“Thank you, Dr. Sharpe.”
Her mom’s lyrical laughter made her smile. Redirecting the conversation back to her mom’s health, they chatted for a few more minutes.
“I love you both.” Providence hugged her dad, then her mom. “Stay healthy.”
On her way out, Providence pulled a magazine from the pile and flipped through it. All the pictures were intact, but some of the words had been snipped out. The blackmail letter and the letter sent to the news stations popped into her head. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled.Could Lizzie have sent those letters? That’s ridiculous. There’s no way.
She checked a second magazine and found the same thing. Words were missing, but the pictures remained intact. That made no sense. If she were working with preschoolers, she would cut out the pictures, not the words.
After taking one of the magazines, she left, stopping on the way home for carry-out. When she returned home with dinner, Sammy ran to the door to greet her.
“There she is!” Providence exclaimed. This tiny tot had stolen her heart, along with the man close on her heels. She had fallen hard for them both.
Later that evening, after Dakota had tucked Sammy into bed, he joined Providence in his office. She’d been combing through the database for the owner of the sailboat.
“Hey.” He rubbed her shoulders. “For a woman who looks completely chill, you’re pretty tight.”
“Mmm, that feels incredible.” After a moment, he kissed the top of her head, then pulled his chair around to sit beside her. “Make any headway?”
“I’ve narrowed it down to seventy-one sailboats.”
“That’s progress.”
She tossed the magazine on her desk and flipped it open. “I found a pile of these at my parents’. According to my dad, my sister-in-law is doing some project for work.” Providence continued turning pages.
“So?”
“She hasn’t cut out any of the pictures. She’s only cutting out words.”
Dakota cocked an eyebrow. “And?”
“She’s an early childhood educator and little kids can’t read.”
“Maybe she’s teaching them.”
After a beat, her shoulders slumped. “I’m losing it. I’m looking for clues where there aren’t any.”
“Why do you think your sister-in-law would target me? I haven’t even met her.”
She sighed. “I have no idea.”
“I give you props for staying vigilant.” He dragged his laptop over and logged in. “I called the lab at ALPHA and waited on the phone until they sent me the enlarged photo of the men in tactical gear.”
“Please have good news.”
“You were right. I’m not in the picture.”
They stared at the enlarged photo. “Can you ID any of these men?”
He pointed to one of the men in the front. “This might be Luther. I forwarded it to him and texted him to call me ASAP.”
* * *
It was after eleven when Luther video chatted them.
“This photo was taken before you became an operative, Dakota,” Luther began. “I’m in the front row on the right.” He hesitated for a beat. “Your dad is next to me.”
What the fuck?
