Stalked by Allison Brennan Page A

truly be free of her past.
    That Weber had been murdered left Lucy feeling guilty, with relief that was short-lived. Rosemary Weber wasn’t the only true crime writer out there. What if she had a partner? What if her notes were passed on to another writer?
    There was nothing Lucy could do to change what might happen, and that, coupled with the watchful eyes of Rich Laughlin, had combined to throw Lucy off her game today.
    She couldn’t let it happen again.
    Her 32 on the range was her own damn fault, not Laughlin’s or Kate’s or Rosemary Weber’s. Lucy had allowed Laughlin to get into her head. Ninety-three was her best, but she would work her ass off to get a perfect score. She’d match the soldiers in her class as if she’d been trained in the military herself. When the real test came up, she was going to ace it, because she knew she could do it. She had to.
    If she allowed stress to affect her shooting or her ability to handle physical challenges like the pull-ups, she didn’t deserve to be an agent.
    After twenty laps of regular strokes, she flipped and did ten laps of backstrokes. Her muscles burned and she realized she’d slacked off on her swimming regimen. She used to be able to do the backstroke with ease, but it used different muscles, muscles she hadn’t used in a long while. She finished her workout with two easy laps and climbed out of the pool. Her heart raced; she felt invigorated and alive.
    That’s when Lucy felt Harden looking at her.
    â€œWhat?” she asked.
    â€œYou’re good.”
    â€œI know,” she said, then added modestly, “I was on the swim team in college.”
    He nodded. “Could have gone to the Olympics, had you wanted.”
    â€œIf you knew, why’d you ask?”
    â€œWhy didn’t you?”
    She shrugged. “Not sure I would have made it. I never tried to qualify.”
    â€œYou don’t seem like a quitter to me.”
    She didn’t like that he was trying to analyze her or her motivations.
    She grabbed her towel and dried off. “Can I speak freely, sir?”
    He nodded.
    â€œThe pull-ups yesterday were unfair and unwarranted. Were they a test? To see how I handle stress?” Maybe that was Laughlin’s game as well—to see how she handled the pressure. But then what were he and Kate arguing about?
    Harden shrugged, looked like he was going to walk out without saying anything, then changed his mind. “You’re smart enough to get through these nineteen weeks. You’re physically fit, and I have no doubt you’ll pass the PT test with one of the top scores. But the Academy is not just about written or physical tests. Neither is this chosen career. Don’t ever forget it.”
    That was a long-winded yes.
    â€œThank you, sir.”
    He smiled, the first genuine smile she’d seen from Harden since she’d been here. “If you need a partner to swim in the future, let me know. It’s obviously good for you.”
    *   *   *
    After her shower, she found a message on her cell phone from Tony Presidio.
    â€œLucy, call me. It’s important.”
    He’d left the message nearly an hour ago, at three thirty. She quickly dressed and called him back.
    â€œI just got your message.”
    â€œHave you read the file I gave you?”
    â€œMost of it. Is something wrong?”
    â€œI need to see my notes. Something’s nagging me and I can’t remember what. I’m flying back tonight instead of tomorrow morning. I’ll be at Quantico about nine thirty. I’ll call you when I get there.”
    â€œDid you learn something about Rosemary Weber?”
    â€œAll her research and notes from the Rachel McMahon investigation are gone. She’d archived them at the Columbia University library, but the file box has disappeared. They believe it was just misplaced, but I’m certain it was