Don’t Keep Silent

by Don't Keep Silent (epub)

  Rae gasped. “How did he get a key to my room? That’s ridiculous.”

  “I apologize for what’s happened, Ms. Burke,” Greg said. “We want your experience to be the best.” Greg kept his face neutral, but Liam could tell this disturbed the guy too. Why wouldn’t it?

  “Unfortunately, master key cards are fairly easy to come by if someone is determined. I’ll recommend that we ramp up protecting the master cards. In the meantime, I can question all the staff to find out whose card is missing and go at it from that angle. Our policies require housekeeping to keep those cards with them at all times—not sitting on the carts where they can be taken and inappropriately used by an unauthorized person.”

  Rae blew out a breath. “It’s okay, Greg. Not your fault.”

  A few minutes later, the masked intruder exited, still carrying the skis.

  “Look closely there,” Cook said. “I can’t tell for sure, but it looks like he’s hugging your laptop under his jacket to the left while he carries the skis over his shoulder.”

  “Let’s see.” Greg fast-forwarded the footage until Rae and Liam entered with their coffees, then they reviewed it again. No one else had entered. “He’s the guy who took it. Give me a minute here.”

  Greg reviewed cameras on the other floors during the same time period. The masked man had only entered Rae’s room.

  Deputy Cook stepped back from the computer and studied Rae. “Looks like you had something in your room or on your laptop that he wanted. Any idea what he wanted or who he is?”

  “No. I don’t recognize him, at least what I can make of him with a mask on, if that’s what you’re asking.”

  “That’s only half of what I’m asking.” Cook continued to stare at her.

  Rae glanced at all three men watching her. “I’m looking into a missing woman. Zoey Dumont.”

  “Who?” Cook asked.

  “I’m sorry, Tawny Davidson. She changed her name to Zoey Dumont.”

  Cook frowned. “Are you saying you believe this break-in has to do with her?”

  “I’m not sure what to believe,” she said.

  “Let’s see if there are any identifiers on this guy,” the deputy said. “We can’t see any tattoos because he’s covered head to toe.”

  “Even if he wasn’t covered, the footage is too grainy,” Rae said.

  “Looks like he’s wearing a sports watch,” Greg pointed out.

  “Great,” Cook said. “That, to go with his black attire and mask. That doesn’t help us.”

  “But look closer. The watch face is green. That’s unusual. And it’s on his right wrist,” Liam said. “That could mean he’s left-handed. It could help us narrow things down.”

  “Have you learned anything about Zoey?” Rae shifted her full attention to the deputy. “Are you actively looking for her?”

  “I’m not working on that, but others are. I’ll let them know what’s happened here.” To Greg, he said, “Can you move her to another room? I’d like the sheriff in on this. We need to get evidence techs in here in case this is related to the missing woman’s disappearance.”

  “Sure, but can I ask a favor?” Greg handed off a USB drive presumably holding a copy of the footage. “Please don’t string yellow crime scene tape across her door. We don’t want to scare the guests.”

  “Fine by me. Don’t let housekeeping in, then. But doesn’t seem like you have much control over who is getting into the rooms. I’ll get someone to guard this room until it’s processed in case our visitor decides to return.” Cook called for assistance on his cell.

  Liam could hardly believe the turn of events.

  “I’ll assist you in moving to a new room,” Greg said.

  “That won’t be necessary,” Liam said. “She’s checking out.”

  “I’m not checking out.” She stared Liam down. “I need to keep a room here, Liam.”

  Fine.

  “I just need to make sure we have one available.” Greg waited on his cell.

  Liam secretly hoped they didn’t have an extra room. That their last vacant room was now a crime scene.

  “I’m writing an article, so I need to be close.”

  “I’m so sorry for what’s happened.” Greg spoke to her though he was on hold. “But sounds like you’re working double duty, Ms. Burke. Writing an article and also looking for a missing person.” He frowned and addressed the person on the phone. “Okay. Not good.” He ended the call, then peered at her. “There’s nothing available until tomorrow.”

  Liam turned to her. “It’s okay, Rae. You have a safe place to stay. And it won’t change the potential for your article.”

  It looked like he was getting in deep. What am I doing?

  An hour later, Deputy Cook allowed Rae to take her luggage from her ransacked room. The deputy had waited there to make sure no one entered until others had arrived to process it.

  Greg stayed with Rae and Liam and escorted them all the way to the exit. “Again, I’m so sorry about what’s happened. I hope it doesn’t reflect on us in that article you’re writing.”

  Rae shrugged and offered a small smile. “It’s nothing to do with you, so don’t worry.”

  “Are you going to be all right?” Greg had that look in his eyes like he might want to ask Rae out. She seemed alone and vulnerable, but not needy. Never needy. Misplaced jealousy crawled through Liam. Or rather, slithered.

  “Yes, thanks, Greg.”

  “You’re welcome. Call me if you need anything.” He handed her his card. “Anything at all.”

  She nodded. “I will.”

  Greg left them at the exit. I can’t believe this guy. But Rae hadn’t caught on to Greg’s interest in her. Liam obviously hadn’t given off any possessive vibes, and why should he? He’d gone to a lot of trouble to avoid feeling emotional connections.

  Liam had been watching to make sure Greg left for good, then realized Rae was watching him.

  “You can step away from this if that’s what you’re thinking,” she said.

  Where had that come from? Rae was scared about everything that was happening. Liam could easily see that. He sensed, too, that she was still hesitant about staying at the Emerald M.

  “You want to know what I’m thinking?”

  “I’m not so sure anymore.” She arched a brow.

  “Too bad. I’m thinking that I’m glad there wasn’t another room for you here,” he said. “You need to be somewhere safe. Emerald M has plenty of room for you this time of year. As for your room here, I want to know how the masked man knew where you were staying to begin with. He knew the exact room, Rae. You need to stay somewhere safe while we work on finding answers.”

  “We?”

  “Yes. We.”

  “You haven’t even heard the details yet. Once you hear them, you might decide to take off.”

  “Do you really think I’m going to leave you when you’re looking for your missing sister-in-law?”

  She sucked in a breath. His words seemed to bolster her. It stung that she had doubted he would stick it out.

  “I looked for you because I had hoped you would help. But your initial reaction gave me reason to doubt.” A tenuous grin lifted one corner of her lips. “But I’m glad to hear that you’re in this with me. As for asking more of you, I think I’m safe now. He got my laptop. There’s nothing else I have that anyone could want.”

  “You, Rae. They could want you. Even if you check in at another place in town, then they could get to you.”

  She stared at him and chewed on her lip. He hadn’t meant to scare her more. Okay, yeah, he’d meant to scare some sense into her.

  “The safest place for you right now is with me. Will you stay at the Emerald M? It’s been a long day and looks to be an even longer night. We’ll get some dinner, and you can tell me everything. We’ll put our heads together and then, Rae, we’ll find her.” Liam almost cringed
at his own words. He was sounding more like Heath. He hardly recognized himself.

  She angled her head, her silent question clear. Who are you?

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Wednesday, 7:45 p.m.

  Rae had the eerie sensation that her life had been hijacked as Liam steered them along the two-lane highway that wound through Bridger-Teton National Forest. Reporting the stolen laptop and looking at video footage had taken entirely too long. Now they were headed to Emerald M Guest Ranch in Liam’s truck. She hadn’t wanted to make that drive at night, even following him.

  Rae had agreed to go with Liam, and until she knew more about what was going on, she didn’t want to stay anywhere else. Especially after learning that someone could easily come and go in any hotel room if they got their hands on a master key. Even if Greg had found her another room at the lodge, she wouldn’t have slept a wink. The break-in had left her feeling violated.

  Would the masked man be able to access her information? If so, and he took the time to read Rae’s writings and the articles her father had written, he would know more about Rae than even her family knew.

  Nausea stirred in the pit of her stomach.

  She focused ahead, the driving snow in the headlights all she could see as she remembered the scenery from her early morning venture out to the ranch along this same treacherous road.

  If she hadn’t spent the time tracking Liam down, would she be closer to finding Zoey?

  “Okay, Rae,” the patient man next to her finally said. “I’ve been waiting for you to open up for miles. I know you mean well. You’re not some nosy reporter looking for a story. What happened in the past aside, if I’m going to help you, beyond being an obviously needed bodyguard, you have to talk.”

  “Thank you for that, Liam.”

  She wasn’t sure he was being completely honest, especially after his initial reaction to seeing her earlier. But his tone gave away the pain in his words. He still believed she’d used him, but did he fully understand she was motivated by the need to help others? Compelled to tell their stories no matter the cost?

  Her last run-in with him had erupted in disaster that left him injured. She’d hurt him physically, and she would expect emotionally as well. Psychologically? Maybe. But he appeared to have picked up the pieces and moved on. Except what was he doing here in Jackson Hole instead of working an undercover case in a drug-laden location?

  Regardless, now was that moment they would talk. The moment she’d been waiting for all day, and still she dreaded it. She blew out another breath and hesitated.

  “You came to me today, Rae. I’m here because I don’t want to see you hurt or dead. Now, tell me what’s going on.”

  “It’s complicated.”

  “If you remember, I do complicated well.”

  She snuck a glance his direction and found him grinning. His grin had always gotten to her.

  “Look, I’m already in this. You owe it to me to tell me what’s going on. Why are you here in Jackson Hole trying to find your sister-in-law?”

  After what had already happened today, she was rethinking her initial decision to ask for his help. She could hire a private investigator. Someone else. She’d only thought of Liam because he’d been willing to die to protect her. That was someone she could trust. But that didn’t mean she wanted to put him in that kind of danger again—he’d already sacrificed so much.

  Exhaustion weighed on her, and she rubbed her eyes. “I’m not sure where to start.”

  “We have a ways to go on this drive, so you can start at the beginning.”

  Rae blew out a breath. “Before Zoey was Alan’s wife, she was my college roommate. That’s how she met Alan, in fact. One night, Zoey didn’t come back to our dorm room. We had planned to see a movie that night, so I was worried when she didn’t show up. I was about to go to the campus police when Zoey texted me to cover for her. Said she needed a break from classes. She gave me no other explanation. It was just weird, and I was still worried. A few days later I came home and found Zoey soaking in the tub. Dark circles under her eyes and bruises on her body. I wanted to rush her to the emergency room or call the police, but she made me promise not to tell another soul. Zoey warned me that if I told anyone, she would disappear again and for good this time.”

  Rae rubbed her eyes again. She needed to remember everything. “So, I kept Zoey even closer. I took her home to meet my family a few weeks later. She met Mom and Alan. Dad had died a couple of years before. I didn’t tell anyone about what happened to Zoey, except for Alan. He was falling for her and needed to be warned about what he was getting into. But by the time I got to that conversation, Alan was already smitten. He proposed, and they married three weeks later.”

  “Your brother’s actions remind me of you, Rae. You’re the hero of basket cases and underdogs. You don’t wield a gun. Your weapon is the mighty pen or, these days, laptop. How about word? That’s it. You use the written word as a weapon.”

  She tossed him a weary smile.

  “Sorry. I’ll shut up now. Tell me the rest.”

  Rae shared the rest of the story about Zoey’s current disappearance. Her voice shook. Just thinking about the incident in college stirred disturbing memories.

  “You think the two disappearances are related or else you wouldn’t have brought up what happened in college. How could they be related?”

  “The billion-dollar question. I suspected she had a stalker back then. Anyway, Alan asked me to find her and suggested I talk to her mother and look into her past.”

  “Wait a minute. He asked you to do this? Why can’t he do it?”

  “They have a four-year-old daughter, Callie. Alan is the one who called the police, and he knows they’re looking at him closely. The husband is the first person on their radar. Beyond that, Callie is autistic. He needs to be there for her. But I found out today from Samara Davidson, Zoey’s mother, that Zoey did have a stalker and that was the reason she fled Jackson Hole and changed her name. She had hoped to escape him. Maybe that was even part of the reason she married Alan. Regardless, I know she loves him. I know she loves Callie and would never willingly leave. But I had theorized that her stalker had found her again and took her.”

  “And now you’ve decided that’s not the case?”

  “I learned that authorities recently found and identified his remains. So he can’t be the person who took her. I’m grasping at straws.”

  “Hold your next words. I need to concentrate on this drive. It’s tricky when it’s dark.” He stopped the truck and engaged the plow. “You actually drove on this road today?”

  “Yes. I rented a four-wheel drive because I didn’t know where my search would take me.” She let him concentrate on the drive, the truck pushing snow out of the way.

  Finally, he steered the truck under the Emerald M Ranch archway, then kept going until he parked next to three vehicles in front of the huge log cabin with a wraparound porch.

  “If we’re lucky, my family might already be in bed since they have to get up in the middle of the night if they want to make their early morning flights.”

  Rae’s eyes pooled with tears, and she was grateful he couldn’t see them in the dark. “Before we go in, I need to ask you something. First, though, thank you. Thank you for being here with me. You didn’t have to, you know. After the trouble I caused you. You’re here in Wyoming instead of working as an undercover agent—that’s because of me, isn’t it?”

  “If anything, I should thank you for giving me a reason to get out. Anything else?”

  Rae wanted to dig deeper into his comment, but now wasn’t the time. He’d been generous enough and she didn’t want to push him. “Yes. There’s something else. I want to make it official. I want to hire you.”

  “Hire me for what?”

  “To help me investigate. Are you available?”

  “I’ll have to check my calendar.” He grinned. “Obviousl
y my schedule has a few openings.” Liam shifted to hold her gaze. “I’m not sure you should get involved any deeper in this. I know you want to find Zoey, but I’m worried about you. This isn’t safe. You’ve been here a day and look what’s happened.”

  She keenly felt his scrutiny. “Then I can hire you for double duty. Bodyguard and investigator.”

  “Why can’t I simply help you?”

  “I think it would be better if I made it official by hiring you.”

  “Oh, I get it. You think I might get frustrated and leave you holding the bag, so to speak.”

  Something like that. “Let’s just say that this way there won’t be any question about what’s happening. Plus, if anyone asks, you can say you’re working as a PI. I looked it up. In Wyoming, all you need is—”

  “A business card. Meaning, you don’t need a license or certificate. And that’s why you sought me out?”

  His gaze was pensive, as if he didn’t want to let her in again. She didn’t blame him. Even though his words sounded stern, the familiar small dimple emerged in his cheek. He couldn’t possibly be happy about her reappearance in his life, could he?

  “I couldn’t trust anyone else with this.”

  She wanted to say more but was afraid she would shut him down. Liam knew full well why she trusted him. He’d saved her life once already, but what she was sure Liam still didn’t understand . . . I didn’t use you to get a story.

  She’d used him to save a life.

  His expression hardened.

  Yeah. His mind was going back to their dark past.

  And so was hers.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  9:47 p.m.

  Emerald M Guest Ranch

  Liam didn’t want to go there with her. Talking about what happened before wouldn’t fix anything. Rehashing it wouldn’t remove the pain in his leg or the numbness in his heart. She might trust him with her life, but he certainly had trust issues when it came to her. Still, he was tired, and it was late, and someone was missing.