Hard to Trust by Wendy Byrne Page B

she had no idea who was after her or why. "I'm not sure. Let's just say it's within the realm of possibilities."
    He ran his fingers through his long hair. "I don't get it. What are they after? And why do they think you can lead them to it? What did you hide in your computer they couldn't get at? It had to be important." He narrowed his eyes. "They were implying you stole something. And they had to have employed a sophisticated method to track you. Did you take something of theirs?"
    "Why do you think I stole something?"
    "That's the only thing that makes sense in their ability to pinpoint your location. Twice now."
    "Maybe it was you they were trailing. You're a liability."
    He held up his hands. "Why don't you trust me? Let's not forget I managed to get you out alive with some fancy skills, if I do say so myself. Besides, this is not my first rodeo. I'd know if I were being followed." He sucked in a breath. "Do you think they were watching your friend Nick's place? Is that where they picked up your trail?" He cleared his throat. "I guess the better question, is do you think they killed Nick?"
    "You know about Nick?"
    He nodded. "How do you think I spotted you in that cafe not a block away from his place?"
    "That was stupid, but I was so…unnerved. They sent me a message with Nick. I knew that." She took a breath and tunneled through thoughts of whether or not she should be forthcoming. "In training, Nick, Alex, and I talked about outliving our usefulness and how we would be eliminated. We joked that it would be a staged suicide attempt." She shook her head. "Not so funny, right?" Through an act of sheer will, she fought back the tears wanting to fall. This was not supposed to happen. "I wish I knew who they were and what they were after."
    "Yeah, I've got a little bit of bad news about the Nick situation."
    "He can't be deader, can he?"
    "No, but they have a photo of you from the security camera outside his apartment. Somebody remembers a strange woman walking inside, and your photo is splashed across this morning's paper. The police are looking for you in connection with Nick's murder."
    "Oh, great. The fun never stops when the CIA is involved."
"Except someone from the CIA hired me to keep you safe."
    "But they didn't give a name. Sounds fishy to me." Thinking of her current powerless position gave rise to a swell of depression. She touched his hand, and it didn't feel all that weird. Considering the guy saved her life, a little touchy-feely shouldn't be weird. "I need to go at this whole thing on my own. No sense putting you in jeopardy."
    "Too late for that. After the other night, I'm pretty sure I'll be on their radar within a day or two. Before you know it, they'll know everything, including my shoe size." He sat down next to her on the bed. "Considering I risked my life for you yesterday, can you throw me a bone, and tell me what all this is about?"
    "All I know is I came back from Afghanistan and walked into the mess of being followed, then people trying to kill me, and you hired to keep me safe. None of it makes sense."
    "Is Afghanistan where you got the bullet in your shoulder?"
    She nodded. "Yep. They left part of the bullet inside—something about deep into the tendons or something. Wasn't supposed to bother me much, but most times it hurts like hell." Admitting she was a bit of a wimp at times felt good. Keeping up the tough-chick persona was wearing thin, especially after the last few days.
    "I say the CIA wants to help you. You say they want to kill you. How do we figure out which is right?"
    "I have no idea. That's the hard part of this whole thing."
    "I've got a simpler question. Did they take your C-4?"
    She nodded. "Yep, I checked the bag. And I feel positively naked without it. Which reminds me, I've got some stuff I need to get at. Where did you stash my bag?"
    "I'll tell you if you let me help you." He gave her a goofy smile. "I've got mad skills."
    "I'm sure you do, but I don't want to get you any