Beyond the Consequences (Book 5 of the Consequences Series)(19)

“No. The way they looked back and forth at one another, and the way Phil said we.”

“Yes, I guess.” Tony wrinkled his brow. “Why? I have no idea what you’re asking.”

“I think Phil’s getting used to having someone else around. I mean, he’s pretty much been in control of all things security, and although he was instrumental with our hiring Taylor, I got the feeling he felt like she was invading his turf. It just seems like after this, well, she was able to be in the bathroom with us when he couldn’t. If she hadn’t been there, and he’d been outside, who knows what would have happened.”

“I don’t even want to think about it.”

Claire grinned. “I like it. It’s good for him. I think he spends too much time alone.”

Tony shrugged. “He’s got Eric.”

“I don’t think it’s the same thing,” she said with a smirk.

Shaking his head, Tony pressed his lips together. “Mrs. Rawlings, don’t play matchmaker. I want Phil and Taylor’s attention on you and Nichol, not on one another.”

“No one said they can’t do both.”





Decision is the courageous facing of issues, knowing that if they are not faced, problems will remain forever unanswered.

—Wilfred A. Peterson




ONCE WITHIN THE hallway, Phil and Taylor moved silently away from the Rawlingses’ office toward the security hub for the estate. As they approached their destination, Phil’s gaze narrowed toward his new associate. Finally he voiced the question he’d been burning to ask, “What the hell did you almost say in there?”

Taylor’s neck straightened. “I was going to mention the possible location of Mr. Rawlings’ past assistant, Patricia Miles. She’s the prime suspect, and in their last report the FBI said that she was recently suspected to reside in a small town in Minnesota under an alias.”

“I didn’t share that information with you. How do you know that?”

Taylor’s hands found her hips as her voice dropped an octave. “I’m part of this team.” She motioned down the corridor toward the closed office doors. “Mr. and Mrs. Rawlings have accepted me. Eric has accepted my role. Maybe it’s time you eased up on your one-man crusade and accept that I’m here to help.”

“I never said you weren’t here to help. Helping doesn’t include scaring Claire or upsetting Rawlings with unsubstantiated information.”

“What’s unsubstantiated? I read the report. Patricia Miles is believed to be living as Melissa Garrison and working for a small law practice in Olivia, Minnesota. More definitive results are due back in a matter of weeks.”

Phil bristled. “There are some things that are better left unsaid.”

“Team, Mr. Roach, that’s how this works. Teams talk; they share.”

Phil reached out to grab Taylor’s elbow. “You want to talk about it? Fine, talk to me. Talk to Eric. Do not take this to either Rawlings or Claire until we have definitive answers. Even then, talk to me first. Security for this family is my detail.”

Taylor pulled her elbow free. “Excuse me, who was there when Rudolf came out of the stall? Who figured out the connection with Sophie?”

“I’m not saying that your assistance hasn’t been valued. What you did in New York was, well, it was more than I could’ve done, but you don’t understand all that they’ve been through, especially her.”

“Her? Your employer? Mr. Rawlings’s wife?”

Phil took a step back, assessing the meaning of Taylor’s question. “Yes, her. Her last few years have been difficult. She doesn’t need additional stress.”

As Taylor began to speak, Phil’s mind flashed with memories—snapshots in time—beginning when he received the call from Brent Simmons: the first time he’d heard the name Claire Nichols. At the time, it seemed simple enough. Phil had done investigative work for Simmons in the past. This time he was asked if he could locate a lost woman and work temporary surveillance. That was almost four years ago. Four years. Phil hadn’t spent four consecutive years with anyone since he left his parents’ home and joined the military. Four years was a lifetime: more than Nichol’s lifetime.

Not hearing Taylor’s response, Phil went on, “She’s all of those things. I’ve been with this family longer than anyone here, besides Eric. You don’t understand all that’s transpired.”

“Really?” she asked, snapping her neck so that her blue eyes blazed toward Phil. “Do you think that poorly of my investigative skills that I’d walk into a job with a family like the Rawlingses with no information about them? Why the hell did you support my hiring if you’d assume such ignorance?”

Phil briefly closed his eyes. He had no desire to get into this with anyone, especially his new associate. “Did I ever say that I supported your hiring?”

“Mrs. Rawlings said that you did. Perhaps I shouldn’t believe my employer?”

Damn. Claire always did talk too much, to everyone. “You had an impressive resume. I was particularly interested in your independent work since leaving the bureau.”

Yes, Phil had done his research too. He would never allow someone open access to his family without it. Taylor Walters had all the right schooling, a double major in psychology and criminology. She worked local law enforcement for seven years before joining the FBI. Six years at the bureau had her working hostage negotiation. There’s no doubt she had a way with diplomacy. Taylor excelled in her chosen field until she was shot in the line of duty. After rehab she was reassigned to a desk job: cybercrime. It only took a year of sitting behind the scenes until she left the FBI and pursued independent jobs, many not unlike some that Phil himself had done.