He straightened, giving her space. “I’ve done business with them. They’re a third-party vendor we’ve used in the past to build databases for us or customize content management systems we’ve used to store and manage documentation related to contracts.”
She didn’t respond immediately, her mind processing several things in parallel. First, he was up to something. The corner of his mouth was pulled back ever so slightly in the barest hint of a smirk. Second, she was more aware of the space between them than she’d been before he’d leaned over her.
This definitely wasn’t the line of thought she wanted to pursue. Back to the smirk. She could be irritated with the smirk. “So you’ve been inside the building.”
He tilted his head just a bit as he nodded. “There’s security in the front lobby. Anyone without a badge must have a visitor pass and an escort from someone who works in the building. All of the emergency exits have alarms, so there’s no slipping in a back entrance without setting one of those off. Any employees wanting to go out for a smoke have to go out the front door.”
Not the toughest security she’d ever gotten past but she wanted to be in and out without leaving any evidence of her visit. “Maybe it’d be better to wait until tonight then.”
He shrugged. “I was out to drink with a couple of the resources from that vendor. One of them told me a story about the time he’d been working so late, the security system came on. Apparently, badges stop working throughout the building after eight. There’s also motion sensor lights.”
She scowled. “Your friend just happened to tell you this?”
He lifted his hands, palms up. “What can I say? We work late hours on some projects in my line of business. There are times when you’re sitting at your desk and your hands at the keyboard aren’t enough movement. The lights go out and you have to wave your hands above your head to trigger the sensors to turn them back on again. When that happens, the roving security guard stops by to ensure all is well.”
Ah. However he came by the information, it was handy to have. While stealth was a requirement to her specialization to a certain extent, her experience as a sniper had rarely included bypassing security systems to get to her chosen perch. It’d take much more time than what was available to gain access to the building on a hunch.
After a few more moments of silence, she came out of her own head to the sight of Kyle watching her intensely. The look in his eyes was unreadable. Not the usual glint of humor or the expression of interest as if she was a kitten that’d done something hella funny.
Uncomfortable with his scrutiny she frowned up at him. “You have an issue?”
His expression didn’t change but he shifted his weight forward a fraction, intent on her. “You are certain this building is where this sniper was hiding to take a shot at me?”
She considered his question, not because she didn’t know her answer but because trying to anticipate where he was going with a line of questioning was a challenge. “My gut says a person took a shot at our police partners. It could’ve been lucky, or it could’ve been skill. The person could’ve been a trained sniper, or they could’ve been a contract operator taking a long shot. I’ll be able to tell a lot more once I find where they were hiding.”
“This building is on the same side of the street and same block as the apartment building we emerged from after the incident. How would he have been able to see us?” His voice had dropped a few notches in volume and gone rough.
He’d done a good job of handling fear so far. His observations were valid too. “I don’t have sure answers for you. There could’ve been another team out there looking for us. Or they could’ve thought we were in a different building. Maybe the one our deputy marshal was parked in front of at the time of the shooting.”
There were still too many variables, too many different ways things could’ve been planned. She needed to know more.
A pause. “And you won’t have confirmation or more information until you have a chance to investigate this building.”
She nodded. “Either I’ll find what I’m looking for or I’ll rule it out as a theory.”
He snorted. “How many theories do you have?”
It was her turn to study him. She got the impression he wasn’t the sort of man to stay with all that many things long-term. “If I run out, I’ll come up with new ones until I have my definitive answer.”
And her response seemed to satisfy him. “Well then, it appears we will be going to investigate this building tomorrow.”
No.
“You stay here.” Not a request.