these days, it shouldn’t have surprised her that her emotions would betray her, too.
* * *
THERE WERE DEFINITELY worse ways to spend an evening than sitting across the table from a beautiful woman, Walt thought, once he and Hannah had settled into a booth at a local Italian place. More than one male head had turned to watch Hannah walk across the room, though maybe only Walt saw the fatigue and worry that lurked in her sapphire-blue eyes. He wished he had the power to take that worry and fatigue away from her.
“Tell me about yourself,” he said, once they had placed their orders. “How long have you lived in Dallas?”
“Ten years. I took the job there after I got my master’s at Rice University in Houston.”
“So you’re beautiful and brilliant. I’m already out of my league.”
She sipped her iced tea and regarded him over the rim of the glass. “I don’t know about that.”
“Trust me, it’s true,” he said. “I have a bachelor’s degree from the University of New Mexico and was solidly in the middle of my class. And while I’m sure there are a few professions less glamorous than law enforcement, patrolling the backcountry of public lands is about as far away from a corporate suite as you can get.”
“Your job doesn’t sound boring, though.”
“You might be surprised how boring it can be sometimes. But mostly, it is interesting.”
“What drew you to the work?” She relaxed back against the padded booth, some of the tension easing from around her eyes.
“I like the independence, and I like solving puzzles. And maybe this sounds corny, but I like correcting at least some of the injustice in the world. It’s a good feeling when you put away a smuggler or a poacher or a murderer.” His eyes met hers. “Or a kidnapper.”
She rearranged her silverware. “Do you think this will work? Our pretending to want to join up with them?”
“It’s the best way I can think of to learn what really goes on in their camp. I figure you can get to know the women—especially the mothers with children. I can talk to the men. We might be able to find Anna Ingels—the woman who witnessed your sister’s will. If your niece is there, someone will know it and eventually they’ll let something slip.”
The waiter delivered their food—ravioli for Walt, fish for her. They ate in silence for a moment, then she said, “Have you done anything like this before?”
“You mean undercover work?” He stabbed at a pillow of ravioli. “A couple of times. I posed as a big-game hunter to bring down a group of poachers. And I did a few drug buys, things like that.”
“Did you ever have to pretend to be married to someone?”
“No. That’s a new one. Does that worry you?”
“A little. Not you, I mean—well, I’ve never been married before.”
“Me either.” He laid down his fork and wiped his mouth with his napkin. “Before we get too far into this, are you engaged? Seriously involved with someone? Dating a mixed martial arts fighter who’s insanely jealous?”
Her eyes widened. “No to all of the above. What about you?”
“I don’t have a boyfriend either. Or a girlfriend.”
She laughed. “Really? That surprises me.”
“Does it?”
“You’re good-looking, and friendly. I wouldn’t think you’d have trouble getting a date.”
“No, I don’t have trouble getting dates.” He took another bite of ravioli, delaying his answer. “I’m new to the area,” he said. “I transferred from northern Colorado just last month.”
“And?”
“And what?”
“And there’s something you’re not saying. I heard it in your voice.”
Was he really so easy to read? He searched for some glib lie, but then again, why shouldn’t he tell her? “The last woman I dated seriously is now married to my younger brother.”
“Ouch!”
“Yeah, well, he’s very charming and untroubled by much of a conscience.” The wound still ached a little—not the woman’s betrayal so much as his brother’s. He should have seen it coming, and the fact that he hadn’t made him doubt himself a little.
“So that’s what you meant when you said you understood about thinking you knew a family member well, and turning out to be wrong.”
“Yep. Been there, done that, got the T-shirt.”
“That must make for some awkward family dinners,” she said.
“A little. There are four of us kids—two girls and two boys. For the sake of family harmony, I wished the newlyweds well and keep my distance.”
“It was just Emily and me in my family,” she said. “I think it took my mom a long time to get pregnant again after me.” A smile ghosted across her lips. “I still remember how excited I was when she was born. It was as if I had a real live doll of my own to look after. After our parents were killed in a car crash when Emily was nineteen, all we had was each other. We were inseparable, right up until I went away to Dallas to work. And even after that—even though we lived very different lives—I always felt we were close.” She laid down her fork and her eyes met his. “I blamed Daniel Metwater for taking her away from me. After she joined his cult, I seldom heard from her. What kind of person encourages someone to cut off ties with family that way?”
“We haven’t been able to learn a great deal about him, other than that he’s very charismatic and seems to be offering something that some people find attractive.” He wanted to take her hand, to try to comfort her, but resisted the temptation. “There are probably experts in this kind of thing who could tell you more than I can.”
“He calls his followers a family—as if that could substitute for their real families.”
“Maybe this undercover assignment will give you some of the answers to your questions,” he said. He picked up his fork again.
They ate in silence for a while longer, until she pushed her plate away, her dinner half-eaten. “I’ve been thinking about what you asked me,” she said. “About what Daniel Metwater stood to gain from keeping Joy and claiming her as his own.”
“Did you come up with something?”
“It’s not much, but Emily had a trust from our mother. An annual stipend now, with the bulk coming to her when she turned thirty in two years. Under the terms of the trust, it automatically passes to any children she might have, and can be used to pay living and educational expenses in the event of her death.”
He considered this information, then shook his head. “Metwater supposedly has money of his own.”
“That’s what I understood from
