Talent to Burn (Hidden Talent #1) by Laura Welling Page B

one with all the criminal skills?”
    He laughed. “It’s not like the movies. All you have to do is follow her to the check-in counter.”
    “Okay.” I still wasn’t sure about this. “Give me your sunglasses for a disguise.”
    He handed them to me, although it was clear he was trying not to laugh.
    I said, “Do you think this means Eric flew somewhere?”
    “I don’t know what it means. If he’s a wanted man, that seems less likely, but maybe he drove and they’re meeting up somewhere. Or for all we know, she’s on her way to visit her grandparents.”
    “I wonder who that guy was at the motel with her.” I pictured him in my mind. “He looked pretty shady.”
    “Good question. I don’t know about shady—he looked like a nightclub bouncer, but everybody has to make a living.”
    We approached the terminal, and Justine’s car pulled over. Jamie pulled in a few spaces back. She climbed out, retrieved her bag from the trunk, and waved the driver off.
    “I’ll call you,” I said. I jumped out of the car, followed her into the terminal, and up to the check-in counters.
    I didn’t want to get too close, so I got in line two people behind Justine. She checked her bag and I craned my neck frantically to see the tag on it. When she turned to head for security, I developed a sudden fascination in the TSA sign behind me. When I was sure she’d gone, I went back outside.
    “That was easier than I expected,” I said into my phone.
    “It usually is. Did you find out where she’s going?”
    “The airport code was IAD.”
    The phone line went silent, dead air on the line. “Are you sure?”
    “Pretty sure. I don’t know where that is though—Iowa?”
    “It’s Washington, DC.” Jamie sounded quiet.
    “Does that mean something?”
    “I’ll pick you up in five, same place I dropped you off.”
    When I got back in the car Jamie said nothing, squinting out through the windshield into the sun. We drove away from the airport, and turned in the opposite direction from the Strip. The air conditioning labored in the heat as we headed out into the desert.
      We traveled until we came to a rest stop, and Jamie pulled in. There was nobody here but us and the tumbleweeds, and the dirt road beneath the tires was riddled with potholes. The car trickled to a stop. Jamie got out and leaned against the wing of the car, arms folded, staring into space.
    I walked around the car to stand in front of him. “What’s going on?”
    “I can’t figure that out.” He rubbed both temples with his fingers. “That’s what has me worried.”
    “What’s interesting about Washington, DC?”
    He lifted his dark gaze to mine. “A couple of things. First, as you know, the Grey Institute is headquartered in Virginia.”
    Now I understood why he’d turned pensive. Why would she go closer to the Institute? “I didn’t know that. When Eric and I were kids, we were in southern California, outside San Diego.”
    Jamie nodded. “Their HQ is relatively new. I think there’s still a training center in San Diego, but they moved the head office to be closer to the seat of power. Easier for lobbying, for fulfilling defense contracts, all that kind of stuff.”
    I thought of Ryder’s spiel about national security. It all made sense.
    “Okay. What’s the other thing?”
    “Second, Riverslea, the headquarters of the Order I work for, is in Potomac, Maryland, on the outskirts of DC. I live there, as do a bunch of other Talents.”
    “Why would Justine be going to either of those places?” I had ideas, but I wanted to know what Jamie thought. Maybe his ideas were less disturbing than mine.
    Jamie stared off into the distance, squinting at the desert sun. “I’m wondering if she’s meeting Eric there, or traveling on her own. Is he on his way back to the Institute, or does she think he might be? Unlikely that he’s on his way to Riverslea, but it’s possible. If I were Eric, the Institute is the last place I’d be