“She’s a nurse.”

“Did she choose that profession after what happened to your mother?”

“Possibly,” Jo said. “She did help a lot when my mother was sick, like I mentioned.”

“Where are your father and sister now?”

“In California,” Jo lied.

Lydia took a moment before continuing. “Family is everything to me. We have two sons, Bryce and Carlton. They’re twenty-five and twenty-three, respectively. They can be a handful, but I’m proud of both.”

“What are they doing now?” Jo was glad the focus had moved away from Will and Avery.

“Bryce is working at my husband’s company, and Carlton is at a law firm in Dallas,” she said. “My husband and I could provide well for our kids, but I didn’t want them to feel spoiled by riches. They worked in the oil fields during summer breaks, and they got a feel for what hard work is like. They have good heads on their shoulders. I can’t imagine what it would be like to lose them, or my husband.” Her eyes took on an edge, but the look vanished as quickly as it had come. She switched topics again. “Why did you leave the Army?”

“Some things happened on the last mission I was on, and I decided I wanted to come home.” Again, there was enough truth in that to help her deliver the lines with sincerity.

“But you didn’t settle down?”

Jo shook her head. “I wasn’t ready for that, so I’ve taken some odd jobs.”

“Where was your favorite place?”

“Germany,” Jo said without hesitation. She’d spent a lot of time in the Middle East, and although some places there had their charm, she’d usually been on missions, her focus far from any thoughts of sightseeing. She’d been to Germany on leave, and she loved the smaller towns there, the scenery and the culture and the rich history.

“Germany is lovely,” Lydia said. “I enjoy Italy as well.”

They chatted for a few minutes about traveling, a pleasant conversation all in all. Jo kept thinking Kline might interrupt, but he stayed quiet, a statue near the door. Then Lydia grew serious again.

“Why do you want to be a driver?”

There was more to the position than being a driver, as Kline had made clear, but Jo didn’t point that out. Lydia knew what was expected.

“I want something simple,” Jo said.

“There are risks with this.”

“I’ve done risky work before, and it doesn’t bother me.”

Lydia uncrossed her legs and put her hands in her lap. “I belong to several charities, so there are activities with those. There are lunches, things like that. You’ll drive me, and usually wait while I’m there.” She talked for a few minutes about her expectations, nothing unanticipated, nothing that Jo couldn’t handle. When she finished, she smiled again. “If we proceed, we’ll figure out the rest as we go.”

The interview was over. Lydia stood up and politely shook Jo’s hand again. Kline was suddenly beside her.

“If you’ll come with me, the driver will take you back to your hotel.”

Jo thanked Lydia for her time, and she followed Kline through the house to the foyer. They stepped onto the portico, where it was hotter. The same sleek black SUV was parked in the drive, and the driver already had the back door open.

Kline said, “I’ll be in touch.” He didn’t offer to shake hands.

Jo got in the SUV, and she pondered Lydia on the quiet drive back to her hotel. The interview with Lydia had gone well. The woman seemed to be a nice person, calm and reserved. But she was also someone carrying some kind of personal load. Jo felt as if they’d made a connection, but she didn’t know if that would help her get the job, get her inside the mansion. And she wasn’t sure what Kline thought about her. He was harder to read.

The driver pulled up to the hotel and let her out. Jo stood in the lobby as the SUV drove away. She didn’t see any cars follow the vehicle, and as she turned and headed for the elevators, her gaze swept the room. No one drew attention to themselves, but she was alert. Someone was likely watching her, waiting to see what she would do.

When the elevator reached the lobby, she got in by herself. As the doors closed, she let out a calming breath. Now to see what happened next.

CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

Kline was back in JD’s office, the only place in the mansion—other than his own living quarters—where he felt perfectly safe carrying on a private conversation. There were cameras and listening devices strategically placed in other areas of the house, a way to keep track of the staff, and what was going on with visitors that JD and Lydia met. But this room, he trusted.

He dialed JD and waited.

“Yes?” His boss had been expecting the call. “What did Lydia think of the prospective hire?” His words were rushed, his patience with this particular process clearly waning.

“Jo was good. She seemed to make a quick connection with Lydia.”

“And Lydia?”

Kline stopped pacing and thought for a moment. After he’d escorted Jo to the driver, he had gone back to the sitting room, where he found Lydia still on the couch. She hadn’t minced words. Jo would be a suitable driver, and Kline was to hire her immediately. Kline politely asked if she wanted to wait a day or two to consider her decision, to discuss her thinking with her husband, but Lydia had been adamant. She liked Jo, and she wanted her to start that day.

Kline heard a familiar tone in Lydia’s voice, and he knew not to argue. At the same time, he knew not to dismiss his own gut reaction to the interview.

“She liked Jo,” he told JD. “She asked different questions than she has with other prospective drivers.”

“How so?”

“She dug deeper into her past.”

“You vetted Jo thoroughly, correct?”

“Yes, and as I told you before, she checks out. Her military career is impressive, but some records are classified. I’m asking around, but I may not get answers about the classified information.”

“What’s the issue with Lydia’s questions?”

“Those were of a personal nature—about Jo’s family, about her feelings concerning her military service.”

“So?” JD asked.

Kline stared out the window. The gardener was on the riding lawnmower, but he couldn’t hear it through the thick bulletproof glass. The room was so still, he could almost hear his thoughts.

“It was like Lydia was searching for something different with this woman,” Kline said. “And Lydia shared more about herself, was more personal than I’ve seen before.”

JD sighed heavily. “What’s the problem with that? We need to get her a driver. I don’t have time to worry about this. If this woman can keep Lydia safe, isn’t that the point?”

“There’s something about Jo,” Kline mused. “She can handle herself, and she should do fine with Lydia, but there’s something I can’t put my finger on.”

“So Lydia’s questions aren’t at issue. You have other concerns.”

Possibly, Kline thought. Lydia had seemed different lately, more pensive. More on edge. It could be nothing more than concern about JD’s burgeoning political career, and the pressures that it would put on her. Kline couldn’t be sure, though. Was he making too much of her behavior? Then again, he got paid to pay attention to these types of things.