Roscoe was on the floor. His stubby tail thumped slowly as he eyed her up. His head was cocked, as if he understood her concern.
“Don’t borrow trouble, Claire.”
Alex’s tone was steady, but Claire had a hunch he wasn’t quite as calm on the inside. He was simply trying to reassure her.
He continued to peruse the map, trying to look casual should the deputy glance over. His head was tilted toward the window to keep the deputy from getting a clear view.
“She’s getting out,” Alex said.
Claire’s heart pounded. She didn’t want to be discovered like this. Sopping wet, shivering, crouching in fear. She was as afraid for Alex and Mason as she was for herself. She’d never wanted to put anyone else in jeopardy. Especially Mason. Alex had chosen this. Mason had stumbled into it. He was innocent.
It seemed like an eternity before Alex said, “She’s heading inside.”
Thank You, thank You, Lord, Claire thought.
“Here comes Mason.”
A few moments later the back passenger door opened. Mason slid a sympathetic look her way as he settled the dog food onto the floor next to Roscoe. He walked around the vehicle and quickly got in.
“Guess I should’ve parked on the other side of the building,” he said, his tone droll.
“Just get us out of here,” Alex said lightly.
Mason maneuvered out of the lot.
Once they were on the highway, Claire sat up again.
Mason used the rearview mirror to scan the road behind them. He caught Claire’s eye and gave her a bright grin. “Looks to me,” he said, “as if the good Lord is working overtime watching out for you today.”
“Yes,” Claire agreed, feeling an unexpected sense of peace. “He is.”
* * *
Mason’s single-level, ranch-style home was in a quiet neighborhood in a Portland suburb. The house was small, with only one bathroom and two bedrooms, but he was more than willing to share his space.
Alex was grateful because it was the ideal place to hide away. No one would be checking IDs, no one would be barging in to clean, no guests would be milling around. He didn’t mind camping out on a strange couch again. He’d slept in far worse places over the years.
He and his friend were sitting at the kitchen table, warming up with cups of coffee. The aroma of the beef stew simmering in a Crock-Pot on the counter was making Alex ravenously hungry. He was thinking about dinner—in an effort to forget about the disastrous kiss he and Claire had shared—when Mason tossed him a verbal curveball.
“A guy I used to work with got a job with the Oakville PD,” he casually stated.
Alex worked at keeping his expression even, though he was wondering where his friend was going with that bit of information. “Oh, yeah?”
“Anything you want me to try to find out for you?”
Alex hesitated.
Mason was young, one of the youngest on the team. He’d joined after a friend of his tangled with the wrong people. She hadn’t lived to tell about it. He’d gone through the police academy right out of high school. Had served for a year, then had discovered HOPE, which he felt was more hands-on, and he’d never looked back.
“Look, I know who your friend is,” Mason said bluntly. “I know she’s accused of killing her husband, Jared Mitchell. I know you well enough to assume that if you’re helping her, you have a good reason.”
“I do,” Alex agreed. “And yes, I’ll take you up on your offer. If your contact is willing, I’d like to know how solid they think their case is against Claire. Also, I’d like to know if they have any other suspects.”
“They’re ready to charge her with murder,” Mason said carefully. “I think that means they aren’t looking at other suspects at this point.”
“I need to know if the real murderer was ever on their radar.”
“Real murderer,” Mason echoed.
“Claire’s innocent.”
Mason said nothing.
“She’s innocent,” Alex repeated. “I’m going to help her prove it.”
Mason winced. “You know that’s the defense of just about every criminal ever, right?”
“Claire’s not a criminal.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because I know her.”
“You know some murder suspect well enough to risk your neck trying to clear her name?” Mason sounded more curious than skeptical.
Alex didn’t see any reason to keep Mason in the dark. “I used to be engaged to her. Trust me. I know her. She’s innocent.”
Alex was met with a blank look while Mason tried to wrap his head around that information. After a moment he broke into a slow smile. “She’s the one.”
“The one what?” Alex demanded.
“The one that got away. The one that’s turned you into a workaholic.” Mason’s head bobbed as he agreed with himself.
“She didn’t get away,” Alex said quietly. “I pushed her away.”
Judging by the reaction to his kiss, she wasn’t going to be reeled back into a relationship with him anytime soon. Possibly not ever. Did he even want a relationship with her? He thought maybe he did. Or were his emotions just running high due to the realization he had a daughter, compounded by the intensity of the situation they were in?
It didn’t matter what he wanted. Because Claire had made it pretty clear how she felt about him. In that moment, he had thought she’d wanted him to kiss her. The way she’d felt in his arms, the way she’d been looking at him—
“If it was your fault, that’s even worse,” Mason continued, cutting into Alex’s thoughts.
Alex tried to ignore him. “I wasn’t there when she needed me before. I’m not bailing on her now. Jared’s business partner, Xavier Ambrose, had Jared killed. We just need to prove it. What I’d like to know is whether or not the police have looked into him at any point.”
“Xavier Ambrose, the guy you asked me to look into, was Jared Mitchell’s business partner?” Mason’s brow furrowed. “I didn’t realize. I haven’t had a chance to check him out yet. Helena has me working overtime trying to track a missing fifteen-year-old. I’ve been so buried in this case I’ve hardly had time for anything else. You think Xavier killed Jared?”
“Yes.”
Mason seemed to mull that over. “I didn’t realize you thought he was a murder suspect. I have a lead on the girl and Helena’s thrown a few more cases my way. But I’ll bump Xavier up on my list, look into his past just as soon as I can. In the meantime, I’ll check with my contact at the department. It might take a few days for him to get back to me, but I’ll see what I can do.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it.”
“No problem.”
Claire wandered into the kitchen wearing the jeans and the cardigan she’d had on the night Alex had found her at the shack.
“Feel better?” Alex asked.
She nodded. “I’m warm and I’m dry. That definitely makes me feel better.”
“Anyone hungry?” Mason asked. “I’m not much of a cook. I usually cook one big meal and spend the next few days eating it. I’ve got stew and bread from the bakery.”
“Sounds delicious,” Claire said. “What can I do to help?”
“You can set the table. You can find what you need there and there.” He pointed to a cupboard and a drawer.
“Mason has a contact at the Oakville PD,” Alex said as he began filling water glasses.
Claire paused with her hand on a stack of bowls. Her eyes were wide when she glanced over her shoulder at Alex. She quickly flicked her gaze to Mason.
“I hope French bread is okay with the stew. Rolls probably would’ve gone better.” He turned to Claire as if still discussing nothing more pressing than dinner. “Yes, I know who you are. No, I’m not going to do anything about it. In our line of wor
k—” he cast a glance at Alex “—situations often aren’t what they seem. I trust Alex’s judgment.”
“Thank you,” Claire said sincerely. She placed the bowls and spoons on the table and took a seat.
With hot pads, Mason carried the crock to the table and set it on a trivet. He returned to the counter for the bread.
Once they were all seated Mason said, “I’ll lead grace, if you don’t mind.”
“Please do,” Claire agreed.
“Dear Father, we thank You for the meal before us. We thank You for the friendship between us. I ask You to please watch over Alex and Claire on their journey. Please, let justice prevail. Amen.”
“Amen,” Alex and Claire echoed.
Alex caught Claire’s eye. He could see that Mason’s prayer touched her heart. It was a small gesture, but for a woman who felt as if the odds were stacked against her, it meant a lot.
They passed around the food and ate in silence for a few minutes.
“It’s been so long since I’ve had a home-cooked meal,” Claire said. “This is wonderful.”
Mason chuckled. “Thanks. I know how to cook maybe five things. This is one of them.”
“Then you’re better off than I am,” Alex admitted.
Mason was preparing a gibe when they were interrupted by Alex’s phone.
“Excuse me,” he said as he pulled it from his pocket. He frowned as Gretchen’s name popped up. “Alex, here.”
She wasn’t put off by his brusque greeting. “I’d like your input on something.”
“What’s going on?”
“The house is being watched,” Gretchen said. “There’s been a car parked down the road, away from the gate, since I got here. Different car today, but same spot. I feel fairly confident they aren’t planning on breaching the community. They’re more of a nuisance than anything.”
“Keeping an eye on who’s coming and going,” Alex decided.
Both Claire and Mason were blatantly eavesdropping. He didn’t mind, he’d be sharing the information with them soon enough.
“I think so,” Gretchen agreed.
Alex thought most likely they were watching for any sign of Claire. Xavier had to know that Beth was watching over Mia. Of course it would seem likely that Claire would want to see her daughter.
“I don’t think they’re a threat,” Alex said. “I also don’t think we should make it too easy for them. Why don’t you give the local PD a call?”
“I was hoping you would say that. There’s no law against parking on the street. But it would put it on law enforcement’s radar that Beth’s house is being staked out.”
“That alone should raise at least a bit of suspicion,” Alex said. Not that law enforcement could do much with it now. But perhaps it could help Claire’s case later.
“I’ll give them a call,” Gretchen agreed.
“Everything else going okay?”
“Yes,” she replied. “I haven’t seen much of her husband, but Beth is very gracious. Her niece is a delight.”
Alex was stabbed by an unexpected pang of jealousy. He wished he was the one watching over Mia right now.
“I trust you to take good care of them both.”
“I know,” Gretchen said. “You have nothing to worry about.”
They disconnected. Alex slid his phone into his pocket.
“That was Gretchen.”
Claire leaned forward. “Is Mia okay?”
“She’s doing fine. Gretchen called her a delight.”
“So what’s the problem?”
He reiterated the phone call.
Claire’s shoulders slumped. “I hate that Xavier’s men are that close to my daughter.”
“Our daughter,” Alex corrected.
Mason’s eyebrows shot up but he was discreet enough not to address the comment.
“I don’t like it, either,” Alex admitted. “On the other hand, I think it’ll only help your case. There’s no way the police can miss the damage to the Jeep. Once Gretchen makes that phone call, they’ll be aware that Beth’s place is being staked out. Granted, Gretchen can’t prove it’s Beth’s house that’s being watched, but I have enough faith in your local PD to assume they’ll put those two pieces of information together. To me, that’s nothing short of suspicious.”
“I think it’s time we send the file on Xavier. We talked about it, but got sidetracked,” Claire said.
“You have a file on the suspect?” Mason took a bite of stew as his curious gaze bounced between Alex and Claire.
“Yes,” Alex answered. He filled Mason in on what they suspected the motive was, along with a summary of the information Claire had compiled.
“Dude,” he said as he turned to Alex, “you really do need to get that information handed over. Now I see why you were wondering if they had any other suspects. Sounds like the guy could definitely have a motive.”
“Mason has been swamped, but he’s going to look into Xavier’s past the first chance he gets,” Alex told Claire.
“I’m working on a few other cases,” Mason said to her, “but I’ll make digging up some info on Xavier a priority.”
“Maybe you’ll discover the names of Xavier’s henchmen,” Claire said.
Mason’s eyebrows shot up. “Henchmen?”
Alex told him about the gunmen at the shack, the meeting with Ruth and the car chase that ended with gunfire and a blown-out tire.
“As soon as they go over the Jeep,” Mason said, “they’ll see gun powder residue. That ought to raise a few questions.”
“I can’t run forever,” Claire said quietly. “I’d like the case against Xavier to be as strong as possible before I turn myself in.”
Alex didn’t want to think about Claire turning herself in. He also didn’t want to argue about it in front of Mason. He let the comment slide.
For now.
“What we need is solid proof,” Alex told Mason. “We think he might’ve left something incriminating behind but going back to Claire’s house is a huge risk. The police will be there in no time if we trip the alarm.”
“So don’t trip the alarm,” Mason said.
Alex scoffed.
“No,” Mason continued, “I’m serious. If you can get me enough information, I’m sure I can get you in.”
“How?” Claire demanded, her curiosity clearly piqued. She looked to Alex for the answer.
He frowned. He wasn’t happy to admit that he wasn’t a techie sort of guy. He considered himself to have a fair amount of brains and his brawn had always come in handy. But knowledge of the ever-changing world of technology? Not so much. He’d always left that part to other people. Fortunately, Mason had the skills needed.
“There’re a few ways a system can be hacked. I could disarm the alarm, but then the security company would probably take note of that,” Mason explained. “I could also remotely set off the alarm.”
“The point of that would be...?” Alex asked.
“In this case, it’s probably not the best idea. But a few months ago it came in handy when we needed to get into that warehouse outside of Miami. We started setting off the alarm at random over the course of a few days. The security guys assumed there was a glitch in the system. When it was time for us to roll, we set it off again—their thugs blew it off and we caught them off guard. That probably won’t work for you two. It might make law enforcement suspect that you’re up to something.”
“While this is all very interesting,” Claire said politely, “I’m not sure how it’s much help.”
Mason grinned at her. “I’m getting to it. I could also suppress the system for you.”
“Suppress the system?” Alex asked. He already liked the sound of that.
“Sure,” Mason said. “I hack into the system, figure out what frequency it’s using, the same way I would fo
r remotely setting off the alarm. Instead of setting it off, I’d send in a signal that’s stronger than that of the system and jam it. Then there’s no activity between the sensor and the alarm. That way, when you go in, the alarm is overridden.”
“Just like that?” Claire asked.
Mason shrugged. “For me? Yeah. I’ve been doing this for a while.”
“Do you think that could work?” She rushed ahead in excitement, answering her own question. “I think that could work.”
“Of course it will work,” Mason scoffed. “I can guarantee that I’ve gotten us into places with security far superior to whatever home alarm your husband had installed.”
“Yeah,” Alex said gruffly. “It would probably work.”
Claire tilted her head, narrowing her eyes at him. “Why don’t you sound happy about it?”
“There’s still a whole lot of ways that plan could go sideways,” he warned.
Mason shrugged. “I’m just throwing it out there. It’ll give you two something to think about.” He pushed his chair back. “You two can go relax while I clean up in here.”
Claire shook her head. “You’ve done so much. Let me clean up.”
“That’s not necessary,” Mason argued.
Claire stood and began gathering dirty dishes. “Please. My life has been in upheaval for weeks. You have no idea how much I’m craving normalcy. I love to putter around in the kitchen. It relaxes me.”
Mason laughed. “Then by all means, make yourself at home and putter away.”
* * *
Claire took Mason up on his offer. While he and Alex discussed operations at HOPE, she did the dishes, tidied the kitchen then poked around in his cupboards and pantry. She’d thought a batch of homemade brownies would be nice, but Mason didn’t have cocoa powder. She settled on making oatmeal cookies after finding both oatmeal and raisins on the meagerly stocked shelves.
Baking calmed her but made her miss Mia terribly. She longed for the days when the two of them would mess up the kitchen together. Of course, she knew to always, always have it spotless by the time Jared had returned home. He deplored having anything out of order. Claire had learned that lesson the hard way.
Reunion on the Run Page 10