by Irene Hannon
“And how. ’Course, they do teach scuba over at the Bonne Terre mine, but mostly city folks take those classes. I think Leah talked him into it, to be honest. Had to drag him to the classes, from what I heard. They were planning a trip to some island in the Caribbean for an anniversary, and she thought it would be fun to try an off-the-wall activity. Funny thing was, she didn’t care for it much. I think she only stuck it out because she was the one who’d insisted they try it. The chief, on the other hand, took to it like a duck to water.”
“Does he still dive?” This from Dana, who had found her voice at last.
“Mercy, no. I think he went a few times after that trip, but Leah was done. And in recent years, he hasn’t had a spare minute for anything much but taking care of her and doing his job—especially these past few months.” The bell over the door jingled, and she shifted sideways for a better view. “Another latecomer. You all give me a holler if you need a refill on that coffee.”
Finn waited until she was out of earshot before turning to Dana.
“I can’t believe it.” She angled toward him, her eyes wide.
“I’m struggling with it too, after what we know about the man. But it puts the coincidence theory to rest.”
“Assuming he is the diver, what on earth could he be after?”
“I can’t imagine.” Finn felt as flummoxed as Dana sounded.
She poked at her pie, puzzlement etching her features. “I’m at a total loss. Where do we go from here?”
“I think some surveillance is in order.”
“You’re already doing that.”
“I’m talking about watching the chief, not your cabin.”
“You mean like tailing him?”
“Yeah.”
“Do you think you can pull that off without being detected?”
Good question. Staying undercover while tracking an enemy was part of Ranger training, and in a war zone he’d have no difficulty. In a small town like Beaumont, however—where everyone seemed to notice everything—it would be much tougher to remain invisible.
“I hope so. It sort of defeats the purpose if you’re spotted.”
“Wouldn’t it be just as effective to continue what you’re doing at my place? If he shows up there, you’ll see him.”
“I’d like to see where else he goes too.”
“That sounds like a 24/7 assignment.”
“Not quite—but close.”
She sighed. “I’m sorry this has become a full-time job for you. Some vacation, huh?”
He wrapped his fingers around hers under the table and gave them a reassuring squeeze. “The perks have made it well worth my while.”
“Thanks for being such a good sport.”
“Hey—I have a vested interest in clearing this up too, you know.”
“Nice to hear.” She squeezed his fingers back, then propped her elbow on the table and cupped her chin in her palm. “You know, if this isn’t resolved by the end of the month, I’m thinking of taking the chief’s advice and hightailing it back to St. Louis.”
“I hope we’ll get some answers before I have to leave. But if not—I agree with your decision. I’d rather not have you here alone at night.”
“That’s more or less what the chief said—and now we have a strong suspicion why.” She fiddled with her fork, and when she spoke again, there was a slight quiver in her voice. “The only glitch in your surveillance plan is that if you’re following the chief, no one will be within whistling distance of my cabin.”
If he wasn’t reasonably certain the man was the source of Dana’s trouble, he’d be concerned about that too.
Yet he was a little worried. The disconnects in the whole scenario bothered him, and he couldn’t shake the niggling feeling they were missing some vital piece of the puzzle.
There was a simple solution that would ease both their minds on the safety score, though.
“Why don’t you stay at my cabin at night? It has two bedrooms, one of which is unoccupied. I won’t even be there much if the chief is engaging in nocturnal activities, as we suspect.”
She bit her lower lip. “I hate to impose . . . but that would make me feel more secure.”
“It’s not an imposition—and it would give me more peace of mind too. Consider it done. You can grab an overnight bag when we get back, and I’ll run you by my cabin.”
“You’re going to start the surveillance tonight?”
He wished he could erase the twin grooves of worry on her brow—but only finding out what was going on and putting a stop to it would do that.
His first priority during the remainder of his stay in Beaumont.
“No reason to delay. If he’s after something important enough to send him as far off the straight and narrow as it appears, he could be planning another dive this evening. Now what do you say we put the mystery aside for a few minutes and enjoy our dessert?”
“I vote for that.” She picked up her fork again. “This is too delicious to waste.” Giving him a smile that seemed a bit forced, she scooped up a bite of the creamy filling. “So tell me about growing up with two high-achieving older brothers.”
Perfect. If she was after distraction, tales of some of the McGregor boys’ escapades fit the bill.
He told her several yarns, embellishing them here and there, and by the time he finished the one about Lance getting stuck in a drainage pipe after accepting a double dare to explore it, her pie was gone—along with most of the tautness in her face.
“How did your mother ever survive the three of you?”
“As you told me once early on, Southern women are strong and resilient—though she does attribute the bulk of her gray hairs to us.” He inspected his empty plate. “Do you think anyone would notice if I picked it up and licked it?”
“I would—but I won’t tell a soul.”
Instead of lifting the plate, however, he used his fork to scrape up what he could of the remnants of chocolate. “I’ll be couth—in your honor.”
That earned him a soft chuckle.
Hazel buzzed back over to their booth, check and coffeepot in hand, as he finished. “Refills?” She set the slip on the table.
“Not for me. Dana, would you like some more tea?”
“No thanks.”
Finn pulled out a twenty and set it on the table. “Keep the change.”
“My.” Hazel eyed the bill. “That’s the best tip I’ve had all day. Make that all month.” She sent Dana a meaningful look. “You hang on to this one. Generous tipping is the sign of a generous character and giving heart. After all these years in the waitressing business in a town where everybody knows everybody else, I can vouch for that.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“On that note . . .” Finn slid from the booth, computer in hand.
Dana followed him out.
“You two drive safe going home.” Hazel picked up the money. “Those deer are a real menace at night.”
“We’ll be careful.” Finn took Dana’s arm and led her toward the door.
And as they exited into the cool spring air . . . as he pointed the SUV toward her cabin . . . he intended to abide by that promise for much longer than their return drive on the winding, wooded road.
Because whatever was going on at Dana’s place was dangerous. He knew that in the marrow of his bones. There might not have been a direct attack on her—yet—but the fire had come much too close for comfort. Whatever the motivation that had driven the chief to take such drastic measures, it was formidable. And people who got in the way of his goal could wind up hurt . . . or worse.
He wasn’t going to let that happen to Dana. Moving her to his cabin at night should be sufficient protection while he tried to get to the bottom of this. The Busch place didn’t appear to be of interest to anyone, and no one had bothered her during the day on her own property.
However, if there was no resolution by the end of the month, he had no intention of leaving her behind when he winged south
to Atlanta. He wanted her safe in her grandfather’s house in St. Louis.
He darted her a quick glance as the SUV traveled down the dark road. At least convincing her to do that shouldn’t be too tough. She was already thinking along those lines, and she’d latched on to his suggestion about bunking at his place. She was seriously spooked by the odd goings-on at her place.
Small wonder, after everything that had happened to her in New York.
His gut clenched as he thought about those crazed robbers holding her at gunpoint. One wrong move, she could have been dead.
But that wouldn’t happen on his watch.
He’d keep her safe.
And no matter what Roger Burnett was up to, if push came to shove, the Beaumont chief of police wasn’t going to best an Army Ranger.
18
As the first rays of sun peeked around the drawn shades in Finn’s spare bedroom, the smell of sizzling bacon teased Dana awake.
Her host was cooking breakfast after getting in at who knew what hour last night?
Guilt crashing over her, she sat up and swung her legs to the floor. While she’d enjoyed the soundest sleep she’d had in months, Finn had spent most of the night huddled in a chilly, dark forest. The man had to be operating on fumes. The least she could have done was get up and make breakfast.
Moving at warp speed, she dressed, ran a brush through her hair, swiped on a touch of lipstick, and headed toward the kitchen.
Although her sport shoes were noiseless on the wood floors, Finn turned from the counter the instant she appeared on the threshold.
Either the ex-Ranger had exceptional hearing or he was always on alert for a stealth approach. Perhaps both.
“Good morning.” He smiled over his shoulder as he stirred scrambled eggs in a frying pan.
“Morning.” She assessed him as she entered the room. How could he look so wide awake after so little slumber? “When did you get in last night?”
“About two.”
She tapped her watch. “Four hours of sleep isn’t enough.”
“I’m used to functioning on much less. Hungry?” He lifted the pan of eggs.
“I am after getting a whiff of that bacon. But I’m not eating your breakfast.”
“I made plenty for both of us. I was going to put yours in the oven. I could still do that if you’d rather get a few more minutes of shut-eye.”
“No. I’m up for the day. What can I do to help?”
“There’s juice in the fridge, if you’d like to pour us each a glass.” He set the plate of bacon on the table and began to dish up the eggs.
“So tell me about last night. Did the chief show?”
“Yep.”
She froze, fingers locked on the handle of the fridge. “So we were right.”
“Not entirely. Go ahead and sit.”
She moved to the table, poured the OJ, and took her seat as he joined her. “You’re going to explain that, I assume?”
“Uh-huh. He came about eleven.” He doused his eggs with a liberal sprinkling of pepper. Added several dollops of ketchup. Topped everything off with a healthy dash of tabasco sauce.
The back of her throat began to burn.
“To dive?” She unglued her gaze from his plate and gave her own eggs a scant sprinkling of salt.
“No. I was in my usual place in the woods by your cabin, but I kept an eye on the far bank through my binoculars. All was quiet there. I spotted him at the dock end of the lake. After he prowled around for a few minutes, he settled in near your cabin, not far from my position.” Finn forked up some eggs.
“What did he do?”
“Nothing.”
Dana squinted at him. “What do you mean, nothing?”
“I mean nothing. He just sat there, like I did. At first I thought he was making sure the coast was clear before proceeding with whatever nefarious deed he had planned for the night. But he never budged. Finally, about one-thirty, he left.”
Mental gears churning, Dana did the math—and came to a startling conclusion. “Do you think . . . it sounds like he was doing what you were doing. Waiting for the vandals too.”
“That’s my take.”
“Wow.” She sat back, trying to absorb this new development—and its implications. “So his diving and my vandalism aren’t related.”
“I’m not certain about that . . . but I am fairly confident the chief isn’t the one who damaged your property.”
“So what do we do next?”
He continued to chow down. “I assume he went home to sleep after putting in a full day at work and spending hours hunkered down in the woods. The man has to get some shut-eye. But I want to tail him today. Hazel told me he made a trip south of town yesterday on the heels of a Wayne Phelps. That name ring any bells?”
She ran it through her mind. Came up blank. “No.”
“Hazel seemed to think it was odd. That may have no bearing on our case—but I want to see if he goes anywhere else today that could be suspect.” He swiped his napkin across his mouth and stood. “I’d like to be in position near his house before he takes off for the day. Could you be ready in five minutes? I’ll drop you at your place before I drive into town.”
“Yes.” She scooped up the last of her eggs, finished off her bacon, and washed it all down with a gulp of orange juice while he tidied up the kitchen.
Less than ten minutes later, he was pulling in behind her cabin.
“I’ll swing by late this afternoon or early evening to give you a ride back to my place. I don’t know exactly what time; it will be whenever I get a window of opportunity to take a break.”
“You’re going to be exhausted.” She took the overnight bag he retrieved from the backseat.
“No worries. I can keep this pace up for several days without feeling much of an impact.” He took her arm and guided her toward the cabin. “Give me a minute to do a quick walk-through.”
She unlocked the door and waited inside while he moved from room to room, then followed him to the porch. From there he walked the perimeter of the cabin and went down to the dock.
“All quiet.” He rejoined her. “Since our guy—or guys—like the dark, you should be fine here today. Keep the doors locked as a precaution, though.”
She shoved her hands in the pockets of her jeans, fighting back a sudden surge of unease.
Don’t be a wimp, Dana. Finn’s an expert at detecting danger. If he thought there was any reason to be worried, he wouldn’t let you stay here alone. He’d have suggested you haul your computer equipment over to his place and work there.
“I like that you have nearby access to cell coverage from here.” He spoke as if he’d read her mind. “You wouldn’t have that at my place. Plus, I’ve seen no indication there’s any danger here during the day. If I had, I’d be urging you to move to your grandfather’s place in St. Louis immediately.”
His calm, reassuring tone quieted the butterflies in her stomach.
She summoned up a smile. “It’s kind of spooky, the way you’re able to read my mind.”
“Not spooky. More a sign that we’re simpatico—and meant to be together.”
“I like your spin.”
He touched her face, his fingers a gentle whisper against her skin. “If you want to pack up and relocate to St. Louis now, though, I’ll take you there.”
For a brief moment she considered that option. Rejected it. If she left, she’d be giving up what meager time they had left to spend together before Finn flew off to Atlanta.
Better to cope with a case of nerves than make that sacrifice.
“No. I trust your judgment.”
The hint of a frown flashed on his brow, but it was gone so quickly she wondered if she’d imagined it.
“I appreciate your confidence—but if anything at all spooks you, I want you to promise to call for help.”
“Who? 911 calls get routed to the station here.”
“Call my brother Mac.” He pulled a piece of paper out of his jacket, jotte
d a number down, and handed it over. “I’ll alert him to the situation. He’s a detective with St. Louis County and can get someone here fast from the highway patrol or sheriff’s department. Not that I think it will come to that, but it’s a safety net.”
“Okay.” She kept a tight grip on the slip of paper. “Good hunting.”
“Thanks.”
He leaned down. She rose on tiptoes to meet him. And as his lips closed over hers, all of her worries evaporated for a few blissful seconds.
Too bad he couldn’t stay within touching distance all day.
But as he drove off in a cloud of dust to search for answers, Dana forced herself to relax. He’d be back in a few hours, and she wasn’t going to worry while he was gone.
If Finn thought she was safe, that was good enough for her.
So Burnett wasn’t going to see his wife, after all.
Keeping a moderate distance between the SUV and the chief’s car, Finn stayed on the man’s tail as they passed the turnoff for Woodside Gardens and continued north.
Curious, too, that he was dressed in his civvies and driving his own car on a Wednesday morning, when he should be in uniform and at work.
As they traveled north on Highway 21, Finn punched in Lance’s number. He owed him a call; no reason not to make his drive do double duty.
“What’s up, Finn?”
His brother’s clipped tone didn’t bode well for a long conversation.
“You busy?”
“You might say that. I’m on a stakeout.”
“Then I won’t keep you. I was just following up on my promise to stay in touch.”
“Wait! Don’t hang up yet. How’s your neighbor?”
He would home in on that.
“Fine.”
“You at her lake now?”
“No. I’m actually heading your direction.”
“You’re coming to St. Louis and didn’t tell us?”
“It’s an unplanned trip. Besides, I don’t know that I’m going to end up in St. Louis.”
“Huh?”
“Long story.” Finn switched lanes to keep Burnett in sight. “I’ll tell it to you sometime.”