Page 61 of Evidence of Secrets

And he had accomplished nothing.

The only good news was that the bistro was closed on Monday, but many stores on the Riverwalk were open so that no one would take notice of his car parked out back. He hoped.

Ryan looked at the mess and sighed. This better be worth his time, because he wasn’t sure he’d get another chance any time soon. Time was the one commodity he didn’t have, especially with Fingers and Rocco breathing down his neck.

He walked back into the storage room and knocked on each brick. Nothing. No door opened miraculously.

Ryan moved the wine fridge back, returned the wine rack to its rightful place, and placed the wine back. Crap. The one thing he hadn’t thought through was how the wine went on the rack. He knew enough to place red wine on the bottom and white on top, but he didn’t know if they went by vintage, region, or producer, so he guessed.

Then the shelving was put back, and he placed all the glasses, buckets, and trays on the shelves. Time to move the freezer.

Ryan applied the same process as before, tapping each brick until he covered the wall. Nothing. He moved the freezer back and looked at his watch. Shit. It was 6:10 a.m. Five hours down.

So far, Ryan had nothing to show for his sweat and muscle aches. He needed to make a Plan B. At the rate he was going, there was no way he would finish in the time he allotted to this project.

There was too much money at stake to get discouraged. Ryan stared at the room. Okay, he needed tools. A screwdriver or drill was at the top of the list. He needed to go over the original diagram of the building as it was in 1920. Again. He knew it wasn’t a big secret room, and he remembered there was enough space on all three sides of the pantry to accommodate it, making his job harder. Not taking pictures before and after he moved things was also a mistake.

The sweat was pouring off his body now. He double-checked everything he’d moved. Looked at his watch: 7:10 a.m. Time was flying. Time to get out and regroup. Ryan slid the wooden door closed. The hours he spent here were a disappointment.

Ryan glanced around. Everything looked okay. He hoped no one would notice if the wine was out of whack. As he started for the door, he heard a click. Ryan groaned. This couldn’t be happening.

The kitchen door opened slowly. What the everlasting hell was going on? No one was supposed to be here.

Ryan quickly scooched down behind the worktable in the kitchen. As a hiding spot, it sucked, but there was no place else to hide.

A happy whistle announced his intruder. He peeked over and saw Levi, the day chef, opening the fridge. Why the hell was he here? The two biggest problems were that Ryan didn’t know how long Levi would be here, and at some point, Levi would see him.

A metal bowl clanged on the table. Shit. His worse scenario was coming true. There was no time to dawdle.

Ryan had to get past Levi without being seen. But in the small area, that would be impossible. When Levi walked into the storage room, he waited patiently for Levi to come out.

In a swift move, Ryan moved from his crouch and pushed Levi aside. Levi staggered for a second, hit the side of his head on the counter and crumpled into a heap on the floor. Ryan waited for a second then bent over Levi. Good, he was out for the count, bleeding but still alive. He’d probably have a concussion and major headache, but Levi was alive.

Ryan dashed out the door, remembering to close it, and hugged the buildings. A reverse of what he did earlier. Morning was slow in coming. Thank goodness for that. He heard birds chirping and the clang of trucks delivering goods. Normal sounds on a normal day. A dog barked in the distance. The sky was a deep gray with streaks of white and salmon.

He scooched in his car. He’d turned off the dome light earlier. No sense hiding if cameras could pick up him entering his car. Ryan wasn’t in the mob, but he’d acquired certain tricks for not getting caught. Then he pulled off his black long-sleeved top and shimmied into a polo shirt and waited.

When several people walked to their cars presumably to go to work, he got out and sauntered to the Riverwalk and the small café. He needed coffee and maybe a muffin. Breaking and entering was demanding work.

His heart was racing. Maybe after breakfast, he’d visit Jaimie. His body needed a release for the adrenaline coursing through his veins. Violence had never been his thing. Levi was alive, which was good. He hadn’t seen Ryan, which was better.

There were so many loose ends Ryan had to figure out.

Then he needed to get back to his hotel and figure out Plan B before someone caught on or the mob caught up to him.

CHAPTERFORTY-FOUR

Laura stretched each limb, relishing every muscle ache, and decided Mondays were the best day of the week. Hank had come over early and brought pastries. She made coffee, and they talked for a while.

Their relationship was getting stronger since he opened up to her about his condo and trust funds. She appreciated that he waited patiently for her to be ready to see it. It was beautiful. Tastefully done, even though a decorator had designed it, with a kitchen to die for, and it faced the river.

Laura couldn’t get over how much she enjoyed his wry sense of humor. Hank was a hard worker like her. Not only that, but he also volunteered at the women’s shelter, teaching the women self-defense. The shelter was Sam’s baby, and KnightGuard employees were under no obligation to go over there, but many did.

He’d come over to ask if she wanted to go to the beach. Lordy, she hadn’t been to the beach in so long. They could do that later. Right now, she needed someone, and that someone was sitting in front of her looking all masculine and yummy. Gah. When had she turned into a sex-starved hussy?

“Beach?”

“Hmmm. I’m thinking here.” Laura glanced at Hank and smiled. “I think I’d like a little indoor action before going out.”

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