Page 21 of Longing for Sin

"I guess when you put it like that," Chet said with a laugh. "No offense. I had an uncle who lost his eye in a hunting accident. All he ever wanted to do was work for law enforcement, but they wouldn't even consider him."

"You were right the first time." Bit was practically beaming, as if it was the first time he was able to explain his job to someone else. Brook understood that he was proud of his new position, but it was clear that she needed to have a heart-to-heart with the team regarding what they shared with the public. "We are private—"

"We are a private consulting firm," Brook interrupted with ease. "Our clients' privacy is of the utmost importance, as I'm sure you understand. The financial industry is prone to many susceptible computer viruses, along with nefarious groups of people. The same can be said for our profession, which is the reason for the security system upgrade."

"You're Brooklyn Walsh."

Chet glanced back at his colleague in surprise, but it didn't take the younger man long to come to the same conclusion.

"No fucking way," Chet whispered in fascination.

"It's Brook Sloane, actually," Sylvie replied as her need to protect those around her got the best of her. "And you shouldn't—"

"Sylvie, it's okay." Brook focused on Kyle, though she addressed both men. "As I'm sure you can imagine, my day has been a bit hectic. Let me address the questions that are no doubt on your minds. No, I don't know the location of my brother. No, I won't answer any inquiries regarding my childhood. And last but not least, I hope that the FBI can apprehend Jacob Walsh and bring closure for his victims."

"Wait, wait, wait," Bit rushed to say before Brook had a chance to leave behind such an awkward encounter. She'd almost made a fool of herself by reaching for the handle of the entrance, completely overlooking the reason they had all been out in the main area to begin with. She mentally thanked Bit as he continued to do the job that she'd hired him to do at S&E Investigations. "Would the two of you be test subjects?"

"For what?" Chet inquired cautiously and not even remotely as friendly as before.

Kyle Paulson's demeanor hadn't really changed, though. His was more channeling a vague interest.

"Our security system." Bit eagerly led Chet over to the biometric scanner as if it was an everyday request. "Just look directly at the square display. That's right. Just like that."

The system beeped twice, but the locks on the door didn't budge.

"Couldn't whoever wanted inside just break the glass?" Chet asked, still seemingly uncomfortable being around a relative of a serial killer. Brook couldn't blame him, because had their roles been reversed, she might have reacted in the same manner. "I mean, it's glass. That's probably not the best kind of entrance to have for your office."

"Chet, it's not glass," Kyle replied, finally diverting his attention from Brook to his colleague. "We should let Ms. Sloane and her associates get back to work."

Sylvie took a few steps to the elevator panel, pressing the down arrow firmly in agreement. Theo had purposefully inquired about the security system to keep Bit discussing the safety of the biometric scanner to fill any awkward silence. It wasn't long before Sylvie, Kyle, and Chet were out of sight in the elevator that would take them down to the lobby.

"Are you okay?" Bit asked once the elevator doors closed. He was displaying a completely other side to him, which only proved that he hadn't been as clueless as he'd let Kyle and Chet believe a few moments ago. "Don't worry about them. Theo, did you park in the attached garage? I bet we can avoid the media if Boss and I take that exit instead of walking out the front of the building. Maybe you can even give her a ride home."

"I'm not going home quite yet," Brook explained, remembering to utilize the biometric scanner to unlock the door. Theo grabbed the handle before she could, holding the door open for both her and Bit. "I am going to go downstairs to give the press a statement, and then I'm going to try and finish up the profile on our unsub. You two can head out."

Brook didn't need to have eyes in the back of her head to know that Theo and Bit were sharing expressions of concern with one another. She fought the urge to snap at them. They weren't to blame for her current predicament. That blame lay solely at Agent Houser's highly polished, cheap dress shoes.

"I'm not changing my daily routine due to the press coverage or the fact that Jacob could be blending in with the crowd instead of going back into hiding." Brook had paused before entering her office. She made a point to turn around to meet their gazes so that they understood her position. "Life goes on. Cases need to be solved. We need to do our jobs. Bit, do you trust your security system? You've been upgrading the software all day, so I'm going to assume that no one other than those with authorized access are gaining entrance into our offices. Am I right?"

"Of course," Bit responded a bit offensively. "With the type of superior hardware that the company used and my skills in coding, no one is getting through those doors without at least one of us escorting them through, Boss."

"Good work today," Brook commended, hoping that they understood she wasn't only talking about their responsibilities to the firm. She wasn't used to others having her back, and she thought they should know how much she appreciated their support. "I'll see you both in the morning."

Brook entered her office, noticing the files that Theo had wanted to show her were still on the coffee table. She picked them up and quietly offered them to him, having left the door open upon her entrance. He stared at her longer than necessary, but she made sure not to display anything other than a stoic expression. Her reaction was enough to have him joining Bit, both of them eventually heading to their respective offices to gather their belongings.

She settled back at her desk, waiting patiently for them to leave. Speaking to the press was something that she needed to do herself. It wouldn't be prudent to flaunt them in front of the camera. Should Jacob still be somewhere nearby, there was no need to draw attention to the fact that she had suddenly found herself as part of a team...one that was accustomed to looking out for one another.

Brook had come to the conclusion that there was nothing she could do or say to get Theo, Sylvie, and Bit to look at her differently, though she could keep them at arm's lengths when it came to their personal time. Granted, such a distance hadn't meant a thing to Jacob when it had come to Mrs. Upton's death.

Whether it was Brook's picture being plastered across the national news in relation to a previous case that she'd handled when she'd been with the Bureau or something else entirely that had triggered Jacob to return after such a long absence, she honestly wasn't sure.

It didn't matter anymore.

Jacob had proved that he would take even the slightest of familiarity in her life and hack it to pieces so that there was nothing left to recognize. She had to give him something bigger to focus on in the interim to draw him out of hiding.

More specifically—someone.

Her.