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“I’m not either.” She managed a watery smile. Then she took a deep breath and bowed her head. “Dear Lord, we humbly ask for Your safety and wisdom. Please continue to keep all of us, including all the tactical team members, safe in Your care.”
“Amen.” A sense of peace washed over him. Something he’d never experienced before after praying.
Not that he’d had much practice. Maybe Rhy and Joe were onto something. Maybe they felt God’s presence the way he just had.
“Thanks.” She released his hands. “I needed that.”
“Me too,” he answered honestly.
Her smile brightened, and she sat back in her seat. “Go ahead and make your calls.”
He picked up the phone and punched in Rhy’s number, assuming his boss was still at the precinct.
“Captain Finnegan,” Rhy answered.
“It’s Steele. We’re in trouble.” He quickly explained how the SUV had found and nearly rammed into them. “I shot the windshield on the driver’s side. The SUV rolled and stopped. I have no idea if anyone survived.”
“I’ll get Grayson out there ASAP,” Rhy said. “You’re both okay?”
“Yeah.” He didn’t mention Harper’s meltdown. “I’m not going back to Timberland Falls. We need that safe house.”
“I have Joe in here now too. And Flynn. Hang on, I’ll call my brother, Tarin.” There was a long pause before he came back on the line. “Okay, you’re good to go. Tarin said the place has been vacated. Do you remember the address?”
“Yes.” It was a relief to know they could get into the secure home. The bullet-resistant glass would provide a badly needed extra layer of protection.
“Hang on, Joe has more news from the ATF guys.” There was another pause, and this time Joe’s voice came over the line. “Steele? We have you on speaker.”
He glanced at Harper who was listening to his end of the call. He hesitated, then decided she deserved to know what was going on. So much for keeping his professional distance. He placed his phone on speaker and balanced it in the palm of his hand. “Go ahead. What’s up?”
“Brady called; they’re tracking Otterson’s cell phone. He’s heading to the Third Ward, not that far from the address Feldman gave us as Tommy Grotto’s hideout.”
“That’s good news.” He smiled reassuringly at Harper. “Sounds like you should be able to get a team there to apprehend him.”
“That’s the plan,” Joe agreed. “And the location is interesting, isn’t it? We’re working with the ATF to uncover a connection between Otterson and Grotto.”
Harper frowned and shrugged. She didn’t seem to understand how the two crimes could be related either.
“I hope you find something,” he said. “I know Milwaukee isn’t as big as Chicago, but it does seem strange that both Grotto and Otterson have a connection to the Third Ward.”
“Yeah, too much of a coincidence for my peace of mind,” Joe agreed. “Are you sure you’re not hurt?”
“We’re okay.” He pursed his lips for a moment. “You know, I’d feel better if Brock or Raelyn or one of the other team members met us at the safe house. It’s possible this vehicle is compromised.”
“That’s not a problem,” Joe assured him. “Sounds like Brock is at Gibson and Roberts, working the crime scene, but Raelyn just walked in. Flynn is still on desk duty. I’ll have someone meet you there as soon as possible.”
“Great, thanks.” He felt much better knowing backup was on the way. “Whoever is available is fine with me.”
“Oh, one more thing,” Rhy spoke up.
“What’s that?” He was impatient to hit the road. Tarin’s safe house was located near Ravenswood, which was nearly thirty minutes away. And that didn’t take into consideration the fact that he’d need to backtrack, making sure they weren’t followed.
Again.
“We took another look at the two victims Otterson killed in his so-called carjacking. We’d like you to show the photographs to Harper. See if she recognizes them.”
“That’s fine with me,” Harper spoke for the first time.
“Great. We’ll send them in a text to your phone. Let us know if Harper can ID them.”
