Read Online Too Far Gone by Debra Webb, Regan Black - Free Book Online

it all covered,” he said. “Just brave it out with me.” He suppressed a grin when her chin came up and she stood a little taller.
    No one from the construction crew paid the slightest attention to their sedate entrance. They walked in as if they owned the place. Everything went according to plan as they climbed the stairs. Once they took their positions at a towering window overlooking the street as well as the building the decoy would enter, Lauren removed the high-powered binoculars Mike had tucked in her purse.
    “Maybe I’ll write a screen play about an actress who witnesses her agent being murdered by a mob guy.” She lifted the binoculars to her eyes. “Should be a blockbuster.”
    Mike chuckled. He was glad to see her a little more relaxed today. Yesterday had been a tough day for her. He liked that more of the fear had been replaced by determination. The same tenacity that had made her a success in this business was what she needed to get through the nightmare that had descended on her life.
    “Take your time,” he said, “study each face you see.”
    “Okay.” Her teeth dug into that plump lower lip.
    Rather than stand there and wish it were him toying with that sexy lip, he withdrew a compact set of binoculars from his back pocket and surveyed the vehicles parked along the street below.
    “So if the bad guys show up,” she said, her attention focused on the street, “we’ll know someone in the police department is feeding information to them.”
    “Since Treadwell is the only person you contacted about the meeting that would be a yes.”
    She lowered her glasses and turned to him. “Maybe I’m more naïve than I thought, but I’m hoping Treadwell is one of the good guys.”
    No sooner than she’d said the words, Mike spotted a black SUV easing to the curb at the end of the block. He zeroed in on the driver.
    It was the man Lauren believed to be named Nikoli. Mike sent a text to Claudia so the decoy could be alerted. When she exited the building, she would no longer look anything like Lauren Marie Woods.
    “Oh, God.” Lauren turned to him. “They’re here.”
    She swayed a little and he steadied her. Crazy as it was, he wished he could have sheltered her from yet another let down.
     
    Long minutes later, Lauren felt sick as they moved back down the six flights of stairs. Why would Detective Treadwell sell her out to the killers? Officer Cooper thought the detective was good at his job. How could he have been so wrong?
    She was barely aware of Mike ushering her into his Camaro, a strong hand at her back. When they’d driven away, she was thankful he was keeping an eye out for trouble. She was too deep in the haze of disbelief.
    “What made you decide to take the part as Dr. Loveless?”
    Lauren almost gave herself whiplash turning to look at him. “Excuse me?”
    He kept his eyes on the street, navigating the traffic. “A lot of actors feel work on daytime soaps is beneath them. What made you take the job?”
    Lauren stared out the front window. The colorful lights draped on shop windows reminded her that Christmas was only a couple of weeks away. She’d put up the tree and decorated it over the weekend. Desmond hadn’t seemed to notice. He never did. Christmas was nothing more than an excuse to have big parties to him. Since her mom died, there was no reason for her to go home for the holidays so she’d made her time off from work about the parties as well and spending time with friends.
    Not anymore. Desmond was dead and the police were doing nothing to catch his killer. No matter that the romance part of her and Desmond’s relationship was long over, she felt suddenly alone.
    “Was it the steady pay?”
    She blinked, drawing herself back to the moment and away from the painful thoughts. “When I was a kid, my mom watched this one show every day. Religiously. She said that no matter what else was going on it gave her an hour of escape. So, yes, it was the regular paycheck but it