by Tena Stetler
“That’ll work. Got a few things to handle before we leave.”
They finished breakfast. Pepper put the plates and glasses in the dishwasher. Poured fresh coffee and tea in travel mugs, handed one to Lathen. After shrugging into his coat, he helped Pepper on with hers. On their way to check on the animals and birds, Pepper met Mike’s wife in passing when she dropped him off. Pepper continued up the path toward her office. Lathen stayed behind to go over assignments for the week with Alec and Mike, and brief them on last evening’s events, leaving out the reason for Ray’s visit.
“If we have any strangers come around asking questions, refer them to Pepper or me. If we’re not here, you have no comment about our whereabouts. Ask for their card or contact information, then escort them off the property indicating I’ll be in touch.”
“Got it boss,” Mike said nodding his head vigorously. “I’ll start in the seabird aviary.” He strode off toward the old barn.
“So now that you are stable, Commander looking for favors?” Alec pursed his lips, staring straight into Lathen’s eyes.
“Something like that. Made him aware, this is where I belong now. But I will be checking in with the VA for more candidates to help out around here.”
“Great idea. Mike and I are stretched pretty thin.” Alec headed for the marine mammal habitat. “You coming?”
“I’ll be right behind you. Pepper said the seal is healing nicely. Vet will be around this afternoon to check on it.” Once Alec was out of ear shot, Lathen pulled the cell phone out of his pocket, scrolled through numbers on the screen, held the phone to his ear, as he meandered toward the cabin. “Hey, I need some information.”
Chapter Fifteen
When It Comes Right Down to It—You Really Can’t Trust the Government
Pepper signed off the computer, finished playing catchup from being gone, looked up to see the door handle twist. Lathen shoved through the door, Tonk at his heels.
“You about ready to go?” He watched Tonk slink over to join Ember on the blanket behind Pepper’s desk.
“I am. Ember’s been here with me all morning. Guess she thought I needed guarding after last night.” Pepper eased up from the desk, stepped over Tonk and Ember. “Come guys, you need to patrol the ground while we are gone. The dog door is open in the mammal habitat?”
“Yep. Checked it.” He held the door open for her and locked it behind them.
A few clouds obscured the sun as they drove into town. Pepper chatted about the decorations for the community center and the additional ideas Kelly wanted to add. At this point whatever Kelly came up with, she was on board. Lathen was unusually quiet on the drive. He slowed the truck to a crawl as they passed by Sea Crest Inn. Parked in the lot was the SUV with government plates from last night. He pulled in and stopped the truck on the other side of the parking lot.
****
“Come on this won’t take long.” Lathen jumped out of the truck then bolted across the parking lot. Pepper broke into a run to keep up with him, until he paused waiting for her to catch up near the entrance to the Inn.
“Are you sure this is a good idea? Maybe you should mull over the situation before taking action.” She caught hold of his arm.
He shook his head, yanked open the door, and strode across the lobby to the front desk.
“Hey, Lathen. Matt call you?” Sammy, the front desk clerk glanced around. “I thought he was going to give the new guy a chance before calling you.”
“No, Matt didn’t call. You have a couple government types, one named Raymond Sales staying here. I have a meeting with them but forgot which room they are in.”
“Oh, they’re in the upstairs corner suite. Want me to call you up?”
“No that won’t be necessary, but thanks.”
Sammy nodded about to say something, when the phone rang. He waved to Lathen and Pepper and picked up the receiver.
Pepper closed her mouth and studied Lathen. “That was…”
“Ingenious,” Lathen completed for her, taking the stairs two at a time. He knocked on the door, as Pepper caught up with him.
She took in a deep breath, but said nothing.
Lt. Commander Sale opened the door, his eyes rounded but a smirk quickly spread over his face when he saw Lathen. “So you made a decision already, son?”
Lathen took a step forward, his hands fisted at his side. Slowly he unclenched them flexing his fingers. “First of all, I’m not your son. Second, if you ever pull shit like this again…” He paused as if considering what to say next or trying to keep his temper in check.
She wasn’t quite sure which, as she stood off to the side and slightly behind him, out of sight of Ray. But she could see the muscle in Lathen’s jaw working overtime. Pepper wondered if it wouldn’t be better to walk away. But apparently he had a point to make.
Still standing outside the room, she said, “This is no place to discuss—whatever.” Pepper spread her arms wide.
“I couldn’t agree more.” Raymond opened the door wide in a gesture of inviting them into the suite.
Lathen strode inside pulling Pepper along, but only far enough for Ray to close the door. “No. I’m declining your request.” He paused. “I don’t know what the hell you expected to find in Alaska, but I strongly suggest you call off your men, immediately.”
Raymond scrubbed his hand over his face, rubbed his chin. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what you are talking…”
“Cut the crap—or I walk right now.” Lathen stood stock straight, as Pepper eased out from behind him, her hand on his arm.
Ray frowned as he locked eyes with Lathen then shifted his gaze to Pepper. “Why did you bring her?” Ray jerked his chin toward Pepper.
“Because my life is with her and the Center now. If you expect my help in any capacity, you need to be aware of my priorities.”
“You know the requirements of being a SEAL.”
“Only too well. The Navy decided I was not mentally or physically fit for duty a few short years ago. Gave me a medical discharge. Need I remind you? Any requirements ended at that time.” Lathen tilted his head. “What’s changed?”
“At that time, medical officers deemed that you would never fully recover the abilities to pass… We thought your career was over. We had no way of knowing…it seems you are more than one hundred percent. Which is kinda…”
“You still can’t be sure I’m one hundred percent as you put it. I have no intention of submitting to tests or rigors of—duty.” He pointed thumbs at his chest. “Civilian and loving it. I can do more for the vets in need of a hand up from here, than the bullshit run around you give them. But that’s a topic for another time.”
“Okay. So your point?”
“For now, my sources tell me you are looking to hack a foreign government’s security. Retrieve sensitive information, maps, plans, and get out without a trace.”
Lt. Commander stood there, his mouth opening and closing without a word. His men’s faces reflected shock, then disbelief as Lathen continued.
It was Lathen’s turn to smirk. “What you’re asking is—skirting legal boundaries. It would require a worm that is undetectable until you unleash it to corrupt their system, covering your tracks after the hack. Can I write code for such a purpose? Of course. But let me ask you this: if I can get this kind of intel, who else can?”
“Where the hell did you get… That’s top secret…”
“Exactly my point.”
“I’m not going to confirm or deny…” Lt Commander blustered then schooled his face into a blank expression.
“And you want me at your beck and call. Not going to happen.”
The flurry of voices faded away as Pepper watched the ebb and flow of the negotiations between the two men, while the others in the room looked on. Was Lathen torn between his commitment to the Center and life as a SEAL? She needed him there—Until a few years ago, most of his adult life was spent in service to his country, a commitment he’d given freely until he’d sust
ained life altering injuries.
Was it possible to return to the SEALs? From what she’d heard and read, that wasn’t likely. So what did they want him to do? Or were they willing to make an exception? She couldn’t…wouldn’t think about that, she was overreacting. Despite her resolve, her thoughts kept swirling. Would taking this assignment require long absences from her—the Center? That would never work. She needed him—the Center needed him. Alec and Mike depended on him in more ways…
“Pepper…Pepper…” Lathen’s voice penetrated her thoughts. “What do you think?”
She blinked and peered up at him. “About what?” When she took a minute to clear her head, she glanced from his steeled expression to the Lt. Commander’s thunderous demeanor. There was really no other way to describe it. A storm raged beneath his attempt at a calm facade. Her lips twitched, he hadn’t expected this. Or had he?
In a dangerously low voice, rocking back on his heels, Lathen said, “My family, Alaska, Pepper, and the Center are off limits. If you can abide by that, you’ll have the opportunity to spread all your cards on the table, at a time and place of my choosing.”
Raymond tented his fingers and shook his head. “Time is of the essence. And I’ll need to know where you got the intel.”
Lathen’s eyebrow winged up, he shrugged. “You should have thought about that before you went nosing into my private life. Searching for leverage, where there is none, to force me to do what you wanted.”
“We can’t afford the whispers to be true.”
“What the hell are you talking about?” Lathen stared incredulously at Ray.
“We both know what I mean. Your team’s success rate was far and above the rates of other SEAL teams with the same characteristics. Rumors that something… or someone…well that…it wasn’t humanly possible to pull off what your team did consistently. We suspect that your team was targeted by insurgents, for that reason. Any idea what made your team so successful?” Ray crossed the floor to the little fridge, took out a bottle of water, then offered one to Lathen, who politely declined. Pepper took a step forward and reached for the bottle of water. Unscrewed the cap and took a long drink. Thankful the testosterone and posturing in the room was dissipating.
“Guts, strength, cunning, intelligence?” Lathen shrugged again, the smirk returning to his lips.
“All the teams have those attributes. Nope—we think yours had something special.”
“It doesn’t matter. That something special died with our SEAL team’s four deceased members and the three disabled.”
“Two. You seem to have made an amazing recovery.”
Lathen waved a hand dismissively. “Good genes.” When he lowered his hand, he took Pepper’s, entwined their fingers, and turned toward the door. Over his shoulder he said, “I’ll be in touch.” He yanked the door open.
Sunlight flooded through the door, as the couple made their way down the stairs and out into the parking lot. The morning mist burned off making it a clear but cold day. Ice crystals shimmered in the air against the sun’s rays. A truck equipped with a plow cleared the remaining ice and piles of snow to a far corner of the lot. The driver shouted a greeting to Lathen, who waved back then shoved a hand in his pocket.
Pepper waited for an explanation of what happened back there. Lathen was silent as he drove the short distance to Wedded Bliss and stopped the truck in front of the store.
“Don’t you want to come in and see what additional decorations Kelly has picked out for the reception? I told her to keep it simple, no fru-fru stuff.”
Lathen blew out a breath. “Sure.” He shoved open the truck door and met Pepper in front of the truck.
“You don’t have to come if you’ve something more pressing.”
“Got a lot of things on my mind.” He held the door open to Kelly’s shop; she sidled through giving him a sideways glance.
Kelly greeted them with a wide smile. “I got this dynamite idea for your reception.” She danced from one foot to the other. Then held up a corkboard with snippets of pictures pinned to it. “We’ll make your reception a céilídh. You know a…”
“We know a céilídh is an Irish social gathering with music, folk tales, and dancing. We based our successful rescue/grand opening for The Lobster Cove Rescue and Rehabilitation Center on that type of celebration. Didn’t have time for many stories and folk tales. The music was CDs, but it was fun.”
“This time, you could have it all. I know this great Irish folk band. You’ll love ’em. Allow time for the folktales and family stories.” She flipped a knowing look from Pepper to Lathen. “We could use your miniature purple silk rosebuds entwined with green ivy for garland and centerpieces. All very simple, yet unique and…fun. What do you think?” She hung the corkboard on the wall, pointed out the white ribbons wound through the ivy and accented with the tiny purple rosebuds. A sketch of the McKay Crest, next to the word Quartz and the logo of the LCRRC centered below the two hung below the flowers. Pictures of ivy looped from the ceiling in each corner, along with several other ideas ripped from magazines filled the rest of the board. “We could use the McKay family crest on the back wall, with… Lathen do you have a family crest?”
“Not one that we could hang on the wall without questions being raised. How about a picture of the State of Alaska next to the crest instead? You said you wanted unique.”
“Hmm… That might just work, with bears, wolves, and moose lightly morphed into the picture. Yes… Leave it to me. Oh…and the logo for the Center, since that’s what brought you two together.” She pointed to the board again.
Lathen looked skeptical, but Pepper nodded chewing on her bottom lip. “I’d like to see an example of what you are talking about before I agree.”
“Fair enough. I’ll have it done and emailed to you this evening.” Kelly picked up a pen and scribbled notes on her planner spread open on the counter.
“One more thing, you need to get a permit for Tonk, Ember, and Kaylee to attend the reception at the community center. They are ambassadors for the Center, so the council shouldn’t balk.”
Kelly fisted one hand on her hip, eyes bright with amusement.
“Honey, you and your Center won over the town long before your grand opening. They’ll give you whatever you want, within reason.” Kelly laughed. “It’s a private party. We’ve had a lot worse than Tonk, Ember, and Kaylee in that community center and will again.”
Rubbing his chin with thumb and forefinger, Lathen cleared his throat. “Not sure we should bring both Tonk and Ember.” He stepped out of Kelly’s earshot, pulling Pepper along with him, and lowered his voice. “Who will watch the property?”
A bit puzzled at his concern, she tilted her head and peered up at him. “Duh. Your state of the art surveillance system?” Pepper raised a brow in question while trying to figure out what exactly Lathen was getting at. “We’ll apply for the permit but don’t have to use it. If that makes you feel better.”
He paused for a couple seconds and nodded. “Yeah, it does. Just a feeling…you know.”
“I do.” Pepper returned to where Kelly stood poring over pictures of tree decorations.
She flipped a page and pointed to medium size purple bows on a flocked Christmas tree. “That’s exactly what I had in mind. Will that work for you? We’ll add a few color-coordinated balls with designs to highlight the decorations.”
“Looks great.” Pepper glanced at Lathen, who nodded.
“Good. Now all I need is a description or picture of what your wedding venue will look like, to make sure your reception’s theme is consistent.” Kelly pulled the pen from her hair and made notes as Pepper described the setting and decorations for the wedding. They discussed the set up in the community center, Pepper nixed the seating charts and agreed on the final prep.
“That’s an awful lot of food.” Kelly flipped the pages of the menu.
“Trust me on this. I attended a Quartz wedding last summer. Those people can put away the food.”
&n
bsp; “No one will go hungry from our wedding feast.” Lathen shrugged. “It’s kind of a tradition.” He winked at Kelly.
“Thanks, Kelly, I think we are all set.” Pepper sighed. “Sure glad I turned the reception over to you. The more I think about your Christmas Céilídh, the more I like it.”
“No problem. It’s what I do.” Kelly grinned. “Lathen, it was nice to have a man’s input…most stay clear of the wedding preparations.”
“I tried, but promised Pepper I’d help.” He grinned, slipping his arm around Pepper’s waist nudging her toward the door.
“Any questions, call me. I’ll have the photo emailed to you this evening,” Kelly called out just before the door banged shut.
Once they were inside the truck, Lathen started the engine and eased back against the seat, waiting for the truck to warm up. He turned to Pepper. “I like Kelly’s idea. It will fit with the traditional celebration my family does for weddings too.” Lathen paused and blew out a breath. “I made some inquiries about the Bonchard family. It turns out that Ben has a younger brother, Brent. He fits the description of the man you saw in the park, lighter hair, and taller build.”
Pepper sucked in a breath, her heart raced. “That’s all I need.”
He squeezed her shoulder. “Relax. Apparently the brothers didn’t get along. Brent left town years ago. One of the older maids at The Sea Cliff said the boys never got along even as children. When Ben started dabbling in dark magic after high school, the animosity grew. Brent left town. Abruptly. Rumor has it that Ben was always the favorite son. As far as anyone knows, the only times Brent returned was to attend his mother’s and then father’s funeral a few years ago. Until you saw him the other day.”
“So why do you think he’s back—especially now?” Pepper chewed on her bottom lip, a nervous habit she’d had since childhood. “Looking to cause more problems?”
“Doubt it. If they weren’t close growing up, why would Brent aid his brother in any way now? Doesn’t fit.”
“I guess you’re right,” Pepper said slowly. “Just can’t shake the feeling something more is at play here than we see.” Pepper wrapped her arms around herself.
