Investigating 101

Investigating 101

Debra Webb

MILLS & BOON

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Our children are our future. There is

no more precious resource on the planet.

This book is dedicated to all those

who take the time to mentor a child. Your work

is an investment in our future. I salute you!

Contents

Cast of Characters

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

About the Author

Coming Next Month

CAST OF CHARACTERS

Todd Thompson—The Colby Agency’s new recruit. Todd is exactly the kind of raw talent the Colby Agency is looking for. Will his natural talent override his lack of experience? There’s only one way to find out.

Serena Black—She is young but dead serious about her work and finding her friend. But just when she is certain she knows who’s responsible for her friend’s abduction, a new clue gets tossed into the mix and points her in an entirely different direction. The only thing Serena can be sure of is her growing attraction to one sexy new recruit.

Dr. Charles Landon—A pioneer in his field, could he really murder his wife and unborn child? Everything he has worked for is about to see fruition, but how much is he willing to pay to reach that pinnacle?

Molly Landon—The only things she ever wanted were her husband’s love and to have the family she’d always dreamed of. Is it too late for that now?

Delia Neely—Was her affair with Charles Landon the reason his wife is missing?

Arthur Miles—He has every reason to be jealous of his colleague Charles Landon. How far would he go to see him fall?

Nolan Fairbanks—He knows plenty of secrets…The question is can Serena trust him?

A. J. Braddock—Colby Agency investigator. A.J. is supposed to keep Todd Thompson on the straight and narrow during his first assignment, but that may prove an impossible task—even for an ex-marine.

Chapter One

Victoria Colby-Camp sat at her desk and stared at the neat pile of manila folders Mildred had placed in the exact middle of her clean blotter pad.

It was the same each Monday morning. Mildred gathered the assignment and status reports from each investigator and brought the bundle to Victoria at nine sharp for her perusal. At ten, a standard staff meeting would take place in the conference room. New assignments would be dissected and doled out, old business would be discussed. The work week would continue from there.

The routine never varied.

Victoria sighed, the sound echoing softly in her empty office.

She had no right to feel this way. Life had been extremely good to her for months now. She certainly could not complain….

And yet, she felt…bored.

Her brow furrowed deeply in denial of her last thought. Perhaps bored was not the proper word. She and Lucas had celebrated their first wedding anniversary a few months ago with a long weekend in the Cayman Islands. Her son was happily married and anticipating the arrival of the first Colby grandchild.

What else could she ask for from her personal life?

The Colby Agency continued to thrive. The cases that walked through reception’s doors included the most intriguing and challenging from right here in Chicago as well as all across the nation—ones that no other agency seemed able to solve in addition to those of longtime, loyal clients.

Still, Victoria felt restless.

She pushed up from her chair and walked across the room to look out at the city she loved. A city pulsing with life, filled with magnificent and innovative architecture. A place rich with colorful and turbulent political history as well as vibrant cultural venues.

There was no other city in the country quite like it. No other place she’d rather be.

Dozens of memories filtered through her mind, warming her heart. It seemed so long ago now that she and James, her first husband and the father of her only son, had started this agency. She had known even then that the Colby Agency would be something very special. How could it be anything else? James Colby had orchestrated its creation.

But now, more than twenty years later, something was missing. She concentrated hard in an effort to pinpoint the motivation for the fleeting sensation.

This odd emptiness had started almost one month ago. At first she’d considered that, with her highly trained and efficient staff, maybe she was bored with her level of participation in the business of private investigations. Her right-hand personnel oversaw most of the day-to-day operations. Though she came to the office each and every day and reviewed all activities, she was not personally involved with the execution of assignments.

But her role had always been in oversight rather than execution. Why would she suddenly feel unsettled in that role now? Admittedly, change could be a good thing. With that in mind, and much to the dismay of her staff, she’d launched a complete overhaul of the agency’s decor. A smile tilted one corner of her mouth. Unquestionably the renovations were a nuisance, but she’d hoped that the transformations would fulfill this sense of lacking she suffered.

The distraction had not worked.

Victoria turned to view her elegantly decorated office. Though the new gold and red tones were quite exquisite, as were the rich jewel tones of the rest of the offices, the relief she’d hoped for had not come.

Nor had the carpet. Her gaze dropped to the beige carpeting on the floor. The contractor had apologized repeatedly for the error. The wrong color had been ordered and, of course, returned, leaving the floor rather bland amid the rest of the opulent decor.

Her attention moved back to her desk and the stack of files. She really should get on with her Monday morning review, but the usual anticipation proved glaringly absent.

There was always the chance that her lackadaisical attitude wasn’t work-related at all.

She’d toyed with the idea of a personal makeover. Nothing elaborate. A new hairstyle perhaps, and possibly a color. Victoria smoothed her hand over her firmly coiled French twist. Never one to bother with such trivialities, she’d worn her hair the same way for half a lifetime, never bothering with touching up the multiplying silver strands that gave away her true age.

Was it time for a personal change?

Lucas appeared more than happy with her hair just as it was. She traced the tiny lines accentuating her eyes and wondered why she’d never worried about those, either. Most women her age and of her social standing had undergone at least one facelift by now.

No, she decided, that wasn’t the problem.

As simple as it would be to pretend a new wardrobe and a visit to a salon would cure her restless feelings, she knew deep down that it wouldn’t help.

Her working life lacked the edge and excitement of the past. Though it was certainly true that the Colby Agency worked many, many intriguing and exciting cases, that wasn’t what she meant.

When she and James had first started the agency, everything had been new, including the investigators they hired. One or two had had previous experience in the field, but most learned from the master, James Colby himself. Time and experience had honed this agency to a gleaming, precious jewel among its competition.

No more rough edges, no more raw exhilaration.

Affection tugged at her lips when she thought of Trevor Sloan and his untamed surliness. He’d been a man with more rough edges than most, and yet the best damned investigator any agency could hope to retain. He’d been young and so had Victoria.

On the heels of that thought came an epiphany.

That was the missing ingredient that had her out of sorts.

Youth.

It wasn’t that she resented growing older. On the contrary—her life was everything she wanted it to be and more. This was strictly business.

And no one knew better about the business of private investigations than she.

Victoria stepped over to the phone on her desk and pressed the intercom button.

“Mildred, find the date and location of that job fair we talked about last week. I’m considering participating.” Anticipation surged in Victoria’s veins. She was on to something here. She could feel it all the way to the pads of her feet.

“I have it right here, Victoria,” Mildred said as she shuffled through her calendar. “Embassy Suites downtown, this weekend.”

Perfect. “Sign the agency up ASAP. I don’t want just a booth, I want a conference room. Get it in tomorrow’s edition of the Tribune.”

“It may be too late to sign up,” Mildred warned.

Victoria grinned. “Talk to Lyle Vandiver at the Chamber of Commerce. He’ll get us in. Pull out all the stops, Mildred. I want to make a big splash.”

“The usual employment requirements?” her secretary asked.

There was no need to mull over the question; Victoria knew what she wanted. “No. This is going to be different. No experience necessary. Drop the age requirement to twenty.”

“Pardon? Did you say twenty?”

“Twenty,” Victoria repeated. That was a far cry from the twenty-five guideline the agency generally used. It had been a very long time since she had considered an applicant too young to have any real job experience. And there was no time like the present to see what she’d been missing.

Still sounding befuddled, Mildred assured, “I’ll get right on it.”

Victoria sat at her desk and began to review the case files with a new sense of purpose.

That was what she’d been missing—just exactly what this agency needed—new blood. Young blood. Raw talent.

The unexpected.

AT 10:00 A.M. on the dot that morning Victoria moved to the conference room where all not on assignment waited.

Ian Michaels and Simon Ruhl sat on either side of her vacant chair at the head of the long polished mahogany table. Ian’s wife, Nicole, as well as Ric Martinez, Ryan Braxton, Pierce Maxwell, Ethan Delaney, Doug Cooper-Smith, Daniel Marks and A. J. Braddock, one of the agency’s newest investigators, were present. Patrick O’Brien, the other new member on Victoria’s staff, was currently on assignment, as were three other investigators.

As Victoria took her place at the table, Elaine Younger, the agency receptionist, poked her head through the door.

“Victoria, the gentlemen are here to install the carpet.”

A litany of groans and sighs went around the room. Elaine looked worried, as if she feared she’d somehow done the wrong thing by making the announcement no one in the room—other than Victoria—wanted to hear.

“Excellent,” Victoria said with a nod of approval in Elaine’s direction. “Let them know they can start in my office.”

Elaine nodded eagerly and quickly closed the door to carry out her orders.

“Victoria.”

Victoria turned to Simon and waited for him to proceed.

“Mildred mentioned that you had decided to join in this weekend’s job fair.”

He didn’t have to say the rest; Victoria read the question in his eyes. Why on earth had she lowered the usual standards for hopeful applicants?

“That’s correct.” She surveyed the table. Judging by the expression on each face, all present had heard the news. “I felt the need to venture into new territory.” She clasped her hands and placed them on the table in front of her. “I’d like to sample the raw talent out there,” she added bluntly. “Any questions?”

Victoria didn’t miss the smile that flirted with Ian’s lips. “You have someone in mind for heading up the event?”

Leave it to Ian to cut to the chase. “Actually,” Victoria said, “I do.” She turned her attention to the right. “I hoped Nicole would be free to handle the job fair.”

Nicole Reed-Michaels was former FBI. She had the incredible beauty of the women gracing the covers of fashion magazines. Sleek blond hair and breathtaking blue eyes. But anyone who let her appearance fool them was in for a big surprise. Nicole was not only highly intelligent, she was downright lethal. No one got in her way.

“I’d be happy to, Victoria,” Nicole volunteered without hesitation. She shifted those assessing blue eyes to her husband. “You won’t mind watching the kids, will you, Ian?”

A moment of loaded silence passed as every man in the room struggled to restrain a grin or a chuckle. Victoria didn’t bother holding back. Her lips spread wide with amusement. She loved the power Nicole had over the enigmatic Ian.

“Of course not,” he said to his wife before turning back to Victoria. “Shall we move on?”

The status of each ongoing case was reported and new ones assigned. Victoria observed the well-educated, refined members of her outstanding staff. Only the best. The Colby Agency employed the most outstanding in their respective fields…the cream of the crop from many walks of life, including the military as well as other government agencies and law enforcement. Victoria had always prided herself on ferreting out those who had excelled in their former careers. Men and women who were highly trained and well experienced.

But that was about to change.

She needed an infusion of the unknown…of raw, edgy talent.

Excitement. That was what the Colby Agency needed.

Pure T-type adrenaline. Young blood, ready to do anything to prove him or herself.

Just like in the old days.

Chapter Two

It wasn’t every day a guy got the goods on a cheating, backstabbing employee. Especially one who was in line for the job said guy wanted.

Todd Thompson grinned.

He’d gotten the evidence.

Pictures didn’t lie.

He tapped the nine-by-twelve envelope on the passenger seat of his car. Oh, yeah, today was going to be a very good day. Less than one year out of college and he would make senior associate at the agency.

He’d gotten a callback on his résumé even before graduating. Todd had never believed in waiting until the last minute. He’d liked being prepared, knowing what his future held. So he’d sent out résumés six weeks before graduation. The Wellsly Agency of private investigations had contacted him immediately.

It wasn’t every day a student with a major in psychology and a minor in criminology knocked on their door. The way he saw it, his choice of studies gave him an edge as an investigator. That was exactly how he’d known that his colleague was up to no good. He had a knack for reading people.

Todd parked his beat-up Volvo in the only vacant slot in the parking lot of the building his agency called home. Six months on staff and he was up for promotion already. The only problem was, there was only one senior associate position available and both he and his colleague Janelle Dryer wanted it. Janelle had two months on him at the agency. She also had a killer pair of legs.

But she’d made one fatal mistake. She hadn’t covered her tracks well enough.

The agency had suspected for a while now that someone amid their ranks was leaking information to the attorneys of certain high-profile targets. At least two incidents had led to this conclusion, but no one had been able to nail the culprit.

Until now.

Todd had decided to do a little extra investigating himself. The fact that his nemesis was the leak just made victory all the more sweet. When he’d set out to do this he’d merely hoped the move would get him the attention he wanted, and, of course, the promotion. He’d never expected to knock the competition completely out of the running in the same blow. Janelle was guilty. No question in his mind. Why else would she be sleeping with one of the attorneys involved? No reason he could think of. At the very least, this infraction made her unreliable and put him at the top of the food chain.

He felt a prick of guilt, might even have felt some remorse if Dryer hadn’t backstabbed him three times already in the past six months. She’d taken every opportunity to make him look bad. Had accomplished her mission once. But this wasn’t about revenge—this was about survival of the fittest. The best man should get the job and all that jazz.

He was the best man.

He hustled through the front door and straight up to the bank of elevators a full thirty minutes before his workday actually began. His immediate supervisor, Chet Syler, was waiting. Todd had called him at home last night and informed him that he had evidence as to the identity of the leak. His supervisor had insisted that the information be kept between the two of them until whatever evidence Todd possessed could be confirmed. Todd didn’t have a problem with that. It was hard to dispute Dryer and the attorney rolling between the sheets when he had a whole roll of prints to back up his assertion.

He stabbed the button for the seventh floor and leaned against the back wall of the elevator. He held the envelope firmly in one hand. It wasn’t that he enjoyed ratting people out, but this was business. Dryer would have done the same to him. It didn’t take a degree in psychology to know that. And he had one.

On the seventh floor he said hello to the receptionist already at her post then strode confidently to Syler’s office. He didn’t particularly care that the receptionist didn’t bother returning his greeting. Maybe she was distracted. Whatever. He had bigger things on his mind. Such as his first promotion.

Feeling triumphant and utterly satisfied, Todd took one last deep breath before knocking on the door.

Oh, yeah, today was definitely going to be a stellar day.

Syler glanced up but didn’t bother standing as Todd entered his office. Funny thing was, his superior didn’t look the least bit happy. Without so much as a good morning, Syler reached for the envelope. Confusion elbowing out his victorious afterglow, Todd placed the envelope in his boss’s hand. He didn’t sit since he hadn’t been invited to. The whole situation suddenly felt off kilter somehow.

Syler shuffled through the glossy eight-by-tens, his expression never changing. Somehow Todd hadn’t expected this kind of reaction. Anger, disappointment, jealousy maybe, but not this total lack of emotion.

The older man shoved the pictures back into the envelope and turned his full attention on Todd. Todd had the uneasy feeling that he’d just walked into a trap.

“Did you know that Ms. Dryer had been married and divorced?” Syler asked, his voice flat as he delivered the seemingly irrelevant question. “Her maiden name is Syler.”

Todd blinked as the relevance hit him square between the eyes. “No, sir,” he admitted before swallowing hard to force down the massive lump of crow in his throat. “I didn’t know that.” But he knew exactly what it meant. “She’s your daughter?”

The blush of fury started at his superior’s crisp white collar. “That’s right.” He snatched up the incriminating envelope and shoved it into his middle desk drawer. “I’ve suspected for some time that one of the senior partners was the leak. I asked Ms. Dryer to find the truth.” His jaw flexed twice with rage. “She was to do whatever necessary to accomplish her mission. Today she will announce her findings in a closed briefing to the senior partners.”

The whole scenario suddenly made perfect sense to Todd. Syler was a partner, but not a senior partner. If he could prove one of the senior partners was the leak, he would be in line for a promotion, as would his lovely daughter. The information she had obtained would cinch both moves.

Oh, man. “I can assure you, sir,” Todd put in quickly, “no one will hear about her methods from me.”

“The problem is, Mr. Thompson—” Syler rose from his chair as he said this “—I don’t like you. My daughter doesn’t like you. Let’s just leave it at that. When you’ve cleared out your desk, you can pick up your severance pay from the receptionist.”

There was nothing else to say. Todd knew a brick wall when he hit one and he’d damned sure rammed headfirst into this one.

Todd cleared out his desk and picked up his severance pay as instructed. All under the careful watch of a security guard. As hard as he’d tried to be out before the staff started to arrive, he ran into Dryer in the lobby. She smirked and gave him a universal hand signal that stated her position quite clearly.

She’d won. The promotion was hers and he was out of a job.

He tossed the box of odds and ends into the backseat of his car and then dropped behind the wheel. At least it was Friday. He’d have time to look over the classifieds and update his résumé before hitting the streets on Monday.

The severance pay would cover the coming month’s rent.

He swore as he twisted the key in the ignition. Maybe he should have gone to grad school. His folks had said he’d regret not pursuing a higher degree. But no, he’d been too on fire to get out there and dive into the world of investigations. It had been his dream since he was a kid.

It should be simple. He was good. Just ask any of his professors. Hell, he’d even lived a double life for three whole months to write a thesis like no other. The plan had backfired a little, but he’d come out all right. His advisor had secretly told him he’d never read a thesis so compelling. So what if Todd had pretended to be someone he wasn’t to make it happen. No harm had been done, except to a few egos.

Oh, well. Chicago was a big city. There had to be an agency that would appreciate his particular skills.

He pulled over to the curb in front of the diner where he usually grabbed breakfast on Saturdays. Might as well eat and maybe scan today’s paper. Anything was better than going back to his studio apartment and walking the floors.

He couldn’t call his parents. They would only plead with him to come back home to Alabama. What was a small-town boy like him doing in a big city? That was his folks’ way of looking at the situation. He couldn’t explain to them that there was a great deal more to life than being the star football player on the high school team and going on to teach at the same school as his father had. No offense. Todd loved and admired his father. But that life just wasn’t for him.

He wanted—yearned for—excitement. The kind he wouldn’t find in Birmingham, Alabama. Chicago was the place to be. And even if Wellsly wasn’t the very top agency in this city, it had been a damn good starting place.

But he’d blown that opportunity by being overzealous.

Who the hell else would give him a shot without any real experience? Listing Wellsly as a previous employer might not be the best way to get his foot in the door someplace else, considering he’d just been fired.

“Morning, Todd.” Anna, the waitress who took his order every Saturday morning, greeted him from behind the counter. “You want the usual this morning?”

He dredged up a friendly smile. “You got it, pretty lady.” He winked and the older woman blushed. She reminded him of his mother. Gray hair tucked into a practical bun. Conservative uniform concealing every inch of her from the knees up and shiny pink lip gloss making her smile sparkle. A genuinely nice lady.