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Brian stared at her for a moment, wanting to grab his laptop. “With a few keystrokes, I can figure out where he is.”
Sage blinked, pursing her lips, before she nodded. “At one time he was in Florida. But that was years ago, as far as I know.”
Brian pushed up from his chair. “Back in a minute.” He grabbed his backpack from beside the front door, where he’d dropped it when he heard Sage cry out. When he parked across the table from her again, he opened the laptop. He logged in with his fingerprint scanner and navigated to the website the company used to run background checks. “What’s his full name and date of birth?”
Within just a few minutes, they had Tim Roe’s life spread before them. “Looks like he is in Louisiana.”
Sage scowled and sat back against the kitchen chair. “Seriously?”
“He’s had run-ins with the cops in Florida and Louisiana, and it looks like he still has something pending in Florida. I bet he left because he has a warrant or something.”
Brian opened another tab and logged into a different website, scrolling before he entered Tim’s information. “Yep. He has a felony probation warrant out of Florida. Original charge was theft over five thousand dollars. I would say he got into trouble, was put onto probation and skipped out because he thought he was going to jail.”
Sage shook her head, and he could tell she was upset. “You know,” she said, “Tim used to be a decent guy. He wasn’t the smartest guy in the room, ever, but once he started to drink, everything changed.”
Brian scrolled through the background info. “Looks like he headed to Florida right after your divorce. If he got used to the money he stole from you, I’m sure he did what he could to get more. And apparently stealing was easier than actually working.”
“He always tried to take the shortcut,” she murmured, her eyes going unfocused. “This is pretty ballsy, though.” She motioned to the bear and box.
“Not if he thinks you’re alone and hurt and vulnerable. Obviously, he’s looking for an in. Did you ever figure out where the flower came from?”
She glanced at him and shook her head. “That just occurred to me as well.”
Her phone buzzed and she swiped through the screens. “Mom says she hasn’t talked to him or anyone in his family. Although she wants to know who she can let know. She’s very concerned we won’t get Christmas cards this year.”
Sage rolled her eyes and Brian chuckled. “Well, cards are important.”
She shook her head and set her phone aside. “I’ll call her later.”
Sighing, she fiddled with her untouched cup of coffee. “I’ll have to let Adam know.”
Brian could see the dread in her eyes, and he reached across to touch her hand. Almost automatically, she turned her fingers to hold his, and something warmed in Brian’s chest. It was like when he’d first seen her in the hospital. He’d had to touch her. And she seemed to need the connection as well.
“Adam is a sharp kid,” he said softly. “You’ll just have to tell him to be aware. You don’t think Tim would try to take him, do you?”
Sage shook her head. “Definitely not. That would be too much responsibility,” she laughed. “I could see him making contact just to let me know he could, and then leveraging that information for his own benefit.”
Brian smiled at her, and he knew it had an edge, but he didn’t care. “I’d like to see him try,” he murmured, fingers tightening on hers.
Sage blinked and looked away, but not before he saw the shine of tears in her eyes. She let go of his hand so that she could wipe her cheeks. “I’m not sure why I’m so emotional. But thank you for the words.”
“They’re more than words,” Brian promised, and he realized it was true. He’d do damn near anything for this hardy little family. “There’s nothing you can do right now, though, other than heal. Why don’t you go lay down and I’ll work here.”
Sage blinked and nodded, her eyes going weary. “I would appreciate you being here. Thank you, Brian.”
He watched her limp out of the kitchen toward her bedroom. Then he focused on the laptop. Maybe, if he was lucky, Lost and Found had a contact in Louisiana.
13
Two days later, Sage walked into the hospital under her own steam. Gary was recovering and she was determined to see him. Thank goodness they lived in an area with a thriving Uber system. With the sling on, there was no way she could safely drive herself. She planned to see Gary, then go to her doctor’s appointment a few blocks away.
When she arrived at the floor he’d been assigned, she wasn’t surprised to see Candice standing at the nurse station, talking to a man in blue scrubs. Sage didn’t want to interrupt, but Candice waved her close when she saw her.
“Sage, this is Dr. Neat. He’s the one who worked on Gary’s leg.”
“And how is he?” she asked.
“Gary is a character and he’s fighting,” the doctor said, his eyes sharp, “but the process is going to be a long one. We have his leg suspended and pinned, and a large part of his recovery is going to be staying still.”
