Mission: Possible
After PI Lexi Graves is approached to investigate an accident which has left the homeowner, Sophie Takahashi, in a coma, she quickly realizes the case isn't quite as clear cut as first appears. For one thing, Sophie's injuries are inconsistent with her supposed accident. Secondly, her husband is suspicious she might not be who she says she is. Who really is the woman in the hospital bed? And why would someone want to hurt her?
As Lexi ponders the merits of the case, she's caught up in a bank robbery. The heist crew are clearly professional, yet not a penny is stolen. With the police and FBI sniffing around, the nervous bank manager needs their help. There's only one small problem: he won't tell them what's missing.
Tracking down a mystery attacker, confirming an identity, and solving a bank robbery? Just a regular week for Montgomery's most peppy PI!
Chapter One
"Thanks for the invitation, Mom, but I can't make your nude life drawing class; a big case just came in," I said, crossing my fingers as if that somehow protected me from retribution for the whopper I just told. I wasn't busy; I just didn't want to be excruciatingly embarrassed by my mom. It was a small ask, surely?
"Next time?" suggested Mom, her voice laced with disappointment. "You'll meet such wonderful people and expand your social circle."
I considered that. "I like my current social circle," I decided.
"Your current social circle is Lily. I don't even know why I said 'current'. It's been that way for years. You need to get out more often and make some friends, Lexi."
"I have friends! I have Solomon..."
"He's your husband," interrupted Mom.
"I have Garrett and Traci and..."
"Are you going to name all your siblings and their spouses?"
I stopped, their names on the tip of my tongue. "No," I sulked. "I was going to say Maddox."
"Your ex-boyfriend."
"Ruby," I decided. "Ruby is my friend!"
"Ooo-kaay," scoffed Mom. "We'll ignore that Ruby is Lily's employee. You have two friends. There's a class on Thursday nights called 'How to Make Friends' and a free book is included with the course fee. I think you should sign up. I'll come with you for support. I'll be your wing-mom."
"I have to go. I'm being called to a meeting. Talk soon!" I disconnected before my mother could suggest any more classes. However, I probably disconnected too soon because I had a sinking feeling that a sign-up note to the friendship class would arrive in my email inbox imminently. I also neglected to ask just whom was the subject of the nude drawing. If it were my mom, I was leaving town.
"Ready?" asked Solomon, breezing past me as he walked from his office to the small boardroom situated on one side of the shared office where I currently sat.
The Solomon Detective Agency started with just this office, which I shared with three other private investigators - a coterie of ex-law enforcement - and one tech expert. Solomon had a small office walled off in one corner but the door was rarely shut. Below us was a small suite of meeting rooms for clients, well away from the incriminating photos and evidence files on our desks. With the success of the agency, Solomon had recently expanded to include the floor above and also increased the number of employees. They covered other security aspects of Solomon's growing business and came from diverse backgrounds.
I am Lexi Graves, Private Investigator. My previous life included a tedious job as a bored temp until I stumbled over the dead body of my boss, which thrust me headlong into a mystery that I helped solve. Once that ended, Solomon hired me to work for the agency because I wasn't the typical PI. Being cute and peppy, no one ever suspects me of snooping into their business, which is crucial. Unlike the other PIs at the agency who spent collective decades in the Army, police force, and other agencies, I also dress a damn sight better than any of them. And to make things even more interesting, I married the boss. That was not a bad thing; I figured the other guys weren't his type.
"Ready," I agreed as I shut my laptop, following him. I circled the table, took a seat on the far side, my back to the glass, and reached for a donut. As I sat down again, I became acutely aware of our positioning. "Why do I have to sit with my back to the window?" I asked. "Why is this always the last remaining seat?"
"We're all programmed to assume we could be shot at any moment," said Matt Flaherty. Flaherty got shot while he was a police detective before he retired from the force. He still walked with a nearly undetectable limp but his brain was too sharp for retirement. A close friend of Solomon's, my husband trusted him absolutely.
I glanced over my shoulder. "And you're not worried I could be shot?" I asked, a concerned frown creasing my forehead.
"If you're not worried, we're not worried," said Delgado. Although Antonio Delgado, a brick wall and ex-Army man, was someone you wouldn't want to meet for the first time in a dark alley, he was a sweetheart emotionally. Since he married my uptight sister, Serena, not too long ago, as far as I was concerned, he rose to become a saint-in-waiting. As an added bonus, both his marriage and mine cemented Solomon, Delgado and me as bonafide family.
I glanced over my shoulder again, surveilling the street beyond. It seemed quiet outside, traffic was low and only a few pedestrians littered the sidewalk, but who could tell? Perhaps there was a sniper crouched in a building with their sites trained on me? Maybe they would take me out before my mom could sign me up for the friendship class? A small mercy. "Now I'm worried," I said, risking another glance to peruse the roof of the building opposite, just in case. "Who wants to swap seats with me?"
Flaherty and Delgado shook their heads. I looked at Steve Fletcher but he was too busy ogling the donuts with hungry eyes. After what probably felt like several lifetimes with the CIA, Fletcher deserved any small pleasures. So, I slunk a little lower in my seat and hoped my death was both swift and graceful, not while busily stuffing a jelly donut in my face.
"If you've all finished tormenting Lexi with impending doom, I'm ready," said Solomon. He shuffled the small stack of files into neat order and looked around.
"I notice you didn't offer to swap seats," said Delgado.
Solomon fixed him with a look and Delgado shrugged. "Just sayin’."
"He has a point," I said. "My own husband is putting me in the crosshairs."
"You are not in the crosshairs," said Solomon.
"Moody ass hairs," I mumbled.
"Gross," said Delgado, making a face.
"Would you like to swap seats?" asked Solomon, holding back a sigh.
Solomon was at the head of the table, the position of power. If I swapped, my colleagues might infer I was a scared, little woman who couldn't bear the idea of a dance with death. They would tease me relentlessly. It wasn't worth it. I worked too hard to earn their respect and had actually faced death too many times already.
"I'm fine, thanks," I said as nonchalantly as I could while seriously contemplating the donuts. Jelly or coconut? Chocolate or maple glazed? Sometimes life threw good questions at me.