Page 48 of Shadow Redemption
“Oh, she is. She’s easy for the photographer to work with, not the other models. When she’s on site, things happen.”
“What kind of things?”
“Wardrobe mishaps. Clothes go missing. Makeup is misplaced. Accidents involving other models.”
Ben scowled. “She’s hurt you on the job?”
“Not me, but some of the other models.” She didn’t admit that Lindsey had tried several times to cause Ruth harm and failed. Anger already simmered in his gaze without her adding fuel to the fire.
“Would she hurt you given the chance?”
She hesitated. Man, she didn’t want to lie to him. That wasn’t the way to build a relationship.
“Ruth?”
Dancing around the fact wouldn’t help and might hinder their investigation. “Lindsey has already tried and failed. I’m sure this job won’t be any different.”
“Are you kidding me?” Ben’s voice rose, anger sharpening his tone. The rest of his teammates paused in their work to look at them. Trace scowled. Ben ignored them all, his focus on Ruth. He did, however, drop his voice. “Why didn’t you tell me this was going on?”
“You don’t tell me when a terrorist mistreats you.”
“That’s different. My job is dangerous. I do my best to dodge bullets, knives, and fists, but it’s inevitable that I’ll return home with an injury or two on occasion. You, on the other hand, should never have to actively avoid being injured on the job.”
“What about when another operative tries to push you around?” she asked although she couldn’t imagine a colleague trying such a thing with Ben.
“No one has been stupid enough to try. Again, why didn’t you tell me this was going on?”
Ruth understood the reluctance of other operatives to engage Ben in a dominance battle. Hands down, he’d win every challenge. He’d never stop fighting until he came out on top. “My job is standing in front of a camera. I don’t dodge bullets for a living. I’m not going to whine to you about another model pulling a few dirty tricks while we’re on a photoshoot. Besides, you’ve been gone more than you’ve been home since I met you.”
“That won’t change any time soon. I’m a long way from retiring.”
Unlike her. Ruth understood his concern. She knew what she was getting with Ben. How could she complain about his absences when her work schedule had only allowed her to be home for two or three days a month for the past 10 years?
“Communication between us has to be open and honest. Otherwise, we aren’t going to make it.” He leaned closer. “This is my life, Ruth. If you can’t accept this part of me, walk away now before we get in too deep and end up hurting each other.”
She was already past that point. “I’m not asking you to change your job for me. It’s part of who you are.” Time to chance the subject. This was too personal to discuss in a plane full of people more interested in them than their work. She motioned toward the laptop. “We’d better get busy.”
“We will finish this discussion later.”
Ben booted up his laptop and soon they were deep into Lindsey’s life. On the surface, she appeared to be an ambitious model, climbing the ranks in the modeling world. She’d managed to snag a few prime assignments over the past year. The look of an innocent girl next door had garnered Lindsey the type of modeling jobs that Ruth had used as building blocks for her own career. Unless something happened to stop her rise to the top, Lindsey Collette was on her way to the top of the industry in a couple years. Maybe sooner if Ruth stepped away from the camera permanently.
She glanced at Ben. What would he think of her decision to change her life? Knowing how security conscious he was, she suspected the operative would be more than happy to have her remain in the US and out of the public eye.
“Did you see this?” Ben pointed toward the screen.
Ruth scanned the article, frowning. “Is this from a magazine?”
“Hometown newspaper.”
“Her best friend died under suspicious circumstances during their senior year.” She looked at the operative. “Do you think Lindsey was responsible for her friend’s death?”
“Can’t tell from this. It’s an interesting coincidence.”
“And you don’t believe in coincidences, do you?” Trace and Bridget had mentioned something similar several times over the past few months in relation to their work.
He shook his head. Another click of the mouse brought up another article, this one from a gossip magazine. “Check this out.”
Again, she read the article he’d indicated, growing more troubled the further she read. “Another accident with a model this time.” The accident had occurred at the beginning of Lindsey’s career. The model tripped and fell into a glass table, shattering the glass. The result was multiple cuts to the model’s face, some very deep. The other woman recovered but never modeled again. According to the writer, the other woman refused to point a finger at anyone for her accident.