Key Witness. Christy Barritt

saw Denton glance at Brianna, the corner of his mouth curled. Apparently he’d heard their conversation.

      At least Brianna had the decency to blush a little.

      Bentley Davis, her father’s chief-of-staff, bustled toward them. “The debate’s wrapping up. You ready for the reception afterward with our campaign donors?”

      Elle nodded. “Of course. I confirmed the audio setup and the catering this morning. Everything’s in place.”

      “Perfect. I left a few more pledge cards in the dressing room. Some people aren’t comfortable leaving any of their information online. Makes more work for us, though.”

      “It’s no problem. I’ll have Brianna enter the information.” Bentley was always so concerned with his to-do list that he often turned people away with his off-putting manner. Elle prayed she’d never get so wrapped up in her goals that she forgot about the people around her.

      As the debate ended, Elle turned to Denton. “Let me grab my things. The reception is in one of the conference rooms down the hall.”

      He didn’t miss a beat as he fell into step beside her. “I’m coming with you.”

      “I’d expect nothing less.”

      Denton stayed close as they wove between people toward the dressing room. She had to admit—she felt safe with him nearby and, even without knowing a lot about him, she already trusted his competence and skill.

      Elle’s conversation with Brianna fluttered through her mind. She glanced over at Denton. “By the way, I apologize for my assistant earlier. She’s always been the one who speaks before she thinks.”

      “No apologies necessary. She’s your assistant?”

      “As of two months ago she became my assistant. Before that, she was simply my best friend.”

      “Your best friend now works for you? Sounds like an interesting dynamic.”

      “She and her husband just split, and she’s having trouble making ends meet right now. I needed an assistant so I hired her. It seems like a win-win...for now, at least.”

      “I see.” He paused for a second. “Tell me more about Bentley Davis.”

      Elle’s gaze cut to him, but she didn’t slow her steps. “Bentley? He’s worked with my dad for years, ever since Dad was a judge. Why do you ask?”

      “Until we know who’s behind these threats, everyone is a suspect.”

      “Even Bentley? He’s quite annoying sometimes, but truly harmless.” She pushed into the dressing room and spotted the papers atop her soft-as-butter leather briefcase. “Besides, if he’d been one of the robbers, I think I would have recognized him. They were strangers, remember?”

      “Remember that things aren’t always as they seem, Elle. And there could be a third person involved, someone you never saw or heard. Everything that happened yesterday could have been a ruse for something bigger. There are a lot of unknowns right now.”

      “I have a hard time believing anything other than that my involvement in this whole thing is random. It’s the only thing that makes sense.”

      “Let me decide that.”

      She flipped through the correspondence with one hand while she grabbed her briefcase with the other hand and swung it over her shoulder.

      “Anything good?”

      “Any support of my father’s campaign is good.” She glanced up and smiled. “But yes, there are some pledges in here that look promising.”

      She paused when she got to a sealed envelope. Why hadn’t Bentley opened this one? She slid her fingernail through the paper and pulled out a card. She sucked in a breath, noting that this wasn’t their normal correspondence.

      “What is it?” Denton’s hand covered hers.

      She dropped the papers from her hands. They scattered across the floor as Elle backed away.

      “Elle?”

      She pointed at the floor. “There are pictures of me. From this morning.” Reading on her laptop inside the sunroom. Drinking coffee by the window. Sitting pensively on the porch.

      Denton picked one up. “Pictures? How did someone get pictures?”

      “There was a message, too, Denton, stuck on a sticky note.”

      “What did it say?”

      Terror seemed to freeze her expression, make her unable to move. “It said that ‘Agony awaits.’”

      * * *

      “Is it really necessary for me to leave right now? Can’t I just make an appearance at the reception?”

      Denton kept a firm grip on her arm as he led her toward a door at the back of the building. “More than necessary. You do understand that the person who’s threatening you was—maybe still is—here tonight, don’t you?”

      She nodded, her eyes dazed. “I do, but...” She paused from her distress to shake hands with a few people who tried to chat with her about the debate. Denton urged her onward. Once she escaped from the crowd’s grasp, she looked up at him. “I don’t know what to think right now. This is just crazy.”

      “The police are going to search for any evidence here. They’re sending me the security tapes so we can see who’s been in and out of your dressing room. No one, other than authorized personnel, should have had access to that area, though. I want to know how someone got back there.”

      “You need to talk to Bentley.”

      “Oh, don’t worry. I will. Just as soon as I know you’re safe. Which, right now, you’re not.” He pushed open the door and cool nighttime air hit them. He did a quick examination of the area outside to make sure everything was clear. Just as they stepped onto the sidewalk, a black SUV pulled to a stop and one of his agents stepped out.

      Denton led Elle to the backseat, opened the door and gently prodded her inside. He climbed into the front seat and did another scan of the area for danger. Nothing appeared out of place. Without wasting any more time, he pulled away.

      Elle leaned between the two front seats. “Who was that who drove the SUV to the door?”

      “Sit back and put on your seat belt. And that was one of my men.”

      Her harness clicked in place. “You had some of your men at the event tonight? I thought my father only hired you?”

      “He did. But I always plan for the worst. It’s a good thing I did.”

      The suburbs and strip malls of Virginia Beach blurred past them as Denton escorted Elle away from the Convention Center. He let silence fall while the reality of the situation sank in for Elle.

      The person behind these threats was brave. Coming to an event like this and sneaking into Elle’s dressing room where they could easily be caught showed a lot of brazenness. The suspect was clearly bent on making Elle shake in her boots. But despite the threats, Denton would make sure that all this ended well. He’d see to it that nothing happened to Elle.

      “Where are we going?” Elle’s voice sounded quieter than usual as it drifted from the backseat.

      “To your parents’ house.”

      “But they took pictures of me there. Is it safe to go back?”

      “Those pictures were taken with a telephoto lens. Most likely, the photographer wasn’t even on your father’s property—not directly, at least—when those pictures were snapped. My men are going to canvas the perimeter tonight. We’re stepping up security.”

      Silence stretched for a moment, until Elle finally whispered, “Denton, I’m scared.”

      He softened his voice. “I know, Elle. Let