Page 6 of All He Sees
Franco turned off the projector and put the lights back on, then tucked his hands behind his back. "There's a coastal community where these girls went missing from, about an hour by plane. I've arranged to have a rental car waiting for you at the airport."
"What's the town called?" Nicky asked.
"Vale," Franco said. "It's a small town, but there's a lot of ground to cover. We need to keep in contact, and I'll arrange to get you a few more agents to help you out."
"Thank you, sir," Nicky said.
"Get to work," Franco said. He swept out of the room. "Oh, and Nicky," Franco said, turning around, “I know you understand how important this is. You’ve done a stellar job so far, but I have to re-emphasize that we can’t let these girls down. If we do… we could lose even more of them.”
Nicky swallowed hard, feeling a knot in her throat. She nodded and tried to smile. "I wouldn't dream of it, sir."
"Good," Franco said. "That goes for the rest of you too. Let's save those girls. I'm trusting you all with this."
With that, Chief Franco left the team. Nicky, Ken, and Grace sat in silence for a moment before Grace blurted:
"Jeez, no pressure."
"There's always pressure, Agent Taylor," Nicky mumbled. Grace was a young agent--Nicky was only twenty-nine, but Grace was no older than twenty-six. Ken, on the other hand, was thirty-five and more seasoned than the rest of them, even though Nicky was the one in charge. Her past--being kidnapped herself when she was a teenager--gave her a unique perspective on missing girls cases, which was why she'd been chosen to spearhead the team.
It was a lot of pressure, but their recent successes had Nicky feeling confident they'd solve this case too. She'd find those girls, and she'd find them alive.
She couldn't afford not to.
"All right, game plan," Nicky said, thinking out loud. She was starting to get used to this whole being in charge thing. "Grace, as always, you stay back here and be ready for our call--we might need your skills when we need to do some digging on perps."
Grace nodded. "You know I'll be living by my computer."
"Good," Nicky said, then looked at Ken. "Agent Walker. I think you and I have a plane to catch."
"I agree," Ken said.
"Sounds like a plan," Grace said.
"That's all I need," Nicky said. She packed her things up and slung her purse over her shoulder. She'd worked with Ken and Grace long enough to know they were all on the same page--so if she needed anything else from either of them, she knew she could leave it at that. "Let's go."
"Great," Ken said, standing. "It's about time we got out of here."
They headed out of the meeting room, where Grace broke apart and went to her office, while Nicky and Ken grabbed the elevator. They were silent on their way downstairs, then they breezed through the glass doors leading to outside, where the Florida sun was hot on Nicky's skin. She whipped her keys out and led Ken to where she'd parked her car--he knew by now that Nicky hated relinquishing control of the wheel. Nicky pressed the fob, unlocked the car, and they were on the road.
While Nicky drove, Ken stared at the road ahead of them, a look of concentration on his face. He was a handsome guy--tall and built, with dark, near black hair and light, intense eyes. He'd been at this a long time, longer than Nicky, and she respected his experience as her partner.
Nicky stole a glance at him, taking in the sight of his profile--the hard line of his jaw, the full lips, the way his thin eyebrows were drawn together. He had a hard edge, like a Navy SEAL. They worked well together, and Nicky was glad to have him as her partner. Ken had been a useful asset on the last two cases--without him, things may not have gone so smoothly.
Nicky focused on the road ahead of her as she drove them to the airport. She could only hope--no, pray--that this case would end well too.
Clara Jones and those other girls were counting on it.
CHAPTER THREE
Nicky settled into her seat on the plane, Ken beside her. For Nicky, planes always felt hot, claustrophobic, and stuffy; she didn't do well with confined spaces. As Nicky adjusted her legs to be more comfortable in the seat, her phone buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out.
A text from Matt.
A couple of weeks ago, Nicky had gone on a date with her childhood friend, Matt Haynes. It had been good to catch up, and Nicky and Matt had always had a bit of a crush on each other growing up. But since then, Nicky hadn't seen him again. With everything going on with reopening Rosie's case and Felix being in prison, Nicky didn't exactly have mental room for romance. She'd explained that to Matt, and he'd understood, but asked if they could still text and keep things casual. She agreed.
Matt: Hey, hope you're doing well! Would love to meet up again soon when you're ready. No pressure!
Nicky felt an ache in her chest at the thought of Matt. She wasn't ready to even think about dating--but maybe one day she'd be ready, and Matt would be there for her. She felt herself smile, even if it was a small smile.
