“Where are you?”
He looked through his window. “Next to Mountain Elementary.”
“Cam, you’re two blocks from my place. Come on over here and eat, I’ll give you a beer and we can talk.” She gave him her address.
“I’ll be there in five minutes.”
It took just two before he parked in front of her house, an old Victorian with a wraparound porch. He could see her red SUV parked in the drive. For a moment he thought he glimpsed a shadow or silhouette on the driver’s side but dismissed it as a symptom of his exhaustion. Cam grabbed the sack and climbed up the porch steps as Lainey opened the door.
The first sight of her since their argument a few nights before caused Cam to stop and stare. She wore loose fitting draw-string pants with a white tank top and her feet were bare. Her hair was slightly disheveled as if she’d just run her fingers through it. Cam got the sudden urge to pull her to him and do the same—slide his hands through her hair, down her back, and mold her body to his.
“Well, you don’t need to stand there. Come on in.” Lainey held the door open. “How about a beer to go with…”
“Chinese. There’s plenty. We can share.”
“I’ll grab chop sticks.”
Within minutes they were digging into Kung Pao chicken, Mongolian beef, fried rice, and a mixture of vegetables and noodles.
“You bought enough for an army,” Lainey commented as she stabbed some beef with her chop sticks.
“Like I said, I was starving.”
They ate in silence for a while, neither knowing quite how to approach the subject that had caused such intense reactions earlier in the week, and neither willing to chance a repeat of that night.
Lainey took a last bite then cleared her throat. “About us pairing up. I’ve been thinking about it, and if you’re willing to try it, so am I.”
Relief seemed mild compared to the feeling that overtook Cam at Lainey’s words. She’d made it simple, no drama or excuses, just a professional willingness to work through their differences and move forward. “I’d like that.”
“Great. I know you’re busy with all that’s going on, so you tell me what works best.”
“Saturday okay with you?”
“Perfect.”
“We’ll meet at SAR and go from there. Eight o’clock.” He checked his watch, reluctant to leave but knowing he had no choice. “Guess I better head out.”
She walked him to the door. “Thanks.”
He turned at her words. “For what?”
“Your willingness to work with me after what I said the other night.”
“It was as much my doing as yours. We’ll forget it and move on.”
Lainey put her hand on the knob when they heard a loud crash from the back of the house.
“What the hell was that?” Cam said and took off down the hall, Lainey right behind.
He opened the door to one room, and seeing nothing, stepped to the next door, the laundry room. “Shit.” He knelt beside the back door, the one that used to have glass framed in the upper half. Cam looked to the side of the clothes dryer and found a rock about two inches in diameter lying amid a sea of broken glass. He picked it up and held it out to Lainey. “You having problems with the neighbors?”
She stared at the rock and glass, feeling angry, confused, and vulnerable. “I don’t know who would’ve done this. There’s the older couple next door, and a couple with children on the other side. They’re the only ones I’ve met.” She took the rock from Cam and turned it in her hand. “It sure did a lot of damage.”
The words had just left her lips when another crash came from the front. Lainey turned, ready to run back toward the living room when Cam grabbed her arm.
“You stay here. I’ll let you know what I find.”
“But…”
“Stay here, please. I’ll check it out.”
She stiffened, not liking the way he ordered her to fall back. Lainey decided to give Cam one minute, then follow him. Her front door opened and closed, then opened once more. She headed to the front.
“I can’t see anyone outside, but you need to look at this.” He held a small block of wood in his hand, a string securing an envelope in place.
Lainey took it, pulled the envelope free, and tore it open. Her eyes widened as she stared at the message. She glanced up at Cam, then back at the note.
“What’s it say?”
She held the paper out for Cam to read.
You don’t belong here. Leave before someone gets hurt.
Cam’s anger rose as he read the message a second time. He placed a finger under Lainey’s chin and lifted her face to him. “You want to tell me what this is about?”
Chapter Twelve
Lainey stared up at him, a knot forming in her stomach, as the need to run out of the house and track the assailant down overcame her. She started to turn toward the front door when Cam restrained her with a hand to her arm.
“This house belongs to me, it means something, and I’ll not let anyone force me out with continued threats.” She clenched her hands and took a deep breath.
“Sit down a minute, we can clean this up later.” He took Lainey’s arm and escorted her to the sofa in the living room, then sat next to her. “Now, you’re going to tell me what’s going on.” Cam’s hard-edged tone told her he wouldn’t leave until he knew what was happening.
“Let me get something from the bedroom.” She dashed upstairs, grabbed the other notes, and made her way back to Cam, holding out the previous threats.
He read each before setting them on a nearby table, his face a mask, lips pursed. The rage Cam felt at the threats to Lainey surprised him. He wanted to find the person responsible and tear them apart, make them pay for scaring the woman he…what? Loved, wanted? What did he feel toward this woman?
“Who else knows of this?”
“Just Frank. I thought it might be a prank, you know, hazing the new person. He told me Jake doesn’t allow such behavior. The first two were wedged in the front door, there wasn’t any damage.”
“What else did Frank say?”
“He told me to call the police. He said if I didn’t call them, he would.”
“So what did the police say?” He already knew the answer, but needed to hear her say it.
“I didn’t call them.”
“Shit,” Cam mumbled and scrubbed a hand over his face before pulling out his phone and punching in a number.
“What are you doing?”
“What you should’ve done after the first note. I’m calling the police.”
“But…” her words trailed off when his eyes, radiating of barely controlled fury, narrowed on hers.
“Is Sergeant Towers working tonight?” Cam paused a moment. “Yes, I’ll hold.”
“You know him?”
Cam nodded, then focused back on the call. “Hi, Buck.” He listened a moment. “She’s doing better, thanks. I’m just glad they arrested the person who did it. But look, there’s a situation at a friend’s house. Lainey Devlin.” Cam gave Buck the address. “Vandalism, threats.” He paused again. “Three notes. Good. I’ll be here when you arrive.”
“Guess I’d better clean up this mess.”
“No. Don’t touch anything. Buck and his men will want to see the damage, check outside, and probably take the notes. Why don’t you get us some coffee while we wait?”
“You don’t have to stay. I can handle it.”
“I’m staying.”
Five minutes later, Cam could hear Buck’s squad car pull into the driveway behind Lainey as another parked behind his truck. He opened the door to three officers and held out his hand to Buck.
“Thanks for getting here so fast.” He nodded to Lainey. “Buck, this is Lainey Devlin. She owns the house.”
“Nice meeting you, Ms. Devlin. Why don’t you show me the notes first, then the damage, while you explain what happened?”
Cam grabbed the notes from the living room. “There are thre
e. The one tonight was wrapped around a block of wood that was thrown through the window over there.” Cam motioned to the shattered front window.
“When did you get these other two, Ms. Devlin?”
“Over the last couple of weeks. Each had been wedged into the front door and frame. I couldn’t see any damage. The first time I heard tapping on the front window. I went to check it out, saw nothing, and opened the front door. That’s when I saw the note drop to the ground.”
Buck scribbled in his notebook while the other officers took pictures of the damage and checked outside for anything that might help them figure out what happened. “And the second note?”
“I heard noise from the front and went to check it out. I didn’t see anyone through the front door glass, so I stepped outside to look up and down the street. There weren’t any people or moving cars. As I turned back inside, I saw the note on the porch. It must have been stuck between the door and jamb, the same as the other one.”
“You didn’t call the police, file a report?”
She looked away, feeling foolish for not reporting the two incidents. “No. I did call Frank Moretti at SAR headquarters. I thought it might be a prank they played on new volunteers. He assured me no one with the team would pull something like this.” Lainey cleared her throat. “Frank did tell me to contact you. Guess I should have listened to him.”
Buck narrowed his eyes at her, but said nothing. “All right, we’ll go with what we have. Anyone you can think of who’d have a grudge against you, want you to leave?”
“No one. I just bought a small business and moved into this house. I’ve met so few people that I can’t imagine having already made an enemy. Between my business and SAR, there’s been little time for getting involved in the community.” She shook her head. “I’m sorry Sergeant. All of this baffles me.”
Buck continued to scribble while Lainey spoke. He knew someone had it in for the young woman, she just hadn’t taken the time to sort through all the possibilities. Vandalism escalated the threats to a new level, one that would require her to search her contacts and acquaintances for anyone who might hold a grudge against her.
“I want you to think through everything since you arrived in town. Everyone you’ve met or interacted with, not leaving anyone out. It may have to do with something you haven’t thought of, something minor. You’d be surprised at how something you consider minor can be elevated to a level another person considers more serious—knocking into someone with your grocery cart, cutting off a car in traffic. Remember, we’re not dealing with a person who is rational. Few people send threatening notes and vandalize—for any reason. What you’re experiencing is extreme and potentially more serious than I believe you realize.” He closed the notebook and glanced around the room once more. “Do you have someplace to stay tonight?”
“Just here.”
“She can stay at my place,” Cam offered, not turning his eyes toward Lainey.
“Absolutely not. I won’t let someone push me out of my home.”
“The truth is, someone has threatened you, Ms. Devlin, broken into your house and caused a good deal of damage. I agree with Cam. Stay with him, or someplace else.”
Lainey swept her gaze around the living room. The damage did seem more extensive than she’d first thought. One full window had been broken, with glass strewn across the floor as far as the dining room.
“Look, you stay at my place, or I stay here. Either works for me.” Cam’s stern expression indicated he’d sleep in his car if needed.
Lainey’s glare told Cam just what she thought of his idea, but kept her thoughts to herself.
She crossed her arms and stared at him. “Fine, you can stay in my guest room.”
“Glad you got that settled.” Buck glanced between the two, then focused on Lainey. “I want to meet with you tomorrow, here or the station, whatever works for you. That’ll give you time to think through all the contacts you’ve made. I want to know everything you’ve done since arriving. All right?”
“That’s fine. I’ll write down as much as I can remember. Will after work be soon enough? I run a preschool. There’s no way I can cancel tomorrow at this point.”
“What time?”
“Six o’clock.”
Buck nodded and stretched his hand out to Lainey then to Cam. “Sorry to meet you under these circumstances, Ms. Devlin. This is normally a quiet town, good people, and little trouble. We’ll find out who’s behind this and stop them.”
Sergeant Towers walked out the door, leaving Lainey and Cam to clean up the damage. Cam began in the front room while Lainey cleaned up the laundry.
“Do you have any cardboard or scrap wood we can place over the broken glass?” Cam dumped the last of the broken shards in the trash can.
“There’s a storage shed out back. I’ll go check.” She started toward the kitchen door, stopping when Cam grabbed her arm.
“Let me go. I’ll see what you have and bring it inside.”
“You can come with me, but I’m going.” She pushed on through the opening, leaving him to follow close behind. A part of her was glad at his offer to stay and help, another part felt crowded. She wasn’t used to anyone hovering the way he seemed to be doing. An image of Robert flashed through her mind. She knew he would have walked out with the Sergeant and driven home, an offer to help clean up would have never entered his mind. He still left messages and sent emails, all of which she ignored. Lainey supposed it would be wise to respond, except something held her back.
“Where’s Mark? I thought he was staying with you until he found a place.” Cam stopped beside Lainey as she slid the key into a lock on the shed door, and noticed how old the wooden structure appeared. He guessed it had been built at the same time as the house.
“Mark found a house the first week. He flew back to Bluebird Falls to pack his furniture and clothes. There’s enough to fit into a small moving van. I expect he’ll be back early next week.”
She pulled the door open and let Cam walk past her to the inside.
“All this stuff yours?” Old garden equipment, tools, buckets, and various bags of seeds and fertilizer filled the shed.
“Only the bicycle. Helen left the rest when she moved.”
He looked around the area. “I don’t see anything that will work. Let’s head out to SAR headquarters. There are several boxes cut down and stored there. Those should be perfect for covering the broken windows. Tomorrow we’ll get someone out to replace them.”
“I can’t leave the place like it is.” Lainey gestured toward the house. They could see the broken laundry room window from where they stood.
“Someone would need to break more glass and push through the window trim to enter either room. Besides, I doubt anyone will be back tonight—especially if they saw the police cars.” He pulled out his keys. “We’ll take my truck.”
******
They rode in silence to the SAR office, Lainey’s hands clasped in her lap, her mind working double-time to sort through the threats. Like most people, she’d never been involved in anything like this before and had no experience dealing with intimidation.
“What about Bluebird Falls?” Cam’s voice broke through the silence.
Lainey turned her head. “Bluebird Falls?”
“Anybody there ever threaten you? Could be something from the past has surfaced here.”
She thought a moment, letting her mind leaf through the people she’d known in Idaho. “No one. I can’t think of anybody, there or here, who would do something like this to me.”
“Buck’s right, you need some time to clear your head, think of everyone you know and not dismiss them right off.” He parked and slid out. “Why don’t you stay here? It’ll just take me a minute to grab the boxes.”
She rested her head against the seat back and closed her eyes. She’d been involved in just two difficult situations in the last few months—her breakup with Robert and the incident with the little girl she’d found near Golden La
ke. Lainey felt certain Robert would never be involved in threats or vandalism. Even though he hadn’t stopped emailing and his voice messages had become more urgent and emotional, she knew he wouldn’t do anything that could interfere with his career or reputation.
The little girl had been returned to her grandmother. Lainey never met the father and thought it doubtful he even knew her identity. His anger would be directed toward the grandmother, the woman who’d been declared his daughter’s legal guardian.
She jumped at the sound of the door opening. Cam climbed in and started the engine, eyeing her pensive expression and startled gaze. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. Just trying to figure out who’d do these things. You may be right. I’ll sleep on it and hope something comes to mind in the morning.”
Lainey settled back in her seat as Cam pulled out his phone.
“Eric? Hi, it’s Cam. Look, I need you to swing by my place in the morning. Grab a clean shirt, tie, and jacket.”
“Where are you?” Eric’s groggy voice told Cam he’d woken up his brother.
“I’ll explain tomorrow. Just bring them to the office. I’ll be there by eight.” Cam ended the call before Eric could ask any more questions.
“Your brother?”
“Eric. He works for our stepfather also.”
“I know. I met him not long ago when Mark and I went out for burgers. Nice guy.”
“He’s too young for you.” The words were out of Cam’s mouth before he realized what he’d said.
Lainey cocked a brow, her eyes glittering. “Too young?”
Cam thought he saw the hint of a smile curve her lips. “Yes, too young,” he repeated with firm emphasis. He gripped the steering wheel and focused straight ahead, hoping she would let his comment stand.
“You mentioned the other night that you’d been out of town. Colorado, right?”
“Heath asked me to lead the evaluation effort for a potential new acquisition. It’s something I’ve strived to do for years and I don’t plan to let the family down.” His resolute voice told Lainey how serious he took his job and duty to the family.
One More Day: MacLarens of Fire Mountain Contemporary, Book Three (MacLarens of Fire Mountain Contemporary series 3) Page 10