“Anything from Drake?”
“No calls, thank goodness. Luke has someone checking on the house regularly. It seems okay. We got new tires put on the Camry. Luke says I should file an insurance claim, but I can’t deal with it right now.”
“I’ll help you with it this week.”
“Oh, Dad called, and he’s coming home earlier than expected. The photographer he was helping with the wedding said he didn’t need to stay for the reception.”
“Shit,” Sean muttered.
“Excuse me?”
“Nothing. Does Hal know I’m in town?”
She hesitated. “I don’t think I’ve mentioned it, but he could’ve heard it from someone else. By the way, Dad’s attitude was really different when he called. I think our argument on the phone last night finally hit home. He said he was going to get in touch with a couple of Mom’s friends who moved down to San Diego in the past couple years. And he wants to put up flyers in Julian because Mom always likes to go there.”
“Okay,” he responded absently. “When will Hal be home?”
“I’m not sure. He was already on the road, but he said not to wait on him for dinner. After Luke’s on duty tonight, he and another deputy are going to interrogate Dad again. I’m not sure what time, but his shift starts soon, so I think—”
“No. Wait for me before you go back to the house. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
“Are you sure you want to leave your…friend?”
“It’ll be hard, but I’m willing to make the sacrifice. For you.” He pressed his lips together to stop a laugh.
After they said good-bye, Sean hurried back inside and through the house to Jake’s office. As he approached the open safe-room door, he heard Jake’s voice. Curiosity and caution made him stop and listen.
“Salami, it’s Granite.”
Salami? Granite? Sean arched his eyebrows. Jake was a former CIA operative. Were those spook names?
“I need a favor. I have to open a password-protected external hard drive. I was able to copy it, but I still can’t open it.”
He copied it. Great, maybe I can get it back in time.
“Yeah, yeah, I tried the perp’s birthday. Screw you.”
Sean grinned.
“No, I don’t know what’s on it. And, yes, it could be full of fuckware.”
Fuckware? As in malware? Sean almost laughed. Too bad he couldn’t hear the other side of the conversation.
“I’ll send it ASAP. Thanks. You guys-that-don’t-exist have the coolest toys. And I’m in a bit of a hurry.” He gave a snort of laughter. “But I’ve told you that’s not physically possible.”
Sean strained to hear, but the talking had stopped. Jake must’ve disconnected.
“If you’ve heard enough, Burke, you can come in now,” Jake called to him.
Embarrassed at being caught eavesdropping, Sean walked into the room. “Sorry.”
“Nothing wrong with you being curious, but also remember, I’m always careful.” Jake gestured toward a large monitor.
One square showed a picture of the outer office where Sean had just been hiding. Others displayed every step of the way to the pool. Jake had known exactly where Sean was and what he was doing the whole time.
“Go.” The former spook held out the baggie. “I’ll call if I get anything on the fingerprints or get the file open.”
Racing from Valley Center to Ramona in his truck, Sean mulled over Jake’s phone call with Salami. He obviously still had connections with active operatives. Granite? He’d heard that before. Oh yeah, the password for Stone’s computer yesterday: Granite27. What does the twenty-seven stand for?
Sean pondered a moment and decided he didn’t want to know.
Chapter 11
Sean flew into his brother’s apartment. Empty. Damn. When he hadn’t spotted Jess’s Camry in the parking lot, he feared she’d left already. Had she run an errand or gone home? He suspected the latter but hoped for the former.
He yanked the roll of duct tape from under the futon. Knowing he’d need an excuse to get back into the workshop, he’d hidden it there before leaving for Jake’s so Jess couldn’t put it in her purse or something. However, an excuse might be the least of his worries if he didn’t beat Hal there.
As Sean approached the Freeman driveway, he breathed a sigh of relief at the absence of Hal’s truck but also cursed the presence of Jess’s lone vehicle. Did the woman not understand the danger Drake posed? Or the risk represented by whoever was responsible for Molly’s disappearance? Until someone figured out the motive behind her mother’s abduction—and Sean was pretty damn sure that or worse was what they were dealing with—Jess and Callie could also be on the perp’s radar.
After parking his truck, he resisted the urge to race to the workshop. He didn’t want to raise any suspicions if Jess saw him. Wrinkling his nose at the smell of manure, he strolled toward the three-section outbuilding with the baggie in his pocket and the tape in his hand. When he reached the door, he did a slow 360-degree turn, surveying the property, and glanced down the road in both directions. No sign of anyone or any traffic.
The workshop doorknob twisted in his hand, and he smiled with satisfaction. He checked over his shoulder one last time before stepping inside. As he squeezed around the main workbench to reach the cabinet in the corner, his pants pocket caught on a protruding hammer, sending it to the floor with a loud clang. Shit. He scanned the floor for the wayward tool. Unable to spot it, he knelt and peered beneath the adjacent furniture. Spying it under a small table where it had skidded, he stretched across the dirty concrete to recover the tool. After replacing the hammer on the workbench, he more carefully circumvented the mess to reach his target.
Pulling the baggie from his pocket, Sean bent over and opened the bottom drawer of the cabinet. The contents were in such a jumble that he couldn’t remember exactly where the tape had been, but he knew the hard drive had been buried in the far back.
“Hands up, you bastard! Nobody steals from me!” Hal’s booming voice filled the cramped space.
Fuck. Hesitating only a second to drop the baggie, Sean straightened and turned toward the door. He froze when he met a rifle pointed at his chest.
The older man’s eyes widened, and his jaw dropped. It was hard to tell who was more shocked.
When the rifle shook in Hal’s hands, Sean tensed. His mind scrambled for a plan. “Hey, Mr. Freeman. It’s just me,” he said, hoping to defuse the situation.
“You? What the fuck are you doing here?” Hal’s face reddened. “The pig’s a thief now?”
“No, sir.” Sean held up the duct tape. “Just returning this.”
Hal frowned, confusion mixing with his anger.
“Jess and I used it to post the flyers about your missing wife. I was just putting it away.” He bent quickly, snagging the baggie and shoving it to the back of the drawer with one hand while placing the tape in the front with the other hand.
“Get your hands up here where I can see them,” Hal yelled.
Sean stood up and smacked the drawer shut with his shoe. He held out his empty hands. “Jess sent me out here to get it yesterday. Sorry if that wasn’t okay. I’ll buy you a new roll.”
“Smart-ass, bastard. You think for one minute that I believe Jessie would do anything with you? She hates your guts.”
Rage erupted inside him. This wasn’t the best timing—with a rifle aimed at his chest—but enough was enough. Time to get the truth out of the lying motherfucker.
Sean’s eyes narrowed. “Whose fault would that be?”
“Yours,” Hal sneered.
Despite the gun, Sean dropped his arms to his sides. His hands clenched into fists. “Bullshit. Since I came back to Ramona, I’ve discovered that everyone thinks I broke up with Jess. But that’s not what happened, is it…Hal?” Damn, he wanted to shock the asshole by calling him Hallelujah Ima Freeman. But with the man’s finger on the trigger, Sean thought better of it.
“Don’t know wha
t you’re talkin’ about.” Hal sighted down the rifle barrel.
Eight years of pain and frustration kept fear and caution at bay. Sean’s heart pounded with the need to finally do battle with the source of that pain and frustration.
“Liar,” he snapped. “You called me. Told me Jess never wanted to see me again.” Sean’s voice rose with each word until he was shouting. “I’ll never forget what you said. Your exact words were ‘Jessie doesn’t want to waste her life with a pig.’ Ring any bells, Hal?”
“Dad?”
Hal whirled around. The rifle slammed into the door frame, jarring Hal’s hand and firing.
Jess screamed.
Sean vaulted over the workbench, tackling Hal on his way down. The men fell through the doorway onto the ground. The rifle skittered across the gravel.
The scuffle was short and one-sided. In the end, Sean straddled Hal and cocked his fist.
“Sean, don’t,” Jessie yelled. “Please.”
Heart hammering, he froze but didn’t lower his fist. “You all right, Jess?” he asked without taking his eyes off her stepdad.
“Yeah,” she said, her voice shaky.
“Get the rifle,” he ordered. “Be careful.”
“Let me up, you prick,” Hal growled.
“If your stepdaughter wasn’t here, I’d beat the shit out of you. I wouldn’t even care that you’re an old fart. You’re sick for what you did to me…to her…to us.”
Jess’s footsteps crunched on the gravel. “Got it.”
“Take out the ammo.” He listened as she did. “Hand it to me.”
When Sean turned his head and extended his hand, Hal took a swipe at him. Sean jerked back, the blow brushing past his jaw.
He raised his fist again. God, this is gonna feel good.
“Sean, please,” Jess cried. “Callie’s watching.”
This time he pinned the man’s arms to the ground before glancing toward the house.
The little girl stood like a statue, her eyes wide and her mouth gaping. Then Callie screamed, covered her ears, and raced into the house.
* * *
No, no, no. The word pounded in Jessie’s head as her feet pounded the ground. No, no, no. She barged in the back door, through the kitchen, and down the hallway. At Callie’s bedroom doorway, she stopped. Sobs came from under the bed.
She braced herself and lay down on the floor. “Callie, munchkin, Mommy’s here. Everything’s okay.”
“N-no, i-it isn’t,” Callie sputtered.
“Yes, it is. Don’t be scared. Mommy’s here.” She touched her daughter’s arms, which were wrapped over her head. “C’mon out, baby. Let Mommy hold you.”
Callie shook her head and whined.
“Wouldn’t you like Mommy to hold you? I’m too big to crawl under the bed. Come out so we can cuddle.” Jessie sighed. What she wouldn’t give to have someone cuddle her right about now.
“What that big noise?” Callie mumbled into the floor.
Oh God, she heard the gunshot. Jessie searched for an answer that wasn’t a lie but also wasn’t the whole truth. “Uh, it was something in Grandpa’s workshop. You know what it’s like in there.”
She turned her head to look at her mother. “Something b-broke?”
“That’s a very good guess. Grandpa will have to check later to see if something is damaged. Why don’t you come out so we can talk easier?”
She hesitated but then crawled out from under the bed. Jessie pulled the little girl onto her lap and embraced her. Callie snuggled in close.
“Why was Mr. Sean fighting with Grandpa?”
Jessie drew a deep breath. “I’m…not…exactly sure. But they were naughty to fight.”
“Yeah. Bad boys. Use your words, not your hands. That’s what Grandma always says.”
“She sure does. I’m glad you remember.” Tears threatened, and emotion clogged her throat.
“Are they gonna get a time-out?”
“Do you think they should?”
Callie nodded vigorously. “It was a biiig fight.”
“Okay. I’ll give them a biiig time-out.”
“Good.”
Callie fell silent for several minutes.
Jessie’s initial panic subsided. Those feelings were immediately replaced by recriminations. She’d failed to protect her daughter. Granted, Callie hadn’t been physically hurt, but she was traumatized. And Jessie knew from her marriage that emotional hurt could be worse than physical pain.
She closed her eyes and tightened her grip. It had all happened so fast.
She’d glanced out the kitchen window as her dad raced from the side garage door to the workshop with the rifle in his hands. Startled, she had run to the kitchen door and spotted Sean’s truck in the driveway. Horrible scenarios had flashed through her mind. She’d hollered to Callie that she would be right back and for her to keep watching the movie. Then she’d bolted from the house, arriving at the workshop doorway as Sean shouted at Hal.
And, of course, the four-year-old did exactly the opposite of her mother’s orders: Callie followed her out the door.
“Was that a gun?” Callie whispered.
Jessie started. “Huh?”
“Was that a gun in your hands?”
Crap. This is your fault, Dad. Why did you have to overreact? “Do you know what a gun is, honey?”
“I sees them on TV.”
“Right.” Jessie’s stomach clenched. “Yes, it was. You should never touch one. It can hurt you or someone else if you don’t know how to handle it. Promise me?”
“Okay, Mommy.” She yawned.
“Why don’t you rest while I go put Grandpa and Sean on time-out?”
Callie’s eyes were already closing as Jessie lifted her onto the bed. She slipped off her daughter’s shoes and kissed her cheek. By the time Jessie reached the bedroom door, Callie’s thumb was in her mouth, her eyes closed. At four, she only sucked her thumb when she needed soothing from serious stress. Not a good sign about her current state of mind.
Jessie held her own thumb up in front of her face. If only it were that easy for a twenty-nine-year-old. But oral soothing could take many forms besides thumb-sucking: smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol, eating chocolate, sucking… Her mind jumped to Sean on top of her in the hallway and between her thighs on the couch. Yes, sex could be a very effective soother.
She gave herself a mental shake. Her life was overflowing with problems. She didn’t have time for frivolous sexual relationships. Her mother was missing. Her daughter was suffering. Her ex was threatening. She had to keep her head in the game and not let herself get distracted by sexual needs.
Taking a deep, fortifying breath, she closed the bedroom door quietly and marched down the hall to face two of her problems.
* * *
From the love seat, Sean stared across the coffee table at the man pretending to relax in the recliner. How had Hal managed to sneak up on him? And armed, no less. Thank God no one had been hurt when he accidentally pulled the trigger. Sean didn’t even want to imagine the possibilities. After Jess dropped the rifle and raced after Callie, Sean had locked the gun and the ammo in his truck. Hal probably had other weapons hidden somewhere, but at least that one was out of reach.
Now the burning question was: Had he seen the baggie with the hard drive? Or had he already been in the workshop and discovered it was missing? Was that why he’d been so upset? Sean would just have to bide his time until he could figure it out.
Both men’s heads whipped around when Jess stomped into the living room. She glared at them with obvious disgust. Without a word, she disappeared into the kitchen. Did she want them to follow her?
By the time Sean stood up, she reappeared with three beer cans. After handing one to each, she sat down on the couch, which was conveniently situated between the recliner and love seat. All she needed was a black-and-white-striped shirt and a whistle to play referee.
“Do you realize what you’ve done?” she asked, the question app
arently meant for both men.
“Jess, I’m really sorry Callie witnessed any of it,” Sean said. He set the unopened beer on the coffee table. Drinking wasn’t high on his list of priorities just now.
“Yeah, me, too,” Hal muttered.
She turned to her stepfather. “What the hell were you planning to do with the damn rifle?”
He shrugged. “You know I’d gone back to get my suitcase out of the truck in the garage. I heard a noise in the workshop. When I looked out, I saw a strange truck in the driveway. I thought some guy was helpin’ himself to my tools, so I grabbed the rifle and went after him.”
“Did you consider calling the police?”
Hal narrowed his eyes. “Not for a second.”
“Of course not. You’d rather risk shooting your granddaughter than involve the law.”
“It was an accident,” he snapped.
“Accident or not, Callie would’ve been just as dead. Or it could’ve been me.”
They glared at each other for several seconds before Jess pivoted to Sean. He braced himself.
“What the hell were you doing in the workshop?” she demanded. “Why didn’t you come to the house?”
He met her angry gaze. “I was putting the duct tape back,” he said simply. He arched his eyebrows. Did she appreciate that he didn’t mention she’d left the tape in Glenn’s apartment where she’d spent the night?
She swallowed hard. Oh yeah, she appreciated it.
“Right.” Jess cleared her throat. “Thanks again for helping me.”
“You’re welcome.”
Hal shifted the recliner to upright and leaned forward. Anger reddened his face again. “What the hell is he doing here?”
“Sean learned that Mom was missing. He offered to help. He was kind enough to hang flyers in town with me.”
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