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Chet pressed a hand to the small of her back and ushered her inside, following Eddy into the quiet store. Music that normally flowed through the speakers hadn’t even been turned on yet. The buzz of the lights overhead as loud as a mosquito in her ear.
Eddy turned down a wide aisle and stopped toward the back of the store. “I don’t have a ton, but it should be enough to get you and your dog started. Crates, dishes, a few toys.”
“Great. Thanks.” She crouched and shifted through a container with chew toys that would hopefully keep Wrigley away from her dirty clothes.
A vibration sounded in Chet’s pocket, and he plucked out his phone, glancing at the screen before accepting the call. “Hey, Cruz. Did it come through?”
Staying low, she stared up to study Chet’s face. Annoyance had him raking a hand over his beard.
“Hello?” Chet said into the phone. “Damnit, the reception’s horrible in here.”
Eddy shrugged. “Sorry.”
“Wait, so you did get the warrant?” Chet took a step backward, as if moving would make the reception better. He spun around, the muscles in his broad back tightening under his red, flannel shirt.
“What’s going on?” Eddy asked.
She stood, training her ears to listen to any tidbits from Chet’s conversation, but all she heard was him getting more agitated by the poor connection. “I’m not sure.” It wasn’t a lie, but she didn’t think it was wise to say more about what was happening with Eddy’s uncle.
Chet spun back around. “I’m stepping outside really quick. Grab what you need, and I’ll meet you at the cash register.”
“Okay.” She forced a tight smile then studied the limited items on the shelf. “I need a crate but the ones you have aren’t big enough. Do you have any more?”
“I should,” Eddy said. “Come on back and we’ll check.”
She followed him into the storage room, her mind spinning. If the warrant had come through, Cruz could either be calling to let Chet know he was on his way to Bobby’s residence, or he could have started the search and found something of importance. She needed to be there for him in case Cruz had a bomb to drop.
Eddy disappeared behind a wall. “I don’t sell a lot of pet supplies,” he called out. “I keep stuff I don’t sell a lot of back here. Out of the way.”
Quickening her pace, she followed his voice and rounded the corner. “I appreciate the help. Sorry if I’m a bother.”
Eddy stood with a gun pointed at her chest. “No bother at all. As long as you keep your mouth shut and come with me.”
22
The first sprinkles of another damn rainstorm fell from the gray sky as Chet stepped onto the sidewalk. He hunched over his phone, blocking it from getting wet. With the way his luck was going, one drop of water would destroy the ancient device—taking away the voicemails he cherished so much.
“Cruz? Are you still there?”
“Yes, did you hear what I said?”
“No,” Chet growled. “Reception was spotty. What’s going on? Did you secure the warrant?”
“Yes. Missy’s a mess. One of the hardest parts about working in a small town is knowing everyone a little too well. Especially when the job is to comb through their personal belongings looking for evidence.”
The revelation straightened Chet’s spine and thick drops of water slid down his face into his beard. “You’re already there?”
“Warrant came through right after we spoke earlier. I was already down at the station, so didn’t take long to make it over here.” The tightness of his voice told Chet more than Cruz’s words.
“You found something.” Chet clenched his jaw, preparing himself for the blow. No matter how he’d told himself over and over to wrap his mind around what the evidence pointed to, hearing the truth about Bobby would be impossible to bear.
But he would do it. He’d lived through worse, and now, he had Mia by his side to help him navigate the betrayal and sadness that was surely to follow.
“We did,” Cruz confirmed.
Chet squeezed his eyes closed against the sharp pain piercing through him. “Just tell me.”
“We found a little door cut into the wall behind the bed in the guest room. Similar to the one Mia found in the shed at the cabin. There was an old shoebox shoved inside.”
