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“Stop thanking us. Go. We’ll be in touch when we know something.” Jake gave him a one-armed hug.
Chelsea pulled him into a tighter hug. “Be careful.”
“I will.” He searched her face. “You’ll take care of Leilah for me?”
“Yes,” Jake promised.
But Ryan was talking to Chelsea. Leilah would need to lean on her friends. Luckily, she had some of the sturdiest friends imaginable. Chelsea nodded.
Jake walked him out to the car and gripped Ryan’s shoulder. “I’m personally going to review every client file, every project, every scrap of paper that you touched for Potomac until I find out who’s behind this.”
The vow was meant to reassure him, but he knew deep in his gut that Jake was about to embark on a wild goose chase. He’d already scoured his mental records. Nothing he’d worked on for Jake should have made him a target. Not like this.
No, someone else wanted him dead. Unfortunately, he had no idea who. Or why. But he wasn’t going to find the answers standing in Jake West’s driveway. So, he nodded goodbye and slid behind the wheel.
4
When Leilah burstinto Chelsea’s store, she made no effort to do so quietly. Chelsea, who was behind the counter checking in an order of wool hiking socks, looked up as the door shut with a bang and the bell hanging above it rang wildly.
“Where is he?” Leilah demanded as she strode through the outfitters’ tidy rows of clothing and gear.
“Good morning to you, too,” Chelsea said.
Leilah glared at her.
“Oh-kay.” She set the socks aside and called to the teenager shelving sunscreen, “Logan, watch the register for me for a little while. I’ll be in my office.”
He nodded his understanding, and Chelsea walked out from behind the counter, gesturing for Leilah to follow her.
Once she’d trailed Chelsea into her cozy office, Leilah closed the door and fisted her hands on her hips. “Well? Where is he?”
Chelsea twirled a finger through one of her long braids. “I’m assuming the he in question is Ryan?”
“Of course I’m talking about Ryan.” Leilah squinted at her. “You’re stalling. You do know where he is.”
She hadn’t really expected Chelsea to know anything, but she’d exhausted all other avenues. When Ryan didn’t call and didn’t show up, she figured she’d pop in and surprise him at work. The surprise had been hers. When she walked into Potomac’s offices, she instantly felt the undercurrent of shock and worry running through the company’s employees.
At first, she’d thought she was imagining it. But when she reached Ryan’s office and Omar sprinted down the hall to intercept her, his expression made it clear that whatever was going on, it wasn’t her imagination.
“Hey, sis,” he’d panted as he awkwardly leaned against the office door, effectively blocking her path.
“Hey yourself, weirdo. Move.”
Instead of getting out of her way, he’d led her to Olivia’s office, where Olivia and Marielle gently broke the news that Ryan’s car had been bombed and he’d had to leave town.
Now, she locked eyes with Chelsea and waited. She noticed, as she stared at her friend, that Chelsea looked tired. Dark smudges ringed her green eyes, and her freckles stood out more than usual because she was pale and drawn.
Of course. Ryan would have called Jake after the bombing. Chelsea was probably up half the night while they dealt with the aftermath.
“What did they tell you?” Chelsea finally asked.
“Nothing.” Although Leilah couldn’t keep the fury out of her voice, she managed not to shout. “They told me about the explosion and that Ryan wasn’t hurt, but they said they were under orders from Jake not to tell me anything else. But you don’t work for Jake. So, you can talk to me.”
Chelsea pursed her lips. “What else do you want to know?”
“Where is he? Where did Ryan go?”
“They couldn’t have told you that if they wanted to. They don’t know where he is. Nobody does.”
