Eye for an Eye, an (Heroes of Quantico Book #2): A Novel Read Online Free PDF

the baby’s born?”
    “We’ve had a few discussions.” Coop pushed away from the partition. “Where are we off to?”
    “I want to stop by the hospital.”
    “Steve said you know the woman who was shot.”
    “Yeah. We go way back. But I haven’t seen her in twenty years.
    And after a reunion like this, I wouldn’t blame her if she never wanted to see me again.” A muscle clenched in his jaw.
    “If you hadn’t been there and reacted as quickly as you did, she might be dead.”
    “If I hadn’t been there, the shooting might not have happened.” “I’ve been thinking about that.” Coop shoved his hands into his pockets and regarded Mark. “You’re guessing this is related to the convenience store incident. That you were targeted.”
    “It seems like a logical conclusion. A random shooter doesn’t pick a deserted park and fire just two shots.”
    “Do you jog there every day?”
    “No.” He’d been indoctrinated to avoid patterned behavior.
    “But I do go there a couple of times a week. If someone was after me, they could show up a few days in a row and wait.”
    “That would raise the risk of detection exponentially.”
    “We may not be dealing with a rational person.”
    “I’m not sure I buy that. From what I’ve gathered, the shooting sounds like a very deliberate, well-thought-out attempt to take somebody out. And according to the latest update from the crime scene, the shooter managed to disappear without leaving much evidence. That suggests he didn’t want to be caught and knew how to avoid detection. Sounds rational to me.”
    “Then how do you explain the risk he took, hanging around maybe several days in a row, waiting for me to show?”
    “I can’t. It doesn’t make sense. But neither does the random theory.” A beat of silence ticked by. “Tell me about your friend.”
    Mark paused in the process of sliding his Glock into the holster on his belt, momentarily thrown by the change of subject.
    “Emily?”
    “Yeah.”
    “She’s a clinical psychologist.”
    “Any enemies that you know of?”
    The question jolted him. “She’s not the kind of person to have enemies.”
    “How do you know? You haven’t seen her in twenty years.”
    “I talked to her this morning. Trust me. She’s still not the kind of person to have enemies.”
    “Steve’s running a background check on her.”
    “That’s a waste of time.”
    “I’d do the same in his place. You would too, under normal circumstances.” Coop gave him a speculative look. “Maybe you’re too close to this one, Mark.”
    Taking a deep breath, Mark secured his gun in his holster.
    “Okay. You’re right. Every possibility does need to be looked at—dead end or not. You ready to head out?”
    “Lead the way. I took a cab from the airport. I didn’t think I’d need a car, since Les’s orders were clear that I was to be your shadow until this thing gets sorted out.”
    “You realize that may not happen overnight.” Mark wove his way to the rear of the building.
    “Yes. That’s why I reminded Monica as I left that absence makes the heart grow fonder.”
    “I bet she loved that.” Mark reached for the door, only to feel Coop’s restraining hand on his shoulder.
    “Hand over the keys and let me go first.”
    Frustration tightened Mark’s features as he turned toward his partner. “This is going to get old really fast.”
    “Understood. But humor me, okay? If anything happens to you, my neck’s on the line.”
    With a disgruntled look, Mark fished the keys out of his pocket and stepped aside. Coop disappeared through the door, returning two minutes later to motion him outside. “We’re clear.”
    “Thanks.”
    “You’re welcome.” Coop’s sarcasm matched Mark’s.
    The drive to the hospital was quiet. Mark knew Coop was checking for tails—just as he was. If this kept up, he was going to be more paranoid than he already was.
    They stopped once, at a florist shop, and Coop insisted on the same security