Hear My Heart: Baytown Boys

by Maryann Jordan

  Each word grew louder until she had to hold the phone slightly away from her ear. “It’s just prank calls, Aiden.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “What else could it be? It’s not like anybody is making any demands or asking anything of me. Nobody’s threatening me. Nobody’s breathing deeply into the phone. They’re just irritating the hell out of me.” By now her voice had risen as well, and she sucked in a deep breath before letting it out slowly in an attempt stay calm.

  “Babe, I’m coming over,” he stated emphatically.

  “Aiden, there’s no sense in—”

  “I’m coming.”

  He disconnected and she stared at her phone for a minute, shaking her head. Part of her wanted to be irritated at his high-handedness, but the other part felt it was nice to have someone who cared. Looking back down at her files, she figured she would get a little bit more work done before he came.

  Fifteen minutes later, Mrs. Markham appeared at her door. “Ms. Smith? You have a visitor. It’s Police Chief Evans.”

  “Mitch?”

  Mrs. Markham turned to the side, allowing Mitch to step into her office. “Shall I bring coffee?”

  Mitch turned and shook his head toward her efficient secretary, and said, “No, thank you. Not on my account.”

  She stood and offered him a chair, but before she was able to ask why he was there, Aiden came bursting in. Mrs. Markham was behind him, fluttering her hands, but she just nodded that it was all right.

  “Good, Mitch. I’m glad you got here,” Aiden said, before walking over to her, placing his hand on her waist lightly and bending to kiss her cheek.

  Staring up at him, eyes wide, she asked, “Aiden, what on earth have you done?”

  “Taking care of you, sweetheart,” he said, his voice softer now that his arm was around her.

  She blinked, then her eyes darted to Mitch. “I don’t know that anything’s going on, other than I’m getting prank calls. I’m sorry, Mitch. I don’t think this needs to involve the police.”

  “I’d rather be safe than sorry, Lia,” Mitch replied. “Tell me about the calls.”

  She huffed slightly, then winced, knowing he was only doing his job. “They started over a week ago. No number comes up on my caller ID, it just says unknown. There’s no heavy breathing,” she said with a slight grin, “so I don’t think it’s a pervert. I can tell the line is open, but no one says anything. The first couple of times it happened, I assumed that someone perhaps had the wrong number. But it’s been happening every day, and now has increased to several times a day, including waking me up in the middle of the night.”

  “Have you ever had anything like this happen before?”

  She shook her head, replying, “No. Never.”

  “I know you do forensic accounting investigations and used to work for a large firm in Virginia Beach. Did you ever have any problems with anyone with that?”

  Her forehead crinkled for just a moment, before her eyes shot up toward Aiden and she said, “Uh…”

  His brows snapped down and he barked, “Uh? What the fuck do you mean by uh?”

  She looked back toward Mitch and said, “I have had to testify in the trials of some of the people I investigated. White-collar crime…not like murderers. But, I did have one who was very threatening as he was led from the courtroom in handcuffs. He kept claiming that he did nothing wrong and he was going to get me. The evidence was overwhelming and, unfortunately, with many white-collar criminals, they make many excuses. In his case he felt entitled…he even admitted that lots of rich people are crooks so why shouldn’t he be able to get a piece of the pie.”

  Mitch pulled out a small pad and began taking notes. “Is this man still in jail?”

  Jerking slightly, she said, “I have no idea. Quite frankly, after the trial, I forgot all about him until just now.”

  “Give me his information and I’ll check on him.”

  “Tad Marvel.” Seeing Aiden’s eyes widen in surprise, she offered a slight shrug. “It takes months or even over a year to investigate forensic crimes. Believe me, by the time we have enough evidence for a district attorney to take the case and for it to go to trial, I remember their name very well.”

  “Is there anything unusual that's happened since you’ve been here in Baytown?” Mitch asked.

  Shaking her head, she said, “No. I’ve just been doing regular accounting work and now have a forensic case I’m working on for the town, but that’s all.”

  Scott stepped to the doorway, his eyes staring down at a file, and startled as his gaze lifted to see the Police Chief. “Oh, excuse me. I didn’t realize you had someone in here.”

  “No, no. That’s okay,” she said. “Scott, I know you’ve met my…uh—”

  “Boyfriend,” Aiden supplied, his gaze pinned on Scott.

  “Yes, nice to see you again.”

  Shooting Aiden a glare, she continued, “And this is Baytown’s Police Chief, Mitch Evans. Mitch, this is my new accounting partner, Scott Redding.”

  Mitch stood and extended his hand. “Redding?”

  Scott grinned and nodded. “Yes, my grandfather, Thomas Redding, was the original owner of this business. I’m glad that Lia is the one who hired me, or everyone would think nepotism was alive and well in Baytown.”

  Mitch barked out a laugh, and said, “Don’t worry about accusations of nepotism. My father was the Police Chief for many years until his health forced him to retire. And before him, my grandfather was the Police Chief.”

  Everyone chuckled and she was glad for the release of tension. Feeling the need to explain why Mitch was there, she said, “Scott, I’m talking to Mitch because I’ve been getting lots of prank, hang-up phone calls. I don’t think it’s anything other than just probably kids or teenagers, but he’s taking notes anyway.”

  Scott expressed concern before excusing himself from the room, saying, “I’ve got a few questions on this one account, but we can easily talk later.”

  Mitch turned his attention back to her, and said, “I’d like to take your phone with me if you can do without it for a couple of hours. We can see what we pull up on it and, with your phone records, do a little digging.”

  Aiden walked over and placed his hand around her shoulders, pulling her in tightly. Lifting his eyes to Mitch, he asked, “Is there anything else she should be doing?”

  Shaking his head, Mitch said, “Unfortunately, no. While it’s annoying, no crime has been committed at this time, but we want to be vigilant in case whoever this person is steps up and actually makes a threat. I would just be extremely aware of your surroundings and what’s going on.”

  Unease snaked through her at the thought that the phone calls could be more than just kids. Nodding, she offered a shaky smile toward Mitch as she stood and shook his hand. Handing him her phone, she asked, “Do you know how long you might need it?”

  “It shouldn’t be too long. I’ll get it back to you by tomorrow. Will that be okay?”

  She agreed and watched as Aiden walked Mitch out of her office, wondering what they were talking about. As soon as Aiden returned, she opened her mouth, but he jumped in first.

  “Don’t even start, babe,” he said. “I know you think it’s nothing, but I’m not willing to take a chance on your or Emily’s safety.”

  At those words, her mouth snapped closed. She had not considered that there might be a threat toward her and certainly not toward her daughter. She nodded slowly, staring up into his face, which mirrored hers in concern. He stalked toward her and pulled her into his body, kissing her forehead.

  “I’ve got you. I’ve got Emily. And believe me, nothing’s going to get to either one of you.”

  The unease that had moved through her body was now replaced with the warmth of caring. Having handled her life on her own for so long she was surprised to not chafe at the idea of someone else stepping in to help. It did not make her feel weak but, instead, made her feel stronger.

  Wrapping her arms
around his waist, she held on tight. She felt his heartbeat against her cheek, taking comfort in the sound.

  19

  Aiden met Mitch outside of Harrison Investigations. Pushing open the door, they walked in together and immediately observed Katelyn coming from one of the back rooms.

  “Hey, guys,” she greeted. She stared for a few seconds and then tilted her head slightly to the side, asking, “What brings y’all by?”

  “Need some help, sis,” he said. “Help for Lia.”

  Gareth walked to the lobby from the back and greeted them as well. Before he could say anything, Katelyn turned to her husband, and said, “Something’s going on with Lia.”

  Immediately Gareth’s sharp gaze jumped first to him and then to Mitch. “Come on back,” he said, turning and leading them to the conference room. He had been in business as a Private Investigator for a couple of years, hiring Katelyn to be his receptionist. As she became more interested in the business, she earned her PI license as well. Once they were married, they became partners.

  The four of them settled quickly around the table and Mitch pulled out Lia’s phone.

  “She’s been getting a lot of calls where no one says anything. She says that she can tell the line is open, but does not hear anyone breathing, nor is anyone making a threat. But it’s happening more and more, and it’s beginning to unnerve her.”

  Gareth asked, “Something to do with her business?”

  “That’s what I wondered, as well,” Mitch replied. “She’s given us the name of a man she previously testified against when she lived in Virginia Beach and I’ve got Grant checking to see what the status of his incarceration is.”

  Gareth reached for her phone, and asked, “This for me to look at?”

  “Yeah. I was going to have Bert look at it since he’s my best tech officer, but he’s not on duty today and I don’t want to wait. I also know you’ve got some fancier toys.”

  A smile slipped across Gareth’s face, and he said, “I’ll get right on it. As soon as I have anything, I’ll let you know.”

  Mitch stood and clapped Aiden on the back of the shoulder. “Don’t worry, man. I let the rest of my officers know and we’ll keep an eye on Lia.”

  He nodded, then jerked his head up. “We need to let Colt know as well, because she doesn’t live in the town of Baytown. She lives just outside the city limits, in North Heron County.”

  “You got it,” Mitch said. “I’ll head back right now and call Colt.”

  Gareth walked Mitch out, leaving Katelyn and him still in the conference room. She did not say anything at first, staring at him for a long time. Finally, moving into him, she wrapped her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

  “I can tell you’re upset. I know how much she and Emily mean to you.”

  “It’s crazy, sis,” he said, holding her tightly as well. “The instant she told me about the calls, I felt cold running through my blood. And then the next thing I knew, I felt boiling rage that anyone might mess with her.”

  Katelyn lifted her head, her dark hair falling way down her back as she peered up into his eyes, so like hers. “That’s when you know it’s love, Aiden.”

  He was silent for a moment and she ventured another question. “Does that scare you?”

  He shook his head slowly, and said, “I know you might not believe this, but no, it doesn’t.” With a final hug, he let her go and walked out of the office, deciding to swing by the Police Station to see what they were finding out about Tad Marvel.

  When he reached the station, Ginny greeted him and motioned for him to follow her. They went back to Mitch’s office and sat, waiting for him to get off the phone.

  “What have you got?” he asked, as soon as Mitch hung up.

  “Found out Tad Marvel has served his time and was released last month. I just got off the phone with his probation officer who says he makes all of his meetings, is employed in a trade, and hasn’t given him any reason to think that he would be involved. I let him know what was going on with Lia and he said he would be on the lookout.”

  Ginny commented, “I don’t know, it doesn’t sound right to me.” His eyes jerked toward her and she continued. “Hang up phone calls don’t sound like a man’s type of revenge.”

  “We don’t know what kind of man he is,” he said. “Maybe he’s just the kind of man that likes to dick around with a woman.”

  Mitch nodded. “Let’s see what Gareth comes up with looking at her phone. The probation officer has my information and promised he would call as he checks into Tad, but I don’t want us to focus just on this man. She’s had other people that she has investigated before and that’s not even including what she’s doing right now.”

  “This sucks,” he said, slumping down into a chair. “All I want to do is keep her safe, but I don’t even know which direction a threat might be coming from.”

  Ginny and Mitch shared a glance, before she said, “Yeah, welcome to love, buddy.”

  “Jesus, that’s what Katelyn said.”

  Mitch cautioned, “Keep in mind, it might not be anything. It could be just what she assumed, somebody playing a prank. But stay vigilant and I’ll let you know as soon as we find out anything.”

  With a nod, he stood and headed back outside. Pulling out his phone, he called the accounting office. When Mrs. Markham connected him to Lia, he requested, “Hey, sweetheart. Until we know what’s going on, I’d like to be with you and Emily. I’ve got an American Legion meeting tonight, but I’ll be over just as soon as it’s finished.”

  “Actually, Emily is spending the night with a friend. I’m really excited for her, but kind of nervous.”

  “Lia, I think that’s great,” he enthused. “That means she’s meeting new friends, which I know you wanted her to do and is really good for her.”

  “I think so too,” she agreed. “How about I come to the Pub after work to meet you when you get there after the meeting?”

  “Babe, I can’t think of anything I’d like better.”

  Aiden watched as Grant, the Commander of the American Legion chapter, rapped the gavel on the podium, calling the meeting to order. Ginny closed the doors and she and Brogan walked toward the front, the flagpole in his hand. Once the chaplain had offered the prayer, Grant called for the POW/MIA Empty Chair Ceremony. After having talked with Charles, his mind cast back to the young man that he had sat with as he died. Even though that young Marine was not a prisoner of war nor missing in action, the ceremony still struck him in a different way than it ever had before.

  He found himself whispering, “I promise to live life to the fullest,” and for the first time, that meant something different than it ever had before.

  After several committees gave their reports, Grant turned the podium over to any of the members who wished to speak. Often, one of the older members would speak about their time in the service. It was a tradition that Mitch had started when he was the Commander, to give the members a chance to get to know each other and often unburden themselves. He was a strong believer that the American Legion was more than just waving a flag. That the meetings should be a time that the members could lean on each other.

  No one moved to stand and, much to his surprise, he found himself on his feet. Ignoring the incredulous looks from Brogan and his friends, he moved to the front and turned to face the gathering.

  “I recently discovered something about myself. I’d never really connected it to anything from my time in the service but, with the help of one of the counselors at the Mental Health Group, I’ve been able to put some pieces together. I have listened, in awe, as many of you have talked about your traumatic experiences in the military. But for me, I looked at myself as incredibly lucky. I was not involved in anything that was devastating, I did not lose any close friends, and I came back home to my family. But since then, I’ve been living for several years always looking to have fun.

  “I won’t go into all the details, but I did have an experience where I sat with a young Mari
ne, that I did not know, as he was being treated by the medics. We had come across an accident involving his transport vehicle and he was severely injured. So, I sat near his head and we talked about life. Girls we’d like to be with. Music we like to listen to. Things we wanted to do when we got home. It wasn’t until the sound of the medivac helicopter about to land that I discovered that he was near death and there was nothing that the medics could do but try to ease his pain.

  “He must have known the end was near, because he asked me to promise that when I got home I would live life to the fullest and do all the things we had just talked about. It never dawned on me how my actions when I got home a year later were intrinsically tied to what I had promised. I tried to be a good man, a good son, a good brother. But I was truly living mostly for me, having fun wherever I could.

  “But I now know that I was living an empty life. Always chasing something that I thought would make me happy, but in truth, did not. I’ve now met someone that I care a great deal about and have finally figured out that living life to the fullest isn’t about chasing momentary happiness. It’s about finding someone that you can connect with and wanting to be the best person you can be for them.”

  Not sure how to end his speech, he blushed and ducked his head. “Guess that’s all.”

  Grant pulled him into a hug with a back slap before allowing him to head back to his seat. Along the way, most of his friends did the same. Finally, as he moved into the row of chairs occupied by Pops, his dad, and Brogan. Taking them in, he stopped, seeing tears in each of their eyes.

  Shaking his head, he gave them one of his typical grins, but accepted their hugs as well. Glad that the meeting was soon going to be over, he could not wait to get to the Pub, knowing Lia was going to be there for him.

  Lia threw open the red door to Finn’s Pub and walked through, quickly seeing the Friday night crowd. She waved toward some of her friends and made her way to their table. She had heard that many of the legionnaires came to Finn’s after a meeting, just like many of the auxiliary members did after their meetings.