by Laura Scott
Declan bowed his head in respect as Tess prayed. He wondered if she was still praying for her brother, and decided that adding something of his own wouldn’t hurt.
Lord, help us find Bobby before it’s too late.
He opened his eyes, feeling a little foolish. What made him think that God would listen to his entreaties? But just like when he’d prayed while defusing the bomb, he felt a sense of peace.
“I’m ready,” Tess murmured after what seemed like only a short time had passed.
“Are you sure? There’s plenty of time.” They’d only been there for about fifteen minutes, and he was worried she’d resent him for making her leave so soon.
“Yes, I’m sure.”
He stood and made his way out of the church pew, waiting for Tess to precede him down the aisle. She stood for a moment at the end of the pew, her head bowed, and he wondered if she was feeling dizzy again.
But before he could ask her, she straightened and stepped away.
Outside, darkness had fallen, mostly because of the dark clouds obliterating the sky. When Tess shivered, he put his arm around her shoulders. To his surprise, she leaned against him as if grateful for the support.
No doubt her headache was back. He wanted to point out that they shouldn’t have come, but he stopped himself. The last thing he wanted to do was to act like her father. He understood now that the way she’d rebelled against his edicts before was because of her experiences with her father. Barking orders was a way of life in the marines, but of course he understood that civilians like Tess didn’t have to listen.
Somehow he needed to make sure she understood that the only reason he told her what to do was to keep her safe and not that he was a control freak like her father.
Although as soon as the thought formed, he knew that wasn’t entirely true. Because he was a man who liked to be in control. He needed to control the things he could because when he went into active crime situations, he was forced to react to whatever was going on.
Tess went tense and he dragged his thoughts back to the present. “Did you hear that?” she asked in a whisper.
He mentally smacked himself in the head for losing his concentration and exposing them to possible danger. He stopped and listened, holding Tess close to his side.
The wind was picking up, whistling through the trees. But he didn’t hear anything else. He turned and swept his gaze across the area behind them, but couldn’t see much in the darkness.
“I’m sure it was just the wind,” he murmured reassuringly. He began walking again, wishing he could pick up the pace. Tess must have shared his sense of urgency because she walked faster than she had on the way over to the church.
A soft thud reached his ears and he reacted without thought, pulling his Glock even as he pushed Tess back into the shadow of the trees. Within seconds he had her crouched behind a tree, while he stood in front of her, wishing he had his night-vision goggles to help penetrate the darkness.
But even though he waited patiently, he didn’t see anything move or hear any other sounds. There was absolutely no indication that there was actually someone behind them, tracking their every move. Although he couldn’t afford to discount the possibility.
He silently promised himself that if Allan Gray showed up, he’d arrest the guy for stalking. Enough was enough.
But the seconds stretched into a minute, and then two. He hesitated, debating between calling for backup and getting Tess back to the hotel as quickly as possible. They were less than thirty yards away from the bright lights of the hotel.
“Declan, do you see anything?” Tess whispered.
“No.” He turned toward her and put a hand under her elbow to help her stand up. “We need to get back to the hotel. Are you able to run?”
“Yes,” she answered quickly.
“Stay as close to the trees as you can,” he murmured. “And have your key ready.”
She gave a jerky nod and he hoped he wasn’t making a mistake by running for it. But it went against the grain to call his team when he was armed and they had barely thirty yards to go to reach the safety of the building.
He moved to the right, keeping Tess hidden in the trees. Soon they ran out of tree coverage and without his saying a word, Tess put on a burst of speed, running toward the hotel and jamming her card into the slot in the door.
Keeping right behind her, he mentally braced for the sound of someone coming after them, but he didn’t hear anything and within minutes they were safely inside the hotel. He shut the door behind him, as Tess sank against the wall, breathing heavily.
He reached out for her, intending to offer comfort, but the moment his arms wrapped around her, the embrace went from friendly to intense.
There was no way to know who moved first, but somehow he was kissing her and even more astonishing, she was kissing him back.
* * *
Tess clung to Declan’s shoulders, losing herself in his kiss. She could have stayed in his arms for hours, but within a few minutes, he gently pulled away and she reluctantly let him go.
She missed his warmth as he stepped back, running a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry, I don’t know how that happened.”
His apology didn’t make her happy. “I’m not sorry, so don’t worry about it.”
His gaze clashed with hers, and a strained tension rippled between them. This time, she broke the connection by turning away.
“Excuse me,” she murmured, escaping into the bathroom. She closed the door and dropped down onto the commode, trying to calm her racing pulse. It bothered her that Declan regretted kissing her, especially since she’d secretly dreamed of being with him again since their first kiss ten years ago.
Even then, Declan had been her knight in shining armor. Saving her from Steve Gains and a potential sexual assault.
Declan had been a year older than her, and of course she remembered seeing him at the minimart and hanging out at the custard stand, his rebellious long hair and black leather jacket screaming defiance. Yet despite his troublemaker reputation, he’d never been anything but nice and polite to her.
Ironic that all those years ago, she’d been safer with the town rebel than she had been with Steve Gains, the town golden boy. Declan’s true personality had shown through that night, the way he’d stood up for her and had taken on Steve Gains. She’d realized that much of Declan’s tough attitude had been a cover for his true nature.
What she didn’t know was why.
She gave herself a mental shake. Enough worrying about Declan, she told herself firmly. Her brother had to remain her top priority. Her note that she’d tucked into the church pew was gone, but that didn’t mean Bobby was the one who’d found it.
She buried her face in her hands, battling a wave of helplessness. What if Declan insisted on switching hotels? Bobby would never find her.
When she’d first heard the noise behind them, she wondered if it could be Bobby, but when the sounds stopped and no one appeared, she figured she was imagining things. But then they’d both heard it again, the barest thud of a footstep. What did it mean? Surely if Bobby had found her, he would have come forward right away?
Unless he was in trouble and was worried about being arrested. She didn’t want to think the worst but forced herself to acknowledge that the way Bobby had been missing for the past two days wasn’t encouraging.
Maybe it was a good thing that all the police in the area were looking for him. Even if he ended up in jail, at least she’d feel better knowing where he was.
She pulled herself together with an effort, rising to her feet and taking a deep breath before opening the bathroom door. When she stepped into the room, she was surprised to see that Declan wasn’t there.
Was he already planning their next move? She racked her brain, trying to think of an excuse that would con
vince Declan to stay here at least for another night or two.
Long enough for Bobby to find her.
The sound of muted voices wafted through the connecting doorway. Tess rose and walked over, straining to listen.
“I need to know where Allan Gray is,” Declan was saying in a low tone. “I think he’s following Tess again.”
She closed her eyes, despair washing over her. If Declan thought Allan Gray had been stalking them, then for sure he’d make them leave. There was a long pause before Declan spoke again. “So you’re saying he’s been home this whole time? That it’s not possible for him to have waited outside the hospital for us and followed me to the hotel?” His voice rose sharply. “Are you confident enough about this to put Tess’s life on the line if you’re wrong?”
* * *
Several more tense moments of silence passed. Tess clenched her fingers together tightly, waiting for Declan to say something to whomever was on the other end of the line.
“I hope you’re right, Isaac,” Declan finally said in a weary tone. “And let me know as soon as you hear anything about Bobby.”
He disconnected from the call and then lifted his head, catching sight of her hovering in the doorway.
“They still haven’t found my brother?” she asked.
Declan grimaced and shook his head. “Not yet.”
She nodded, understanding that Declan wanted to find Bobby just as much as she did. Although for a very different reason.
“Good night,” she said, pushing away from the doorway.
“Tess, wait.” She paused and turned around to face him. He stared at her for a long moment before he said the words she’d been dreading to hear. “Pack up your things. We need to move to a different hotel.”
“Not tonight,” she protested.
“We can’t ignore the fact that we may have been followed here,” Declan pointed out. “What if our perp is out there right now, planting another bomb?”
The stark reality was too much to ignore. She didn’t want to leave because of her brother, but was she willing to risk her life?
Or Declan’s?
The answer to both of those questions was a resounding no. Tears pricked her eyes and she blinked them away before Declan could see them.
“Give me a few minutes,” she murmured. She turned around and went into her own room, closing the connecting door behind her. She needed some time alone.
She sniffed loudly, wiping away the dampness around her eyes. It was so frustrating that she couldn’t do more to find her brother.
All she could do was to continue praying for him.
But somehow even praying for Bobby didn’t lift the heavy sense of dread that shrouded her. After several long moments, she stood and forced herself to pack her meager belongings together.
There was a faint noise outside, and she frowned and crossed over to the window. There it was again, a slight pinging noise.
She instinctively turned off the lights and waited a few minutes for her eyes to adjust to the darkness. When she heard the third taping sound, she moved the heavy curtain over the window just enough to peer outside.
The window looked over the front parking lot and she scanned the area carefully. But nothing seemed out of place that she could tell. There were several cars parked out front, but none directly in front of her window.
A slight movement caught her eye, and she realized there was a figure crouched near the side of a black truck, mostly hidden in the shadows. She blinked and stared, trying to get a good look at the person’s facial features. The way the person was crouched down, she couldn’t even tell if it was a male or female.
But then the figure lifted his head and his arm, tossing another pebble at her window. Relief overwhelmed her, making her knees go weak.
Bobby! Her brother had found her!
TWELVE
Tess’s heart was pounding with anticipation as she opened her hotel room door as quietly as possible and slipped outside. “Bobby?” she called in a whisper. “It’s me, Tess. Are you out there?”
“Yes, I’m here.” Bobby rose to his feet, and the moment she saw him, she rushed over to throw her arms around him in a huge hug.
“Thank heavens you’re safe!” she whispered, clutching him tightly. “You have no idea how happy I am to see you.”
“I found your note, Tess,” Bobby said.
“I’m glad,” Tess murmured. “I’ve been so worried.”
“I’m sorry, sis. I’m so sorry, for everything.”
She reluctantly released him and stepped back so she could try to read his eyes. “What happened, Bobby? How much trouble are you in?”
Her brother let out a heavy sigh. “I’m not in as much trouble as Mitch, that’s for sure. I thought we were friends, but I guess not.” Her brother’s tone was bitter.
She couldn’t deny feeling glad that Bobby wasn’t sticking by his friend Mitch. “Start at the beginning,” she suggested. “I went to pick you up from school, but you weren’t there...”
“Yeah, we decided to go off campus for lunch and Mitch wanted to skip class the rest of the day. I tried to argue with him, but he wasn’t listening.”
“What happened next?” she asked.
“He talked me into heading over to the park for a while. Then, out of nowhere, Mitch demanded money to buy drugs. I refused to give him a dime, told him that he needed to go into rehab to get clean. At first, Mitch seemed okay, but as soon as we were about to leave the park, he caught me off guard and slugged me.” Bobby raked a hand through his hair, then continued. “Next thing I know, he took off with my phone and my truck. I tried to find him, even went to his house, but he wasn’t anywhere....”
“Go on,” she prodded gently, trying to keep a tight rein on her emotions. Despite the inner turmoil that she was feeling right now, she needed to remain calm, and composed so he’d tell her the whole story from start to finish.
He cleared his throat. “By this time, it was really too late to go back to class, so I didn’t bother. I really thought Mitch would come back and give me the truck keys after he got what he needed, but after an hour or so passed, I knew things were bad. Eventually I walked home, but then I saw your sign on the door, and I’ve been hiding out ever since.”
Tess narrowed her eyes at him. She could see the dark bruises on Bobby’s face, but as much as she loved her brother, she couldn’t help wondering how much of his account was really true. “Why didn’t you call the police?”
Bobby shrugged and stared down at his feet. “At first I didn’t want to get Mitch in trouble, and then I was worried that they wouldn’t believe me.”
Tess tamped down a flash of annoyance. She knew Bobby had a deeply ingrained mistrust of the police ever since his last arrest for disorderly conduct, but he needed to get over it already. Granted the last time he’d been cited he caught a raw deal, as he was truly trying to help a girl who was being threatened by her ex-boyfriend. But of course, the police didn’t believe Bobby and ended up giving him a ticket instead of citing the guy who’d started the mess in the first place.
But now the fact that her brother hadn’t gone straight to the authorities would make him look bad. And she couldn’t deny a tiny sliver of doubt that Bobby had in fact gone along with Mitch, at least in the beginning. “So you weren’t the one who knocked me out and stole my money?”
“What?” Bobby’s shock was too real to be faked. He grasped her arms, staring at her intently. “No! Tell me what happened.”
Tess knew her attacker must have been Mitch, hopefully acting alone. “I received a call from your phone and I thought it was you on the other line asking me to meet you at Greenland Park because you needed money. Except when we got there, we found a bomb under the picnic table.” Seeing Bobby’s eyes widen even farther, she drew a breath and con
tinued. “Declan dealt with the explosive while I went back to his car. I was supposed to return to the hotel, but then I found your truck. When I looked inside, the truck was empty, but someone came up behind me and knocked me out. When I came to, all my cash was gone.”
“That jerk,” Bobby muttered darkly. “Mitch is going to pay for hurting you. I can’t believe he actually mugged you!”
“Don’t say things like that,” she admonished him. “You’re not going to make him pay or do anything else about this. We’ll let the police handle it. Which is what you should have done right away. With your statement, I’m sure we can convince the authorities to arrest Mitch.”
“I hope so.” Bobby shuffled his feet and dragged a hand through his too-long reddish blond hair. “I’m sorry I disappointed you, Tess.”
“Oh, Bobby.” She sighed and gave him another quick hug. “I know it’s been rough the past couple of months, but you have to learn to trust in the system, okay?”
Bobby shrugged, nodded and then changed the subject. “Who’s Declan?”
Tess hoped her blush wasn’t too noticeable. “He’s a friend of mine from high school, who just happens to be part of the Milwaukee County SWAT team. He’s been keeping me safe.”
“Yeah, I noticed.”
“How would you know?” she asked with a frown, trying to understand how her brother had figured that out.
“I saw you two together.”
“That was you back there? Following us from church?”
Bobby nodded. “Yeah, but as soon as your bodyguard went into cop mode, I backtracked.” Her brother grimaced. “I can’t believe you’re friends with a cop.”
“Trust me, Declan is one of the good guys.” She prayed her brother would learn to trust the police. “We’ll get through this, Bobby. Always remember that I love you and I believe in you.”
Bobby managed a crooked smile. “I love you, too, sis.”
She gave her brother another hug, closing her eyes in relief. Thank You, Lord! Thank You for keeping Bobby safe and showing him the way home.
* * *