My Spy Read Free Page B

to
mean
anything. It was just the shock of seeing him on the cement. Completely still.”
Maybe dead.
    “Sure it doesn't mean anything,” Taylor called from the kitchen.
    Annie closed her eyes, trying not to think about Sam. Finally she shook her head. “I can't stand this. I'm calling Washington. The Navy must have an office there.”
    Taylor carried in a tray. “Of course they do.”
    “Then I'm calling.”
    Taylor poured Annie's tea and set the cup on the end table their father had carved for their mother thirty years before. “I'll make the call. Sit still and drink this.”
    Annie didn't hide her surprise. “I thought you'd be out the door by now. You hate being here at Summerwind. And your next book is due—”
    “My book can wait,” Taylor said flatly. “I don't like the resort, true enough. We both know this place has never been my thing. Even when I was twelve, I was tired of watching the rich, beautiful guests get all Mom's and Dad's attention.” She shrugged. “I guess that makes me a bad-tempered brat, but there it is.”
    “You have your own interests, your own career. There's nothing to apologize for.”
    “Maybe.” Taylor stood by the fire, stiff and slender and effortlessly elegant. “I should have helped you more, Annie. I should have been here, especially that winter when Mom and Dad …” The words trailed away, as gray as lost dreams, as heavy as broken promises. “Okay, I screwed up, I admit it.” Taylor glared out the window at nothing in particular.
    “No one said you screwed up.”
    “No one had to. It was on everyone's faces when I came back. I was the wild O'Toole, the one who broke all the rules and didn't even show up for her parents' funerals.”
    “That's not what people thought,” Annie said quietly.
    Taylor raised a manicured hand. “It's time for the truth. I couldn't face losing them any more than I could face coming back to Summerwind and the town where I've always been such a screw-up. But that's over now,” she said tightly. “I'm here to help, even if the thought of pampering your trophywives and overpaid sports heroes ranks right up with a double root canal.” She took a deep breath. “I'll even manage to smile when I hand out the aromatherapy masks to the ladies who lunch.”
    Annie couldn't hide her surprise. “I thought you only rented that house on the cliffs for two weeks.”
    “I changed my mind.” Now it was Taylor's turn to fidget. “I bought it last week. You're overworked and you're going to get a break, courtesy of your big sister. Right after I call Washington.”
    Annie was almost too surprised to answer. “I can call myself.”
    “But I can do it better.” Taylor stared out at the dunes rolling down to the sea. “This place is so incredibly peaceful. How could I have forgetten?” She took a breath. “About Washington—I did a book tour there last year. There was a big shindig in Georgetown, and I met half a dozen diplomats and three or four admirals that night. Lucky for you, I always keep private phone numbers.”
    “You got their private numbers at a cocktail party?”
    Taylor straightened her shoulders. “Of course. Having a direct line to an admiral or diplomat can come in very handy.”
    “In case of a hostile invasion?”
    “You are such an innocent.” Taylor sniffed. “Drink your whiskey and tea while I concentrate. Offering blatant flattery can be hard work.”
    For the next hour Annie watched her sister charm and cajole her way through the endless bureaucracy that protected all highly placed military figures in Washington. Taylor was shunted through the Pentagon before finally managing to track down the top admiral on her list. Friendly at first, he turned remote the instant Taylor brought up the wounded officer on the school bus.
    No matter how Taylor finessed and flattered, the man wouldn't budge. No information was available about the status of the fallen officer. Not to
anyone.
    Irritated as much as disappointed,