by Becky McGraw
Inspecting the scenery that was her handsome former lover had proved to be the perfect distraction during their drive here to forget about her worry over her sister, but now she had to redirect. That would be very difficult if he didn’t let go of her hand, which he’d surprisingly held since they left the jail.
“I told you it was cheaper than three regular rooms,” Dex repeated for the third time since they left the registration desk, as he stabbed the button for the penthouse level. “And they only had two regular rooms available anyway. Vegas is geek central this week, so unless you want to stay at the Silver Chains Resort, you won’t find another room.”
“The suite also has a conference room table, hookups for video conferencing and a fax machine,” Susan added, and Dave’s eyes speared her. “We need that to plan this mission and connect with the office.”
“Don’t sound so damned excited, Bunny. I haven’t agreed to let you help yet,” Logan replied.
Grace’s insides tightened with guilt. These people didn’t even know her, yet they were helping her—because of Dex. “I’ll, ah, try to pay you back if you give me a bill,” she said, and Dex’s hand squeezed hers.
Dave Logan’s eyes met hers and his face softened. “I don’t want your money, honey,” he said with a sigh. “I’m sorry for being rude.”
Dex laughed as he pounded his ear with his free hand. He patted his chest, then worked down his upper body to his waist before looking at Susan. “I didn’t turn into a salt block, and it doesn’t feel chilly in here, so I doubt hell has frozen over. Did he just apologize? Or is my hearing going out?”
“You have selective hearing,” Dave grumbled. “And you’re mostly deaf where I’m concerned.”
“Don’t kid about hearing loss, please,” Grace chastened, and both men’s eyes flew to her. “I’m anOtolaryngologist, but my niece Callie is also profoundly deaf, and I promise there isn’t anything humorous about that.”
She knew they were only kidding, could normally just brush it off, but she was just so worried about Callie right now. Her niece was in Boston with a woman she barely knew, even though Patrice was her grandmother.
Grace’s mother didn’t know sign language, and probably didn’t care to learn, so they wouldn’t even have been able to communicate if Grace hadn’t arranged for a translator. And then there was her mother’s personality. Warm and nurturing had never been qualities in Patrice Wentworth’s small repertoire of good traits.
“We were only kidding, but I apologize,” Brennan said, his eyes seconding his apology.
Grace sighed. “I’m sorry for being so defensive, but it’s a sore spot. Marcy is Callie’s mother, and my niece needs her. That’s the only reason I’m here. If Callie wasn’t involved, I might have stayed in Baltimore.”
“So that’s where you are now,” Brennan said, surprising her.
Had he been looking for her? Following her remotely? That thought sent a pleasant shiver down her spine. Maybe he had been more attached to her than she thought.
If he kept track of her, that must mean he cared about her, right?
“Yes, I moved there from Boston as soon as I graduated MIT. My advanced degrees came from John Hopkins,” Grace informed.
The elevator door opened and when Grace turned, the opulence of the blindingly bright, glass-walled room took her breath away. The sunlight outside reflected off of the white sofas, and shiny buttercream-tiled floors making the huge room appear almost ethereal.
“Wow—uh—yeah, I see Mr. Logan’s point,” she said, releasing Brennan’s hand to walk into the room first. “There has to be a less expensive room somewhere in town.”
She hadn’t been beside Brennan when the suite was booked, so she could only imagine the staggering price tag that came with a room like this.
“Mr. Logan is my father, so call me Logan, or Dave,” Brennan’s boss said as he followed her into the suite. “And we’re not going anywhere, because once we find your sister, Susan and I are vacationing here a week. Screw the money.”
“Yeah, hell just developed its first ice layer,” Dex said, as he moved up beside Grace to casually take her hand again.
“Oh my God, look at that tub!” Susan gasped moving toward the balcony doors, as if in a trance. She slid the doors open and sighed loudly,as she strode outside to fondle the massive hot tub on the balcony.
“Holy crap on a cracker,” Patton said, as he finally exited the elevator.
Grace wondered if Brennan’s brother had gone mute during the ride to the hotel, because he hadn’t uttered a word. That colorful, very old-fashioned phrase was her answer and it tickled a giggle near her sternum.
Dex laughed and turned to look at him. “I haven’t heard that saying in eight years. Dad must be rubbing off on you in your old age.”
“Well, if you’d have visited your family once in a while, maybe he’d rub off on you too,” Patton shot back, frowning. “I’ve been deployed twice in the last eight years, and even I managed to visit our aging parents a few times. Grant has been home once, should be home again soon, and Bradley comes home every break from school. You’re the only one who seems to have disowned the family.”
Dex sighed, and his smile faded. “I haven’t disowned anyone, and I had my reasons for not going back to Boston.”
“Well, I’d love to be enlightened as to those reasons, and so would Mom and Dad, because we can’t figure you out,” Patton said, his eyebrows crashing together.
“You’ve never made an attempt to figure me out, and that’s part of the problem,” Dex replied, running a hand through his hair. “Can we shelve this argument for later? We have other things to worry about right now.”
Yeah, they did—finding Marcy, Grace thought.
But she wondered why in the world Brennan hadn’t visited his family. When they were seeing each other, he talked about his family quite a bit. From the awe in his voice when he spoke of them, she thought they were close, but maybe things had changed in the last eight years.
Grace had no room to throw stones, however, because she had been derelict in visiting her own family too, which consisted of only her mother now that her father had died. How long had it been since she’d been back to Boston? Ten months?
She didn’t have to visit her sister, she supported Marcy and Callie. The small house she bought in Baltimore was home to them all. If not for her sister, she might have taken off this time to visit her mother. Marcy was supposed to have been there with Callie right now, but this is where she was instead.
But Grace probably wouldn’t have taken the time for a visit either. She had research to do, and was so close to a breakthrough, she wasn’t stopping now.
“Okay, let’s get to work, then,” Logan said as he walked to the other side of the room and sat at the head of the conference room table. “When is the last time you saw your sister, Dr. Wentworth?”
“Grace,” she corrected, taking the chair to his left. “It’s been almost a month now.”
“What do you know about where she might be?” he fired back.
“I went online and saw she’d been interacting with, um, Master Tim on a BDSM forum connected to the Silver Chains resort. He offered her an audition for a film and paid for a plane ticket here. I came here and tried to follow in her footsteps to find her, but that was obviously a big mistake.” Grace’s eyes slid to Dex, who sat beside her, and found him glaring at her.
“It was stupid,” he growled. “You could’ve been hurt—”
“Badly, and yes it was stupid,” she filled in as she squirmed in her chair to take the pressure off of her sore and probably bruised rear end.
Thankful didn’t begin to describe her feelings of relief that Dex showed up at the resort to save her, or that these people were here and willing to help her. She knew now there was no way she could go back to Silver Chains and put herself in that position again. She should never have gone there in the first place, because Brennan—Dex—was right. Her going there alone had been stupid and ill-thoug
ht-out.
“Before I went to the resort to find Grace, I did some research. The resort is connected to an off-site studio where it appears they film and produce porn videos. I wasn’t able to triangulate their exact location, but I will,” Dex announced, moving his gaze to Logan. “There’s also a huge phone bank, so I suspect they have a phone sex operation or something.”
“Typical Vegas stuff,” Logan replied, leaning back in his chair to tent his fingers over his chest. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they have an escort service as well. Rent-a-Dom or something. And maybe a Kinks-R-Us toy store, which could explain the phones too. What, if anything, do you believe that has to do with Grace’s sister’s disappearance?”
Typical Logan, Dex thought, shaking his head. Right to the point, with no preamble.
“I don’t know if it’s typical Vegas stuff or not, or if it has anything to do with her, because I couldn’t get past their firewall when I tried to access their server.” Dex sat forward to lean his elbows on the table.
“Well, that’s a first,” Dave said with a short laugh.
Dex filled his cheeks with air then blew it out. Admitting defeat wasn’t easy for him, but it was only temporary. With a little more effort and focus, he had no doubt he could get into the server at that studio, and in turn, the resort, because he thought one server handled both.
“The security was double-encrypted, and they had both a network and host-level firewall. I didn’t have time to look for holes because I needed to find Grace, but I did send out some pings and an email keylogger. I haven’t checked to see if it was opened yet. I’ll do that as soon as my things are delivered from my other room here.”
“You’re talking geek again, Poindexter—back that down a few notches for us common folk, why don’t you?” Patton jerked out the chair beside Dex and sat down. “This is exactly why your family doesn’t understand you. I don’t know how anyone understands you.”
The old insecurities Dex thought he was well rid of surged up with a vengeance to mix with a wave of anger. He tried to bank it, but failed and it exploded as he shoved back his chair to stand and glare down at his brother.
“If you don’t understand, perhaps you should take notes and look it up later, because I’m not dumbing myself down for anyone,” he shouted, and Patton’s eyebrows raised. That’s right asshole, I’m not letting you try to make me feel inferior anymore. I am not a freak because I’m smart.
Dave chuckled and Susan snickered. “Here’s a piece of advice, Commander. Just sit back and nod like the rest of us in the common club. I don’t understand him half the time either, but I don’t have to. I just know when Superman gets on his computer, magic happens and our job gets a lot easier.”
“Superman?” Patton repeated with a harsh laugh as he eyeballed Dave. Of course there would be respect in his gaze, because they were both military and understood each other, Dex thought, with disgust almost choking him.
“Yeah, he actually took down a vigilante group with the Deep Six women, without a shot being fired, not long ago,” Susan informed, sitting at the other end of the table opposite Logan.
Take that mother-trucker, Dex thought, his shoulders relaxing a notch as a little pride sprouted in his chest.
“Really?” Patton asked, his gaze swinging toward her.
Of course, the Navy SEAL Lt. Commander wouldn’t believe his uncoordinated, nearsighted, nerd-boy brother could pull that off. But it was a fact he did just that. Without a weapon. Other than a military-grade drone.
“Really—your brother is our resident superhero. He and Gray, our money guy, are our secret weapons, the dynamic duo at Deep Six. Sometimes, I don’t think they even need us.”
Susan winked at Dex and Patton’s eyes speared him. He fought the urge to walk to the end of the table and kiss her. The only reason he didn’t was because he knew doing so would not only earn him a kick in the balls from her, but a fist in his face from Logan.
“That’s not true,” Dex said, sitting back down. “Put a gun in my hand and you’ll find out. I’ll leave the firearms to you guys, and you can leave the firewalls to me. We’re a team and everyone has their part in our missions. That’s why I feel like you guys are more family to me than my own sometimes.” He shot a hot look at Patton, then looked back at Logan.
Logan cleared his throat. “Let’s get back to work. When do you think you’ll have more information on that studio?”
“I’ll get through that firewall, I just need my laptop and a little peace and quiet. I’ll also try to access the video surveillance system, which I suspect will probably be easier, so we can see what’s going on inside.”
“Time frame?” Logan asked a little more firmly.
“Four hours, tops,” Dex replied, and his brother grunted.
Dex flinched, stopping his elbow just before it connected with Patton’s ribs. The man was thirty-four years old, so you’d think he’d be beyond his childhood intimidation tactics. The grunts, the grins, the teasing and harassment, but some things never changed evidently. Which is why he wanted to land that elbow so badly he could taste it. But a roll on the floor usually followed that move and Dex rarely ended up on top. Now that he was older, and his brother better trained, he’d probably end up unconscious.
“Well, I think I’ll go back to base. Call me if you need me for anything,” Patton said as he pushed his chair back to stand, and Dex finally relaxed a little. He put his hand on Dex’s shoulder and squeezed. “I certainly won’t be able to help with anything other than shooting his computer should things go awry.”
Dex’s surprised laugh mixed with the others and he watched as Patton walked stiff-backed to the door where he opened it and left. What the hell? His brother never admitted to any shortcoming before, but he just had, in a roundabout way.
“Well, I think Susan and I are going to walk the strip for a couple of hours,” Logan said as he stood to look at Dex.
“Or something,” Susan corrected, her eyes determined as she stood too.
“If you come up with anything, text or call me. If they deliver our luggage, have them put it in the biggest room.”
“Of course, I will,” Dex replied, with a grin. “Since you’re paying two-thousand dollars a night for this room, I assumed you’d want the master suite.”
“What?!?” Grace squeaked, and Dex saw tears fill her eyes.
“Don’t worry, Gracie,” he said with a grin and pat to her arm. “He has plenty to burn now that I’m not going to that convention. Isn’t that right, boss man?” A muscle ticked in Logan’s cheek, and Dex bit back a laugh.
“Yes, thank God. Helping you will probably save me thousands, Grace, so no worries at all. But I have a feeling that Susan is about to drag me to that tradeshow and she’s as hard as Dexter is on my credit card.”
“Our credit card,” Susan corrected slipping her arm through Logan’s. “And you’re just a tightwad, husband mine, so suck it up.” Susan dragged him toward the door. “Loosen up and let’s have a little fun, if you remember how to do that.”
“Oh, I remember,” Logan said, his eyes eating her up as he pulled her closer into his body. “I just have a different definition of fun and it’s a lot cheaper.”
“Well, indulge me for now, and I’ll indulge you later,” Susan purred, as a soft smile curved her lips. She grabbed the doorknob and Dex shook his head.
How those two were so compatible he’d never know. When Susan first came to Deep Six, she and Dave had been like oil and water. They were proof that when love was swirled into the equation, it definitely mixed.
“Don’t be ordering room service!” Dave twisted back to growl from the door, as Susan opened it. A bellman stood there with a loaded cart, so Logan frowned as he yanked his wallet out to shell out several bills, then handed them to him.
He turned back again to point at Dex. “And don’t you dare get a drink out of that mini-bar or make a call on that landline!”
“He’s going to be working, Logan, and can do what he
needs to do,” Susan grated, as she pushed him through the door. “We’ll be back in four hours, so work your magic, Superman.”
Dex got up to show the bellman where to put Susan and Logan’s suitcases, then put his own in the adjacent bedroom. When he came back out into the living room with his laptop case, Grace just stood in the center of the room twisting her hands.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, stopping in front of her, wondering why she looked so afraid.
“My things are at the resort, including my cell phone. They’re, ah, in his room. If Marcy calls, I need to have my phone. It’s the only way she can contact me.”
Anger surged up to choke Dex as visions of that man abusing Grace in that room enraged him. She may need her luggage, but he didn’t need to go back to jail. He needed to get busy finding her sister.
“Well, I can’t go back there because I have a feeling I’d do more than break his nose next time. I think you should probably call the police and have them go get your things. Use the landline.”
“But, Logan said—” she started, but Dex covered her mouth with his palm.
“Just make the call. Don’t worry about Logan.” He slid his palm from her mouth, but the warm imprint of her lips throbbed at the center as he moved his hand to her shoulder. “You should maybe file a missing persons report for your sister too, or have you done that?”
“It won’t do any good. I talked to the Baltimore police the other night and got the old speech about how she’s an adult and can disappear if she wants to, and unless I know for certain she’s been abducted or is in trouble, they can’t intervene. The Vegas police said the same, so it must be standard police procedure.” She sighed again, bit her lip, then released it. “This isn’t the first time Marcy has gone missing, so I knew that’s what they’d say.”
“And she has a daughter?” Dex asked, his anger inching higher, but now directed at her irresponsible sister.
“Yes, but I think she forgets sometimes in her quest to become famous. She’s been chasing that dream since she was sixteen years old, when she hitch-hiked to New York City for an audition and never came home. She needs to realize after fifteen years of trying, if it hasn’t happened, it probably won’t. As soon as I find her—if I find her—I’m going to give her a wake-up call. It’s time for her to take off the blinders.”