Page 5 of What Doesn't Kill You…

"Why would he do that? If the guy only wanted one member, why offer all of us?"

"Because we're drowning here." Rochelle waved a hand to indicate the office, the building that housed them, and probably the whole of Houston. "I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but clients aren’t exactly queuing up for our services. Since opening this office, we’ve managed to piss off the local DA's office and most of Houston’s law enforcement along with it. They don’t want to work with us. Worse than that, they’ve made it clear that they don’t want anyone else working with us either.

“We’ve been reduced to running low-rent background checks or installing security systems. There’s talk among the Benson Security partners that the US office is failing, and someone should pull the plug.”

“I didn’t realize things were that bad.” Of course, she'd noticed work was sparse, but she didn't think they were on life support.

“It gets worse," Rochelle said, sounding grim. "The government is clamping down on visas, and several of ours are up for renewal. The criteria for working in the States has become tighter, and I'm not sure we fit it any longer.”

That made Violet sit up straight. “You think our visas will get revoked?”

“I think there are several members of this team who wouldn’t meet the government’s new criteria for ‘upstanding citizen’.” She held up a hand and started counting off their teammates on her fingers as she spoke. “Abasi is an ex-mobster, suspected of cutting a bloody path through London’s crime world. Just because he hasn’t been convicted doesn’t mean there isn’t a file on him the size of a telephone directory. Then there are the triplets, who made a deal to work in the US office to avoid jail back in Scotland. Meanwhile, Rodrigo’s background as a government agent is so redacted it's unreadable, and I’m fairly certain not all of the organizations he contracted with were aboveboard. That brings me to you.” Rochelle’s dark eyes met Violet’s. “You exited the police under a cloud of suspicion, leaving a string of dead bodies in your wake. No matter which way you slice it, on paper half the team would be considered undesirable."

"I'll admit there have been some mistakes and issues in our pasts," Violet said. "It's not who we are now." Although, she wasn't sure if that held true for Abasi Otieno. When it came to him, she kinda thought: Once a gangster…

"Look around you." Rochelle waved a hand. "This is not the government of second chances when it comes to immigration. If they refuse to renew your visas, I'm left with Katrina and Noah for a team.” She rested her forearms on the table. "And, between you and me, Noah is making noises about leaving Benson Security. If this family trip to Atlantic City works out, he's talking about moving there permanently, maybe even getting his old job back with the police."

"No," Violet whispered. As the only other ex-cop on the team, Noah was one of the few people she could tolerate for any length of time.

"I don't blame him," Rochelle said. "Annabelle's treatment for agoraphobia is going great, and with the baby on the way, it makes sense that he'd want to be closer to the rest of the family. Plus, his sons miss their grandparents and Annabelle has become close to Noah's parents."

“If our situation’s that bad, I don't see how one job can turn things around.”

“Because we'll be working on a story that’ll attract publicity. Max has already agreed to mention us in his reports and, with any luck, a successful and high-profile case like this will help us rebuild trust with local authorities. It should also bring in new business. And, if we can prove we have a thriving business, with a staff who are particularly suited to our needs, we might have a chance at getting our visas renewed.”

"There are a lot of 'ifs' in your plan," Violet pointed out.

Rochelle shrugged wearily. "To be honest, it's more of a Hail Mary than a plan. Lake Benson has handed us a lifeline by asking us to support Max's investigation. If it goes well, it could save us."

And if it went badly, it would be the end of the US office.

Damn it to hell. Violet didn't have a choice and she hated being cornered.

So, she blurted out what was worrying her most. “I have no frame of reference for pretending to be a bride. I don't even know what to wear."

Rochelle's mouth quirked. "Generally, you wear a wedding dress."

"Which will mean I have to go clothes shopping," Violet said with disgust. "I can't do the frou-frou girly crap that goes with weddings. I don't know how."

It was her own fault she was so ignorant. While every other girl she'd known in her teens had been off experimenting with clothes and boys, Violet had been earning two black-belts and studying up on criminal justice. In a family where the ability to apply makeup was practically a genetic trait, Violet stood out like a sore thumb. Now it seemed that all those stupid lessons she could have learned as a teen, but avoided because she thought they were a waste of time, would actually come in handy. She never saw that coming.

"Katrina will function as your maid of honor," Rochelle said. "I'm sure she won't mind sorting out your clothes and helping with the frou-frou girly crap. You won't be alone."

"Then there's the romance side of things." Violet was beginning to feel a little desperate now. "Island weddings are all about the romance, right? Well, I don't do romance. I mean, I date. Although, I'm not sure you can call two dates in three years a stellar record. And I did break the last guy's fingers because he got a little touchy." Damn, she was beginning to feel lightheaded. "I don't know how to fake being romantic," she confessed on a whisper. "I don't know how someone who's getting married acts. My own sister kept me far away from her wedding for fear I'd break it." Her hands were clammy now and her heart was racing.

Hunger. That was the problem. It was probably low sugar because she'd skipped breakfast for this stupid meeting. She scanned the room, hoping a chocolate bar would jump out at her. None did.

"Max has been married before," Rochelle said. "He can walk you through what's expected and how to behave like a bride-to-be. Just follow his lead and you'll be fine."

Was she mad? Follow the untrained client's lead on an op?

"I'm sorry, Rochelle, but I don't think I can pull off the whole wedding thing," Violet said, sounding a little desperate. "I don't even see the point of getting married. Apart from the tax breaks and making sure you have legal rights when someone dies, what else is in it for the woman? At the end of the day, being married just makes it harder to separate when you inevitably split up."

Rochelle blinked several times before replying. “You're not actually getting married; you know that, right? The op should be over, and you should be off the island before you even have to pretend to say I do. But if everything goes belly up and you have to go through with the ceremony, remember it isn't a real wedding. Generally, these Caribbean events are purely symbolic, and the legal paperwork usually happens in a courthouse at home. You just have to go through the motions as though the wedding is going to happen." She paused, thinking. "And pretend you're excited about it, because most people think weddings are a romantic expression of a couple's love for each other."

Whatever. She watched The Bachelor. She knew romance was fake.

"Violet," Rochelle said, her tone serious and earnest. "If you don't do this, it could be the end of Benson Security's American office."