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Joe returns and hands Sebastian the gas can along with a one-hundred-dollar bill. “Thanks, Man.”
“It’s no problem. Five gallons isn’t going to get you very far at the speeds you were driving. Might I recommend slowing down so you can make it to the next gas station? Don’t forget there are families on the roads, mine included. It would be nice if everyone made it to their destination safely,” Sebastian tells him. His tone is firm but cordial.
Joe’s eyes darken, and his lips purse. I think he’s about to retort snidely, but he looks at Leanna first and thinks better of it. “Sure. It’s good advice.” He folds himself into the Aston Martin, and the couple drives away.
“Is it safe to come out now?” Marybeth yells, her head hanging out the window.
“We’ll meet you back at the cabin,” Sebastian says to me before turning to his wife and shouting, “I’m coming, Baby! We’re all done here!”
“At least you won’t be couch surfing tonight,” Brody teases his older brother.
“There is that. Let’s get this show on the road. I’m itching to hit the slopes.”
The three of them head back to their SUV while Leanna and I stand there, her arms still wrapped around my waist. I don’t know if she’s aware she’s doing it, but I’m not complaining, and I’m certainly not about to tell her to stop.
With a humorless chuckle, she looks up at me, “I think I’d rather endure a root canal than go through that again. Two out of three of our suspects will now be in our general vicinity. With my luck, Mark Jenkins isn’t far behind.”
Once we get to the cabin and finish unloading our gear, Leanna and I offer to help in the kitchen. It’s just past noon, and we figure everyone will be hungry by the time the rest of the caravan arrives. With three firefighters and a stay-at-home mom preparing the food, they tell us that they have everything under control.
“At least let us set the table,” I suggest.
Marybeth smiles warmly. “There’s no need, Sugar. We will be using paper plates for this meal and going buffet style. The guys want to get out on the slopes, and according to the latest text update from Grandma, the kids want to build a snowman. No time to waste cleaning up.”
Sebastian, Brody, and Ansel start singing the song from the movieFrozen.“Do you wanna build a snowman? Come on let’s go and play…”
“Every time we look after Izzy, she asks to watch a Disney princess movie,” Marybeth explains. She’s not kidding. I’ve been over at Callie and Callum’s place when Izzy has been there and had no choice but to watch them with her. I’m sure I’ll be watching plenty more of them when Bella Rae is old enough to appreciate the cartoons.
Callie’s twin sister had died six years ago fighting a fire. She left Izzy in Callie’s custody, and none of the family knew who the father was. When Callie met Callum, she was embroiled in a custody battle with a man claiming to be Izzy’s dad. The situation was resolved, and Izzy now lives with her biological father, who spends almost as much time with the family as I do.
“Where’s Izzy’s dad? Why didn’t he come on this trip?” I ask. I haven’t seen him in almost a month.
Sebastian sets a bowl of fresh-cut fruit on the counter. “He couldn’t get off work this week. It was either him or Ansel, but Engine 20 couldn’t afford to have two firefighters on vacation the same week. At least he let Izzy come. Marcus and Izzy are thicker than thieves, and this week wouldn’t have been near as much fun for him if she wasn’t here.”
“Woohoo! We’ve arrived! Now you can get the party started!” Daphne shouts. She walks in holding Bella Rae in her arms, cooing at her and making funny faces. Callie and Callum are right behind her, carrying a ton of baby stuff. I’ve never understood why someone so small needs so much. Leanna goes over to Daphne and holds out her hands.
“Gimme! Gimme!” She takes Bella Rae from Daphne and bounces her niece around the living room, causing the cutest of giggles to escape. I forget what I’m supposed to be doing as I stand there and watch the scene unfold. I imagine what it would be like if she bounced around our little girl. I’m unaware of the smile that slowly forms on my face until Callum slaps me on the back and snaps me out of my daydream.
“You know, if you play your cards right, you can turn this fake relationship into something real. That right there,” he nods toward Leanna and his daughter, “can be yours.”
“That’s my plan,” I say low enough only he can hear. Callum’s eyes widen in surprise, but he quickly schools his features.
“When did that happen? What changed your mindset?”
“God and I had a long talk in Iowa. He made it clear that I had been focusing on the wrong things. Once I knew what the right things were, my perspective changed,” I tell him honestly.
“Well, good for you. I’ll help in any way I can. For now, why don’t you helpmeset up the playpen and changing table.”
Once Elena and Nick show up with the kids a short while later, we all pitch in to unload the remaining luggage from the vehicles. I find the pelican case with the surveillance equipment inside and do a quick inventory.
While everyone is eating lunch, I get busy setting up the cameras, both in and outside the cabin. Sitting on the sofa with my laptop in front of me, I pull up the feeds and ensure there aren’t any blind spots. I also call Patrick and Savannah to let them know the feeds are live and to confirm that they’ve arrived.
Leanna places a sandwich in front of me. “You haven’t eaten anything since we grabbed snacks at the gas station.”
“Thank you. I’m starving. But food needed to take a back seat to setting up the security system.” She sits down beside me and leans over to see what I’m looking at. I show her the screen and all the various camera angles.
“The guys are planning on heading to Windham to get a few runs in before it gets too late. Did you want to go?”
“I can’t. I still have to scout the local area to find the spots where someone could hide and have a good view of the cabin. Then I have to study maps of the area and look for all possible escape routes in case I need to get you out of here in a hurry. After that, I have to drive the roads to make sure there aren’t any obstacles that the map doesn’t show, like downed trees or construction.”
