Down Among The Bones

by Vickie McKeehan

  “But I get to pick out the best drones and program them to meet our specs,” Brayden opined as he shoved to his feet.

  “You’re dreaming,” Reggie stated. “I’m in charge.”

  “No way,” Winston argued, trailing the two men to the front door. “I’m a better code man than either of you guys.”

  Jenny sputtered with laughter. “Jeez, they’re like three little kids bickering about who gets to drive the go-cart first. You’d think they’d have better things to argue about.”

  Skye cut her eyes to Josh in amusement. “You really know how to wind them up, don’t you?”

  Josh grinned. “They’re like brothers. Somehow, they’ll work it out. They always do.”

  ****

  Zoe waited until the programmers had cleared out, and the meeting broke up to head downstairs. She entered the kitchen with Sierra and the dogs. Walking up to where Skye stood at the sink, cleaning up, Zoe slapped her elbows on the counter, leaned forward. In a low voice, she asked, “Is the coast clear? Where’s Josh?”

  “Let’s see. Josh is catching up on work emails in the study. Brayden left about twenty minutes ago. Harry picked up Deborah and Jenny, so, yeah, it’s just family. Why?” Skye stopped washing dishing, dried her hands on a towel, and turned to face Zoe. “What’s up with you? Are you ever going to tell me why you’re avoiding Brayden?”

  “Didn’t you see what happened between us this morning? Weren’t you listening? It seems we can’t be anywhere near each other without yelling. We can’t be in the same room for five minutes without arguing about something. And now he has this girlfriend. Dani. You’ve seen her. What does she look like?”

  Skye rolled her eyes, refusing to get drawn in. “This feels like middle school all over again. Want me to ask him if he’ll eat lunch with you in the cafeteria tomorrow?”

  Zoe unfurled to her full height, ready to do battle. “Stop it. This is serious. Brayden just doesn’t like me.”

  “What gave you that impression? What I saw this morning was almost passion.”

  “If only.” Zoe let out a long, exasperated sigh. “How can you forget what happened, what he did to me? He humiliated me last year. I asked him to go to the movies with me, and he turned me down flat. No explanation just said no and walked out of the house.”

  Skye’s mouth fell open. “You’ve got to be kidding. That’s what this is all about? Zoe, a year ago, Brayden was just getting his life back on track, feeling comfortable in his own skin again. He was just getting settled into a new place, being around new people, trying to fit into this weird, wild group that tends to border on crazy most of the time. In other words, he was trying to find his footing, figure out how not to be the outsider, the new kid, trying to figure out his next step, trying to figure out what he wanted. That’s a lot going on. If he turned you down to go to the movies, it wasn’t personal. Maybe he had a real conflict and couldn’t drop what he was doing to go with you that evening.”

  “Why are you taking his side?”

  “I’m not. I’m trying to explain that it wasn’t personal. Why don’t you ask him again? Why don’t you tell him how you feel about him? I don’t know, be honest. Have a conversation instead of screaming at the top of your lungs for a change.”

  “No way. I’m not going through that again. Remember Winston. No way. Besides, what would Dani say if I hit on her boyfriend?”

  “I’m not sure he likes Dani that way. Besides, Dani’s in no shape right now to go out with Brayden or anyone else. She’s too worried, too broken up about her cousin to think about Brayden like that. And for what it’s worth, I don’t think Dani feels that way about him. She needed his help last night and tapped into a resource. That’s what I took away from meeting her last night.”

  “What are we talking about?” Josh asked from the doorway. “Is this about Brayden?”

  Sierra came over to her dad to explain the situation in four-year-old speak. “Zoe loves Brayden, but she thinks Brayden doesn’t like her that way.”

  Josh ruffled the girl’s hair. “Now, that is the best explanation that I’ve heard all day. Concise and to the point.”

  Zoe lasered her eyes on the kid. “Traitor.”

  “It’s true. You love Brayden, but he yells at you, so you think he’s mad.”

  Skye put a hand over her mouth to hide a snicker. “Hey, don’t blame Sierra. She’s not the problem. You have hurt feelings going back a year ago and didn’t try to resolve it. That’s not on Brayden, that’s on you. No wonder you’ve been so unreasonable.”

  “Me? He’s the one who doesn’t like me. What about that don’t you understand?”

  “Why would he like a person who constantly yells at him?” Josh pointed out as he reached for the last apple in the fruit bowl. “Men don’t like getting yelled at, that’s a fact. We try to avoid it if possible. Aside from that, try to understand what Brayden had to deal with when Michael Smith held him captive all that time—major survivor’s guilt. He knew his family was dead. All that time he was held hostage, he had to deal with the worst possible scenario. He wasn’t even sure he’d make it out alive. Every day he was forced to do things he didn’t want to do. He had no control over anything. It’s called PTSD. He’s just now beginning to handle normal, such as it is. A job. His own apartment. Independence. Wheels. College. Meeting women. Everything everybody else takes for granted in their teen years, Brayden missed. This is all new to him. But at the end of the day, Brayden still won’t ever get his family back. That’s huge. The guy has all that baggage to deal with, and he’s trying to get a handle on everything else happening around him. You think it’s easy for him? It’s not. Yet here he is, spending time around us when all we do is hunt down the Michael Smiths out there? Brayden doesn’t need anyone giving him a hard time about some diss you think happened a year ago. ”

  Zoe slumped against the counter. “When you put it like that, I feel small.”

  “You’re not small,” Sierra said. “I’m small. And it sucks to be small.”

  Josh reached down and picked up his daughter, poked a finger in her belly. “What’s wrong with being small? You get away with so much more when you’re small.”

  “No, I don’t!” Sierra protested with a giggle.

  Skye decided to remedy the situation. “I have an idea how you can make it up to Brayden. Jenny wanted to take Winston dinner later. Judy liked the idea and plans to bring Reggie food. Why don’t you give Jenny or Judy a call, ask if they need another pair of hands. Head out to where they’re flying the drones. They’ll be out there until dark. Go with Jenny and Judy. I’m sure they’d welcome your company. And it would look like you’re just along for the ride.”

  Zoe’s brown eyes flicked with interest at the prospect. “What about watching Sierra?”

  “Josh and I plan to be home all evening, re-watching the CCTV footage. Then we’ll work on questions to use for canvassing the Ames Lake neighborhood tomorrow. In other words, don’t let us stop you from going out later.”

  “After that, we’re hoping to touch base with Leo and go over his list of juvenile car thieves,” Josh added.

  Zoe sighed. “You guys should really think about getting out more.”

  Amused, Skye narrowed her eyes. “We get out plenty. In fact, I’d like to stay home long enough this afternoon to tend to my garden.”

  “See? Boring,” Zoe claimed. “Who wants to spend their time digging in dirt?”

  “I do!” Sierra shouted.

  Skye grinned. “Takes after her mama. Don’t cha, baby?”

  Sierra wrapped her arms around her mother’s legs. “Uh-huh. Let’s go pick flowers in the garden.”

  As they started out the back door, Zoe stopped them. “Wait. Call Jenny for me. Tell her I’ll tag along to take the guys their supper.”

  Josh went to the phone on the wall and handed it to Skye. “Love in the making.” He turned to Zoe. “But this time do yourself a favor. Try not to yell at the guy as soon as you set eyes on him.”

/>   ****

  Zoe opted to drive and pick up the women.

  Over the past few weeks, she’d sweet-talked Skye into letting her drive the coveted, sporty gray Subaru whenever she played nanny to Sierra. After all, when Skye was on a case, like now, there were errands to run, groceries to buy. Proof that a nanny needed a car available to her in case of an emergency.

  All good enough points to get her the keys to Skye’s car. Zoe sat behind the wheel cruising down I-90 East with Judy riding shotgun and Jenny in the backseat.

  “What exit are we looking for?”

  “Reggie texted me directions,” Judy revealed, head bent, looking down at her phone. “They’re doing a grid search just beyond Tiger Mountain State Forest, so take Route 18, bear right until you get to a bridge, then veer right again. Go through a wilderness area until you see Reggie’s car. It should be parked off the side of the road. The area is across from a fork in the road.”

  “Gotcha. Do you guys do this often? Take the guys supper whenever they work in the field?”

  Jenny sputtered with laughter. “Winston doesn’t work in the field. He actually kind of hates the outdoors. He’s such a nerd, but such a good guy.”

  “I used to have a major crush on him,” Zoe confessed. “Don’t worry. I was a kid then, sixteen and hanging around those guys way too much. Winn was like, twenty-one and way too old for me. I’m over it now. Ask Judy.”

  Judy snickered. “That was three years ago. You don’t even seem like that same girl.”

  “I think that might be the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me,” Zoe told Judy. “I was such a brat back then.”

  Jenny leaned toward the front seat and piped up, “I’ll forgive you for crushing on Winston, but how long have you had this thing for Brayden?”

  Zoe sucked in a breath, and using the rearview mirror, cut her eyes briefly to Jenny’s. “Am I that obvious?”

  “Why else would you bother bringing dinner out here to these guys, guys who are wandering around in the sticks playing with their little drones?”

  “She’s got you there,” Judy pointed out. “We’re sort of obligated, but unless you have a vested interest…”

  “Oh, my God, do you think Brayden will see right through this. He’ll never believe I’m just tagging along for the ride.”

  “Sure he will,” Jenny said. “Men don’t pick up on the obvious.”

  Judy cracked up at that. “They’re oblivious unless you hit them over the head. You’re not planning on hitting Brayden over the head, are you?”

  “Not unless he says something idiotic,” Zoe promised, flipping the blinker into place to exit off the interstate. “Although I’m here because I know these guys and care about them. Every single one of them would work forty-eight straight hours without being asked to find a missing person without complaint. Okay, maybe Winston would bitch for a bit, but he’d eventually get the job done.”

  “True,” Jenny stated in agreement. “But he’s gotten better lately, don’t you think?”

  Judy shifted in her seat to look at Jenny. “But that’s not why Zoe’s going out of her way on a Friday night to bring Brayden food.”

  “Well, no. Look, I really like Brayden. But in the two years he’s been here, he hasn’t once shown any interest in me.”

  “Oh, I don’t know,” Judy disputed. “What I saw this morning between you two was something akin to sexual tension, passion even.”

  “That’s what Skye said. Oh, look, there they are.” Zoe pulled the Subaru behind Reggie’s Honda Accord, parked next to a field where the three men stood studying the video from one of the drones.

  Jenny grabbed the grocery-size shopping bag that held the sandwiches they’d brought and opened her door. “Do you think they’ll like the food we picked out? I know Winston is crazy about the El Duderino. I’m just hoping…”

  Zoe didn’t let her finish. “Are you kidding? Tell her Judy. These guys have been eating at Valhalla’s three times a week for almost a year. Trust me. They’ll stuff their faces with everything in that sack, including the sweet potato tots. Besides, I know for a fact Reggie loves the Ragnor’s Club, and Brayden’s crazy about the Valhalla Pork, which reminds him of barbecue back in St. Louis.”

  Judy grinned. “See? You really do know him. How many guys would you need to go out with and get to know that well?”

  Zoe let the two women go on ahead while she sat there for a few minutes, realizing that she’d seen Brayden devour that same sandwich dozens of times. But did she really know the guy? Did he know her? If they were so simpatico, then why did they seem to argue all the time? Deciding she needed to take another approach, Zoe bit her lip and opened the door.

  “No better time than the present to test the waters,” she muttered to herself before waving to the others.

  Across the open field, Brayden spotted Zoe and waved back. What was it about the woman that got under his skin the most? He couldn’t pinpoint just one thing. But high on the list had to be the fact that she was feisty and argumentative. And look at that, she was walking straight toward him. Great. What bone to pick with him did she have now?

  While Reggie and Winston dug into the sack, Brayden waited for Zoe to get in his face about something. She always did. Instead, she reached into the bag and brought out two wrapped sandwiches, a carton of fries, and a couple of soft drinks.

  “The fries are probably cold by now. But the sandwich is your favorite.”

  He cocked a brow. “Valhalla pork? How’d you know?”

  “I’ve watched you order it enough times. How’s the search coming? Any luck?

  Brayden looked around for the nearest log and plopped down. He took a slug of Mountain Dew, sipping through his straw, and began to unwrap his sandwich. Thoughtful, he squinted to the west into the sun before sliding a pair of Oakley Gascans down in place on his nose. As cool as it looked, the wraparound design blacked out any attempt to measure his eyes. “Sending the drones out is like looking for a needle in a haystack. Not the first time we’ve done it, though.”

  “Knowing Skye and Josh, it won’t be the last.” Unable now to peer into his blue eyes, Zoe nibbled on a cold, sweet potato tot. She glanced over at Judy and Reggie, then Jenny and Winston. Each couple had moved off into separate spots to get a little alone time during dinner.

  Zoe took a sip of her Coke then cleared her throat, doing her best to pull a little courage to the forefront.

  Before she could speak, however, Brayden took the lead. “Did Skye send you out here to help?”

  “Me? No. I just tagged along with Judy and Jenny. Besides, I needed to apologize for this morning.”

  “Nah, you were right. We didn’t find Emelia.”

  “I shouldn’t have said it, though. That’s the point. I’ve worked at the Foundation long enough to know you keep hope alive as long as possible. I didn’t need to jump down your throat the way I did. I’m sorry.”

  “Why did you?”

  “Because I don’t think you like me much, and I can’t figure out why.”

  Brayden stopped eating and slipped his sunglasses back up to his head so he could stare at her. “What? Why would you think that?”

  Zoe’s shoulders drooped. “Because you didn’t want to go to the movies with me the night I asked.”

  “I didn’t realize it was so important to you. I thought you were just being nice, including me like that. I didn’t take you up on the offer because I promised one of my neighbors that I’d help him move into a bigger apartment. I guess it worked out because he and his girlfriend had a baby last week.”

  “How old are they?”

  “Maybe twenty.”

  “I don’t want kids that soon.”

  “Me either. Did we just agree on something?”

  Zoe smiled. “I think we did.”

  “Do you realize this might be the first time in almost six months that you haven’t yelled at me about something?”

  “Maybe we could start over. From the beginning. Did you kno
w that I ran away from home when I was thirteen and started living on the streets? If it hadn’t been for Skye and Josh taking me to Lena’s—the woman I consider my mother—I’d probably be dead by now.”

  “I didn’t know that.” The look on Brayden’s face said he was telling the truth. “It surprises me that people were that tight-lipped about you. I think everyone here knows my story. And I definitely wouldn’t be sitting here like this if it weren’t for Skye and Josh. They literally saved me from an evil man. Every morning I wake up, I realize how lucky I am that they came along when they did.”

  “I don’t know your whole story. All I know is they went to catch this serial killer and Skye got shot, and they came back with you.”

  “I’m the one who put the bullet in her. It was an accident. I never meant to hurt her. I wouldn’t.”

  “I tried to mug her. That’s how we first met.” Zoe let a little smile cross her lips. “Something else we have in common. Why don’t we take the time and see if we have anything else? Come clean with each other. There’s always a movie playing somewhere.”

  “Why don’t you stay and help me with the drone scan, see if you can pick up any anomalies?”

  While it wasn’t the best offer she’d ever heard, she smiled again at the possibilities. “I could do that.”

  Brayden wadded up his trash and stood up. “Come on then, let’s get this thing back up in the air and see what’s out there before it gets too dark. What are you doing later?”

  “I’m staying with Skye and Josh. At some point, I need to put in an appearance before midnight. I’m playing nanny this weekend. Remember?”

  He grinned. “I may not get you home before dark, but I can promise I’ll get you home.”

  Seven

  While Zoe and Brayden were finding common ground, Leo had his own set of woman troubles.

  He’d met an attractive neighbor a few doors down on his block who had volunteered to care for his hemp plants and his entire indoor jungle while he’d been away working in Idaho.