Hot Item (Hot Zone 3)

She lowered herself to the closed toilet seat. “I just don’t understand who’d want to do this to me.”

Riley placed his hand on her shoulder. He noticed the damp towel in the sink and shut off the still-running water. “How about we talk it through. Sometimes that helps to figure things out.”

She nodded. “Okay.”

“If it wasn’t the break-in, if someone else did this, who could it be? Who has access?”

“But…”

“Humor me. Just to cover all bases.”

She glanced down at her hands. “There’s the cleaning crew that comes in at night, the security people who patrol in the evening, and everyone in the office who passes by when I’m not here.”

“Have you fired anyone recently?” he asked.

She shook her head. “We’re a small office and all get along.”

&nb

sp; “Okay then, let’s talk about the times you aren’t here. You and I were just in Florida. Could anyone have let themselves in here then?”

“No!” Sophie jumped up from her seat. “No way is it anyone who works for us. We’re like a family here. I’m not stupid or naive, but I refuse to believe someone within this office would do this to me.”

He followed her out of the bathroom back into her office, watching as she paced the room, silently mouthing the expected number of steps across the carpet. He couldn’t control his grin as she reverted to the comfort of counting, the same thing she’d been doing the day he’d come looking for his old man.

At the thought of Spencer, Riley realized that not once since he’d been here had he worried about running into him. Instead his thoughts had been occupied by Sophie.

“There is one person who might be behind all this,” she said, stopping in her tracks.

Her words caught him off guard. “Who?”

“I don’t like suggesting this. It hurts me because he’s dating one of my closest friends, but…”

Riley tipped his head to one side and studied her. “Nobody’s going to do anything without proof, but if your gut’s telling you something, I suggest you listen. At this point we can’t afford to overlook anything, no matter how remote it seems.”

Sophie swallowed hard. “Miguel Cambias.”

“No!” Cindy had entered without Sophie realizing it and stood with her mouth opened in horror. “How could you say such a thing? How could you even think it?”

Sophie’s heart skipped a beat, then began pounding harder. “I’m sorry, it’s just that—”

“What? You think he’d use me to get to you? That he doesn’t care about me? He just wants to sign your uncle’s draft pick? You’re wrong. I know him.” She pointed to her heart. “I know him in here.”

Sophie closed her eyes for a brief second. This was exactly what she’d wanted to avoid. “I’m not saying it is Miguel. I’m just saying it’s possible.”

“And how do you think breaking in here and planting a camera would get him any closer to John Cashman?” Cindy folded her arms across her chest.

“I don’t know.” Sophie looked out the window over Manhattan. “It’s a stretch,” she admitted.

“What about the idea of deflecting Yank’s and Spencer’s focus? If they’re busy worrying about you, looking out for you, then that would leave Cashman open and vulnerable to another agent.” Riley stepped between the two women. “To any agent. Not necessarily Cambias.”

“That’s what I thought.” She shot Riley a look filled with gratitude for attempting to salvage her friendship with Cindy.

“Everyone’s shaken up from the break-in. Sophie’s rattled about finding the camera. I suggest nobody holds anything said in the heat of the moment against the other.”

Cindy, with her pale face and defensive posture, appeared unsure, shaken and still very upset. “I have to go.”

“Don’t say anything to him,” Sophie called out to her friend.