“Easy peasy.” As if ticking off the high points, Madison said, “She’s registered at the gym. She likely gave her cell number there. It’d be a piece of cake to access that data—”
Growling low, Reyes said, “Fine.” He knew his sister didn’t make idle threats. She might be beautiful, with a deceptively delicate quality about her, but like the rest of the family, she had mad skills, plus a backbone of steel and the determination of an ox.
Lowering the phone, he said to Kennedy, “My sister wants to talk to you.”
Without a word, her expression enigmatic, Kennedy held out her small hand.
Damn, these two could be difficult.
Well, they couldn’t have everything their way. As the driver of this rescue mission, he had some rights. Defiantly hitting the speaker button with his thumb, he handed it over to Kennedy.
Proving she knew how irked he was, Kennedy smiled and held the phone loosely against her knee. “Hello?”
“First,” Madison said. “You’re okay?”
“Yes, I think so. Still shaking horribly, but I guess that’s to be expected.”
“Of course. Your voice sounds strong, though. A good thing, especially when forced into my brother’s company.” Sotto voce, Madison added, “He’s an adorable pain in the ass.”
“I’ve noticed.”
Reyes felt his eyebrows climb. Kennedy considered him adorable? Screw that.
The pain-in-the-ass part he couldn’t really deny.
Her tone brisk, Madison said, “I take it you’ve been through things like this before?”
“Unfortunately—but I’m not going into that right now.”
Madison had just learned something he didn’t know. “What and when?” he demanded, and was thoroughly ignored.
“Understandable,” Madison said. “Though eventually I’ll know it all.”
Eyes narrowing, Kennedy asked, “What is it you do?”
“Reyes didn’t tell you? I’m the tech guru. When he or our brother need research, I pull it together.”
“Research for...?”
“I’m sure Reyes will explain in his own sweet time,” Madison said smoothly. “Now, short and succinct, tell me where you’ve been, if there were any mishaps or you noticed anything out of the ordinary.”
Without hesitation, Kennedy said, “I flew into Texas on Thursday morning early. I went first to the prearranged hotel so I could unpack, get food, rest a few minutes. A couple of hours later I was picked up by a hired driver.”
Madison jumped in. “Anything off about the driver?”
“No. He took me straight to the meeting place. I caught a cab back to the hotel later.”
“He didn’t talk to you? Didn’t watch you unduly?”
“Not that I noticed,” Kennedy said. “I was busy going over my notes. For me, each talk is slightly different depending on where I give it, if it’s for high school or college age audiences. I speak on human trafficking, and each location has its own unique cautions.”
Madison never missed a beat. “You share what you’ve learned?”
“I try. The least I can do is tell young people what to look for, what to avoid. What to do if they’re taken.”
Reyes could practically see his sister sorting through that information, but Kennedy pushed past any further questions Madison might have asked.
“I had speaking engagements Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, then again on Sunday afternoon. I’d taken my luggage with me to the last location, a high school, so I could leave directly from there for the airport. Again, a hired driver picked me up.”
“Nothing unusual?” Madison asked again.
“No.”
“Do you remember the name of the company?”
Kennedy shared it without pause, proving she noted details. “It wasn’t until I got to the airport that everything went haywire. My flight was delayed by three hours so I went for a bite to eat. Right as I was finishing up, a kid accidentally dumped a cola on me. After I assured the frazzled parents that it was fine, I went to the restroom to change.”
Reyes gave a small smile. Of course Kennedy would reassure the parents. He hadn’t known her that long, and still he’d recognized right off that she had a big heart. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have set out to save Chimera. The alley cat hadn’t been cute, but she had been hungry, and Kennedy had immediately decided to care for her.
Yes, Kennedy could be prickly, but he figured that had something to do with her past, and her understandable wariness.
“The line was long,” Kennedy continued, “since a flight had just let out, so it took me forever to get into the restroom. I had to take wet paper towels into the stall with me, but it was impossible to wash properly. In fact, I’m still sticky.”
“You can shower at Reyes’s place.”
Kennedy flashed him a lingering look. “Yes, that would be nice.”
Real nice. Annnnd...now he had that image stuck in his brain. At the gym, he’d seen Kennedy working out in snug shorts and loose T-shirts, so he knew a little something about her body. She was short, toned, not overly endowed up top but she had a lush, well-rounded bottom that constantly snagged his attention.
Lately, too many of his fantasies centered on that perfect ass. Didn’t matter if he’d just indulged in a sexual marathon with another woman, before the night was over, his brain focused back on Kennedy.
“Anyway,” she said, unaware of his musings, “by the time I finished, I’d missed the next flight, too. At that point, I was ready to cry, I was so exhausted. Luckily, the flight attendants managed to get me on a connecting flight the next hour, but it turned into a long, frustrating night.”
“And then you got home to find your apartment building burned down.” Full of sympathy, Madison asked, “Anything sketchy about the Uber driver?”
“No. Poor guy was scared to death. I felt bad for him.” Kennedy heaved a sigh. “I knew the minute I saw the commotion something was terribly wrong.”
“Something personal?” Madison asked.
“Yes.” Looking out the windshield, Kennedy hesitated. “I felt the danger. I knew someone was after me, and it made me ill to realize people could have died in that fire.” She swallowed heavily. “Because of me.”
“You’re too smart to blame yourself for that,” Madison assured her. “I agree it’s unnerving to realize someone is so determined. I’m glad you trusted your instincts.”