by Natalie Ann
“What?”
“My bedspread is messed up. I didn’t notice it before. But it’s picked up on one side. See.”
Both men looked and nodded. “Maybe someone sat down on it?” Mac asked.
“Or maybe they tripped on it not paying attention?” she asked. “But I’m washing it.”
“You need to stay somewhere else tonight,” Mac said. “And if you want to come back here, and I’m sure you do, then you need security.”
Her shoulders slumped. “Great. Just great. There won’t be any hiding this from anyone.”
“Don’t even think of trying to do that either,” Mac said.
24
More Important Things
“You’re staying with me tonight.”
“No,” she said to Seth.
He ran his hand through his hair. “Yes,” he said.
Ava had called him last night when she’d gotten out of work and told him what happened when she’d gotten home on Sunday, and that she’d spent the night at her brother’s house and was there when she was calling him. Today she got out of work early to take care of a few things and asked if they could meet for a late lunch with the two of them sitting in a restaurant now.
“I’m not putting you or Adele at risk. It’s the same reason I’m staying with my brothers because my parents are in Boston while my father is working for a few days there. No one wanted me by myself at my parents’ house even though that is what I preferred.”
“I don’t want you back at your place at all,” he said firmly. He’d hardly been one to get angry over much in life. When Ellen died and his world changed, he was just...there. Anger came a year later and didn’t last long. He had more important things to focus on and did so.
But for some reason he was ready to get up and start pacing in the restaurant around their table. It wasn’t even worth saying how annoyed he was she didn’t call him on Sunday night when this all happened. If he’d learned once, he’d learned many times, you can’t go back in the past to change a damn thing.
“Don’t be crazy. Griffin is putting in a high tech security system and Drew is paying for it since it’s his house. I argued he didn’t have to but of course this news went through the family fast enough. Mac told Sidney, Sidney told Amanda and, well, there is no hiding anything even though this didn’t go on public record.”
“When will it be installed?” Seth asked.
“By the end of this week. Some of it had to be ordered and then Griffin has another job. It’s not like he can stop what he’s doing to deal with my issue. He said by Friday it will be in. Drew will let him in the house while I’m working and when I get home he’ll show me how to use it before he goes back to the casino.”
He sighed, still not happy. “There is a security system at my house,” he argued. “Do your brothers have one?”
“I didn’t know there was one at your place,” she said.
“It’s the bank’s house. They’ve always had one. I’m surprised Mac didn’t tell you that since it’s monitored by the police.”
“But you’re at the north end,” she said. “Wouldn’t the State Police monitor that?”
He stopped for a second. “No. It’s local, though the State Police might be dispatched as they are closer, but it’s still through Amore Island Police because the bank pays for that service there.”
“I don’t know if Mac is aware you and I are dating,” she said. “It’s not a secret, but I didn’t come out and say it either. Though he does know you and Adele were at the house the other day because he asked who else might have touched things. Doesn’t matter.”
“I still think you should stay with me until the system is set up then,” he argued back.
“No. Adele is in the house. I won’t do anything to put her at risk. Second of all, what would you tell her? She thinks boyfriend and girlfriend means holding hands and kissing. Are you going to have her know I’m in your bed or do I sleep in a spare room? Did you even think of any of this?”
No, he hadn’t. All he cared about was Ava and her safety and the guilt of putting her before his daughter was slamming into him like an elevator plummeting twenty stories with no brakes. “Does it matter?”
“Of course it does. I haven’t even talked to Griffin yet about what he found in the house, which is nothing so far. There were smudges on the door handles and someone was in there. There was no damage or anything missing and if I didn’t have an eagle eye about things I wouldn’t have even known. Guess my OCD about doors came in handy.”
“What is the deal with the doors?” he asked.
“I have no idea. My mother always did that. She said it’s because when she wanted to check in on us as kids she didn’t want to wake us up opening the door since it made a noise. We lived in an older home with lots of creaks and squeaks. She used to shut it enough to not click it so it gave us privacy but didn’t lock us in. Guess it just stuck with me.”
He supposed he understood that. He always had Adele’s door open so he could walk by and see her or check in on her. He kept his own door open so she could get him anytime she wanted. But when he was married, his bedroom was always shut for privacy. Guess he lost all that privacy being a single father and Ava’s words started to sink in.
Where would she sleep? In the spare room? In his bed with the door shut, and how would he explain that to Adele when his door had been open for years? Just too many things going through his head right now to process.
“Hang on,” she said when her phone started to ring. She grabbed it out of her purse and answered. He listened to her talking to someone. He was guessing it was Griffin since she’d said she’d see him on Friday and thanked him again.
“So? Anything?” he asked.
“Griffin was verifying he had everything and would be there Friday with Drew and be done by the time I got out of work. He also said that though he can’t get a hit on any prints, that the palm smudges he picked up were small enough to be a woman’s hand or a small guy. He’s leaning toward a woman based on some of the purchases made if he was going to assume the two are connected. Which he isn’t, but he’s throwing everything out there.”
“Makes sense,” he said. He’d seen some of the stores on the stolen card purchases, which did lean toward women’s clothing, but there were men’s purchases too. All sizes of men’s and women’s things. There wasn’t a lot of rhyme or reason unless the person was buying gifts.
“Yeah. I guess. Everything that was purchased was in person; nothing was shipped or delivered anywhere. No place had cameras that could pick anyone up or they didn’t have footage from that long ago. Aside from the electronics that were easily carried out to a car or clothing, the rest were made at big box stores. Gift cards made up a lot. It’s like the person went on a spending spree for anything and everything they wanted.”
“There was some jewelry,” he pointed out. “I saw a few thousand dollars there.”
“Nothing that stood out. It was a mixture of things. Some chains, some earrings and it was a few days’ worth of charges, not all at once, not all the same place. Whoever this person is, they were smart with things. Nothing so big that stood out and spread out over a lot of stores and in a lot of days. They had five cards in my name with anywhere from seven to ten thousand in credit limits. They spent the money fast on one card. Almost like they got them in stages or used them the same way and then discarded them.”
He’d seen that. Even if all the cards were used at once, which didn’t happen, they were all opened within a six-week period, this person only used one card at a time each month, spending a lot over a few weeks and then never making a payment on it or using it again. The limit was hit before the first bill, or before the payment was due.
“We are assuming the person that was in my house is the same person that stole my identity. I’m not assuming anything. That would make this personal and everything leads toward stolen identities as a victimless crime. I know Griffin only said what he did because he thinks of eve
rything, but I’d be smart to not try to guess either.”
“In my eyes there is no such thing as a victimless crime and you know it. Even if it’s to your peace of mind. But you’re right. You and I are assuming they are the same person. And Griffin isn’t?”
“No. He was addressing the house thing and possibilities. You and I are going down another path. They might be related or might not. I’m not sure and don’t want to go there right now. That would lead me to believe someone is targeting me and that is too scary. No one is taking this lightly, but no one is saying I’m in danger.”
“I still don’t like this,” he said.
She reached her hand over and put it on his. “I understand that. Do you think I do? Trust me, I don’t. But I’ve got my eyes out and I don’t feel like anyone is watching me. I’m not even afraid to go back in the house. I’m more annoyed. Like someone just wanted to go in and look around more than anything. Curiosity for the new Bond family member living on the island,” she said, laughing. “It happens and it sucks being lumped in like that.”
He didn’t want to upset or scare her and decided to let it drop. It was on the tip of his tongue to say something about Sidney being attacked in the house, but that had nothing to do with Ava so why bring it up as a reminder.
If there was a worry there, Mac would have addressed it, he was positive.
“So, what are your plans then?” he asked. “Staying with your brothers for the rest of the week and then going home?”
“Pretty much. My parents had planned on being in Boston until the weekend. My father only does two weeks a month in Boston. He’s semi-retired now. The other two weeks a month he is on call here on the island and seeing some patients that don’t want to go to the mainland. But it’s not enough to really be full time.”
“And how do your parents feel about this situation?”
She snorted. “Nice word for it. They aren’t happy but know if there was any real danger then Mac and Griffin would tell me. Neither of them feels that way.”
“So Griffin is a trusted family member?” he asked of Eli’s security director.
“He seems close enough to a family member to Eli. He’s trusted, there is no doubt there. His reach is further than Mac’s. Even further than Jarrett’s.”
“Who’s Jarrett?”
“Mac’s brother who is a state trooper that is stationed here at the north end of the island. Mac has another brother who is a fireman. Anyway, my point is, if anyone can figure out what is going on, it’s those three men.”
“I didn’t know the State Police were involved,” he asked, frowning.
“They aren’t. If Jarrett is looking into anything, it’s on a personal level as a favor. Mac came over to the house off the record because I asked him to keep it that way once we realized it was hard to figure out what was going on. I’m embarrassed enough about this and I don’t want even more known.”
“There is nothing to be embarrassed about,” he said. “What if someone is stalking you?”
She sighed. “I don’t think they are. I would have felt it if someone was watching me. Nothing out of the ordinary is going on. And Griffin did say he’s had someone watching me for a bit. Guess my father asked him without my knowledge.”
“And you’re pissed about that?” he asked but was glad her family was doing something. Of course, that meant they knew everything Ava and he were doing and he wasn’t sure he liked that.
“Not really. I understand it’s out of love. It’s not like it was nonstop and more just the first month back in Plymouth. When I moved here they had someone watching me for a few weeks and there was nothing. If I was at your place or work, the person wasn’t watching. It’s not like you think.”
“I’m not sure what to think,” he said.
“I wasn’t either, but the bottom line is the guy worked for Griffin and Griffin said there was nothing out of the ordinary. Not at all.”
“Maybe they should have been watching your house and they would have seen this,” he said, getting worked up again.
“Enough, Seth. I understand your frustration. I’m feeling it too. I don’t want to get any more scared and nervous than I am. I can’t focus and do my job if I am. I feel like I’ve done a good job of compartmentalizing everything in my life and then I come home on Sunday to see that. And you’re ticked I didn’t call you that night, but by the time everyone left and I got to my brother’s it was past ten. Too late to call. Monday I was swamped with work but called you when I could.”
He knew that and had to accept it. “I know. I just worry.”
“And you don’t need something else to worry about in your life. I’ll be fine. Trust me.”
25
Lost Any Privacy
“How did it go with Seth?” Carson asked her when she got home hours later.
She’d been running errands all day, then picked up food and was going to start on dinner for her brothers. She didn’t think Carson would be home already. “What are you doing here?” It was barely five.
“I got out at four because I’m on call, but came in about twenty minutes ago myself.”
Since he was in shorts and a T-shirt she figured he’d showered already. They all did when they got home from work. Another quirk about getting all the germs off of them from being in the medical field.
“It was fine. He’s not happy and wants me to stay with him. I told him no, that I wouldn’t put him or Adele at risk.”
Carson frowned at her. “What risk are you talking about? What aren’t you telling us? Dad said there is no one watching or following you. The fact someone was in your house is pissing us all off.”
“First off, there is no risk. Not that anyone is telling me or Dad. So don’t get me going there. I’m still not happy he had me watched and I knew nothing about it. Second of all, we are assuming the same person did the identity theft and we’ve got no reason to think that. Griffin called when I was at lunch with Seth and said he can’t get a hit on the prints and it’s only partial smudges but small enough to be a woman or small man.”
“Are they still looking?” he asked.
“I’m assuming that. Griffin is setting the system up on Friday. Drew is letting him in, then they will show me how to use it when I get out of work. I don’t think what they are putting in is needed. But it’s Drew’s money. Seth said he had a system in his house too for me to go there.”
“You didn’t know that?” he asked.
“I never paid attention. I go in the front door and didn’t see it there. My guess is it’s by the garage where he might enter instead. I’ve never noticed any cameras either.”
“Then it’s a good system if you can’t,” Carson said.
“Whatever. This whole thing is driving me insane. I don’t need to be watched either. Aren’t we watched enough being in the Bond family? Things seemed to be going so well with Seth and now he’s annoyed because I didn’t call him right away and he wants me there. I’ve got you and Hudson and Dad watching everything and talking to people behind my back. They say identity theft is a victimless crime, but they are wrong. I’ve lost any privacy I had,” she said starting to sniffle a little. “And now you all think this person has been in my house when it could just be a nosy person on the island.” At least that was what she was trying to convince herself of.
“Hey, sorry. We are only watching out for you. This isn’t your fault and we know it.”
“Hailey made me feel naive for not locking things down and allowing this to happen. Do you?”
“No. I didn’t before but do now. So don’t feel silly. There are things in this world that many of us never think of. This is one of them. No one thinks it’s going to happen to them or on Amore Island. Sure, we’ve all had our credit cards canceled because someone tried to use them, but that is different than what happened to you.”
“I don’t know how or where it could have occurred. I’m so careful about my social security number and all that information. I never put it on the comp
uter or anywhere. I don’t carry it with me; it was always locked up in the safe at home. It doesn’t make sense to me how someone got it unless there was a hack into another credit card company or something that had my information. But you’d think we would know about that.”
“They are supposed to notify you of any breach. Any place is, but it doesn’t always happen timely. Maybe it’s nothing more than that,” he said.
“I don’t know. I’m trying not to focus on it too much because it upsets me. Things will get better, I know it. I’m not sure what is worse. Wondering how many other people this might have happened to that don’t have the support or resources I do to fight back, or it’s me they want to hurt and I don’t know the answer as to why.”
“And you aren’t going to get that answer tonight. So put it from your mind and cook me dinner,” he said, laughing. “What are you making?”
“Burgers on the grill and a macaroni salad. Simple. Hudson should be home within the hour if he didn’t get held up.”
“His replacement will be there by now. I’m sure they are just handing cases over.”
“So how is it living together? Will you two ever not live in the same house?”
Carson laughed at her. “I’m sure someday one of us will find someone and I’ll have to move out. This is Hudson’s house and it’s fine. We split the costs, but it’s still his place. And as for living together, we aren’t here that much at the same time. We both have rotating shifts and days. It so happened we are both on days for a few days this week, but most times we are passing each other more than anything.”
“I guess it works too. This house is nice and neat. We are all neat people. So you aren’t fighting over that.”
“Mom never let us be slobs,” he said. “Even in our own rooms we had to have it clean and you know it.”
“They are the best, aren’t they?” she asked of her parents. “We really got lucky.”