making men feel special is what pays her bills.
But then she loops her arm in his and motions for me to lead the way like I’m some sort of guide for them. “Take us to the popcorn, Aven,” she says with a flutter of her mascara-coated lashes.
I swallow the bit of jealousy roiling in my gut. This is fucking Ice Pick we’re talking about, not some sex symbol. She’s as likely to make out with him as she is to make out with a sewer grate. Not that I care either way.
“Oh, wow!” Quinn says behind me. “You’re so much stronger than you look.”
I glance back just in time to see Quinn squeezing Ice Pick’s doughy arm. Rolling my eyes, I face forward again. Nope, not bothered at all.
Ice Pick chuckles and says, “Thanks. I’ve been working out.”
Like hell he has. I wake up an hour before Quinn each day just so that I can get down to the hotel gym and keep my physique in check, and I haven’t seen his mustache on so much as a treadmill.
“After the popcorn-eating contest, we plan to meet up with some of the others at the pool. I hope you’ll join us,” Quinn titters in that sickeningly sweet voice. Great. Now she’s trying to make this a fucking party.
“That’s an invite I can’t refuse,” he says with a laugh.
Fabulous. Wonderful. I can’t fucking wait.
My fists clench at my sides as I pick up the pace. The food booth is just ahead, and I want to get this shit over with so that I can steer her back to the resort. Seeing her all over Ice Pick is just pissing me off for no good reason, and I can’t take much more of it.
“Aven, wait up!” Little footsteps pitter-patter behind me, growing closer once I finally stop walking. “What are you doing? Why are you being extra icy today?”
I search my brain for a reasonable excuse because the truth is too unreasonable. I cannae very well tell her I have a crush on her against my will and that seeing her paw at Ice Pick is crushing my soul.
“If you’re all over him, Desmond might lose interest,” I say without thinking.
Her slender shoulders nearly touch her ears as she shrugs.
“Let him. I think I’ve found a new hobby I’d like to explore, and his name is Ice Pack.
” She looks over her shoulder and gives Ice Pick a little wave as he continues plodding closer.
“My special green suitor will keep me safe. Hell, I might not even need you to protect me anymore.”
“Green . . . ?” My lips slam shut. “You think he was the man in your room last night?”
She giggles and tosses her honey-colored hair over her shoulder.
“Don’t try to play dumb now. He’s super shy, just like the guy from last night.
You also hinted that someone I wanted to meet would be at the popcorn event, and then you said you figured he’d be there. I just put two and two together.”
“This isn’t a math problem, lass, but if it were, you’ve properly bungled it.
” I point toward Ice Pick, who’s stopped walking to get something out of his shoe.
“That man is about two feet shorter than your bloke, and I dare say a good many brain cells fewer. Not to mention that spare tire around his middle.”
She swats my arm hard enough to leave a stinging pain behind. “Don’t body shame,” she whispers.
“It’s the facts, lass. You don’t know what he looks like. Hell, you cannae even say his blasted name.”
“Yes I can,” she says. “It’s Ice Pack.”
Now I nearly do laugh. “No, it’s not. Ach, you can’t even get this much right. It’s Ice Pick, lass. Pick . . . like the tool.”
The truth of my words hits home, and her shoulders sag. “What do I do now?”
“You start listening to me and stop listening to that warm spot between your legs. This isn’t one of your books. These are real killers, and you aren’t one of them.”
She sets her jaw. “I beg to differ. You saw what I did last night. I took a life and didn’t even bat an eyelash, and I’m more than ready to do it again.”
“I saw it, sweet thing.” Ice Pick finally reaches us and gives her bottom a smack. She jumps from the force. “You were beautiful. I watched you in the room with that green guy, too. Maybe Jim will give me my chance tonight.”
“Oh. Maybe.” Quinn smiles at him and tries to scoot a few inches to the left, but he scoots with her.
I could save her now. I could.
But I won’t.