Tinsel In A Tangle

Chapter Six

Jess was so frustrated she ran the first two miles on the lakefront without even feeling them. The frustration was multi-faceted. First, she was stymied on her quest for justice. A week of analysis after downloading her University audit logs had given her some ideas about what Knoll might be up to with his University system access...but she didn’t know what to do with the information.

Her brother Chris had been a total jerk when she asked him for help. She’d been careful not to incriminate herself in any way, but when they’d met for coffee, she hinted at having insider knowledge about shady dealings at the University that may have contributed to her firing and humiliation. Would the cops be willing to look at some data? “Hell no!” Chris had all but covered his ears and run away from her. His last words before he stalked out of the Starbucks were, “Just drop it, Jess. You’ve already embarrassed the entire family.”

At least he’d done one thing for her, even if he was completely unaware it was related. The day after Adam surprised her in AJ’s, she’d FedEx’d his bourbon glass to Chris. “Can you run the prints for me? I’ve been on a few dates with this guy, but something about him doesn’t feel right.”

Chris swore and blustered, but at the end of the day, she was still his only sister. He emailed her a few pages the next day, with the short but succinct message: “Dump him.” The data he provided from the arrest record was sparse, and she wasn’t able to find a lot more. Still, for a man whose life depended on disguise and secrecy, she thought she had enough. When the gorgeous Adam Patrick Henry (all those revolutionary aliases made more sense now) came calling again, he was going to rue the day he blackmailed her.

And...there was the final source of her frustration. He hadn’t contacted her.

She felt sure he’d reach out after a couple of days when she didn’t email Knoll’s University information. She kept her cell phone at an arm’s reach around the clock. She stopped by AJ’s every night.

Now, a week and a half after the evening of fried pickles and strangely arousing Cubs trivia, she was starting to think that he’d moved on. Maybe he didn’t need or care about the information she had anymore. This should have been good news. Instead, it was curiously deflating.

A stitch in her side forced her to slow down. The frustration was causing her to run much quicker than her usual seven-minute miles. She forced some deep breaths in through her nose. The lakefront was beautiful at twilight, the water deep and blue, with a cool breeze blowing west. In another half mile, she’d be able to see Navy Pier ahead.

“Thank God you slowed down. You were running like someone was chasing you.” The sound of the deep, familiar, teasing tone sparked a flame in her stomach. Finally! She didn’t falter. She just casually glanced to her right, where Adam now jogged next to her. How did he appear out of nowhere like that?

“Apparently somebody was chasing me,” she answered dryly. And ran just a touch faster.

He laughed and matched her increased pace easily. “I didn’t expect you to make me,” he said. “But I haven’t received an email from you, Blondie.”

“How about a deal,” she said. “You call me Jess instead of Blondie, and I won’t say your full name aloud.”

“Which full name would that be?” He didn’t sound worried, exactly, but there was definitely a little caution in his voice. “Blondie.”

“Tsk tsk, last warning. Adam Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death.” She looked over at him just in time to see the amused expression vanish completely. She wondered what would replace it. Coldness? Shock? Anger?

His face stayed completely blank, which matched the next ten seconds of silence. Still jogging, they hit the Oak Street curve. Ahead of them, the famous Navy Pier Ferris Wheel came into view. Still, she waited for a reaction.

“I’ve underestimated you,” he said finally. If she wasn’t mistaken, there was a note of grudging admiration in there. “Out of curiosity, what else did you find?”

Surprised, she slowed to a walk. Normally she could run for hours, but she wasn’t used to matching wits with a handsome thief at the same time. “Not much,” she admitted. “Just two things. Your only living relative is an uncle who has been in prison after being convicted for burglary eight years ago. You own undeveloped property in Aspen, Colorado.”

He winced. “Those two things are enough.” He gestured to an empty bench along the path, and they left the running trail to sit.

Jess’s mind raced. What should she do now? Did she give away all of her leverage too soon because she wanted to show off?

He was silent, and Jess forced herself not to squirm. Why didn’t he say anything? Why were they just sitting there like some normal couple watching the water?

“Since I haven’t seen any glorious news coverage of Maurice Knoll being arrested with a cache of diamonds,” he said, “I take it you haven’t managed to uncover his smuggling plot and catch him red-handed?”

She narrowed her eyes. “No. I have some good leads though.”

“I have some of the puzzle pieces as well,” he said, eyes on the pink sky over the lake. “Can’t see the whole picture though.”

Jess pulled her long braid over one shoulder and began to unravel it. What was he getting at?

“What would you say to a temporary partnership?” Adam asked.

The spark that had ignited in her stomach when he first appeared now grew into a full blaze of warmth that spread all the way through her body to the tips of her fingers and toes. Nonchalantly, she continued to unbraid her hair. “How would it work?”

“We’d share information, make plans and execute them together—up until the point where our goals begin to differ.”

Her mind raced to catch up. “And that point would be when we’re certain Knoll is in possession of the smuggled diamonds, correct?”

He turned to face her now, giving her a smile so dazzling her stomach muscles actually clenched with lust. “Have I mentioned that I dig your wits, Blondie?” He lowered his voice. “I mean, Jess.”