The Murder That Never Was (Forensic Instincts 5)

Walking around behind the desk, Ryan leaned forward to gaze over a startled Miles’ shoulder. “Yup.” Ryan gave a sage nod. “I can see you have your work cut out for you.”

“You know computers?”

“Better than you can imagine. For example, I just finished playing a long game of `Scooby-Dooby-Doo, where are you?,’ and I’ve finally reached my end goal. Success. Nice to meet you, Scooby.”

Miles nearly shot up off the chair. He scrambled to his feet, whipping around to face Ryan. His face was white as a sheet.

“Who are you?”

“AdrenoJunkie,” Ryan answered without batting a lash. “Or, in real life, Ryan McKay.” Ryan extended his hand. “Great to finally match a screen name to a person, Miles.”

Miles stared at Ryan’s hand as if it were an alien. “How did you find me?”

“Pure genius. And now I need to talk to you.”

Wildly, Miles looked around, searching for somewhere to run even as he clearly realized there was no way to get to the door and escape—especially given the “make-my-day”-looking guy who AdrenoJunkie had brought with him.

At that exact frozen second in time, a feminine voice sounded from the front of the gym, accompanied by footsteps that said she was headed their way.

“I’m back, Milo.” A breathless young woman hurried over, carrying two cups of steaming coffee. “Sorry I was gone so long. The place was a madhouse. But the good news is that I brought you renewed energy.”

As she spoke, Ryan and Marc turned in her direction, ready to take on their second quarry.

“Hi,” the woman said. “Can I help you?”

Ryan did his second double take of the day. He stared, his eyes narrowing on her face as his mind searched, found, and connected the unexpected dots.

“Shit.” He exhaled sharply, still staring at her, an incredulous expression on his face. “Julie Forman, my ass. You’re Lisa Barnes.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

With a soft cry, Julie dropped the two cups of coffee on the floor and took a step backward, fear filling her eyes. Hot, black liquid shot out everywhere, but she was oblivious to it, even as it splattered her workout gear, doubtlessly burning her. She looked like a terrified bird, and, instinctively, her gaze darted to Milo.

She saw the ashen expression on his face and fell apart.

“I don’t… I never meant… It’s not what you think…”

“Julie, shut up.” Realizing she was about to spill her guts, Miles snapped into survival mode. Surviving, and protecting his best friend, trumped all else—just as it always had.

His jaw tightened, and he repressed any signs of upset or fear. “Are you cops?” he asked Ryan and Marc.

“Nope,” Marc replied. “Just concerned citizens helping out a friend.”

“A friend? What friend?”

“That’s irrelevant. Your elaborate pretense is what’s relevant.” Marc took a few menacing steps forward. “Care to share?”

“Nothing to share.” Milo jammed his hands into his pockets. “I don’t know who you’re working for or what you’re after, but we have nothing to say to you. If you’re looking for someone named Lisa Barnes, we don’t know her. She doesn’t work here. So you’ve reached a dead end. Now I suggest you go back where you came from. And tell your friend to leave us alone.”

Ryan arched a brow. “After all the time I took figuring out why you needed a permanent escape plan? I don’t think so. In my experience, the only people who want to fall off the map are either scared or guilty. Which is it, Scooby?”

Before Miles could reply, Julie jumped to his aid. “Miles did nothing. As for me, I’m not Lisa…”

Ryan waved his arm, cutting her off at the pass. “You can forget taking the Fifth. I enhanced photos of Lisa Barnes myself. I also checked out photos of Julie Forman. You sure as hell resemble each other. And I see you made a few decent changes to your appearance to play that up. But not enough to hide your real identity. So skip the denials.”

Julie—Lisa—began trembling from head to toe. Tears started streaming down her cheeks. Clearly, she’d reached her breaking point.

“Please leave us alone,” she begged. “We’re just living our lives. We’re not hurting anyone.”