The idiot Erin was talking about was, in fact, slowly opening his eyes. Ethan blinked several times as he stared at the ceiling. Then he pushed back the blanket, sat up, and stretched his arms.
Sleeping in the afternoon never agreed with him. He always woke up groggy, with the unpleasant feeling of not knowing how much time had passed.
He walked over to the window and spent a few seconds gazing at the wintry landscape of the backyard.
Then he bounced in place a few times, trying to shake off the drowsiness. Little by little, his body warmed up and the heaviness began to fade.
Once he finally felt more awake, he put on some comfortable clothes and headed downstairs.
The house was completely silent.
After an exhausting day, Taylor and Megan had gone to rest.
Poor Chloe, on the other hand, had already left. She still had to take care of all the preparations for that evening's press conference.
Ethan whistled as he opened the refrigerator.
He took out three thick ribeye steaks.
He also grabbed a bunch of asparagus, some butter, garlic, and a beer. He set everything on the counter and seasoned the meat with salt and pepper. Then he lightly coated the asparagus with olive oil and added another pinch of salt.
Although they had a dinner scheduled for later, he didn't know whether they would actually have time to eat. It was better to prepare something simple while the house was still quiet.
He carried the food out to the patio and lifted the grill lid.
It was gas-powered.
Ethan grimaced slightly. He had always preferred charcoal; the meat tasted better, and cooking it was far more enjoyable. Still, it was what he had.
He turned on the burners, closed the lid, and waited for the grill to heat up. In the meantime, he opened the beer and took a long drink.
A few minutes later, he placed the three ribeyes on the grill. The sizzle of the meat filled the patio, and a small cloud of smoke escaped before he lowered the lid again.
Ethan leaned against the grill with the beer in his hand. When the time came, he flipped the steaks and placed the asparagus off to one side.
Through the glass wall, he saw Taylor slowly making her way downstairs.
She was still wearing a white robe, with her sleep mask pushed up on top of her head. Her hair was slightly disheveled, and she still looked half asleep.
Taylor stopped when she caught the aroma of the meat and looked out toward the patio.
Ethan lifted the grill lid and checked the ribeyes before turning them with the tongs.
The glass door opened behind him.
—You know how to cook? —Taylor asked.
She rubbed her eyes as she stood in the doorway. Her voice still had a slightly nasal quality, and the robe didn't seem thick enough to protect her from the cold.
—I know how to make a few things —Ethan replied without taking his eyes off the meat.
Taylor moved a little closer and studied the three steaks on the grill.
—Is meat one of them?
—Meat is the most important one.
Ethan moved the asparagus to one side of the grill and took another drink of beer.
—You don't know how to cook?
—I do —Taylor replied—. I'm pretty good at baking.
—That doesn't count.
Her eyes widened in mock indignation.
—Of course it counts.
—Baking is just following instructions.
—And grilling meat is just not burning it.
Ethan raised the tongs slightly.
—Exactly. That's why it takes talent.
Taylor let out a quiet laugh and leaned against the doorframe. She watched him as he checked the steaks.
—I didn't expect you to have this side to you.
Ethan arched an eyebrow.
—What side?
—A calm one... You almost sounded nice —she replied after thinking about it for a moment.
With a beer in one hand and the tongs in the other, Ethan looked very different from the violent detective she had seen over the past several hours.
His movements were relaxed.
—I'm just cooking some meat —Ethan pointed out.
—Let me hold on to my good impression for at least a few minutes.
Ethan shook his head and removed the ribeyes from the grill. He placed them on a tray to rest before serving.
Then he arranged the asparagus beside the meat and turned off the burners.
That was when he remembered something.
—Where's Megan?
Ethan carried the tray of ribeyes and asparagus into the kitchen. He covered the meat with aluminum foil to let it rest and opened the refrigerator again.
He took out three avocados, a tomato, half an onion, some cilantro, a lime, and a jalapeño.
As far as he was concerned, no cookout was complete without guacamole.
—Wake Megan up —he said as he placed the ingredients on the counter—. This will be ready in a few minutes.
—She's already awake.
Taylor stepped closer, still wrapped in her robe.
—She'll be down in a minute.
Ethan cut open the avocados, removed the pits, and scooped the flesh into a bowl. Then he took a fork and began mashing it.
Taylor studied the rest of the ingredients.
—Are you going to put that entire jalapeño in there?
—I haven't decided yet.
—Remember, the rest of us have taste buds too.
Ethan glanced at her out of the corner of his eye.
—Exactly.
Taylor made a slight face and continued watching him. Ethan finely chopped the onion, tomato, and cilantro before adding them to the avocado. Then he squeezed the lime over the mixture and added salt.
When he picked up the jalapeño, Taylor leaned forward.
—Don't overdo it.
Ethan cut off only a piece and removed the seeds.
—When I'm cooking, I don't like anyone telling me what to do.
Taylor opened her mouth, slightly offended.
—Then you definitely couldn't compete on Hell's Kitchen.
Ethan began mixing the guacamole.
—The show with the chef who spends the entire time yelling at people?
—That's the one.
Taylor smiled as she imagined him receiving one of those endless tirades in front of the entire team.
—I'd punch him the first chance I got —Ethan said with complete nonchalance.
His answer immediately shattered her fantasy.
Taylor stared at him for a few seconds.
—Brute.
Taylor laughed and leaned against the counter. Ethan tasted some of the guacamole, added another pinch of salt, and nodded in satisfaction.
The two of them continued talking about nothing in particular. For the first time since the attack, Taylor felt completely at ease.
Then Megan appeared on the stairs, and that little bubble burst.
Taylor looked at her with obvious annoyance.
Megan stopped halfway down the final step and raised both hands, confused.
—What did I do now?
—Nothing —Taylor replied far too quickly.
Megan looked first at her friend and then at Ethan, but decided not to ask any questions.
—That smells incredible.
Dinner was ready shortly afterward.
The three of them carried everything to the table: the ribeyes, grilled asparagus, the bowl of guacamole, and several warm tortillas.
Ethan removed the aluminum foil from the meat and took a seat.
—Go ahead. Help yourselves.
He gestured toward the food.
Megan cut off a small piece of her ribeye and tasted it. Her eyebrows immediately rose.
—This is really good.
—You sound surprised —Ethan commented.
—A little —she admitted.
Taylor took a tortilla, added a piece of meat and a spoonful of guacamole. After the first bite, she gave him a thumbs-up.
—The guacamole is really good too.
Megan tried it and nodded in agreement.
—Where did you learn to make it?
Ethan set his utensils down on his plate.
—I spent some time in Mexico a while back.
Taylor looked up with curiosity.
—On vacation?
Ethan took a second to answer.
—Something like that. One night, I went to a party where they were grilling meat. One of the guests taught me how to make guacamole, and I liked it so much that I tried to memorize the entire process.
—Have you made it many times since then? —Megan asked.
—Not as many as I would've liked. I tried to recreate it a few times, but with my job, I could never find the right moment.
Ethan looked over the table.
—Until now.
Taylor took another helping of guacamole.
—Well, it turned out pretty well.
A second later, the heat hit her, and she quickly reached for her glass.
Ethan smiled.
—And I even removed the seeds.
—You were definitely trying to kill me.
—After everything I've done to keep you alive, that would be a pretty disappointing way to finish the job.
Megan burst out laughing.
Taylor gave her a reproachful look but continued eating.
In her opinion, for a man who didn't seem to spend much time in the kitchen, Ethan handled himself pretty well.
He merely smiled, took another drink of beer, and continued eating while checking his phone.
After all, those two women had eaten meals prepared by some of the finest chefs.
He had no intention of comparing his culinary skills to those of a professional.
Still, receiving a compliment felt good. Who didn't enjoy having their cooking praised?
Several messages from Hank appeared on the screen.
Ethan frowned when he saw the photographs of the explosives. Inwardly, he began to regret convincing Taylor to go ahead with the concert.
If Hank and the others hadn't found that C4, there was no telling how far Danny might have gone.
Fortunately, now that the explosives had been secured, he could breathe a little easier.
After dinner, Chloe hurried back.
The four of them joined a video conference with the public relations team and spent nearly half an hour reviewing the statement Taylor would deliver that evening.
Chicago.
Four Seasons Hotel.
Although night had already fallen, the spotlights, cameras, and emergency vehicle lights illuminated the area so intensely that it almost seemed like daytime.
It wasn't only the reporters who had shown up.
Hundreds of fans crowded behind the barricades to show their support for Taylor. The police presence was also considerable: uniformed officers guarded the entrances, several plainclothes detectives mingled with the crowd, and K-9 units continuously patrolled the perimeter.
There were even several SWAT tactical vehicles parked near the hotel. Their armored, angular bodies were enough to discourage anyone who might be considering causing another incident.
What had initially been intended as a relatively discreet welcome dinner had become one of the most heavily guarded events of the evening.
All because of the attack on Taylor's convoy.
Now everyone was waiting to see her.
They wanted to hear what she had to say and watch how she reacted after coming so close to death.
Would she appear nervous?
Would she break down in tears in front of the cameras?
Would she cancel the concert and leave Chicago?
Or would she walk out with her head held high and prove that she intended to carry on?
Several local celebrities had also taken advantage of the occasion to make an appearance. The savviest among them understood perfectly well that the Chicago Police Department would not allow another attack that night.
With so much security surrounding the hotel, the Four Seasons had become the perfect place to be seen.
Even the superintendent of the Chicago Police Department had personally attended. His presence sent a very clear message: the CPD intended to demonstrate in front of the cameras that it possessed the ability and determination necessary to keep the city safe.
—Shit.
Burgess removed her cap and wiped the sweat from her forehead. Despite the cold, she had spent nearly an hour moving back and forth to keep the crowd from spilling over the barricades.
—Are all these people crazy?
—Not all of them —Atwater replied—. Some of them just have too much time on their hands.
He didn't seem to feel the cold either. He stood at the edge of the police perimeter, watching for any unusual movement among the fans crowding the sidewalk.
—And this is only the beginning —he added.
He looked at Burgess.
—Tomorrow, we'll have more than seventy thousand people gathered at Soldier Field.
Burgess exhaled and put her cap back on.
—Let's hope Intelligence finds Danny before then.