Deadly Forever (Hardy Brothers Security Book 24)

by Lily Harper Hart

  “I know.”

  “James, why don’t you get a pad of paper and start taking orders,” Ally suggested. “I’m going to want a big entrée and a lot of appetizers.”

  “Me, too,” Mandy said. “What do you want, Darcy? Don’t worry about price. James is happy to pay and place the order.”

  “I’m definitely happy to do it,” James gritted out.

  “Way to hold your ground, man,” Grady said, smirking. “You’re the kind of husband I want to be when I grow up.”

  James ignored him. “What does everyone want?”

  “THIS IS the best lunch ever!”

  Darcy was so enthusiastic James couldn’t help but smile. He adored the way Mandy, Emma, and Ally doted on her. They all seemed to inherently know what she needed at any given moment to make her feel closer to the group.

  “I’m glad you like it,” James said, watching warily as Mandy slid closer to him and grabbed a crab leg cluster from his plate. “Hey, wife?”

  “What?”

  “Don’t you think you should’ve asked before stealing that?” James challenged. “How do you know I wasn’t going to eat it?”

  Mandy didn’t look bothered by her husband’s tone. “What’s yours is mine, right? Isn’t that what you told me?”

  James had been telling her that since long before they were married and she insisted on using her meager courthouse income to pay for everything when he had a lot more money and resources to offer.

  “What’s mine is definitely yours,” James agreed, although he snagged back the crab legs anyway. “That doesn’t go for food, though.”

  Mandy made a face. “But … I want them.”

  James couldn’t stop himself from chuckling. “Then ask me for them.”

  Mandy opened her mouth and glanced at Ally before snapping it shut. She clearly thought she was going to get her way no matter what.

  “Ask me,” James prodded.

  “May I please have your crab legs?” Mandy asked, pained.

  “You may,” James said, giving them back and pressing a kiss to the tip of her nose. “I expect you to reward me for this fabulous lunch later, though.”

  “I shall be the shark.”

  James grinned. “I’ll be the shark. You’d better scream a lot when I catch you, though.”

  “Ugh, you’re so gross,” Ally complained, making a face as her brother and best friend exchanged another kiss. “Don’t you guys think you go overboard sometimes?”

  “We’re going overboard tonight,” James replied. “That’s why I’m going to be the shark.”

  “I don’t get it, but I love the way you guys are with each other,” Darcy said, a dreamy expression on her face. “I hope I find someone who will love me that way some day.”

  “You will,” Maverick enthused. He’d kept his eyes on Darcy throughout the entire meal. James wasn’t keen on feeding him, too, but he couldn’t exactly omit him with so many witnesses present.

  Mandy pursed her lips as she regarded Maverick. He was clearly smitten with the young girl. She worried his overt interest would be too much given what she had to deal with. For her part, though, Darcy merely seemed flattered with the attention.

  “Now that I’ve fed everyone, we have some business to discuss,” James said, wiping his hands on a napkin and grinning when he saw Mandy sucking the meat from one of the crab leg shells. “You’re so classy, baby.”

  Mandy ignored him. “What did you guys find at the school?”

  “Well, summer school is in session, and we found out that all four of the boys were supposed to be in it,” Jake supplied.

  “They were?” Darcy looked surprised. “I didn’t know that. Of course, I was too embarrassed to go to graduation so I didn’t realize they weren’t there either.”

  “You shouldn’t be embarrassed,” Ally chided. “That’s your graduation. Those boys should’ve been embarrassed.”

  “I didn’t want to risk any of the other kids calling me a slut again,” Darcy admitted. “It just wasn’t worth the annoyance for a piece of paper they ultimately mailed to my house.”

  “We ran into a girl in the hallway,” James explained. “Her name was Serafina.”

  “Ah, Serafina Brown,” Darcy intoned, shaking her head. “It doesn’t surprise me that she’s in summer school.”

  “She said she failed chemistry … and then asked me to prom,” James said, his eyes twinkling when Mandy made a face. “She’s got a lot of blond hair and blue eyes, and for a second she reminded me of my wife.”

  “Did you consider going to prom with her?” Mandy asked.

  “Of course not.”

  “I had a dream the night before my prom,” Mandy said, her expression wistful. “I dreamed you showed up on leave from the military and my prom date got the chicken pox so you took me as a favor to Ally. You took one look at me in my dress and fell in love.”

  James’ heart pinched at her dreamy smile. “I think that’s exactly what would’ve happened if I was home on leave at that point,” he said after a beat. “It’s probably good that I wasn’t.”

  “Why is that?”

  “Because if I fell in love with you, we both know I could’ve never voluntarily left you,” James answered. “I would’ve been court marshaled and labeled a deserter. That would’ve ruined everything.”

  “Oh, that was a really good answer,” Mandy cooed, leaning forward so she could kiss his cheek.

  “I thought so, too,” James teased, cupping the back of her head. “I’ll bet you would’ve made the prettiest prom date ever, though.”

  “Oh, I’m going to puke so hard,” Grady muttered, causing Darcy to giggle.

  “Anyway, after a few minutes I realized Serafina was nothing like my wife,” James said, dragging his eyes away from Mandy’s pretty face. “She seemed chatty and honest, though. She said that no one cared that the boys were rumored to sell drugs and that she didn’t believe Darcy at first, but now she’s not sure what she believes.”

  Darcy jolted. “She said she believes me now?”

  “She said that what happened at the mall made her question everything about the boys,” James replied. “She was very talkative and friendly until … well … until a guidance counselor showed up. Then she wouldn’t speak at all and she appeared frightened.”

  “Mr. Kaspar,” Darcy said, bobbing her head. “Everyone hates him.”

  “He introduced himself and then basically kicked us off the premises,” James said. “He seemed … angry.”

  “He’s not a nice man,” Darcy said. “He’s also kind of a pervert.”

  James stilled. “A pervert? What do you mean?”

  “Does he sleep with the students?” Ally asked, horrified.

  “I don’t know of any specific student he’s slept with, but that doesn’t mean he wouldn’t try if he thought there was a chance,” Darcy answered. “He always looked down everyone’s shirts when he could and carried a ruler around so he could measure girls’ skirts. He always managed to touch us when he was doing it, too.”

  “Well, I already don’t like him,” Mandy muttered.

  “That makes two of us, baby,” James said, resting his hand on her shoulder. “Did he ever hit on you?”

  “He hit on everyone as far as I know,” Darcy answered. “He also spent a lot of time with some of the boys. I always thought it was because his son was in our class, but now that you mention it, everything he did was weird.”

  “Well, I definitely want to run a background check on him,” James said. “There’s something off about him. I felt it the second we met. If he does have ties to the dead boys, well, so much the better. I need information before I approach him again, though.”

  “That sounds like a plan,” Mandy said, wiping off her hands. “While you’re doing that, we’re taking Darcy to the mall.”

  James’ eyebrows flew up his forehead. “You’re going back to the mall? I didn’t think it was even open again.”

  “Not that mall,” Mandy replied.
“We’re going to the outdoor mall on Hall Road. Darcy wants to shop for college this fall and we need a few things for the bachelorette party.”

  “That reminds me,” Grady said, leaning forward. “I know you guys said no strippers for the bachelor party, but what if the stripper doesn’t get totally naked?”

  “Then she doesn’t sound like much of a stripper,” Ally said.

  “No strippers,” Mandy said, shaking her head. “James can only see me naked for the rest of our lives. I even cover his eyes when we watch dirty movies.”

  James snickered. She did nothing of the sort, but it made a cute visual. “I’m fine with the ‘no stripper’ rule. What are you getting for the bachelorette party?”

  “Just some tiaras and feather boas,” Ally replied. “It won’t take us long.”

  The women were blasé, but James wasn’t convinced. “Are you sure about this? If you want someone to go with you … .”

  “We’re big girls,” Mandy said, patting his arm. “We’ll be okay. We can go to the mall without babysitters. It’s not even the same mall. I promise we’ll be okay.”

  “You’re my big girl,” James said, pulling her close. “If you need me for any reason, don’t hesitate to call.” He pressed a firm kiss to her mouth and caused Darcy to sigh.

  “I definitely want one of him when I grow up,” Darcy said.

  “Would you settle for a guy who still lives in his mother’s basement?” Maverick asked hopefully.

  Instead of laughing, Darcy merely smiled. “Never say never.”

  14

  Fourteen

  “Stop watching the door.”

  Three hours later, James kept one ear on Maverick as he ran the background search on Kaspar and his eyes on the front of the office. He’d spent so much time with Mandy since the incident at the mall that he keenly felt her absence. There was an empty hole in his chest where her smile belonged.

  James shifted his eyes to Grady and made a face. “I’m not watching the door.”

  “You’re a crappy liar,” Grady shot back. “There’s no need to be worried. The girls are perfectly safe.”

  “That’s easy for you to say. Your girl is at work.”

  “Where she finds a lot of trouble,” Grady reminded his brother. “Sophie isn’t as trouble prone as Mandy, but she sticks her nose in big stories all of the time. Her nose is in this one, mind you. She’s out at the school right now.”

  James was intrigued, despite himself. “She’s at the school? Did she get inside?”

  “She’s talking to the superintendent in his office,” Grady replied. “I’m not sure what information she’s gleaned yet, but she’ll share with us the second she finds something. You know that.”

  “I do know that,” James confirmed, dragging a hand through his hair. “I’m just … antsy.” He pushed himself to a standing position and paced in front of the desk. Maverick, his fingers a blur, continuously worked as the others chatted. “Have you found anything yet?”

  Maverick made an exaggerated face. “Yes, I’ve found the answers to all of the big questions in life … and your little ones. I’m just keeping the information to myself because I like playing games.”

  “No one needs your snark,” James said, rolling his neck. “Not that I’m questioning your work ethic or anything, but how hard can it be to run a background check on a guidance counselor?”

  “Harder than you may think,” Maverick answered. “Hacking into the school’s employment records was a breeze. There’s some weird stuff in this guy’s file, though. I’m trying to track it down.”

  “What weird stuff?”

  “I’ll tell you when I know more,” Maverick growled, darting a look in Grady’s direction. “What’s with the big brother routine? He usually lets me work in peace as long as the blonde isn’t in danger. We just saw her. The only thing she’s in danger of is splitting her pants after eating so much food.”

  “Don’t talk about my baby,” James chided, wagging a finger. “I don’t like it.”

  “You don’t like anything where she’s concerned,” Maverick argued. “You like everything about her, don’t get me wrong, but if anyone else even looks at her you go all Hulk angry.”

  James didn’t want to encourage Maverick, but he couldn’t stop himself from smiling. “Mandy used to say that, too. She thinks I have a bad temper.”

  “Do you beat her? Is that why she thinks you have a temper?” Maverick looked legitimately curious.

  James was affronted. “I would never hurt my wife!”

  “So … that’s a no?”

  “I’ll kill him if he doesn’t hurry up,” James warned Grady. “He’s on my last nerve.”

  “Stop poking the bear, Maverick,” Grady ordered. “Tell us what you’ve got.”

  “I don’t have much,” Maverick said. “Lee Kaspar has been at the school for three years. He has several reprimands in his file, all for inappropriate contact with students.”

  Grady arched an eyebrow. “Girls?”

  “Actually, both boys and girls,” Maverick said. “One is for measuring the girls’ skirts, which is just a genius idea if you ask me.”

  “No one asked you,” James growled.

  “One is for telling a girl that she needed to wear a bra because everyone could see her nipples,” Maverick offered. “The third is for inviting the football team over to his house to watch a game. One of the parents claimed her kid came home drunk, but Kaspar denies the drinking was done at his house. There’s a note that they couldn’t prove the claim in the file and that the boy denied Kaspar served him alcohol.”

  “Does it say what kid was drunk?” James asked, playing a hunch.

  “That would be one Dakota Landers.”

  “Huh,” Grady mused, rubbing his chin. “That can’t be a coincidence.”

  “No, it can’t,” James agreed. “So Kaspar is a pervert and he’s inviting the boys over to drink at his house. To what end?”

  “Do you think he somehow convinced the four boys to rob the mall?” Jake asked. He’d been largely silent while the others conversed. James didn’t miss the fact that he kept regularly checking the door, too.

  “I don’t know,” James said. “I am kind of wondering if he had something to do with what happened to Darcy, though. Everyone thinks the guy is a pervert for a reason. I’m fairly certain Darcy said she was at the guidance counselor’s house for the party because he had a son in that high school. I think she also said he wasn’t there, but that doesn’t mean he didn’t supply the drugs and give the kids the idea.”

  “Do you want to ask Darcy about it?” Grady asked. “She’ll most likely be with the girls when they come back. Even if she’s not, we could call Mandy and make her ask Darcy.”

  “I don’t want to do that yet,” James replied. “It’s bad enough that she knows her classmates were involved. To add fear about an authority figure – especially when we’re not sure about his role in things – isn’t high on my list of things to do.”

  “I agree,” Grady said. “We can hold off. What do we know about Kaspar before he started at the high school? Where was he before?”

  “See, that’s the part I’m having trouble with,” Maverick said. “His file says he was at Rosa Parks High School in Detroit.”

  “Can’t you hack their files?” James asked.

  Maverick shook his head. “The school closed down four years ago. There are no files to hack. I went through an old registry I found, though, and Kaspar isn’t listed on it.”

  James stilled, his stomach clenching. “Could that be an oversight?”

  “Anything is possible,” Maverick said. “I can’t find much of anything on this guy, though. As of three years ago, he didn’t appear to exist on anything other than paper.”

  “Meaning?”

  “Meaning someone fabricated an identity. I have no idea why. All I can find for him is a regular bar tab at a brewery in Royal Oak. He goes every Wednesday, which happens to be tonight.”

 
James let loose with a weighted sigh when the door to the office opened. Mandy, Ally, and Emma strolled in, their arms laden with packages as they excitedly giggled and chatted away. Darcy wasn’t with them.

  “Where is Darcy?”

  Mandy lifted her head and beamed when she saw James. “We dropped her off at home. She was tired. I think we wore her out.”

  “She had fun, though?” James was happy to hear Darcy was bonding with the women, but he was relieved to have Mandy back with him.

  “She had a great time,” Mandy replied. “By the way, we bought her some clothes. If you have a problem with it, I can move money out of the savings account with what’s left of my inheritance to cover it.”

  “You know I don’t care about that,” James said, pushing a strand of Mandy’s flaxen hair behind her ear as he studied the angular planes of her face. “What do you want to do tonight?”

  As far as conversational shifts go, it wasn’t James’ finest effort.

  “I don’t know,” Mandy replied. “I thought we were going to play shark. I found a bathing suit I think you’re going to love for that game, by the way.”

  Ally’s eyes lit up at the flirty banter. “Wait until you see the bathing suit, James. You’re going to go off … probably in more ways than one.”

  “I’m looking forward to seeing it, although I prefer it when you swim naked, baby,” James said, making his decision on the spot. “I don’t suppose you’d be up for an outing to a Royal Oak brewery before we go home, would you?”

  Mandy looked surprised. “Sure. I don’t see why not.”

  “What are you thinking?” Jake asked.

  “I’m thinking I want Mandy and Ally to get dressed up in something … pretty,” James replied, smiling. “Kaspar is a pervert and no one is more likely to entice a pervert than my wife.”

  “You should know,” Grady muttered.

  “You want to use me as bait to lure the guidance counselor?” Mandy asked, confused. “That doesn’t sound like you at all.”

  “I’ll be right there,” James said. “I want Ally to go with you in case he prefers brunettes, but I want you guys to find a way to steal his glass when he’s not looking so we can run prints. If he puts a hand on either of you, though, I’ll put my fist through his face and we’ll steal his glass.”