Page 6 of No Reason to Trust

“Not a big fan of phone calls” she finally said. “I like to look someone in the eye when we’re talking.”

“Easy enough with Zoom,” Jake said easily.

An uncomfortably long silence sizzled over the line. Finally Olivia said, “Tomorrow at seven works for me. I’ll see you at The Trailhead.”

The call ended with a loud crunch, as if she’d just slammed her phone onto a hard surface.

“Pretty ballsy move, Dunbar,” Noah said, elbowing him in the side. “You really think she’s gonna make a Zoom call to you?”

“She said she’d be here tomorrow.,” Jake said. “If she doesn’t show? I doubt she’d Zoom with me. But if she does bug out, I’ll know there’s nothing there.”

He frowned. “Although I always thought Williams was a straight shooter. Said what she thought and didn’t make wild accusations against other agents.” He shrugged. “Guess I’ll find out tomorrow what kind of shit is stuck in her head.”

Noah smoothed his hand over his face to hide his grin. “Wouldn’t recommend saying that to Livvy,” he said. “She’s got a temper and she knows how to chew people a new one. Maybe let her talk first. See where she’s coming from.”

“Since I have no idea what she’s talking about, you’re damn straight I’ll let her say her piece before I respond.”

One side of Noah’s mouth quirked up. “I know Olivia. It should be a great show tomorrow night. You think she’d be offended if I brought popcorn?”

Jake shook his head. “Don’t poke the bear, Noah. I kind of like my head right where it’s at.”

Chapter 3

The following night, Jake was talking to Nick about his testimony and telling him, in broad, general terms, how the FBI was going to handle the case against his father. Jake assured Nick that his father wouldn’t get out of the Henderson County Correctional Facility before his trial, and that any phone calls or visitors he had would be monitored.

But when the bar went silent, Jake turned in the booth. Olivia Williams had just walked in. Nick tapped the table to get Jake’s attention and said, “I’ll send Olivia over here.” He slid out of the booth, but Olivia reached the table before he could intercept her. “Booth’s all yours,” Nick said. “I’m heading into the kitchen to talk to my fiancée.” Nick nodded at Jake and Olivia, then pushed through the swinging doors into the kitchen.

Olivia scowled at Jake, then stared at the booth, as if she was afraid it would bite her. Jake took another drink of his beer as he watched her, then set it on the table. Everyone at the bar swiveled on their chairs and watched Olivia walk across the bar toward Jake. Noah leaned across the bar and murmured something, and everyone turned to face the bar again. No doubt every single one of them would be straining to hear whatever he and Olivia had to say.

Jake watched Olivia slide onto the seat across from him. She folded her hands on the table and stared at Jake, and he saw nothing but anger in her eyes.

“You want a beer?” he asked her.

“Thanks, Dunbar, but I can buy my own beer,” she said, her mouth curling into a sneer. “I don’t need anything from you.”

Jake shrugged. “Suit yourself.” He curled his fingers around his own glass of beer, irritated that he’d let Williams’ snarky rudeness rattle him. Shifting on the bench seat, he said, “Helps to have something to hold onto. Unless you use it as a weapon. Which I wouldn’t recommend. Hiram has standards. He gets real angry if someone throws a beer. They’re banned for life.”

“Thanks for the tip, Dunbar.” Olivia snorted. “I don’t need to throw glasses in a bar to make my point. But I’d be willing to make an exception for you.”

Just then, a waitress came over. “Can I get you something, ma’am?”

“I’d like a Guinness, please,” Olivia said.

“Coming right up,” the young woman said with a smile.

Jake leaned back in the booth. “You wanna tell me what got your knickers in a knot? Or do you want to wait for your beer?”

“I’ll wait. It’ll be good to have something to hold onto. Or to throw at you. Depending on how the conversation goes.”

Jake took a drink of his beer. The silence was heavy as he waited for the waitress to set Olivia’s glass of dark beer on the table. “But you might want to keep in mind this little tip. This is the best bar in Helena. If you lose your temper and throw that at me, you’ll have to find another bar. And since everyone at Blackhawk Security drinks here, you’ll be drinking alone.”

“Not planning on throwing anything,” Olivia said. But her fingers whitened on the glass, making Jake wonder if she was thinking about it.

“Good to hear.” Jake set his beer on the table and folded his arms across his chest. “So, okay, tell me what you think I did to piss you off so much.”

“There wasn’t any ‘thinking’ about it,” she said, slashing air quotes a little too close to his face. “It’s what Iknowyou did.”

“Spill it,” Jake said. His hands curled into fists on his lap.

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