Page 85 of Keeping Kasey
James narrows his eyes. “And Ford.”
“Yeah, him, too.”
“Why would Brandon tell Ford that Matteo needed him?” Damon asks.
I swear, sometimes I wonder if there’s a brain inside that idiot’s head.
“To get him out of the room,” I say, each word slow and packed with irritation.
“Obviously,” Damon drawls with a glare. “But that buys him a few minutes, tops. If he intended to assault her, he didn’t come up with a very good excuse.”
“What are you suggesting?” James asks.
“Nothing yet, just stating the facts. Maybe he really did believe that would be enough time, but it doesn’t seem likely to me.”
The insinuation sparks the flame, and my chest burns.
One breath. Two. Three.
“Are you saying Kasey’s lying?” I ask, my tone dropping to a warning.
Damon raises his hands. “I didn’t say that, but you personally vetted Brandon. Does this sound like something he’d do?”
“I wasn’t looking for a morally righteous candidate.”
“I’m not talking aboutmorality—I’m talking about intelligence.”
I stand and step toward Damon. “Kasey was attacked, and Ford was shot, so whatever Brandon did, it obviously wasn’t rooted inintelligence.”
He stands, but there’s nothing offensive about his posture.
“I only meant—”
“What do you have against Kasey?” I snap. “I thought you liked her.”
“I do, but that doesn’t mean I can ignore the logical faults in her story.”
“So, youdothink she was lying?” James asks.
“I think there’s more to the story, but that doesn’t necessarily mean she lied.”
James looks at me with an expression that asks me to hear him out. “It’s possible that there’s more to it than Kasey remembers. She may get some memories back.”
I sigh, turning my back to them to look over the front lawn.
“You guys didn’t see what I saw. She was…” I shake my head. “This is all my fault.”
“No, it isn’t,” James says, coming to stand at my side. “You had protection on her. You did everything you could.”
“And it didn’t matter. She was attacked in one ofmybases by one ofmymen.”
“At a time when we know we’re compromised,” Damon adds.
James considers that. “Brandon could’ve been aligned with Mason.”
That would mean Brandon knew why Kasey was hired in the first place, and he was intent on stopping her. It’s a legitimate—and very likely—possibility, but it poses one major question.
“But then”—I begrudgingly look to Damon—“if he was intent on stopping her, why wouldn’t he just kill her?”
