“Okay, let’s hear what happened.
“Some lunatic broke into Arden’s cabin yesterday evening. It was dark. I took a couple of shots at the intruder, though I’m not sure I hit him. He ran off yelling.”
Underwood glanced up from his computer screen, his dark eyes sharply focused. “Did he head toward a vehicle?”
“I didn’t see one. He ran around the cabin out onto the ice. He was nearing the far side of the lake when he broke through. He didn’t resurface.”
The sheriff leaned back in his chair. “And you’re only now coming in to report this?”
“Cell service is horrible at my cabin. I couldn’t get a signal.” Arden clenched her hands together in her lap.
“I put on snowshoes and walked around the lake, looking for any sign of him.” Brody met the sheriff’s gaze and held it. “I didn’t find him, and his plunge into the water fractured the ice so there was no way I was walking out onto it.”
“If you had, I imagine we’d be looking for two bodies.”
“Exactly. I didn’t see a purpose in driving into town in the middle of the night when you wouldn’t be able to see any better than I could.”
Underwood studied him for a minute longer. “Is the weapon you used registered?”
“It is. This morning, as soon as it was light, I walked around the lake again. The body hadn’t surfaced. Afterward, we drove into town.”
“You were inside the cabin when this happened, Mrs. Grant?”
“Yes. When that man broke down my door, I was scared out of my mind.”
“Did he say anything, tell you what he wanted?”
She shook her head. “The only time he spoke was when he yelled. He also kicked my dog. I need to take him to the vet.”
“Just a few more questions. You and Mr. Grant are divorced?”
“Yes.”
“May I ask what he was doing at your cabin?”
Brody clamped his teeth together to keep from answering. He could practically see the sheriff’s mind working, wondering if the situation was some kind of love triangle gone wrong.
“We’re divorced, but we’re still friends. We’ve been trying to work things out.”
The sheriff’s bows rose. “And have you?”
Arden turned and met his gaze. Her eyes were clouded with doubt and sadness. “It’s complicated.”
With a nod, he turned back to Brody. “Another break-in was reported in the area. My deputy drove to the cabin this morning to check it out. Seems like an intruder made himself at home, but he was gone when my man arrived.”
“Anything left to identify him?”
“I’m afraid not.”
He leaned forward. “What about a vehicle?”
Underwood picked up a pen and twirled it. “Why do I feel like I’m the one being interrogated?”
“I’m sorry. I assume this man randomly chose Arden’s cabin. However, if he wasn’t alone or had a specific purpose . . .”
“We found a pickup in the woods nearby. The plates had been switched out, but the VIN number matched a vehicle stolen off a lot in Burlington a few days ago. My guess is the intruder was driving it. No prints, but then it’s cold out and people wear gloves.”
Arden tucked a strand of hair behind her ear with shaking fingers. “Was this man looking for money or drugs? Why would he break into my house?”
“I’ve no idea. Maybe he was a poacher or someone on the run from law enforcement. Until we find the body and identify him, it’s probably better not to speculate.”
“I assume you’ll want to see the damage to Arden’s cabin while you’re at the lake.” Brody shifted in his seat. “And the weapon that was fired.”
“That would be helpful. I’ll head out there shortly. When do you plan to return home, Mrs. Grant?”
“After I see the vet. I don’t have an appointment, so I’m not sure how long that’ll take.”
“I’ll give Doctor Brown a call to see if she can squeeze you in right away.”
“Thank you.” Arden let out a breath. “Can we go now?”
“Of course.” He walked them to the waiting area and shook their hands once again, his grip firm. “Thanks for driving into town to report this in person.”
“Happy to cooperate.” Brody rested a hand on her back to steer her toward the door. “We’ll see you shortly, Sheriff Underwood.”
“You can count on it.”
Chapter Nine
“Just a bad bruise. No fracture.” Arden stroked Hero’s head after Brody lifted him onto the back seat. “Dr. Brown said he’ll be sore, but since he’s young and healthy, he should heal fairly quickly.”
“That’s good news. I got the materials for the doorjamb. Are we ready to head home?”
She nodded and climbed into the Suburban. “Definitely. I imagine the sheriff is out at the lake, waiting for us by now.”
Brody started the engine and pulled out of the parking lot. “Probably. Underwood is no local yokel. More’s the pity. I have a feeling he’ll be fairly tenacious about identifying Thanos once his body surfaces.”
“Does it matter?”
“I suppose not. If there’s an inquest, I’ll make sure I’m around to answer any questions.”
Without a body and an investigation, he’d have no reason to stay. She wrapped her arms across her chest in an attempt to ward off the pain. She’d known making love with Brody was foolish, but she’d needed him so badly she’d convinced herself her heart would survive.
Instead, she’d woken up aching with love for him. Already missing him, even though he was holding her tightly in his arms. Knowing the only torture worse than watching him walk away again would be fearing for his safety every minute he was out saving someone else’s son or daughter.
“Are you cold?”
She let her hands drop to her lap. “No, I’m fine.”
“Are you regretting last night?”
Apparently, he didn’t intend to ignore the giant elephant riding shotgun with them. The wipers slapped back and forth, brushing away snowflakes in time with her bouncing thoughts as she tried to sort them into order.
“No regrets. I think we both needed each other after that narrow escape.”
He glanced her way, his gaze intent. “There’s still a lot of love between us, Arden. You can’t deny it, and I don’t want to.”
“I’m not denying it, but I also won’t ignore obstacles or pretend they don’t exist.”
He faced the road ahead. “I’m not the same man you divorced. Maybe I haven’t broken down all those protective barriers I built up after we lost River, but I would never keep you on the outside again. If there’s one thing having a team has taught me, it’s the value of communication and the ability to see other people’s needs. I’m sorry I wasn’t better at that when we were married.”
She laid a hand on his knee and squeezed. “I’m glad, and I believe you. I know I wasn’t always clear about what I wanted, which was a big part of our problem. That being said, I would never ask you to give up the life you’ve built—even if I thought you would.”
“So, we simply pretend we don’t still love each other?” His lips were pressed into a tight line as he turned onto the access road to her cabin. “I don’t think I can do that.”
“I never pretended I didn’t love you. I’ll always love you. But I’m going to do my damnedest not to be in love with you. I know you’re passionate about your work, and I won’t make you choose between it and me. Doing so would only lead to resentment and bitterness. Living our lives separately on our own terms is better than watching our love slowly die.”
He let out a harsh breath. “You’ve obviously put a lot of thought into this.”
She simply nodded.
“I won’t press you, not now, anyway. After the situation last night, neither of us is at our best.” He pulled up next to the sheriff’s SUV parked in her driveway and turned off the engine before facing her. “Maybe we both need some time apart to think about what we have . . . and what we�
��re willing to give up. As you said in Underwood’s office—it’s complicated.”
Without giving her an opportunity to answer, he got out and opened the rear door to lift Hero to the ground. After taking a long look around, he headed toward the lake. Arden sat still in the car, blinking back tears. Finally, she followed.
“The sheriff and someone else, probably his deputy, are over on the far side.” Raising his arm, Brody pointed.
“I’ll feed the chickens and rabbits while we wait for them to come back.” Leaving his side, she let Heidi out of the house before entering the shed. The chickens clucked a greeting as she shut the door behind her and leaned against it, breathing in the smell of the animals. Organic. Somehow soothing to her overwrought nerves.
Brody was hurt and a little angry, which made her twice as miserable. Settling down in the hay, she lifted one of the rabbits onto her lap and stroked its silky fur. After a few minutes, she got to her feet and cleaned their pen and the chicken coop before feeding them and gathering eggs. The familiar chores relaxed her even more. This was her life, and she was fine with that. At least she’d better be since she didn’t really have a choice.
By the time she left the shed and took the eggs into the kitchen, Brody was on the lakeshore, talking with the sheriff. Taking a deep breath, she let it out slowly and went out to join them.
Brody gave her a quick smile before shaking his head in answer to her unspoken question. “No sign of the intruder, in or out of the lake.”
She wasn’t sure how she felt about the news, but her stomach churned. There would be no joy in walking around the lake, knowing Thanos’s corpse was caught somewhere beneath the ice.
“We’ll have to wait for a thaw to recover the body. Sending a diver down without an exact location isn’t worth the risk since this is a big lake. Temps are supposed to rise toward the end of the month.” The sheriff squinted through the falling snow, studying the far shore before turning to face her. “Of course, if you see anything unusual . . .”
“I’ll contact you immediately.”
“I’d appreciate that. In the meantime, we’ll try to identify the intruder. There were prints all over the other cabin he broke into, but I expect most of those belong to the owner. We can’t be certain it was the same person who came here, but it seems beyond coincidental two separate vandals were in the vicinity at the same time.”
“Don’t forget about the blood. That should tell us something.” The young deputy approached from the front of the house. His hazel eyes were bright with excitement. “Maybe the lab will get a DNA match to someone in the national database once we have it analyzed.”
“There was blood in the other cabin?” Brody’s tone was sharp. “How much blood?”
“Traces in the crevices between the floorboards.” The sheriff gave his deputy an irritated glance. “I’m not sure we have enough of a sample to get accurate DNA results. I can’t even be certain the blood is human. Could be the guy who broke in bagged some game, and it bled on the floor. We’ll know soon enough.”
Arden swallowed. “Not a lot of blood, then?”
The sheriff shrugged. “If there was, he did an excellent job of cleaning it up.”
“Did you find personal possessions left in the cabin or the vehicle?” Brody jammed his hands into his jacket pockets. “He must have had clothes with him at the very least.”
“A duffle bag with a few clothes had been pushed under the bed. He also made use of the supplies in the cabin. There were empty cans in the trash and dishes in the sink.” The deputy’s tone was earnest.
“What about a sleeping bag?” Brody asked.
“No, but there were extra blankets folded at the foot of the bed.”
Brody frowned. “Seems like he would have had more than a single bag with him.”
“Not necessarily.” Underwood gave him a long look. “Could be he was on the run, breaking into homes to look for money. It’s possible he vandalized a few other hunting cabins in the area we don’t know about yet.”
“I suppose so.” Turning away from the lake, Brody seemed to mentally shift gears. “Is there anything else you need from us?”
“I took photos of the damage to your front door,” the deputy answered. “We’re finished with that part of our investigation.”
“I’ll need to see your registration and the weapon that was fired.” Underwood’s tone wasn’t anywhere near as cheerful.
Brody nodded. “Of course. I’ll get both for you.”
Arden went inside while Brody finished with the sheriff. She’d heated soup and was in the process of putting together sandwiches when he joined her.
“They left?”
He nodded. “Thanks for making lunch. I’ll repair the door after we eat.”
“Thank you.” She set the sandwiches on two plates and carried them to the table while he poured tomato soup into bowls and followed her. Once they were seated, she picked up her spoon and then set it down again. “If there was blood on the cabin floor, do you think Thanos—”
“Since the deputy found his truck and clothes, it doesn’t seem likely he made it out of the lake and returned to the cabin. Especially if he was shot and bleeding.”
“You didn’t see blood anywhere along the shore?”
“No, but the fresh snow would have covered his trail. Still, I feel pretty confident the blood found between the floorboards wasn’t Thanos’s. As cold as that lake is, he would have had to get out damn fast before hypothermia killed him, even if he wasn’t shot.”
Uneasiness stole her appetite as she wondered what was worse. A dead body in the lake, or a live murderer hiding somewhere nearby? No contest. She forced herself to swallow a spoonful of soup. “Jim’s friend mentioned a sleeping bag.”
“Could be he saw the extra blankets on the bed and simply misspoke.” He took a bite of his sandwich and chewed. “I’m not going anywhere until we’re certain that blood doesn’t belong to Thanos.”
“You aren’t?”
“Hell, no. I’m not risking it, no matter how unlikely. What I will do is call Luna to see if she can access Thanos’s old medical records. That way, once the sheriff gets the lab results back, we’ll know, one way or the other.”
“Oh.” She fiddled with her spoon. “What makes you think Sheriff Underwood will share his findings? He was giving you some pretty skeptical looks.”
“Because I asked a lot of pointed questions. He’ll look me up and figure out who I am, so keeping Counterstrike out of this is no longer an option. A friend at the FBI will contact him and request he cooperate with me. Another phone call I need to make.”
“How long will it take to get the DNA results?”
“Probably weeks, depending on how backed up the lab they use is. But a simple blood type may tell us everything we need to know, provided the sample is from a human. My bet is still on a deer or some other game animal killed last fall.” He looked up from his sandwich. “Why? Do you want to get rid of me sooner rather than later?”
“We agreed we both need a little time to process everything.”
His gaze held steady on hers. “I won’t push you.”
“That’s the problem. I don’t exactly need a shove. Chemistry between us was never a problem.” The heat in his eyes warmed her far more than the fire in the stove. Dropping the spoon back into her bowl, she took a few breaths. “Which is exactly why this is such a problem.”
“I didn’t do anything.”
“You don’t have to do anything. Dammit, Brody.”
He didn’t answer, just continued to eat while she picked at her meal. Finally, he got up and carried his dishes to the sink. “I’ll call Luna, or try to if I can get any damn service, and then I’ll fix your door.”
“Okay.” After Brody went outside, she stared at her food for a while longer before giving up. She wasn’t sure what was more upsetting, having Brody around—or not having Brody around. Either way, she’d completely lost her appetite.
She was finishing
the lunch dishes when he came back inside. The worried look in his eyes told her more than any words.
“What’s wrong?”
“I got ahold of Luna. We have a new client whose husband is a contractor working in the Middle East. There’s a situation, and long story short, he’s missing.”
A chill slid through her. “You need to leave.” Her tone was flat.
“It’s not an area I feel comfortable sending my team without me.”
“Then, go. You said you’re nearly certain Thanos is dead.”
“Nearly isn’t good enough, but Luna is on the clock to locate that contractor. Taking time out to search for Thanos’s medical records isn’t an option right now. The Taliban is responsible for the abduction, and speed is essential if we want to find this man alive. I was thinking you could come back to Boston with me. Scarlet will drive down—”
“No way.” Arden clenched her fists at her sides. “She’s in New Hampshire working on her wedding plans. I won’t be responsible for making her drop everything to babysit me. Don’t you dare ask her.”
He let out a harsh breath, and frustration practically radiated from him. “You can’t stay here alone.”
“I also can’t leave my animals for any length of time, so going to Boston isn’t an option.”
His eyes narrowed as he studied her. “You must leave them occasionally.”
“Not very often. My sister has stayed here a couple of times. I’ve asked Jim or his kids to feed the rabbits and chickens and Henry when I’ve taken the dogs with me on a few short trips.”
“Then ask your neighbor. You can bring the dogs.”
She crossed her arms over her middle. “To where? I mean it about not inconveniencing Jaimee and Eli.”
He stared out the kitchen window toward the lake before finally answering. “If Thanos is alive and injured, someone must have helped him. I doubt he’s huddled in the woods, staking out the cabin, but that doesn’t mean he won’t come back. If you’re not here, he won’t know where to find you if you’re not staying somewhere obvious.”
Some of her defensiveness faded as she considered his suggestion. “You mean I should check into a motel?”
Imminent Danger (A Counterstrike Novel Book 3) Page 11
