She probably deserved that jab and decided not to counter him. She wasn’t sure if he was telling the truth, but it seemed like he was. Although she had to remind herself that Bryce was a very gifted CIA officer. Lies rolled off his tongue with ease. It was more that she didn’t want to believe that he could be trying to hurt her.

“If that’s all, I’ve got other business to deal with.” Bryce stood.

They’d been dismissed.

Hunter rose also. “If you think of anything or hear anything, give me a call.” He handed Bryce his business card.

“Will do.” Bryce turned to her. “It was good to see you, Lay. Please take care of yourself.”

Hunter was quiet until they got back down to the main lobby. “Well, what do you think?”

“I actually felt like he was being truthful.”

They walked outside and toward the Metro.

“I’m going to do some searching on my end and see what I can turn up on him,” Hunter said. “If we find out he has nothing to do with any of this, then we’re back at square one on the investigation.”

“Unless everything is connected to the cartel. I guess it’s naïve to think they couldn’t be working things on the inside to get the result they want at all costs, especially given this is about Diego avenging his brother’s death.”

“Hey.” Hunter grabbed her shoulder and pulled her to a stop.

She froze at the touch of his hand.

“None of this is your fault, Layla. We’ll get to the bottom of this.” They locked eyes for a moment before she turned away. They walked down M Street, headed toward the Farragut North Metro stop.

“I’m glad you’re confident about that,” she said.

“We have to stay focused, and we can figure this out. I promise you that.”

The sound of screeching tires to her left caused her to stop and look over her shoulder. A dark SUV was weaving very quickly down the street. The passenger-side window opened, and she knew they were in trouble.

Her instincts and training kicked in. She tackled Hunter hard to the sidewalk, using all of her body weight and momentum, just as rapid gunshots rang out.

Her breathing was uneven, and she didn’t move as the gunshots finally stopped and the SUV screeched away.

“Are you okay?” she asked Hunter.

He looked up at her with wide eyes. “Thanks to you.” He took a breath. “But, Layla, you’re bleeding.”

She touched her left shoulder, and bright red blood stained her hand. She’d been hit.