Colby Velocity

“Right on time,” Rocky said under his breath.

Kendra followed his gaze to the mirror behind the bar. The reflection of the room behind them showed Castille and two other men following the hostess to a table near one of the towering windows with a view of the street below. For added privacy, the dining room was located on the second floor.

“He only allows one member of his security inside,” Drea explained, keeping his voice hushed. “He’s the one in the black suit. The other guy is Bernard Capshaw. He’s the CEO of Capshaw Enterprises.”

A waitress approached the other end of the bar, drawing Drea in that direction.

Kendra wasn’t acquainted with Capshaw the man, but she knew the company. Aerospace technology. The industry, like many others, was on the edge of financial collapse and in need of government support.

Castille hadn’t changed much. If anything he looked younger. The wonders of modern cosmetic procedures. She couldn’t see the man going for full blown surgery but there were other, more convenient procedures that provided ample benefits.

Appearances were supremely important in this high-stakes arena.

The other man, Secret Service no doubt, was an unknown to her. No one from three years ago but that changed nothing. Kendra was well aware of SOP. The senator wouldn’t be allowed out of the man’s line of sight except to visit the men’s room and only then after the facility had been checked for hidden threats.

“I’ll be waiting in the ladies’ room,” Kendra said to Rocky. “Send me a text if Castille wanders in that direction.”

“You might be in for a long wait,” Rocky noted.

That was true, but it was the only way to ensure she got one-on-one time with the senator. And that she didn’t attract the attention of his security. “Text me if he leaves the table.”

“Will do.”

Rocky watched her in the mirror behind the bar as she slid off the stool. As she made her way to the ladies’ room she wondered how long his total cooperation would last. So far he hadn’t actually questioned any of her decisions, but then they’d scarcely begun.

The ladies’ room had been renovated since Kendra’s last visit here. Opulence remained the mainstay of the decorating theme. Nothing but the best for the power players. At one point some newly elected senator had suggested that popular gathering spots like the Summit were subsidized by wealthy lobbyists who wanted the atmosphere conducive to persuasion.

No one paid any real attention to the accusation, yet everyone understood that it was in all likelihood true on some level.

Money talked.

Most anything else walked.

Kendra’s cell vibrated in its leather holster. She checked the display. The text was from Rocky and read: Security headed your way.

The man in the black suit would check the men’s room then return to the table to let the senator know it was all clear. Since both the men’s room and the ladies’ were stationed in a short corridor that led to nothing else, entry was possible only from the dining room. Permitting security to feel comfortable allowing the man to do his business in private.

Let me know when security returns to the table and Castille heads this way, she entered before hitting the send button.

Kendra checked her reflection. Smoothed a hand over her suit jacket. She looked as tired as she felt. The weariness particularly showed in her eyes. Never a good position from which to strike. This would be her first face-to-face with Castille since the day she’d walked out of his office. He wouldn’t be happy to see her.

“Tough,” she muttered.

Her cell vibrated. Security has returned to table. Your mark is en route.

Kendra tucked her phone away and took a breath. She pressed her ear to the door and listened for the neighboring hinges to whine. The carpeted floor prevented her from hearing Castille’s approach.

A soft metal-on-metal rub signaled the senator had entered the men’s room directly across the narrow corridor. Time to move.

She eased open the ladies’ room door and quickly surveyed the corridor all the while knowing that Rocky would have warned her if anyone else had approached the area.

Clear.

Though no one had come this way while they sat at the bar, she still felt uncomfortable barging into the men’s room. Putting manners aside, she crossed the corridor in two strides and entered forbidden territory.

Castille stood before the row of marble sinks admiring his thick head of gray hair in the mirror. Apparently satisfied, he reached to adjust his silk jacket. As the door whooshed closed behind Kendra his gaze collided with hers in the mirror.

“Afternoon, Senator.” Kendra closed in on his position, her head held high, her shoulders square.

He stilled. Fury flared in his eyes. “You.”

That he didn’t immediately go for the call button on the belt at his waist surprised her. Security would have descended upon the men’s room in ten seconds or less. And she would be spending hours under federal interrogation.

“It’s been a while,” she commented as she leaned one hip against the cool marble about three feet from where he stood. Crowding him wasn’t the goal.

He cut her a look that warned exactly how he still felt about her. “I don’t know what you think you’re doing, but you’re making a very serious error in judgment. This is stalking.”

“Yoni was my friend.” That his primary worry was her presence infuriated Kendra. “I want to know what happened to him.”

“His murder,” Castille said in a matter-of-fact tone, “had nothing to do with his work.” His attention shifted back to the mirror as he straightened his purple tie yet again. “You should have checked your facts before you bothered to make an appearance.”

“Why don’t you enlighten me?” she suggested while he openly admired the fit of his charcoal suit.

He faced her, the lack of compassion in his expression fueling her fury. “The official conclusion at this point is that the homicide that occurred early this morning had nothing to do with Sayar’s political position. Preliminary results of the homicide investigation will be released tomorrow morning. You, like the rest of the world, can catch it on your preferred news channel.”

“He came to me with concerns,” she countered. Let him offer an explanation for that. “I’m here to follow up on those concerns.”

Castille puffed. “Yoni was losing his edge. Confidence in his ability was on a downward trend. Surely you haven’t forgotten how it works in this town. There are two kinds of folks.”

The bastard took the time to wash his hands before continuing. Kendra’s fury rushed unimpeded toward the boiling point.

Castille selected a meticulously rolled hand towel from the basket on the counter and dried his hands then settled his condescending gaze upon her once more. “Those who rise to the mountaintop and those who tumble over the edge of the cliff. Yoni was stumbling. He was on his way down. There was nothing I could do to help him.”

“Because of the Transparency Bill?”

The brief glimmer of surprise in those cold eyes sent triumph rocketing into her chest. He knew Kendra well enough to understand that if she knew that, she knew much more.

“The bill is brilliant,” Castille confessed. “But the weight of taking such a stand helped to push our friend off that ledge, Kendra. The pressure under these kinds of circumstances is immeasurable. Yoni buckled under that tremendous weight.”

The senator shrugged. “There is no mystery here. Tomorrow’s press conference will set the record straight for any conspiracy theorists. Such as yourself,” he accused.

“I’ll make my own determination as to whether there’s a mystery or not,” she challenged, not put off one bit by his condescension. She wasn’t going anywhere until she had the whole truth.

“Then consider yourself on notice.” Castille tossed the hand towel aside. “If you attempt to connect Yoni’s troubles to me or my office, you will be profoundly sorry you made the mistake of coming back.”

He walked past her.

“Consider yourself on notice, Senator.” She turned, surprised that he’d hesitated at the door, his back to her. “I’m not afraid of you or your position. If the facts lead back to you, that’s where I’ll go. And if

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