Page 31 of Shattering Dawn
She glared. “I’m serious.”
“Relax.” Gideon set his duffel on the luggage stand and looked around. “This room has probably been rented out hundreds of times since the person who lost that key was here.”
She sighed. “I’m overreacting, aren’t I?”
“Yes, but you’re entitled.”
“Thanks. Okay, we’ve got access to room ten. Now what?”
“The next step is to check the motel files to see if I can get a name and an address of the individual who stayed in this room around the time you were kidnapped.”
She chilled. “You’re talking about breaking into the manager’s office, aren’t you?”
“Don’t worry, I’m good at that kind of thing.”
She straightened away from the doorframe and swept out her hands. “What if you get arrested?”
“That won’t happen.” He glanced at his watch. “It’s after five. I can’t do anything useful until later tonight. We’ve got time to kill.We might as well drive to that nearby resort the manager mentioned and have dinner.”
Dinner. Out.
Amelia glanced at the window. Twilight was rapidly descending. By the time they got to the restaurant it would be dark. Her night vision would be at full strength.
“Something wrong?” Gideon asked.
“No,” she said quickly. “I was thinking pizza. The manager said there is a place that delivers. Besides, I didn’t bring any clothes suitable for going out to dinner at a resort.”
“This is Southern California and we’re in the desert. What you have on is fine.”
She glanced down at her black jeans and long-sleeved black tee. “The thing is—”
“Are you afraid you’ll run into someone who remembers you from what happened seven months ago?”
“That’s unlikely,” she said, thinking about it. “The only people who might recognize me on sight are the medics at the local clinic who treated Pallas and Talia and me after we escaped, and Wilton, the police captain. But he retired months ago. Oh, the reporter who covered the story for the local paper would probably remember me. But Talia, Pallas, and I did not hang around. It was pretty clear everyone blamed us for the fire.”
“You said you’ve been back here several times.”
“Yes, but only long enough to walk through the ruins and take some photos. I’ve never stayed overnight. To be honest, I don’t trust anyone in Lucent Springs. I’ve always had the feeling that someone knows the truth about what happened out at the hotel. Whoever it is didn’t come forward afterward, so I assume they are part of the cover-up.”
“Or they were too frightened to talk to the authorities.”
“Or that,” she agreed.
Gideon looked at her. “All the more reason for us to go out to dinner and be seen. We want people to take an interest in us. We’re looking for the eyewitness who was at the hotel that night.”
He was right. Amelia steeled herself. She could do this. The night before last she had made it downstairs and out into the gardens of the apartment complex to take the photographs. True, she hadn’t slept well for the rest of the night, but she had made it through until morning without succumbing to a panic attack. That was a positive sign. Dr. Pike would have been proud.
“Amelia?”
She realized Gideon was watching her a little too intently. She pulled herself together. Just a quick dash outside to the car, another short walk into the restaurant, and then back to the motel. She wouldn’t be alone. Gideon would be with her.
How bad could it be?
She smiled what she hoped was a confident smile. “Sounds like a plan.”
Chapter Fifteen
Irene Morgan wason her laptop checking email and doing a little shopping when she heard the muffled footsteps on the stairs. A thrill of sensual anticipation whispered through her, kicking up her pulse. Falcon was here.