Page 48 of Tracking Safety

The warmth of the restaurant hit him first, followed by the low hum of conversation and the smell of woodsmoke and something savory from the kitchen.

Wes and Jenna sat at a back corner table, away from the windows. They both looked up when he walked in.

He read Jenna’s face before he reached the table.

Her expression wasn’t lighter. No, if anything, it was heavier.

Why? What had changed since he left her?

He pulled out the chair across from her and sat down.

It was time to get this conversation over with.

He looked at Wes then Jenna. “Tell me what’s going on.”

Jenna watched Luke’s face as Wes talked.

Wes laid out what he knew in a careful, methodical way. He stripped everything down to the facts and presented them without editorializing.

Luke rubbed his jaw before saying, “So Vito has been secretly running this crime syndicate the whole time?”

“That’s correct.” Wes nodded.

“And he’s been looking for Jenna for years?”

“That’s what my contact told me.”

Luke’s eyes went to Jenna. “The marshals told you it was over, that you were safe and that the threat was diminished.”

“Yes.” She offered a brief nod.

“But they were wrong.” The words left a bitter taste in his mouth.

“Wes doesn’t think it was intentional,” Jenna told him. “They assessed Vito as finished, and the crime family no longer operational since the head of the snake had been cut off. But the Barones were more clever than that. They just went more deeply underground so their work wouldn’t be discovered.”

Luke looked back at Wes. “So, the shooter this morning . . .”

Wes leaned forward. “We still don’t know for sure that he’s connected with the Barones, though that’s the most likely scenario. Either way, based on what I’ve been told, he was probably contracted.”

Luke sat with that information before slowly nodding. “So what do we do now?”

Wes looked between them before his gaze stopped on Jenna. “Our first priority is getting you out of Hollow House tonight. Someone knows where you’re staying. That location is compromised.”

“I agree, but where does she go?” Luke asked.

Wes looked at him a moment before saying, “If I were in your shoes? Refuge Cove. It’s gated, it’s remote, and you’ve already got people there around the clock because of the shelter operation. It’s the most defensible option.”

Jenna watched Luke turn the information over. She knew what challenges that would present—the questions he’d have to answer if she went to stay with his family. Questions he may not be ready to answer.

She almost told him to forget about it. Staying at Refuge Cove was a bad idea anyway, and she didn’t want to put him in an awkward position.

Before the words could leave her lips, he said, “I’ll call Caleb.”

“You don’t have to,” she rushed.

“I know. But I want to.” His voice left no room for argument.

Could she really let him do this? She didn’t know—nor did she know what other options she had, other than running. She’d already promised herself she wouldn’t do that.