Page 27 of One Wrong Move

“With all of that, when Deck told you to hire another PI ... why didn’t you?”

“Whoever set me up did a good job of it. With the exception of the three people I mentioned, no one else believed me, and, to be honest, by that point I was just worn down. So instead of fighting, like I should have, I ran.” And regretted it ever since, but she was done with that life.

“Maybe you shouldn’t run anymore,” he said with a soft smile.

She narrowed her eyes. “Meaning?”

“Meaning now that Deckard no longer works for Mitch Abrams, maybe he could look into your case. He’s the best.”

She laughed.

He arched a brow.

“Oh,” she squeaked. “You’re serious.”

“Why not? What’s the worst that could happen?”

Rain still gushed as they pulled up to Tad’s gallery in Albuquerque,puddles splashing up in thick surges in the wake of the Equinox’s tires.

Andi’s jaw slackened as she took in the building. The exterior was reminiscent of Incan ruins. Tad really went big or went home.

Her heart still fluttered at Christian’s apparent belief in her, though the idea of asking Deckard MacLeod to look into her case was ludicrous. No matter how sincere Christian was, Deckard would never agree.

Christian’s cell rang, making her jump.

“Okay there?” he asked, his brown hair ruffled, his deep brown eyes full of amusement.

“Yep.” She swallowed. She needed to settle down so she could do her job effectively.

He answered on the fifth ring. “O’Brady.”

¦¦¦

“Christian,” Joel said, a hard edge to his voice.

That didn’t bode well. He straightened. “What’s wrong?” he asked, exchanging a concerned look with Andi as they both listened.

“Martha let me in Alex’s apartment when I explained what was going on,” Joel said.

“And?” Christian asked, bracing for whatever bad news was about to come.

“She wasn’t there, but there are signs of a struggle.”

Christian raked a hand through his hair. “Ah, man. That’s not good. Have any idea where she is?”

“I wish I did.”

THIRTEEN

ENTERING THEGAIMANGALLERYin Albuquerque was like entering another world.

Faux-rock caves filled with fog and mist surrounded them. It was rather like being in the T-Rex Cafe in Downtown Disney when the show was on. But instead of dinosaurs roaring, the jungle sounds of monkeys permeated the space.

“This is incredible,” Andi said. “But I’m surprised he has all these effects going during an investigation.”

“It’s all tied together. You turn the lights on, this all comes with it. It’s the most convoluted system I’ve ever seen.”

“You designed the security system here too?” she asked, knowing that, too, upped him on the suspect list.

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