Amoment later,Ryleighleans against the table that’s toOllie’sright andIcan tell that she’s not turning toward us as she says, “So,Daisy, when are you finally going to say yes to doing an artisan booth with me?Thinkof how much fun we’d have doing this together!”
Ican feel the waves of curiosity coming offOllieasIsay, “Idon’t know.I’mjust not willing to commit yet.”
“Well,I’mnot going to stop trying to talk you into it,”Ryleighsays as she pulls a flowy skirt off my head and a pair of wide-leg trousers offOllie’s.
Fora small moment, alarm mixes with the glorious feeling of breathing fresh air beforeRyleighsays, “Yoursuit-wearing bad guys have disappeared.”
OllieandIboth extricate ourselves from the clothes, which is somehow more difficult than getting hidden by them, as we look all around ourselves for confirmation that the bad guys aren’t still lurking about.Ithank my friend, tell herI’lllet her know about the booth, andOllieandIslip out.
“Wait,”Ryleighcalls out, andIstop and turn my head toward her as she rushes forward and peels a sheer and very tiny bit of lingerie thatIhadn’t even seen on the rack that had static clung itself to my back like it was trying to be one of those t-shirts that had a bikini printed on it.
“Thanks,”Isay, my cheeks heating, even though the air is so much cooler now thatI’mnot breathing through a wardrobe.
Iglance over atOllie, hoping he somehow didn’t see, but judging by the smile he’s hiding, he saw.Heclears his throat. “So, tell me about this booth your friend wants to do with you.”
Ishrug. “Ioften think of crafty things to make—jewelry, crocheted items, hand-painted tote bags, things like that—and thenImake them for everyoneIknow.RyleighthinksIshould make a business out of it.Shedoes booths at all the craft fairs around, and she wants me to join her.Maybeeven start selling my stuff online.”
“Sowhat’s stopping you?”
Ilook atOllie’sface as we walk.Heasked the question as if he couldn’t fathom anything possibly being strong enough to stop me.Andsuddenly, for a moment,Ifeel it, too.
CHAPTER 9
STEALTH MODE ACTIVATED
OLLIE
IaskDaisyquestions about her crafts, and she starts giving me details about different things she’s already made.Thingslike miniature terrariums in upcycled glass jars with tiny faux plants and clay figures.Andhand-decorated journals with covers made from fabric, paper, or wood.Theyall sound so cool, and it blows my mind that she can come up with ideas like that out of thin air.Andthen to find a way to make those ideas a real, tangible thing.
Andshe talks about it with such passion thatI’msure she would do so well at it if she pursued it as a career.I’menjoying hearing her talk about it so much thatIalmost forgetI’mon a mission and not simply taking a leisurely stroll through the park during the fall festival with the womanI’vespent the past eighteen months dreaming about.
Ifeel the buzz of a call, soIswitch which hand is holding the case, pull my phone from my pocket, and answer it.It’sJace, calling from the same number he had texted me from whileDaisyandIwere planting the bug, and my mind is immediately back on looking for the carousel.
“Hey,Ollie,”Jacesays. “Igot tied up neutralizing a security breach, soIwon’t be able to make it to the carousel for about forty-five minutes.Canyou hang on that long?Ifnot, my brotherLedgeris in the area.He’salso an intelligence operative, and he can meet you to get the documents within a few minutes.Yourcall.”
Waitingto give this information toJacewhenI’mpretty sure we’re being followed by the bad guys is so much riskier thanI’mcomfortable with.Buttwo things cross my mind as soon as he asks.One,Iremember his brother,Ledger.Infact,Iremember being very intimidated byLedgerwhenever he was around.Hewas tall and muscled back in high school—Ican imagine he’s even more so now that he’s an adult and also an operative.Ishudder.
Andtwo,Ireally like being withDaisy.Iwant to ask her out, andI’vetold myself thatIwill before we are done with this mission, butIhaven’t worked up the guts to do it yet.Icould use another forty-five minutes.
Plus,I’vebeen working on getting this information forJacefrom the start.Itwould make me feel better ifIcould hand it off to him.Maybewe can go back to mycar, drive around the park to see if we can find a parking spot closer to the carousel, and then wait there until the last possible moment.So,Isay, “Wecan hang on that long.”
Jacesays he’ll be there soon and that he’ll see me at the carousel.Ihang up, slide the phone back into my pocket, and letDaisyknow that we’ve got another forty-five minutes to wait. “Shouldwe go back to my car and wait?”
Shenods but freezes for a moment before slipping her hand in mine and leaning in. “Suitsat three o’clock.”
Ilook to my right, and sure enough, suits.Walkingright down the middle of the two lines of food trucks.It’snot the man and woman from earlier, though.It’stwo men. “Didthey send a whole team to look for us?”Ilook around frantically.They’realmost to the end of the row of food trucks where they will surely turn around and come back.Wehave no idea where the other two suits we saw are currently, and there’s a good chance they are somewhere between here and my car.
“Wheredo we hide?”Daisyasks.
Ihear my name and turn around to look for the source of it.Myfriend,Aziz, whoI’veknown sinceIwas ten, is waving from where he stands behind a table at a booth.Atable with a tablecloth that goes all the way to the ground.
Daisy’shand is still in mine, soIsay “Overhere,” and we run toAziz.Ibarely notice that his booth is allcookies before my eyes are back on his. “Canwe hide under your table?Thereare a couple of guys in suits that are after us.”
Hiseyebrows raise in alarm. “Yeah, of course!”Wehurry behind the table and he lifts the edge of the cloth, pulls out a couple of plastic totes that are filled with wrapped cookies, and lets us into the space.Thecloth doesn’t go all the way to the grass on the backside, which is nice for the air not getting as stuffy as it did when we hid in the clothes, and it does let us peek out at what’s going on a little better—if we duck down—butIdon’t like being exposed.Azizis a good guy, though.He’lllook out for us.Plus, the back and left sides of his square awning are covered to the ground, so that helps keep us hidden.
Azizcrouches down and lifts the cloth with one hand as he grabs more wrapped cookies from a tote. “Isee a police officer patrolling a couple of dozen feet away.Doyou want me to call him over and let him know you’re being followed?”
Ilook atDaisy, and she shrugs. “Idon’t know how this spy thing works,” she whispers. “Whatif the officer is in on it?Orwhat if he’s not even an officer at all—he’s just a bad guy pretending to be one?”
