G-Men: The Series (62 page)

“Have a nice night, Linds,” she said, giving me a wink.

I threw her a dirty look as I opened the hall closet and got a pillow and blanket out.

“Here you go,” I said, handing/chucking them to Taz, who now had his legs propped up on the coffee table.

“Turning in?” he asked, looking up from his laptop at me with those incredibly green eyes.

“Yep,” I replied. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

“Goodnight, Lindsey.”

“Goodnight, Taz.”

^{chapter 22}

I was up and ready to leave for school by 8:30 on Monday morning. Taz didn’t appear to be very well rested. I noticed the trash can in the kitchen had an army of empty beer bottles resting at the top.

His five o’clock shadow had reached midnight, and his hair was sleep-tousled, spiking out all over the place. He grumbled something to me about needing coffee as he rambled down the hall towards the bathroom.

I put some coffee on and, by the time he came back out looking a bit better, I had a steaming cup waiting for him. He sat at the breakfast bar, taking his time sipping his coffee.

“I take it you girls don’t do breakfast,” he commented, raking his hand through his hair.

“I usually get something in the cafeteria before my first class,” I replied, putting my books in my backpack.

Darcy came into the living room ready to go.

“Hey Taz,” she greeted, sounding unusually chipper. “Did you sleep well?”

He lifted an eyebrow, brought his coffee mug up to his lips, and nodded. “Yeah, fine.”

“Well, I’m off, Lindsey. I’ll see you both this evening, I guess.”

“See you, Darce.”

“So Taz, what’s going on with your classes since you’re stuck here for a few days?”

“Luckily, my courses this term are online, so it’s not a problem. You ready?”

“Yep,” I replied, hoisting my backpack over my shoulders.

Taz drove me to the campus in his truck. He seemed to be aware of everything around him. I was kind of fascinated that I hadn’t noticed before his synchronized glances in the side and rearview mirror.

I wondered if that was some sort of built-in behavior that was now second-nature to him being in the bureau. Slate was the same way.

“So, are we being tailed?” I joked.

He looked over at me, his sunglasses preventing me from seeing his sexy green eyes or reading his expression for that matter.

“Make jokes if you want, but it damn sure wouldn’t hurt you to develop some behavioral instincts. You aren’t always going to have your worrywart step-father around.”

“What exactly is that supposed to mean?”

“What it means, baby girl, is that no matter how you’re related to Slate, I wouldn’t be here unless he thought I needed to be. Slate doesn’t operate on emotions. He operates on instinct and Intel. Something is telling him things aren’t right here and there’s more to the story that likely involves previous Intel that he has received.”

Now Taz was just plain frightening me. What did he know?

“Do you know something that you’re not telling me?”

“There are plenty of things that I don’t tell you. Some of them are personal, and some are privileged…which I’m not at liberty to divulge.”

“Well, how about we start with the personal stuff then, since you have no such restriction preventing you to share.”

“Okay, for starters, how well do you know this Kyzer dude?”

“I know Kyzer from school. We were in some classes together last semester. He’s always been friendly to me. We were in a study group together and had lunch a few times before my car was towed away. Being the nice and caring person that he is, he chauffeured me around for that last week of school before winter break.”

“Okay and how did he know you needed rides to and from school?”

“He saw me get out of a cab on campus the morning after my car was towed. Darcy and Jill didn’t have classes that early, so I took a cab. He asked me if my car had broken down, and I simply told him it was out of commission for several days. He made the offer, I accepted.”

“Okay, and, just like that, you have total trust in him and basically are acting like you’re ready to serve your pussy up to him on a silver platter.”

“Don’t be crude, Taz.”

He gave a genuine laugh, shaking his head.

“Don’t be crude? Jesus Christ, dude’s toes are going to curl when he hears how crudely you talk when you’re getting your nut.”

He continued laughing and it royally pissed me off.

“That stuff is private! We shouldn’t even be discussing it. It’s got no bearing on whatever point you’re trying to make with me at the moment.”

“Okay, Ms. Prim and Proper, you want a point? I’m going to give you one. First off, Kyzer started being a more integral part of your social circle the day after your car was broken into. Secondly, his interest in you has ramped up fairly quickly since that time for someone who isn’t getting pussy, unless of course that has changed.”

He was looking over at me know expecting me to confirm or deny.

“Jesus Christ! I saw him for the first time since the holidays just yesterday. What the hell? Did you think we were humping in his car before he walked me up to my door?”

My eyes were bugging out at him again. I was that pissed by his assumption that somehow our little training sessions had rendered me a skank.

“Keep your eyes in their sockets,” he remarked. “I’m simply pointing out the facts. Let’s not forget how generous he was in offering up his daddy’s private jet in order to get your grandmother up to you on Christmas Eve.”

I crossed my arms, giving him the benefit of no response. He continued on, as if not noticing my distaste for where he was taking this.

“Let’s talk about the roses being delivered yesterday. Whoever sent those or commissioned them to be dropped off, knew you’d be coming back to your apartment that day. They were fresh. They were delivered just two hours before you got to the apartment.”

“How do you know that?”

“It’s my job to know these things. It’s what I do.”

“So, what do you know that you’re at liberty to share?”

“I checked with your doorman. He had to sign for them and record the time. It was a private courier that delivered them. The courier service said that a cab dropped them off to their depot to be delivered. Of course, the cab driver who had the drop didn’t bother to call it into dispatch, so there’s no way of knowing who the driver even was. The courier service described the driver as medium height, medium weight, white or dark-skinned male between 35 and 45 years of age.”

“They weren’t even sure of the name of the cab company. The car had one of those magnetic signs on it, which anyone can make.”

I was amazed. I couldn’t believe how much Taz had learned in such a short amount of time. Part of me still suspected that he was making more of the situation with Kyzer for reasons of his own that had nothing to do with the investigation.

“So, I guess I need to know what your point is as far as Kyzer is concerned. I’m dating him you know.”

“My advice is to take things
very
slowly with him. I would certainly advise you to not put yourself in a position where you’re alone with him. Avoid getting intimate with him. It’s quite possible that he is not what he seems to be. This is simply based on my experience and instincts. I have nothing concrete right now, but you can bet your sweet ass that I’m looking.”

“Hmmph,” I said, turning my head away from him and looking out the window.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” he questioned tersely.

“Are you sure you aren’t just a tad biased where Kyzer is concerned?”

“What reason would I have to be biased?”

“I’m not as naïve as you’d like to think. I know all about the male ego and territorial nature. Is it just possible you’re feeling that someone is interested in the ‘territory’ you so expertly marked?” I threw in a smile and a slight batting of my eyes at him when I said it.

His face turned to stone.

On the other hand…

“Grow up, Lindsey, and get over yourself. You and I kicked it a few times, so what? I fuck a lot of chicks and don’t go all ‘territorial’ on them. This isn’t some game we’re playing like fucking sophomores in high school. You asked for my point of view and I gave it. I can’t control what you say or do with this guy. I would recommend you focus more on what type of information he attempts to extract from you. That’ll quickly show his true motives.”

I was embarrassed that he’d called me out like some starry-eyed teenager. Everything he said sounded logical to me, except for the fact that I didn’t see Kyzer as being a villain in any of this.

I did think that Taz was a bit out of sorts that we wouldn’t be sleeping together anymore. I knew about the male ego. At this point, the fact that I was working on developing a relationship with Kyzer would ultimately lead to it being a sexual one.

I felt that Taz was struggling with that, not because he was emotionally invested, but because it was a matter of male dominance. I’d learned all about it in my Psych classes.

We’d reached the building where my first class was scheduled. I marveled that Taz had known exactly where it was located without me giving directions or him having been here before. Then I remembered that Taz had done his homework as far as my schedule and the location of my classes. He was taking this seriously and I needed to respect that.

“Thanks for the lift. I’ll take your advice regarding Kyzer and anyone else for that matter. I apologize for doubting your motives.”

I turned and opened the passenger side door to exit his truck. Just as I’d jumped down to the pavement from his truck, Taz informed me he would see me between classes.

“Okay, then I’ll see you in about ninety minutes.”

“Lindsey,” he said, as I started to shut the door of his truck. I looked over at him. “Aren’t you going to give me a kiss goodbye?” he asked, tapping the side of his cheek with a finger.

I shook my head in exasperation and shut the door, turning to walk up towards the entrance to the building. I heard his sexy laughter as he pulled away.

^{chapter 23}

~ TAZ ~

I watched Lindsey walk into the building where her first class was scheduled. I enjoyed watching her perky little cupcake ass wiggle just a tad in those tight jeans she was wearing. My mind pictured what that ass looked like naked. Shit! It was perfect and why the hell was I fucking torturing myself with it?

I pulled away and cruised through the lot, looking for the Benz that Kyzer Stanfield drove. I found it in the lot across from Simmons Hall. Black sedan, Florida license plate 787 Tango, Bravo, Delta. Yeah. T.B.D. as in “To Be Determined.”

I parked the truck down from the lot, shutting it off. I slipped from my truck, reaching in the back seat I opened my laptop, going into the Intel files that had been gathered so far.

Kyzer Michael Stanfield, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on January 10, 1992 to Thomas and Lila Stanfield. He was their only child, born to Lila when she was 42 years old.

Lila died as a result of a cerebral hemorrhage on October 6, 1996. The death certificate listed the cause as natural, resulting from acute hypertension. She stroked out at the age of 46.

Thomas Stanfield, born on February 7, 1945, in New York City. Graduated magna cum laude from Columbia University in 1967.

He married the younger Lila Mae Evans in June of 1980, after already starting Stanfield Industries, currently known as The Stanfield Group.

The Stanfield Group is a privately owned business having three segments of operation: Stanfield Industries, the flagship entity located in Philadelphia, is a manufacturing facility specializing in plastic injection molded parts of all sizes and configurations, serving the transportation industry.

Stanfield Trading Company located in Miami, Florida, imports chemicals, powdered coatings, raw materials, machine tools and other miscellaneous industrial products.

The newest addition to the Stanfield portfolio is Stanfield Research, located in Atlanta, Georgia. That business segment was established by Thomas Stanfield in early 2010. It’s listed as a research and development facility for organic dietary supplements, boasting their own brand name of “Orga-Blend.”