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  He clapped Hayes on the back in a kind of dismissal. “We’re going to do these room searches using a multitude of different scenarios. I want you to stay sharp.” He drummed his temple with two fingers before splitting the class in two groups outside two different confined spaces.

  From a regulated distance Izzy watched her colleagues go in and out of the two rooms, and she wondered how the setups differed from each other. Upon completion, students were sent to the main classroom so as not to influence those waiting to go in. The exercise was well thought out and Izzy’s heart pounded in anticipation of her turn. She wondered how the skit would unfold, and if there’d be contraband or a perp or both. Would Sara be participating? The thought crept in and she scolded herself for allowing it any attention.

  Up next, she rolled her neck trying to stay loose and keep her head in the game.

  Just a foot outside the open door, she could see the small space was designed to resemble a hotel room, with a bed and a desk, even a small alcove simulating the space for a bathroom. Her plan was to systematically scan the room counterclockwise. She entered the space with caution, but Chase pulled toward the bed immediately. She followed his instinct, crossing the center of the floor just as she heard the door to the room close behind her.

  “Bang. You’re dead, Marquez. Two pops in the back of the head.” Agent Reyes, her least favorite instructor, dropped his training weapon by his side. “Izzy, you lead.” He shook his head at her. “Not the dog.” She couldn’t help but notice his tone showed disappointment but not condescension as she might have expected considering her rookie error. He leaned in close. “You’re better than that, Marquez,” he added with a concerned look, shooing her away to send in the next victim.

  Izzy spent the rest of the afternoon sulking over her deadly error and the train wreck of a week she’d had. She was looking forward to continuing her pity party in pajamas on her couch comforted by a vat of ice cream. She was already halfway there in her mind when Sara’s voice calling her name echoed down the hallway.

  “What’s going on with you?”

  Sara stood in the doorway of her office as though she was waiting for someone, and for a second Izzy wondered if it was her. Her arms were crossed and her gesture bordered on stern when she pointed at her and summoned her over.

  Izzy hoisted her gear bag onto her shoulder, shuffling over as she heeded the silent command. Even Chase seemed to hang his head, ready for the lecture that was surely coming. Izzy was in no mood.

  “I’m kind of itching to get home. I had a pretty terrible week.”

  “I know.” Sara looked right at her. “I saw that debacle of a room search.” She brought her hand to her chin and looked Izzy up and down. “Something’s going on with you. You’re off your game.”

  Izzy wanted to scream. Of course something was off. She wanted to yell at Sara for not knowing why she was faltering or for pretending she couldn’t figure it out. She was downright furious Sara hadn’t bothered to call or text or say anything to her after the connection they’d shared the previous week. First flirting and then not flirting, teasing her and then acting like nothing had gone on between them. If she could have found the appropriate words, she might have said all those things, but she was too stunned to speak at all.

  “It’s you,” Sara said, looking from Izzy to Chase. “Not him.” She reached down to pet him and let him bestow a small kiss on her palm. “This dog and his kisses.” She rolled her eyes. “Meet me here tomorrow, both of you. Ten sharp. We’re going to do some remedial work.”

  Izzy opened her mouth to respond even though she didn’t have a clue what to say. Remediation reeked of failure, two words she bristled at being associated with. Still, a day with Sara might at least give her the opportunity to clear the air.

  “Fine.” Izzy wound Chase’s leash around her hand. “Do I need to bring anything?”

  Sara shook her head and smiled. “Just yourself.” She nodded at Chase. “And him. I’ll take care of the rest.”

  Izzy wondered which version of Sara would show tomorrow. She almost asked, but her nemesis’s approach stopped her thoughts completely.

  “You ready?” Nicole Vaughn called out, her heels clicking to a stop right next to Izzy.

  Sara dangled her car keys from one finger. “I’m waiting for you.”

  So much for the rumor Nicole had left town days ago. Izzy couldn’t help but wonder where she’d been hiding the last forty-eight hours. And that thought made her nauseous. She just wanted to bolt, but before she could excuse herself, Sara touched her arm, throwing her off again.

  “Izzy, this is Nicole Vaughn. She’s the director of training for DHS.” Sara leaned in and stage-whispered, “Meaning she runs the show here.”

  “Ma’am.” Izzy held out her hand. “It’s nice to meet you.” She almost gagged at having to be so official toward the woman she was surely losing out to. “Anyway, I should get going.” She didn’t want to be disrespectful, but she was barely holding it together.

  “Hold on,” Nicole said. Izzy swallowed hard as Nicole studied her relaxed class attire—an NYPD T-shirt with the signature dark blue cargo pants. “You must be Isabel Marquez. From the NYPD.” She nodded in affirmation at her obvious deduction. It took everything for Izzy to keep a straight face. “I know your lieutenant at the Grand Central Command,” Nicole said. “Stacey Anderson.”

  Izzy forced a smile. “Lieutenant Anderson is the best. She’s a really good boss,” she added, bestowing the highest compliment with the fewest words. It was true. Stacey Anderson was a fantastic supervisor, and not only because she’d called in a favor to hook Izzy up with the coveted K-9 spot. Anderson was honest and fair to all her subordinates on a daily basis. She’d earned respect and Izzy was determined to give it, even in her absence.

  “Please tell her I said hello,” Nicole said.

  “Yes, ma’am,” Izzy said, still hating the formality she felt forced to use. She turned to Sara. “About tomorrow,” she started, planning to bail on the spot.

  Sara shook her head, cutting her off with a firm no. “Ten o’clock, Izzy. No excuses.”

  Izzy hiked her bag up higher, for the first time realizing her presence tomorrow wasn’t a request for a frivolous outing—it was a mandatory session. She wasn’t being asked for her company, she was being compelled, in front of the head of training, who was a friend of her boss, no less, and probably about to go on a date with the woman she was seriously crushing on. This day sucked.

  She felt the sting in her throat but fought against it until she was in her car and through the gates of the facility, cruising up the ramp to the highway before the first tears fell.

  Chapter Twelve

  Two granola bars, some water, a new chew toy for Chase. Sara went through her small pack, making sure she had everything she wanted to bring. She went to the storage cabinet in the corner of her office and grabbed a twenty-five-foot lead in case Izzy only brought her standard leash. Sara was hoping to see some off-leash work this morning, but her primary focus was restoring Izzy’s confidence, which had wavered in the last week.

  Chase raced into her office and Sara squatted to give him a proper hello. “And where is your lovely person?” she asked him.

  “I’m right here,” Izzy answered, her voice flat and cold as the morning chill.

  “Hey.” Sara stood. Assessing Izzy’s stiff posture, she grabbed both of her shoulders and shook them roughly. “Loosen up. I want to have fun today.”

  Izzy backed out of her hold. “What’s fun about doing extra work because I’m clearly not making the cut?”

  Sara stepped away, zipping up her bag. “Relax, Izzy. You’re not in trouble.”

  “Really?” Izzy’s eyes were as cold as her voice. “Ordered to the facility on a Saturday. Told I need remedial instruction. Doesn’t seem like high praise to me.”

  “Did you not have coffee?” Sara hoped her teasing response would lighten the mood.

  Izzy didn’t say a word. She picked up C
hase’s lead and tucked her hands in the pockets of her jeans. “I hope it’s okay I wore street clothes today.”

  Her voice was full of sass and Sara sighed at her snarky attitude but decided not to engage, hoping the fresh air would turn things around. She grabbed her things and headed for the door, turning Izzy around by the shoulders when she got there. “Come on, grumpy-pants. Let’s go.”

  She led the way out of the building and across the training field to where the thick woods met the campus grounds.

  “Where are we going?” Izzy asked.

  “These woods are the back of Arren’s Hollow.” She held some thicket aside for Izzy and Chase to pass through. “We just have to trudge through some of the brush for a minute and we’ll pick up a trail.” Acorns and pinecones crunched under her boots. “I wanted to take that hike we missed last weekend.” She bounced across the forest floor. “And I thought being out here might help you get back on track.”

  “Great.” Izzy’s tone was still less than enthusiastic. “So I am failing?”

  “Are you serious?” Sara cleared a small puddle as she asked the question. One look at Izzy’s face and she saw genuine worry. “Izzy, you’re the best handler in the class. Hands down.” Her words—which were totally the truth—relaxed Izzy immediately, and Sara could almost see the tension drain from her body. Automatically, Chase relaxed by her side. “But something has you rattled lately. What’s going on?”

  Izzy huffed and looked at the ground but said nothing.

  “Come on, Iz. You’re completely distracted. Spill already.”

  “Is the facility closing down?”

  The question caught Sara off guard, but she answered it anyway. “No. Why would you think that?”

  “That’s the rumor around the class. That Nicole Vaughn was here to assess the program and possibly shut it down after this session.”

  Sara laughed. “Overton is the third largest federal training facility in the country. It’s not going anywhere, believe me.” She climbed up a few big rocks, using a tree to balance as she hopped down onto the trail. “God,” she huffed, “absent the facts, people really will just make stuff up. What else do they say, I wonder?”

  “That she’s your ex.” Izzy didn’t move. “Nicole.”

  “I was being rhetorical,” Sara said with a shift of her eyebrows as she pointed them north on the dirt path.

  “Is it true?” Izzy’s tone held both uncertainty and a hint of sadness, and it killed Sara to realize this might be the real cause of Izzy’s stress.

  “Yes.” She picked up a fallen branch and tossed it to the side. “That part is true.”

  “And now?” Izzy bent forward and unclipped Chase’s leash, allowing him to walk freely next to her.

  Sara wasn’t really sure what she was being asked. “Now, what?”

  “Are you two together now?” Izzy took a tennis ball from her pocket and tossed it a couple of yards away, and they watched Chase snatch it before the second bounce. Izzy let him walk a few feet ahead before calling his name and telling him to wait. He listened and she called him back, taking the ball and rewarding him with love when he returned. “Good boy,” she said, turning to Sara, still waiting for her response.

  “This?” Sara waited for Izzy to make eye contact. “This is what had you so flustered all week?” She threw up both hands in frustration. “You lose all focus because you’re thinking about whether or not my ex-girlfriend and I are back together?”

  “Are you?”

  Sara clenched her teeth trying to maintain her composure. “No. Not that it matters. But no.”

  “Is she still here?”

  “Where?” Sara joked as she scanned the vacant woods. One look at the heat in Izzy’s expression told her this wasn’t the time for games. “No,” she said evenly. “I drove her to the airport last night. She’s back in DC. Is that better?”

  Izzy seemed to accept her response but she broke eye contact and started walking. “I think it’s pretty shitty you never called or anything after you bolted last weekend.”

  “I’m sorry.” Her apology seemed to fall flat as Izzy walked on briskly. Sara tried to explain. “I got sidetracked helping Nicole while she was here.” She took a quick step trying to catch up with Izzy. “She’d been trying to contact me for two days.” Izzy was still a half step ahead and Sara grabbed her forearm to get her to stop as she scooted in front to face her. Looking right at her she said, “I never answered her because I was with you just about the whole time.”

  “Well, I’m sure you made up for it while you were ignoring me all week.”

  Izzy’s sweet brown eyes showed real hurt, and more than anything Sara wanted to make the pain go away. She wanted to pull Izzy into her arms and kiss her over and over, admit she thought about her nonstop, confess to her ridiculous fantasies, her growing feelings that surely couldn’t go anywhere. Another thirty seconds and she might have fallen prey to her foolish desires, but Izzy broke the moment, stepping around her.

  “So what’s the deal?” Izzy’s voice was still curt. “I have bosses. And exes.” She checked on Chase, who was sniffing the base of the trail. “Neither of them text me nonstop.”

  “I’m assisting her with a project she’s running.” Over her shoulder Izzy gave a look that signaled a longer explanation was required. Sara let out a long breath. “Things with Nicole are complicated,” she added.

  Izzy turned around sporting a blatant I-told-you-so expression, and Sara couldn’t help but laugh.

  “Not like that. Not anymore.” Sara stretched her arms above her head as she thought about what to say. “I’ve known Nicole a long time,” she started. “We haven’t been together in ages.” She pondered the accuracy of that statement considering her trip to DC in March. “She’s my boss. But honestly, she’s more than that. We’re…friends,” she said, knowing the word fell short of adequately defining their relationship. “God, I lived in her house until last year.” She made the admission somewhat offhandedly, knowing how ridiculous it sounded.

  Picking up the path again, she let her fingers brush Chase’s ear as he strode between them. “Nicole has always been good to me, and I suppose I feel a certain indebtedness to her. Even if we’re no longer a couple. When she called me the other night, she was locked out.” She shrugged. “I have keys.”

  “Because it’s your house too.” It was half statement, half question, and Sara could tell Izzy was trying to understand their dynamic.

  “I lived there once, yes.” She watched Chase investigate a tall weed a few steps ahead. “But it was never my house.”

  Izzy’s eyes held a million questions and Sara decided to save her the trouble.

  “After my mother died, I lived with the Dixons, as you know. When I was nineteen I decided to go out on my own. John and his family were great and my time there was a gift. But I never wanted to be a burden. So I moved back to the house where I grew up. It was…” Her voice faded as she searched for the right word.

  “I can’t even imagine.”

  “It wasn’t unbearable. But there were a lot of memories. Many of them lovely.” She looked up at the cloudless sky. “I needed to move forward and it was difficult to do there. I think it set me back. So I sold the house and rented a three-bedroom in town. Not far from here, as a matter of fact.” A woodpecker hammered away in the distance. “Lucky had passed by then. I had a new dog. Rocco.” Saying his name out loud elicited a string of memories and she smiled, thinking about her early years at the facility. “Rocco worked with me at Overton. We were partners, like Gilmartin and Jett. He was a great dog.” She plucked a branch poking out into the clearing and examined the tiny red berries at the tip. “It was great finally having a home and a dog of my own. I felt”—she tossed the branch to the side—“grown-up, I suppose.”

  “And you were nineteen?”

  “I think I was twenty when I moved to the house on Maple Drive. I stayed there until I was twenty-four.”

  “What happened when you were twent
y-four?”

  Sara looked down at the tracks her Merrells left in the dirt. “I met Nicole.”

  “Boom.” Izzy used her hands to mimic a rocket taking off. “Lesbian U-Haul.”

  “Not exactly.” Sara chuckled at the well-worn joke. “Nicole is ten years older than I am. She owned a house. I was renting. At some point it just made sense to move there.”

  “How come you stayed after you two broke up?” Izzy asked. “I mean, if it was her house, why did she leave and you stay? That seems unusual.”

  Sara thought about the question, trying to figure the most straightforward way to explain her relationship’s demise.

  “We didn’t have this, like, dramatic breakup, Nicole and I.”

  “What happened, then?” They were at a wide section of trail, and Izzy tossed the tennis ball ten feet and Chase tracked it down. Once he snagged it, she let him get a good distance away before commanding him to stop and calling him back again. “How did you meet? Why did you break up? Tell me your story.”

  “Really?” Chase nudged Sara’s hand with the ball, clearly hoping she would take a turn. She took the tennis ball and handed it over.

  When Izzy took it, Sara saw her expression had softened and her shrug held disappointment and forgiveness at the same time.

  “I’m pissed you blew me off all week.” Izzy touched the fur on Chase’s back, getting his attention, then showed him the ball. “Even friends don’t do that to each other.” She threw the ball again. “There, I said it.” She brushed her palms together as if to wipe the slate clean. “We’re here now.” She did a full three-sixty spin. “It’s a gorgeous Saturday morning, this trail is peaceful, thank God I’m still passing the class despite a truly fucked-up week, and Chase is doing well off leash. Let’s enjoy it.” She bumped Sara’s shoulder. “Satisfy my curiosity and tell me about you and Nicole. Start at the beginning.” She employed some serious puppy dog eyes as part of her persuasion. “Please?”

  “The beginning?”

  “You know, tell me how you met and stuff.”