Free Facing It by Linda Winfree

hotel rooms found all over the country. God only knew how many they’d seen over the years. Her suitcase stood open on one bed; her laptop and notepad lay on the table. “Couldn’t get through.”
    “This place has cellular black holes everywhere.” In the past, he’d have dropped onto one of the beds without thought and stretched out while they talked, but once more there was the sensation that things had shifted, changed. He felt unwelcome, too formal with her.
    “Get this.” Jennifer picked up her notepad. “Chason is back in Charleston.”
    Shock slammed into him, shifting into a cold, slithering apprehension. “What? When?”
    She nodded, a seemingly satisfied smile crossing her face at his surprise. “About two hours ago. Upon arriving home, he promptly called the police and reported his wife and children missing.”
    “Holy shit,” he breathed. Maybe they’d underestimated Chason for real.
    “He claims they’ve been having marital problems and he believes Ruthie took the children as retaliation because he told her he’d planned to file for divorce.” Distaste twisted Jennifer’s pretty mouth. “Slimy bastard.”
    “Yeah.” Mentally, he tallied the hours Chason had been out of sight. He’d have been cutting it close, but there was definitely time for him to have traveled between Virginia and Georgia and back to Charleston. “So what’s the word from the Charleston PD?”
    “They, surprisingly enough, are reluctant to cooperate with us.” Irony lurked in her words. “I don’t think they’re terribly happy that the Bureau was working a major undercover operation in their city without sharing that info.”
    On a rough exhale, Harrell rolled his eyes. Why did the locals always have to go territorial?
    “Weston is flying into Charleston in the morning. I’m going to meet him there.”
    Harrell’s gaze jerked to hers. “Not we?”
    Avoiding his eyes, she shook her head. “No.”
    His sense of being off-kilter flowed through him once more, like a weird form of emotional vertigo. “Jen—”
    “Don’t you need to let Calvert and Falconetti know what’s going on with Chason? I’m pretty sure he’d want to know.”
    “Yeah, I’m going to head back out in a few but I’d like to—”
    “While I’m in South Carolina, I’m going to talk to Weston about assigning us new partners.” She delivered the quiet bombshell with deadly calm. The words and their reality exploded in Harrell’s consciousness. She was planning to leave him?
    “What the hell?” He stepped toward her. His chest throbbed, his lungs struggling to get oxygen in. Shit, he was overreacting. He’d lost partners before and this shouldn’t hurt so damn much.
    “I don’t think this whole undercover gig was a good idea.” She lifted her chin to a challenging angle. “The pretending-to-be-married changed things.”
    “Yeah, I know. It was bound to.” He tried to clear his brain, to really think about what she was saying. And not saying. “But I don’t want a new partner, Jen. I don’t want anyone but you. We’re a good team.”
    “We used to be a good team. Today, I realized we’re not anymore.” She folded her arms beneath her breasts, a distinctly self-protective gesture. Harrell made another step in her direction.
    “Jen, babe, listen, I know things are different. And I’m not real sure what exactly bothered you this afternoon, but—”
    “Don’t call me babe. I’m not your wife. I’m not…I’m not… Just stop with the endearments, would you?”
    “We can find our way back to how things used to be.” He swallowed hard. “We can.”
    “I don’t want to go back.” Her soft voice held a slight tremor. “That’s the problem, Beech.”
    “I don’t understand.”
    “I can’t be your partner anymore. I can’t be objective about you.”
    “Don’t talk to Weston yet. Give me a couple of days to show you—”
    “It won’t change anything.” She threw her hands out, frustration crackling in