Cyber Illusions: Sensory Ops, Book 6

by Nikki Duncan

  Slipping on a sundress, Kimber asked, “Have the others? Why are we guilty just because we’re in the same city as a theft.”

  “Because we make a living vanishing things. Also, it seems there was a recording from one of the scenes. The thief looks like you and me.”

  “Maybe it’s time for a haircut and dye job.” Kimber held her hair up and looked in the mirror, as if envisioning what she’d look like with shorter hair.

  Taryn chuckled at Kimber’s solution. Working on what she knew, it was sort of logical. They were looking for a woman with long dark hair. Cut it short and go blonde and, boom, they were off the hook. Taryn knew a little more, though. “We wouldn’t look good blonde. And they’d just argue that we wore a wig.”

  “You’re right.” She dropped her hair and shrugged. “I’m going to get out of here. Maybe see if I can find this one guy I met earlier.”

  “Have a good time. And I’ll want to hear about this guy if you find him.”

  “Call me if you need me,” Kimber said, already on her way out.

  “You’re officially on vacation. I’m not calling.”

  Kimber had only been gone a few minutes when Tyler came in.

  “We need to talk.”

  Looking at him in the mirror, she continued removing her makeup. “Don’t you knock?”

  “I knew you were alone.” He stepped up behind her and swept a finger over her neck. “And I’ve seen you naked.”

  She trembled, from his touch as much as from the memory of seeing him naked. They’d had the kids until that morning, which meant no sex because they still weren’t revealing their relationship. She’d dropped Ryder and Sidney at his mom’s and then had been busy setting up for the gala. The timing was no better now, but at least they had a moment alone.

  She relaxed against him and sighed. “I have to admit, I wouldn’t mind seeing you naked again.”

  “You will.” He kissed the side of her neck his finger had caressed. “Not soon enough, but soon.”

  “Promise?”

  “After watching you flirt with Daryl, you can bet your ass on it.”

  She locked her gaze with Tyler’s in the mirror. “Were you jealous?”

  She was smiling. He wasn’t. “I don’t like you flirting with other men, even if it is part of your act. You can make it up to me though.”

  “Yeah? Sounds like something you just need to get a handle on.”

  “I’d rather have a handle on you.” He kissed her neck. “Do me a favor.”

  “Maybe.”

  “Keep the outfit on so I can be the one to undress you at home. It’s a new fantasy of mine.”

  “Tyler.” She moved her arms behind her, resting her hands on his hips and pulling his body closer to hers. “Trust me when I say the flirting was all part of the act. Normally Davio’s the one doing it, and it’s with the women.”

  “Speaking of Davio.” Regret crept into Tyler’s eyes as he looked at her in the mirror.

  He didn’t have to say anything else for her to know they’d caught their thief and she was losing a trusted crew member. Her heart sank.

  “Ian was walking around and heard Davio packing the painting you cut in half, or didn’t cut in half, into the saw table. Being that he’s blind, Davio ignored him, so he was taken slightly off guard when Ian called Chris and Steve over. They arrested him.”

  She tried to pull away, but he held her still. “That doesn’t make sense. The robberies span four years. He’s only been with me two.”

  “You said yourself he got the job because he’d followed your act closely. Jenny’s leaving gave him an opportunity that simply made his heists easier.”

  Instantly, the picture of how it had worked for Davio fell into place. “I gave him an alibi, a way to smuggle the art and a way around a commercial airline’s manifest.”

  If blood could boil, hers was doing it. She hadn’t wanted to believe any of her friends could be capable of using her show, and even setting her up, but she couldn’t deny that it made sense.

  She’d vowed never to be a victim, but she’d opened herself up for it. It would never happen again.

  She wanted to pace, to punch something, to find Davio and demand explanations. Instead, she turned into Tyler’s arms, buried her face in his chest and cried.

  “How could I be so stupid?”

  Davio had been like a favorite uncle to her and he’d made every performance easier. His speed and expertise with the props made getting home to the kids a smoother process. Little had she known he was trying to get out of town before anyone caught him.

  “You trusted your friend.” Tyler brushed her hair back, stroking his hand along the length. “That’s not stupid, it’s admirable.”

  Pulling back, she swiped at the tears on her cheeks. Crying over Davio was a waste of her energy. He’d been a friend, and it hurt that she’d misjudged him so badly, but he’d betrayed her. He’d hurt her reputation and cost her jobs, which cost her money.

  “Can I talk to him?”

  “Chris and Steve are taking him in. We’d have to ask them, but I’d assume they’ll say no until they’ve gotten any information they can out of him.”

  “Fine.” She sighed again. “I guess I should go finish packing up the props. Kimber and Martina have already left.”

  “Um.” Tyler winced. “We have to take your props in as evidence.”

  “Of course you do.” The kids were going to be spending the summer in Miami with Tyler and his family, and her show had just crumbled. The only silver lining was that she wouldn’t have to cancel any appearances while she found and trained a new crew. And Kimber wasn’t guilty.

  She was a glass-half-full kind of girl, but positive thinking didn’t untarnish the silver lining. “Can I at least stay around while your team packs up my stuff? It’s all custom made and has to be handled a certain way.”

  “You can’t touch any of it, but you can stand back and direct.”

  Watching the FBI pack her props would be the last time she ever allowed anyone else to do the packing. She’d been used, made a fool of, and she wouldn’t let it happen ever again.

  “Fine.” Moving away, she shoved her street clothes into her bag and headed toward the prop area.

  Tyler stopped her with a hand on her wrist, like it was a trademark move. “I’m here if you want to talk.”

  “You know, I think I’ve talked about this case enough. I just want to get things wrapped up so I can go home.” Home where she didn’t have to pretend to be strong or happy. Home where she didn’t have to wonder if everyone looking at her thought she was also guilty. Home where she didn’t have to see the apology in Tyler’s eyes.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Taryn walked into her Starbucks, hoping for a coffee and quiet corner until Kimber arrived. Apparently, the idea was a popular one among the pre-teens and teens now out of school for the summer, only they didn’t seem interested in the quiet.

  Smiles and laughter abounded, girls and boys flirted across the room. A few determined adults had decided to stick it out with their laptops, mostly with the help of earbuds.

  After getting her order, Taryn found a table on the patio. Pulling out her notebook, she began working. Since losing Martina and Davio, she’d thought more seriously about changing the show’s format, instead looking at illusions that allowed Kimber more of the spotlight and public billing. Specifically, she wanted to see how they could play up their look-a-like angle. People knowing they were look-a-likes would make the transportation acts tougher, because people would know that Kimber was hiding wherever Taryn was going to appear, but she liked a challenge.

  The best show she’d ever done had been the gala, and it had been the hardest, because the volunteers had not been preselected and were close enough to see more angles.

  Her plans assumed Kimber was interested in the idea. She’d never asked for a different arrangement, and she may not want to be named in the spotlight, but the time had come to thank her for her loyalty. Eve
n if she said no thanks, Taryn was going to give her friend the option.

  Carrying her own drink and a fruit tray, Kimber walked onto the patio. Taryn was about to have her answer.

  “Hey, Taryn.”

  “Kimber.” She was smiling when she stood to hug Kimber. They had only spoken once since the gala, and that had been the brief call to cancel rehearsal and instead set up this meeting. “How was Miami?”

  Generally easygoing and fun-loving, Kimber appeared tanner and even more relaxed than normal. Even her habitually friendly grin glowed. “Amazing! You know I told you I met a guy at the gala? At first he thought I was you, which I normally let them go on thinking, but since I actually wanted to go out with this guy, I corrected him.”

  Kimber’s eyes were animated with living memories, even her breath, a little shaky on the exhalation, spoke volumes about the man who’d captured her attention.

  “He’s a gallery owner in Miami. His name is Daryl and we spent almost every minute of the last two weeks together.”

  Taryn laughed, remembering Daryl. “You sound like you didn’t want to come home.”

  “Well, here’s the thing.” Kimber squirmed. “He suggested we elope.” Her throat bounced in a swallow, her face scrunched up like she was bracing for a blow. Slowly, she lifted her left hand to show off a stunningly simple band of diamonds and topaz. “We went to Vegas.”

  “Wow. You really wanted to go out with this guy.”

  “Sometimes you just…you just know you have to take a leap. You know?”

  “I do.” Taryn took a leap every time she stepped in front of an audience, but she was realizing she rarely took them in her personal life. There, without the eyes of a crowd watching, she played it safe.

  It wasn’t because anything bad had ever happened to her. She didn’t have a tragic life story or a string of crappy exes. She’d never had trust issues, and refused to have them now because of Davio. She just hadn’t found anyone, other than Ryder and Sidney, who made her want to take chances.

  “So, yeah. I’m married. And I’m moving to Miami.”

  Taryn wanted to be happy for Kimber, and she was, but the bride’s new life was another change in a time when she’d like something to be steady. “What about your dad?”

  “Moving too.”

  No way Kimber would have left her dad. “Tell me about your man.”

  Kimber gushed about her new husband until both their drinks were empty. Taryn got them refills, trying not to think about the moment when Kimber said what hadn’t been said. That she too was leaving the show. Having listened to her talk about him, Taryn couldn’t even hold it against her.

  “We want to have a big party to celebrate as soon as we get me moved and settled into his place,” Kimber said when she returned to the table.

  “I hope I get an invite.”

  “You’re at the top of my list.” Kimber inhaled an unsteady breath, signaling Taryn to the next shoe drop. “It’s about the show.”

  “What about it?”

  “I know you lost Martina because of the baby, and so many of the illusions are centered on us looking alike, but…”

  “But you want to be with your husband.”

  “I do.”

  “And you should be. You know, I’ve been feeling a little guilty for you always being hidden at the shows. Guess you weren’t that hidden, huh?”

  “Guess not.” Kimber shrugged. “I still want to work with you, Taryn. I love doing the shows, but I can’t be in both places.”

  It was the opening Taryn needed and before Kimber finished her last sentence Taryn had a plan. She was taking a leap, and she wouldn’t regret a moment of it. “Maybe it’s your turn to have a double backing you up.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Well, putting it bluntly, without you I’ll literally be a one-woman show.”

  “Why? You have Davio.”

  “You haven’t heard.”

  Kimber shook her head.

  Hating to bust Kimber’s romantic bubble with reality, Taryn explained. “You know those thefts? Well, the gala in Miami was really a sting operation. Mom and I planned it with the FBI. Tyler wasn’t there with me. He was there working.”

  She explained about the kids and Tyler and the need to prove her own innocence. She caught Kimber up on everything she’d held back and then explained that Davio had fooled them all on another level. He’d worn lifts in his shoes to make him taller and a fake paunch to give him a gut. When he took off the disguise and put on a wig he looked like either of them. “What an ass!”

  Taryn definitely shared the sentiment. “Seems he’s amassed quite the collection. It’s all been recovered and will be returned to the rightful owners as soon as the trial is over.”

  “And you kept all of this to yourself.”

  “I never wanted to lie to you guys…”

  “But you were sworn to secrecy.” Kimber nodded. “It couldn’t have been easy for you to keep it quiet and wonder if one of us was guilty. To know you might be sending one of us to prison.” Kimber took her hand and squeezed. “That had to be a heavy weight. You did the right thing.”

  “Thank you.” In her head she’d known she did the right thing. Davio had needed to be stopped, but she’d still betrayed her friends.

  “I like to think I’d have done the same, even though it seems you’ve lost the most.”

  “The show will be a lot different.”

  “Not just the show, Taryn. The kids are in Miami with their dad when they’ve always been with and depended on you. Davio’s in prison. Martina’s growing her family.”

  “And you’re married and moving to Miami,” Taryn finished.

  “That leaves you here, alone, aside from your mom.”

  Taryn laughed. “That’s a depressing view, which confirms something for me.”

  “What’s that?” Kimber asked.

  “Friends should be near each other and the show must go on. So, if I were to move…”

  “As in to Miami?”

  “Seems logical. The kids could be near Tyler and I wouldn’t have to miss them so much. You’d be with that charming husband of yours. We could find a couple new people…”

  “Have your new FBI friend…” Kimber smiled, “…check them out.”

  “Oh God yes there will be background checks. And we’ll rework the show.”

  Kimber left their coffee with a grin on her face. Taryn had one too.

  With a plan shifting into place in her mind, knowing she and Kimber would have plenty of time to discuss the direction of the act when they were both settled in Miami, Taryn got busy. By the end of the afternoon, she’d set an appointment with a realtor, scheduled movers to come pack up the house and put everything in a storage pod, and hired painters to paint the living room and Ryder’s and Sidney’s rooms so they were market ready.

  When she called her mom and told her the plan, she’d been surprised by her mother’s reaction. “It’s about time you figured this out. Have you told Tyler?”

  “Figured what out? And no, I haven’t told Tyler.”

  “You belong with that man, T. You and the kids and him. You belong together.”

  It was an appealing idea, and the times she and Tyler had found together, just the two of them, had made her consider the same thing, but she wasn’t going to be the one asking for it. “I’m making this move for me, for my show, and for the kids.”

  “Tell yourself that all you want, but you can’t ignore how you feel about the man. You can’t pretend he isn’t part of this.”

  “Mom.” She couldn’t pretend she wasn’t curious about what would happen if she and Tyler were in the same town, but a maybe, a what if, couldn’t define her life.

  “Taryn.” Even over the phone the don’t-you-consider-arguing tone worked. “You love him.”

  “He’s a nice guy. A good dad.”

  “He’s a great man, and you love him.”

  “I barely know him. Most of the time we spent together he was ei
ther investigating me or we were with the kids.”

  “But then you made him believe in you and you worked as part of his team to catch Davio and recover the stolen artwork. You’ve seen the worst and the best of each other. And don’t even get me started on how hot a room gets when you’re near each other.”

  Her mom had always been good at boiling a theory down to the finest point, and Taryn didn’t disagree that Tyler was a great man she could grow to love, but she wasn’t going to rearrange her life to suit him. It was time for her life to be built around her own wants instead of someone else’s, no matter how special the someone was.

  “Dinner’s ready!” Tyler called, setting the pizza box on the kitchen table before grabbing a few paper towels to serve as plates and napkins.

  Sidney started shaking her head as soon as she walked into the room. He knew the lecture was coming; he heard it every time he served take-out for dinner, which had been quite a lot in the last few weeks while they’d been wrapping up the case files with White Collar. Being able to recite it with her didn’t lesson his amusement.

  “Pizza is not a real dinner,” Sidney announced.

  “Why not?” he challenged as he flipped the box top open. “It has all the major food groups. Bread, dairy, meat, veggie.”

  “Grease?” she asked. “We require protein-rich meals balanced with fresh vegetables to help us grow right.”

  Ryder, who only seemed to care that he ate, pulled up a chair and reached for a piece. “Smells good, Dad.”

  “Taryn would have a fit if she knew what you were feeding us every night,” Sidney said, pulling her own slice out of the box.

  Stunned and on the brink of tears by Ryder’s use of the word Dad, something he’d never said before, Tyler almost missed Sidney’s remark. Heart slamming and stomach dancing, Tyler forced himself to play his part in the conversation. All he really wanted to do was crush Ryder close and thank him.

  “You mean you haven’t told on me yet?”

  “If I thought it would get her here, I would. She’s going on a trip, though.” Defeat darkened Sidney’s normally sunny disposition, and he didn’t like it. He didn’t like anything that diminished her cheer.