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“If you hear anything, I’d love to know about it,” Nate said. So far as he knew, the police had never caught the four men who were involved in the actual armed robbery and the getaway driver.Thankfully, the robbers hadn’t hurt anyone during the robbery, but they’d gotten away with a ton of jewelry in black plastic bags, the news had said.
“They hit three more jewelry stores in various cities south of us,” Ryan told Nate.
“Hell. The same people?”
“They were armed, wearing black ski masks and all black clothes, and carrying black plastic bags. They shot out the store windows and got away within minutes of stealing the jewelry. It sounds like the same MO as the ones who committed the robbery in Green Valley, according to news sources.”
“Sounds like it. Have you heard what they were driving? A black truck possibly? Do they have any viable suspects yet in those cases?”
“The police are questioning everyone about the crimes, but no one’s been charged or jailed yet. If we hear anything, we’ll let you know. And about helping Nicole out while you’re gone on vacation for a week, we’ll have you covered.”
“Thanks, Ryan,” Nate said, and Nicole echoed his response. He just had to ask Kayla if she’d like to do that with him for her birthday. He was afraid she might reject him because of the shifting issues she might have during that time when the moon was full, but he wanted to prove to her he was fine with them.
“No problem. I’ve got several PIs who are willing to aid you, Nicole. And let us know if you need anyhelp in the case of the missing guy in Green Valley. Phil Peterson, right? Even though his parents don’t trust some of the authorities here, we know more people living in the area than you do, and if we can assist you, just let us know.”
“Yeah, Phil Peterson, and we’ll do that.”
Then they ended the call.
The wolf pack that ran the PI agency there were great at helping the Silver Town wolves with their jobs, like one extended happy family. So they didn’t mind that Nate had a PI job he was taking care of in their territory.
Nate had the case file open on his sister’s dining room table that evening after work, glad Nicole was also a former army officer. Both of them owned the PI agency that they’d started in Denver and moved to Silver Town, so they worked together on cases when they needed each other’s help.
“You know,” Nicole said, “you were supposed to be having dinner with Kayla tonight.”
“I know. But this case is eating at me,” Nate said. His sister pulled the roasted chicken out of the oven for the two of them, while her mate, Blake Wolff, was at the ski lodge working late.
“You told Kayla you were working on this case?” Nicole asked.
“Yeah.” He was rereading police interviews and needed to reinterview some of the witnesses. Sometimes witnesses were less nervous around aprivate investigator since he couldn’t arrest them. But if he learned any of them had had anything to do with the disappearance of the missing man, he’d turn the information over to the police.
“Kayla could have come over here and had dinner with us, you know.” Nicole served up their meal on plates.
Nate looked up at his sister. “She would have felt left out. She would be here just for dinner, then she would have to leave so we could look this over together. Besides, you know how I am when I’m working on a case like this.”
“I know. Focused. Nothing else exists or matters. But Kayla’s such a sweetheart. She doesn’t see anyone else. She’s shy and reserved—avoiding meeting other people when she doesn’t have to—but I suspect she had her heart set on having dinner with you.”
“She didn’t seem to mind when I canceled on her.” He wanted to get as much work as possible done before he took a week off to be with Kayla and not leave it all for his sister to handle.
“Right. That’s how she reacts when she’s disappointed but doesn’t want you to know how she feels.” Nicole set their plates on the table. “You better have told her you’re going to make it up to her.”
Nate adored Kayla and had wanted to date her from the moment he’d seen her at the lodge and she’d helped him on a prior case. For the past sixmonths he’d been working on a cedar-lined hope chest for her birthday. His mother and sister had made a quilted pillow seat cushion for it in Kayla’s favorite shades of blue and white, with wolves and the mountains in the background. He’d just finished carving the front of the chest with a wolf howling in front of a backdrop of mountains—Kayla, a wolf with a voice—last night, wanting to finish it ahead of her birthday. He didn’t want her feeling bad about their missed date, though he had thought his reasoning for canceling on Kayla was perfectly sound until his twin sister made him doubt himself.
“I will.”
“Nate.” Nicole frowned at him as she sat across from him. “Unless you don’t want to date her, make this right.”
“I will.” Nate felt guilty then. He hadn’t realized Kayla had been disappointed at all.
Nicole rubbed her belly, and he glanced at her. She was now six months along with twins, and he sighed. “How are the babies?”
Nicole smiled at him. “Good way to change the subject and be human for a moment.”
He chuckled. “I do care.”
“I know. You just need to show it more.” She began eating her chicken. “To answer your question, I’m fine. So what have we got on the case?”
“Phil’s parents suspect he’s in trouble. He was reluctant to tell them what he was bothered aboutbefore he vanished, and the police couldn’t find any evidence of foul play, so they believe he has just taken off on his own as he’s known to do.” Nate buttered his baked potato and broccoli.
