Page 84 of Blind Trust
“Are you going to tell him?”
She started pulling Styrofoam cups out and filling them with coffee that steamed against the chilly hospital air. “Not until we know the context behind that photo.”
“Lyla—”
“Tom—Walsh—our boss, was shot tonight. It feels like a nightmare I can’t wrap my head around, and I have a photo in mypocket that might put Walsh at the scene of an arms deal gone bad. I can’t.” She released a shaky breath. “I just need a minute to process everything.”
“I agree.”
She frowned. “You do?”
“Lyla, I’m on your side.” Nicolás took the cup of coffee out of her hand and set it on the table. Then he took her hands in his. “But I think we need to proceed with caution. We don’t know why R.D. gave us that photo. The first thing we need to do is authenticate it and then identify the other people in it. I’m not saying we have to hand this over to the CIA, but we certainly need to let Jack know.”
“I like that plan.” Lyla breathed in deeply. “Thank you, Nicolás.”
They stood there, unmoving, and a feeling she couldn’t immediately identify pushed her to step forward. Her hands trailed up his arms to his biceps. Her breathing slowed as she met his eyes again before allowing them to move to his lips for just a second—but long enough for her to clearly recognize that the feeling blossoming inside her chest was more than attraction.
Movement outside the room stole Lyla’s attention from Nicolás. Her father, Sam, and a woman with red hair walked by in a hurry. Was Tom out of surgery?
“Nicolás, I’ll be right back.”
“Go. I’ll get the coffee.”
Lyla stepped into the hallway and headed in the same direction she’d seen them walking. Ahead was a double door that required an authorized badge to enter. Had they gone in there? She heard her father’s voice echo from a room off to the side. The sign on the door that was cracked open identified the room as the Nurses’ Lounge. She edged closer and paused when she heard her name.
“Do you think they’re coming after Lyla?”
Sam’s question clearly wasn’t for a doctor or nurse, but it didn’t make sense for her to ask Lyla’s dad. Her father worked with a few defense companies, but...Lyla edged closer but couldn’t get a clear view of the redheaded woman.
“I don’t know.” Lyla cocked her head to the side at the sound of the female voice with a British accent. “But we can’t rule it out.”
“Why would they come after her now?” Her father’s tone was sharper than she’d ever heard. “It’s been twenty-five years!”
Twenty-five years?Who was coming after her?
“I don’t know,” the redhead answered. “My best guess is they’re not, that all this is coincidence. So long as we can keep her from finding out who Connor is—was—I know that’s what Tom was trying to do.”
“That’s what we’ve all been trying to do,” her father replied, and Lyla didn’t like the sadness she detected. “All these years, and there’s not a single second when I don’t see her as my daughter.”
Lyla stepped backward.See me as his daughter?Pushing the door open, she stared at her father, who lost the color in his face. Sam covered her mouth, eyes watering. The redheaded woman stood there, unflinching.
“What do you mean, not a second goes by when you don’t see me as your daughter?”
“Lyla...” Her dad headed toward her, and she took one step back. He glanced at Sam, then to the redhead.
“Am I not your daughter?”
A tear streamed down her father’s cheek. “You have always been my daughter.”
His resolute answer unhinged something inside her, bolstering her to ask again. “Are you my biological father?”
A second ticked by, and he gave a tiny shake of his head. Everything in Lyla collapsed. She fought the tears, forcing herself to ask one more question.
“Mom?”
Her father wiped at his cheek. “No.”
His voice came out in a hoarse whisper and Lyla backed up, moving down the hallway several steps before she turned, nearly running into Nicolás carrying two cups of coffee.
