Ring of Truth (Devlin Security Force Book 2) by Susan Vaughan Read Free Book Online

shrugged. “It’s too wet to do me any good. I’ll get it tomorrow.” Finger on the door handle, he turned. “The alley door is useless as security.”
    “I’ll call the landlord. He’s usually quick with repairs. He has certain companies he uses.” Now she was babbling. Shut up, Mara.
    “That won’t help you tonight. Be sure to lock up.”
    She twisted her hands in front of her. “Yes, fine.”
    He stared at her for a long moment, his gaze every bit as penetrating and mind-reading as her boss’s. Maybe more. “You don’t look fine. You’re still shaky. Will you be all right?”
    Mara hesitated. Before she could fold and ask him to stay, she forced herself to shrug. “Absolutely. Double locks. I have that dead bolt.” Mr. Devlin would fire her if he knew she didn’t have a security system in place. With all the computer gear and electronic gadgets she had? Geesh. She’d take care of it ASAP.
    His brow furrowed. Eyeing the sofa, he said, “I could crash there.”
    “Wait. You? Stay here? No, out of the question. I’ll be okay.” She stepped forward to herd him closer to the door but he stood his ground.
    “I’m too tired to be a threat. Left Maine at two this morning. Drove through. I can probably find a hotel. But I don’t feel right leaving you. That guy might return.”
    Which was riskier, having this ex-con sleeping on her sofa or lying awake all night listening for the mugger trying to break in? Either way, she wouldn’t sleep.
    Her breath hitched. “My sofa folds out into a bed. You might as well stay.”
    He reached up to rub the lump on the side of his head. “I must’ve been hit harder than I thought. Did the woman who doesn’t trust me just invite me to stay here?”
    “Yield to the inevitable is more like it.” She marched to the hall closet and returned with a pillow and blanket. Sounding resentful was a tough order when relief was her primary reaction. That and a hefty dollop of anxiety. She couldn’t let his protective attitude get to her. He was a dangerous man and she couldn’t forget that. “And don’t think for a minute I trust you.”
    But who was she trying to convince?

Chapter 5
     
    Late Saturday morning, Cort steered his Silverado into Mara’s sister’s neighborhood in Dundalk, a suburb of Baltimore.
    He’d spent the night on the sofa-bed trying to adjust his knees and hips so he wouldn’t sink into the mattress fold’s permanent dent. In the morning, he hoofed it to the parking garage to retrieve his truck and his overnight bag. On the way back, he picked up pastries and coffee for them both at one of the Starbucks he passed. Popular place. Two taxis were parked outside while the cabbies ordered their morning joe. Joe for him, too. Colombian, black, and something for her called a venti non-fat, no-whip, no-foam mocha. Fancy name for caffeinated hot chocolate, if you asked him. But it suited her somehow.
    By the time the two of them came out to head to Dundalk, a locksmith was hard at work installing a new lock on the alley door. Impressive results, Cort said, especially on a weekend. A good omen, Mara had said. The woman was way too optimistic. He didn’t believe in omens. He didn’t believe in much.
    Mature maples and oaks lined Dundalk’s street and yards. The rain had moved on. Moisture on the trees’ new leaves glistened in bright sunshine. Late April in Maine, trees were barely budding. 1950’s-era frame and brick houses in the lower middle-class neighborhood, not upscale. Plumbers, shop owners, teachers. Factory workers, if any factories remained. Not unlike the Springfield, Massachusetts, neighborhood he’d lived in with his mom. Leon offered the dough but she wouldn’t let him pay for anything upscale.
    “That house on the left,” Mara said, pointing to a brick ranch-style. “I grew up there. Mom grew flowers and vegetables in raised beds in the backyard. She loved working in the dirt. She lives with her sister in San Francisco now. My