Game Plan: A Kira Brightwell Novel

Chapter 4

4

Kira climbed into her car and drove away from the coffee shop, as if it would help her to leave her guilt behind. Instead, it clung to her, making her question her plans.

She hadn’t wanted to lie to Nick... And she hadn’t, at least, not technically. She really had booked a flight to Toronto for the weekend. But if she told him the truth, he would either try to stop her, or be forced to tell his superiors and get the police involved, which would put Kira firmly out of the loop.

That can’t happen.

The business cards she had palmed from Nick’s desk seemed to weigh heavily in her pocket. She couldn’t get around the fact that she had taken them without his knowledge. The worst part was, if she had just asked him, he would probably have given them to her anyway. But it would also have made him suspicious. Nick wasn’t an i***t. As far as she was concerned, the less he knew about what she was up to, the better.

With the coffee shop and Nick falling back into the distance in her rear-view mirror, Kira’s churning thoughts turned to the next phase of her plan. The stakes would be much higher than taking a few business cards. If she got caught...

She shook her head. No. She had planned this very carefully. She took a deep, shaking breath.

I can do this.

At the next red light, she tapped her phone to put on some music to soothe her jangled nerves. The steady pulse of the opening drumbeat of Nine Inch Nails’ ‘Slipping Away’ thumped from her car speakers. The somewhat ominous melody that slowly built in layers of sound matched her current mood.

She left downtown La Valentia and entered the residential area. The houses became larger and farther apart as she drove. She arrived at her destination all too soon, just a few blocks away from her own childhood home where her parents still lived. She parked against the curb and turned off the car.

For a moment, she seemed frozen. She rubbed her damp palms against her jeans and took another steadying breath. As soon as she went inside the house, she would be committed. Yes, she could still back out if she absolutely had to, but it would only make matters more complicated. She shook her head.

Quit stalling.

She was on a tight schedule. She got out of the car and walked toward the house. A moment later, she was on the front porch, ringing the doorbell. A blond girl in her early twenties answered.

“Oh!” The girl blinked. “Kira. I wasn’t expecting anyone.”

Kira forced a cheerful smile. “Hi, Sara. I was in the area and thought I would drop by. Can I come in?”

“Sure!” The girl stepped aside. “I was just getting dinner started.”

“Thanks.”

Kira stepped inside the home. Everything was scrupulously tidy and just-so, with decor that looked like something out of a magazine.

“Look who’s here!” Sara announced as Kira followed her into the living room before she disappeared into the kitchen.

“Auntie Kiwa, Auntie Kiwa!”

As soon as Kira stepped over the baby gate, a toddler with brown curls crashed into her legs, entangling them with his short arms.

Kira dropped into a crouch to give her nephew a real hug. “Hey there, little dude.” She ruffled Kevin’s hair. “How’s it going?”

“I’m drawing pictures!” Kevin gestured toward a pile of construction paper and crayons. All his ‘r’s were still coming out as ‘w’s, which only made his enthusiasm more adorable. Kira had no interest in having children of her own, but she loved being Kevin’s favorite aunt.

“Show me what you’ve got,” Kira said with a smile.

“This one has you in it!” Kevin clutched a page and thrust it toward her.

Kira tilted her head. Despite the crude nature of the drawing, she could make out most of the details. “Are we riding a dragon?”

“Yeah!”

“And is that you wearing a crown?” Kevin nodded. “And what’s that stick I’m holding? Am I a wizard?”

Kevin giggled. “No, it’s a sword. I’m a prince, and you’re my knight! You protect me from all the monsters when we go on adventures.”

Kira gave him a mischievous look. “Every monster except... the tickle monster!” Her fingers darted toward his sides and he collapsed in a fit of helpless laughter, which was contagious.

Kira took mercy on him a few moments later when his giggles had turned into hiccups. “These are some pretty cool drawings,” she said as she looked through the rest of the pages. “I like the dragon one the best though.”

Kevin smiled with another hiccup. “Me too. Wanna draw with me?”

Kira bit her lip as he looked up at her with his big, blue eyes. “I would love to, little dude, but I can’t stay for very long.” She sighed. “Next time I come over, I’ll spend as much time drawing as you want. Deal?”

Kevin gave her a solemn look. “Pinkie swear?”

Kira’s expression turned grave and she rose to one knee before him, holding out her hand with the pinkie finger extended. “You have my most solemn pinkie oath, my royal prince.”

Kevin’s expression brightened and he wrapped his little finer around hers to seal the deal.

Kira gave his curls another ruffle before rising to her feet. Kevin’s nanny was still busy in the kitchen. Both Kori and Adam were at work, but Kira knew her sister would be home soon.

Better get a move on...

“I just need to go upstairs for a few minutes before I leave. Why don’t you work on another drawing, and I’ll come by and check it out before I go?”

“OK!”

Kevin collapsed back onto the carpet and pulled out a new sheet of paper to work on. Kira spared a wistful look over her shoulder before stepping softly over the baby gate and heading for the stairs.

Kori’s study was at the back of the house. Kira’s heart pounded in her ears as she approached her destination. The upper floor of the house was quiet. Kira slipped into the study. She wanted to close the door behind her, but she needed to be able to listen for anyone approaching.

Kori’s desk was scrupulously neat. The surface was bare, other than the computer, a flowering cactus, and a few framed family photos. Kira eased into the chair. She and her sister might not be close, but Kori was a creature of habit, and Kira had grown up with her. Not only that, but this desk was the same one Kori had used throughout college.

Kira lifted the potted cactus to reveal a small key. She suppressed a sigh of relief. Part of her had been afraid Kori might have found a different hiding place after all this time.

The key fitted perfectly in the lock of the desk’s top, narrow drawer. Kira rolled the drawer open and paused.

Had she heard something from downstairs?

She waited a moment with her hand frozen on the drawer as she listened. Silence followed. She shook her head and returned to the task at hand.

There were only a few items inside the drawer. A sealed document that was likely a Will, insurance policy papers, Kori and Kevin’s passports, and Kori’s emergency credit card. Kira snatched up Kori’s passport and the credit card and moved the mouse on the computer to rouse it from sleep mode.

She knew she had to work fast. If the nanny came upstairs, or if Kori came home early, Kira would have a difficult time explaining what she was doing without giving herself away.

Never mind how pissed Kori will be...

She navigated to the website she had chosen earlier that day and booked a return trip to Las Vegas in Kori’s name, using both her passport and credit card. She requested e-tickets and had them sent to her sister’s email as added insurance.

As soon as the tickets were booked, Kira went to the browser’s security settings and ran a quick search for the credentials to Kori’s email.

Good thing for me no one ever thinks to lock their home computer...

Not that it would have stopped her in any case. She had been working with Rob long enough to pick up more than a few tricks.

Once she was inside Kori’s email, she forwarded any related messages to the flight booking to a new email alias she had only set up recently and erased all her tracks, clearing the browser history for good measure. She pocketed Kori’s passport and credit card and locked the drawer before putting the key back in its hiding place. A surge of adrenaline went through her.

I did it! Now to get out of here.

She padded back downstairs and spent a few more minutes with Kevin, who didn’t seem to notice her distraction as she admired his drawing collection. But when she went to hug him good-bye, he held out the drawing with the dragon.

“This is for you.”

The simple gesture almost undid her. She swallowed. “Aw, thanks, buddy!” She gave him another hug. “It’s going right up on my fridge as soon as I get home.”

“Don’t forget your promise!” He held up his hand, his little pinkie wiggling back and forth.

Kira winked at him and wiggled hers in return. “I’ll remember. Say ‘hi’ to your mom and dad for me.”

Kevin nodded and waved as Kira moved toward the front door. She debated over whether to say good-bye to Sara, but she had already dawdled enough as it was. Would leaving without talking to her seem more suspicious? She shook her head and opened the front door.

If walking around with Nick’s business cards in her pocket had made her feel antsy, having Kori’s passport and credit card in there was a hundred times worse. She was already taking a risk just by removing them from the house in the first place. She hated to think what she might blurt out if she actually ran into Kori before she managed to put them back unnoticed.

Kori will never know they’re gone.

Kira did her best to reassure herself as she hurried toward her car. Her sister was going out of town for a conference this weekend, which suited Kira’s purposes for several reasons. Kori would have no need of her passport for the next few days, and she never used her emergency credit card.

Still, a traitorous part of Kira’s mind came up with fanciful scenarios where Kori would notice Kira’s theft. The images distracted Kira as she reached her car, only to realize Kori had just pulled into the driveway. Kira’s mouth went dry.

“Kira?” A note of puzzled surprise colored her sister’s voice as she got out of the car. She walked toward her sister, who remained frozen in place. “What are you doing here?”

Like Kira, Kori’s hair was long and dark, but she wore it loose around her shoulders. Unlike Kira, she wore a chic, flower print blouse and a pair of leggings that emphasized her elegant frame. She was frowning from behind the rims of her designer glasses.

Kira made herself shrug. “I was in the area, and I thought I’d drop by and see Kevin. I know I haven’t seen him in a while.”

Kori winced at Kira’s words. Kira had wanted to visit Kevin sooner, but her sister had asked her not to visit her son while she was still marked by the facial bruises and twisted knee she had suffered in her latest tangle with questionable characters.

Kori’s brown eyes softened. “Do you want to stay for dinner?”

Kira knew it was the closest thing to an apology she was going to get. Under other circumstances, she would probably have taken Kori up on it to smooth things over. The relationship between them was already awkward enough as it was. But with Kori’s passport and credit card in her pocket, the only thing Kira could think about was getting as far away from her sister as possible.

Kira gave a wry smile. “Thanks, but I already have plans. Besides, you probably need to get ready for that conference this weekend. Santa Rosa, right?”

“Yeah.” Kori drew out the word with another puzzled look. “That’s right.” Kira stifled a curse.

Ugh. Stop babbling!

“Well, I hope your plans don’t involve another one of those cases of yours,” Kori said with a mild shake of her head. “I’m sure you can give that a bit of a rest now that your reputation’s been cleared by the last one.”

Kira’s expression flattened.

My reputation?

Yes, she had been slandered in the local press over the past few months, which had been frustrating to say the least. But her mother and sister had seemed far more concerned about how it would rub off on them. Kira opened her mouth to retort and reminded herself of why she had come.

“No new cases at the moment,” she said with a forced smile. Arguing with Kori was pointless at the best of times, never mind now.

Kori’s brow furrowed at the lack of response as she gave Kira a measured look. “Good.” There was a note of uncertainty in her voice.

I’ve got to get out of here before she makes me say something stupid...

“Sorry, but I’ve really got to get going. I already promised Kevin I’d have a longer visit next time.” Kira opened the door to her car and climbed in. “Enjoy your conference!” She shut the door and turned on the car before her sister could respond.

Kori gave a confused looking wave as Kira drove away. Kira watched her sister get smaller and smaller in her rear-view mirror as Kori continued to stare after her. Kira gunned the engine as soon as she turned the corner.