Page 53 of Lethal Deceit

As we arranged, Luke calls back with “Carl Adino.”

I drag the key out of my pocket, slide it into the lock, and open the door.

Luke steps inside without a word.

He’s all sharp angles and unreadable shadows—lightweight linen and sunglasses meant to blend in, and the kind of stillness that says he could vanish or strike with equal precision.

A single head bob acknowledges me, but his attention’s already sweeping the room. One glance—quick, calculated, complete—and I know he’s cataloged everything. Me included.

“Sorry to drag you away from… whatever it was you were doing.”

His gaze shifts to Samantha as she taps her fingernails on the table. “No problem. It’s why I’m here.”

Rather than chastise me for cuffing her, he just raises a solitary eyebrow and sniffs the air. “Coffee?”

When I nod, Luke pulls a chair out and sits opposite Samantha, placing his chair so his back is against the wall. She stiffens, her eyes never leaving him as he waits patiently for me to make a fresh pot of coffee. I have no idea if his silence is typical behavior for him. I don’t know anything about the man except that he’s the one who likely picked up the items I dropped out of the bathroom window.

The silence in the room only increases my tension, but as Samantha assesses Luke, it’s apparent she’s sizing him up. Probably for weaknesses she can exploit.

Luke, however, is more interested in the Bible. As I pour him a cup, he smiles. “From Silas?”

I nod. “Special delivery. You want anything in your coffee?”

He rolls his shoulders back, apparently not bothered by Samantha’s sullenness or her handcuffs. “I’ll take it how it comes.”

I leave it unadulterated and carry it over to him. He reaches out to grab it and peers into the mug before taking a tentative sip. Without acknowledging whether it’s to his taste, he holds the mug and slides a gaze toward Samantha.

Her eyes narrow, and her bottom lip protrudes slightly. “Are you here to interrogate me?”

He shakes his head. “Not my job.”

“Then whyareyou here?”

Luke sniffs. “Same reason as Mick is.”

Her lips stiffen. “To torment me?”

His fingers curl around the mug, and he leans forward, eyes fixed solely on her. “You’ve been in a lot of worse situations and in worse places.”

She cocks her head, and instantly her demeanor shifts into one I’ve witnessed firsthand. Somehow her eyes widen, her lips plump, and her shoulders jut back. And even in the cuffs, and even though I know it’s an act, she still sparks interest in places I wish she didn’t.

“Does your wife know you’re here with me?”

My eyes shift from her to Luke’s fingers. Bare. No sign of a wedding band.

Luke frowns, then his lips curl into a smile. “What else did you notice about me?”

She brazenly appraises him, chewing her lip as she does it. “You live in a cooler climate, are ex-military, and possibly worked in intelligence.”

His expression remains unreadable. “What was my tell about the cooler climate?”

She jerks against the metal chair, cuffs clanging as she moves. “Let me out of these cuffs, and I’ll show you.”

While I’m floored she could garner so much information just from looking at him, Luke just smiles as if he knows something that I don’t. “You’ll be out just as soon as a female member of Hightower arrives.”

“Verity?” I say.

Luke shakes his head. “Adena. She’s been handpicked for this assignment.”

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