Rowan studied Manning as they drew closer. He exhaled deeply, trying not to let his emotions run away with him. For all he knew, he was looking at the very man who abducted his sister and planned on killing her. Manning wore a jacket, leaving Rowan unable to look for the tattoo, but he kept his focus sharp and watched for any and all body language the man put off.
Manning took a big deep breath and gave them an award-winning smile, dipping his chin slightly. “Mr. Hawke and Ms. McCoy?”
“Yes, that’s right.” Rowan offered his hand. “Thank you for arranging this flight for us on such short notice.” They could have given false names, but getting identification took time. Time that they didn’t have. Rowan knew their arrival set off alarms at the CIA headquarters, but seeing that his boss had known about Rowan’s intimate relationship in Paris, Rowan suspected the CIA would overlook his travels with her.
“It’s not a problem,” Manning said, avoiding Rowan’s stare, and then included Alex in the conversation. “And you’re just in Seattle for the night?”
“We are, thank you,” Alex said, then boarded the plane like she owned it. “We must get going immediately or we’ll be late for our plans tonight.”
“Yes, miss, of course. We’ll get up in the air as quick as we can.” Manning’s shoulder curled a little when he gestured Rowan into the plane.
Rowan hurried up the few steps and walked into luxury. Leather seats. A big-screen television. Under different circumstances, Rowan would make full use of this plane for his enjoyment, but he forced his mind clear.
He took a seat across from an already-settled Alex. She smiled at him; obviously her bravado was a show of a person who demanded excellence. This flight was costing Rowan ten grand, but there was no cost he wouldn’t pay if it brought him closer to finding Mia.
“What do you make of him?” Alex asked, after the flight attendant boarded the plane and moved toward the cabin, packing away the suitcase.
“I take him for an anxious sort,” Rowan said. “His shoulders slightly curved when he talked to us. There was a dip of his chin when you got pushy. And I saw him taking repeated deep breaths.”
Alex’s brows drew together. “How do you even see all that?”
He buckled up his seat belt, watching her do the same. “It’s my job to see these little things and know how to read people. It’s the only way to stay a step ahead of them. It’s these subtle cues that will tell you more about someone than anything that comes out of their mouth.”
Her brows tightened further. “What did you read off me?”
“You might be the one and only person I have a hard time reading,” he said with a dry laugh. “You were a complete surprise and bulldozed over any control of the situation that I had.”
She smiled softly, telling him she didn’t mind that one bit. “So, about those little cues, what’s your gut say about this guy?”
“That he’s not our guy,” Rowan stated.
Alex snorted a laugh. “That sure, are you?”
Rowan nodded. “He’s too nervous.”
“But maybe that’s why he kills. To take control of that nervousness.”
Rowan shrugged. “Always a possibility, but he’s not the type of guy I would see my sister being interested in. Manning barely looked me in the eye. He’s timid. Mia hates weakness.”
Alex eventually agreed with a nod and then turned to the flight attendant who sidled up next to them. Her navy-blue blazer and skirt were so neat that Rowan couldn’t find a single wrinkle. Her blond hair was pulled up in a tight bun, without a strand out of place. And her makeup was flawless. Samantha was on her nametag. “Can I get you anything to drink?”
“A coffee with milk, please,” Alex said.
Rowan gave a nod. “I’ll take black.”
“Excellent,” Samantha said with a beaming smile. “Once we’re up in the air, I’ll get those right to you.”
In the same moment she turned away, Manning strode out from the cabin with a matching smile to Samantha’s and his jacket nowhere in sight. “We’re just about to taxi down the runway here. I hope you both have an enjoyable flight. If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask Samantha, your flight attendant.”
“Thank you,” Rowan replied. He held his breath and waited for Manning to turn away. Through the light fabric of Manning’s shirt, it became clear he did not have a back tattoo. He turned to Alex and sighed. “One down.”
She nodded. “That may have been the quickest ruling out a suspect I’ve ever been a part of.”
“You and me both,” Rowan agreed with a laugh. “Usually clearing suspects is much more painful.” He had the scars to prove it.
The plane soon taxied down the runway and was off the ground not long after that. Rowan stared out his window, looking at the city disappearing below them until they were over dark blue water.
“You never mentioned you had a sister.”