Truth or Lies? by A. Gomez (book club recommendations txt) 📗

me to look at the time. Jeez wiz! It was already two in the afternoon and no sign of Josh. Not even a phone call to Agent Davis. What could be keeping him?

I peeked up at Davis. “Agent Davis, seeing that both our stomachs are growling… loudly, would you be willing to accompany me downstairs to the cafeteria and get some lunch? We don’t have to eat there, we can bring it back here and eat in my office.” If he says no to this I’m just going to make a run for it.

“Phew! That is a great idea. I was hoping you would ask. I’ll text Rockwall on the way.”

We both grinned at each other relieved we were on the same wavelength. I could almost taste the cheeseburger and fries I was planning on getting. We made small talk on the way down, mostly about what kind of food the cafeteria had and how hungry we were. He did ask me if I had any sisters that were as attractive as me. That made me blush crimson and I humbly answered that I had two younger brothers and no sisters. He looked disappointed and explained that it had been very difficult to meet pretty young ladies that were good conversationalists and smart. He said, in his line of work he didn’t get to go out much. He added that the women in the bureau seemed too manly for him and he wished he could’ve met someone before he joined the FBI. We talked about what books and authors we liked and a little about the case. It took us almost fifteen minutes to get our food and get back to my office. I learned a lot about Davis in those few minutes, especially since he didn’t mind answering all my questions. I wasn’t sure if it was a man thing or if he felt the need for a mini therapy session.

When we got back, Josh was waiting for us, standing behind my desk looking at everything on it. He had a woman with him, who I assumed worked for the FBI as well since I could see her gun and she looked manly like what Davis had described. Both their expressions were impassive but Josh’s eyes seemed to soften when he saw me. Davis knew something was the matter because he put his food down on one of the chairs and took mine from me. My heart started to race and my eyes darted between Josh and the woman.

“Josh? What kept you? We were starving,” I tried not to sound too alarmed.

He came around my desk and stood in front of me. “Isabel,” he said softly, “Isabel, something happened.” I wanted to scream at him, spit it out for the love of Pete! Instead, I looked at him and nodded. “Isabel, the reason I took so long is because I had to go to the courthouse. Something happened.” He was struggling to find his words. I gazed at him, not saying a word. I knew it was bad news but about who or what, I wasn’t sure.

He took a deep breath, “Jill and Agent Stevens were attacked at the courthouse. They’re both downstairs in the ER right now and…” I didn’t wait for him to finish his sentence. I ran out of the room. I didn’t bother with the elevators; I went straight for the stairs. Heels or no heels, I was going to run down those stairs. I got to the bottom in record time and hurried to find David. I shoved my way through the mass of people that were always in the ER. I started yelling David’s name but he didn’t surface. Finally, I stopped a nurse and asked for Dr. David Summers. She pointed to where he was standing.

“David!” I shouted, desperation in my voice. I think I startled him because his shoulders gave a little jump. He was looking around to see where the voice calling his name was coming from.

“Isabel? What’s going on? Why are you here? Did another doctor call you?”

“Where’s Jill? What happened? How is she? Can I see her?” My mouth was running a mile a minute.

“Whoa, slow down. What are you talking about, or rather whom?”

“She’s a prosecutor from the DA’s office. She possibly came in with a man, an FBI agent?” My voice was trembling.

“Oh, yeah the FBI guy. I just saw the man and he has only minor injuries. I think he’ll be fine.”

“David! The woman!” I bellowed at him. “Tell me about the woman. How is she?”

“Yes, the woman, well, I really didn’t get to see her. Dr. Rodriguez worked on her. All I know is that they had to intubate her and they are prepping her for surgery as we speak. Is this your friend from the DA’s office?”

“Yes, she is,” I answered, agitated. “I was supposed to meet her at court earlier today and never made it.”

“Well, it’s a good thing you didn’t. You could be in there with them if you had.”

I felt Josh wrap his arm around my shoulder. I forgot he had to go where I go. He was warm and it felt comforting. David stopped talking, looked at both of us perplexed. I should have introduced them but I didn’t have the energy. My heart was still racing and there was a knot in my gut where my stomach should be. I had so many questions; I didn’t know where to start.

Josh finally broke the silence, “Hi, I’m Special Agent Rockwall.” He extended his hand. David shook it.

“Dr. David Summers,” they shook hands politely. “Agent, huh? So, you know the FBI agent I just treated?”

“Yeah, he and I are working on a case together at the moment. And by the look of things, it just got elevated to worse and complicated.” Josh pulled me closer to him. I looked