“So you’ve started a new job,” Tara said. “That must be exciting.”
“Not so you’d notice. But things might be looking up. The boss comes back from wherever he’s been hiding tomorrow, so I should get cleared for more work.”
She thought that much was safe to say—not giving away any state secrets.
“Ryan thinks you’d be a great addition to my husband’s company. Is that why you said no—because of the new job?”
“Among other things. So tell me about your husband and why I’d like to work for him.”
“Because Christian is a good man. He’s honest, law-abiding, and he runs one of the biggest privately owned companies in the world. The opportunities are endless.”
“And interesting,” Roz added. “Ryan says you’re a great detective. You could still do that as part of the investigative division.”
“So I wouldn’t be working with Ryan?”
“Probably not. He said that diplomacy wasn’t your strong point.”
“Did he?” Bastard—how dare he say she wasn’t diplomatic? She could be if she tried. Just most of the time, she never saw the point in trying.
“He said you were straight and to the point and always said exactly what you thought. He meant it as a compliment.”
“Besides,” Roz added. “He’s working with Ash, and strangely they seem to be getting on well together.”
“And I suppose Ash can be diplomatic?”
Roz grinned. “He can be a smooth bastard when he wants to.”
“And a total bastard the rest of the time,” Tara muttered.
Definitely no love lost there.
She fired off a few more questions about the company and got totally innocuous answers in return. The truth was it did sound a fantastic opportunity. But she wanted to be a policewoman. She changed the subject.
“So how did you meet, Christian?” she asked. “I mean he’s supposed to be like a total recluse.”
“Not really; he has close friends. But I actually employed CR Investigations to trace my family after the aunt who bought me up died. Christian found the case interesting and took over the investigation.”
“And the rest is history,” Roz added.
Tara grinned back as though they shared a secret, and Faith had a sudden urge to be included in their little circle. Then Tara’s expression became serious. “He’s a good man, and I love him with all my heart.”
Hmm, that was nice, but she knew that love could make you blind to all sorts of issues. She’d seen it again and again. People who protected their loved ones, lied to the police, hid evidence, all because they couldn’t believe the objects of their devotion could do any wrong. She turned to Roz.
“And do you agree with that?”
“Well, I don’t love him—not that he isn’t loveable—but yes, he’s a good man.”
Faith was getting nowhere. Maybe it was time to try a little shock tactics.
“So he is a man? Because I’d heard rumors he was a vampire.”
Tara laughed. “I’ll have to tell him that one.”
Roz batted her lashes. “Really, Faith. You don’t believe in witches, but you do believe in vampires? How open-minded of you.”
Faith looked her in the eye. “You found Jessica. You know what was done to her.”
Roz shrugged but said nothing. Tara leaned forward. “Faith, there are things we can’t tell you. Things told to us in confidence. But come and work with us and I’m sure you’ll learn what you need to know.”
“Maybe. But I need to solve this case first.”
“Why does it mean so much to you?”
Suddenly Faith wanted to tell someone, but she couldn’t bring herself to say the words so she gave her usual general answer. “Because a lot of people are murdered and a lot of killers escape justice. There needs to be people who care, people unwilling to let go.”
“You’re right,” Tara said. “But there are resources you could use at CR. There’s no reason why you couldn’t keep up the investigation from there.”
Faith frowned. Something didn’t quite add up here. “You know the old saying—if something sounds too good to be true it probably is? I’m sort of thinking this whole thing seems way too good and I don’t get it. I’m good at my job, but not that good. Why me?”
“Because we go on personal recommendation more than anything. We need people we can trust. And Ryan recommended you.”
Hmm. She wasn’t entirely convinced. She rubbed her scalp, where she could feel the first glimmer of an incipient headache. She so didn’t need that right now. Picking up her bag, she found the bottle of pills, and washed one down with a gulp of red wine. When she glanced up, Roz was watching her, an expression of sympathy on her pretty face which put Faith’s back up. She didn’t need sympathy.
“Okay. Thanks for meeting me. I’ll give it some thought.”
“Well, phone if you have any more questions or want a chat.” Tara handed her a card, and a minute later Roz handed her a second.