He heaved a sigh. She could picture him rubbing a hand over his jaw the way he did when he was faced with a decision. She sent up a quick prayer he would see the logic in her request. She liked and respected her boss. He and his family were good people.
“I suppose what you do on your own time is none of my business.” He paused, then added, “Until it is.”
She smiled and leaned back against the hallway wall. “I have two weeks of vacation time accumulated.”
“Indeed. I’m giving you some leeway, Agent Bennett. As long as you are an agent of the FBI, you will act accordingly. Check in with the local police and keep me apprised of any and all developments at all times. That means you don’t act until you’ve talked to me. Follow, survey, observe. Gather information. Do I make myself clear?”
“Yes, sir. Thank you, sir.”
“I hope I won’t regret this, Agent Bennett.”
“You won’t, sir.”
“Don’t do anything stupid, Samantha. If you so much as get a whiff of danger, call for backup. Tonight could have gone horribly wrong.”
Her insides twisted with the truth of his words. “Yes, sir.”
After hanging up, Sami found the restroom, where she rinsed her face with cold water. The white tiled sink and chrome faucet gleamed in the overhead fluorescent lights. A large rectangular mirror covered the wall behind the sink and her reflection stared back at her.
Tonight could have gone horribly wrong.
The words rang through her head. If Drew hadn’t stopped her from entering that motel room, what would have happened?
But he had and now she was in the Canadian Consulate General’s headquarters. A place she’d never imagined she’d end up tonight. But then again, she hadn’t known what to expect. Certainly not being detained by a handsome Canuck with control issues.
Her hands shook. A normal response given the adrenaline letdown. She needed to pull herself together.
But the frustration from not catching Birdman tightened her shoulder muscles. She should have been used to disappointment by now, but pessimism wasn’t normally her bag. Lisa would say Sami was a discouraged optimist. An oxymoron for sure.
A knock on the door startled her. Her hand went to her holstered gun. “Yes?”
“I’m finished with my report. Are you ready?” Drew’s muffled voice eased the spike of anxiety.
“Be right out,” she called.
She removed her stocking cap and let her hair fall to her shoulders. She finger combed the long strands as best she could then tied them back with a scrunchie she’d found in a pocket. She pinched her cheeks to give her face some color, but the dark circles of fatigue rimming her eyes were a lost cause. What did it matter, anyway? She wasn’t trying to impress Drew.
She stuffed the cap into her pocket before opening the door. Drew stood with one shoulder propped against the wall, his tall, lean frame relaxed. Handsome. The thought invaded her mind. The man was definitely good-looking, even with the signs of fatigue around his eyes and the day’s growth of beard shadowing his strong jawline.
He’d changed into navy khakis and a collared shirt beneath a jacket with the letters RCMP on the breast pocket, and on the back, as she’d seen earlier. Like hers. Only she had no jurisdiction here.
Despite her badge, at the moment she wasn’t acting as an agent of the United States but as a woman obsessed with finding a killer who’d murdered her best friend.
Drew pushed away from the wall. “Where are you staying?”
She gave him the name of a popular hotel chain in downtown Vancouver, then followed him to his vehicle where she settled into the passenger seat and let her curiosity about the man driving prompt her to ask, “How long have you been with the RCMP?”
“I was born into it,” he said with a grin.
She made a face. “What?”
“My dad’s a retired Mountie. For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted to follow in his footsteps.”
She wondered what Drew had been like as a kid. A strange tenderness filled her as she imagined a dark-haired boy hero-worshipping his father.
For the next ten minutes they chatted, keeping the conversation light and discovering similar tastes in movies and book genres. Drew followed the National Hockey League, while she could recite pro-football stats. She found him to be engaging and easy to be with. Strange considering their meeting. She’d have guessed they wouldn’t find so much to talk about. But when it came right down to it, they were more alike than was comfortable but for some reason she didn’t mind.
Drew pulled up in front of her hotel. Sami opened her door, grateful that for a few minutes she’d let herself be normal and been able to push thoughts of Birdman to the back burner. She had this man to thank. He’d made it easy to take a moment to breathe before she rushed back into her investigation. “Thank you for...well, everything.”
“My pleasure, Sami.”
When Drew turned off the engine, tension rushed into tight a knot in her tummy. It was one thing to let down her guard for the drive over but another completely for him to come to her hotel room door. “You don’t have to walk me up.”
“I don’t have to but it’s the polite thing to do.” He climbed from the vehicle before she could protest further.
Nerves on the edge of snapping, she decided not to fight him on this. She wanted to hang on to the last remnants of peace in the hope she might sleep tonight. She’d heard Canadians were super polite and friendly. He was living up to the reputation.
The doorman opened the glass door to allow them entrance. Sami smiled her thanks. Soft classical music played in the lobby. The polished marble floors gleamed and teakwood accents added texture, while plush, comfortable seating arrangements invited private conversations.
After nodding a greeting to the concierge, they took the elevator to the second floor. She slid her electronic key in the lock, waited for the green light, then pushed open the door. Darkness lay within.
Confusion made her hesitate. The overspill of the hallway light reached a few feet in front of her. She frowned and hovered on the threshold.
Drew stepped close, so close she could feel the heat from his body battling the sudden chill chasing down her spine. “Something wrong?”
“I left a light on when I headed out.”
“Most likely the maid turned it off after cleaning your room.”
Though that sounded plausible, the need for caution didn’t ease. She stepped inside the room and groped the wall for the light switch. When she flipped it, nothing happened. Her stomach knotted. She withdrew her sidearm.
Drew’s hand on her shoulder gently nudged her aside so he could step past her and move farther into the darkened room. Normally, she’d balk if a man took the lead away from her. She wouldn’t let anyone view her as less because she was a woman. But since she had no jurisdiction here and, frankly, was a little freaked out, she allowed him to enter first.
The curtains were drawn; however, a little light from the parking lot outside slipped through the edges, enough to cast gray shadows. Sami’s breathing slowed as she strained to listen. Was someone in the room?
She followed Drew deeper into the gloom. Heard him try the table lamp. But the room remained dark.
When she felt the air move, she whipped toward her left. A hissing sound filled her head and something hit her in the face, stinging her eyes, her nose, her mouth.
Pepper spray!
She gagged and spit. Fear fisted in her chest.
Drew’s