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“Keep it up, Simms. You’re already on desk duty.”
“Sorry to burst your bubble, Cap, but you’ll have to wait a little longer to dole out punishment. Doc says I’m down for a few weeks.”
“When you get home, we’ll provide home nursing care for as long as you need it,” James announces.
April lights up with the news.
“We ready to brief?” Robbie gets started.
Rowan leads me to the sofa, half sitting on my lap, scaling her hand up and down my arm supportively.
“Miss Sails, can you tell us when and how you met Kent Wallace?”
Tera draws in a deep breath and glances around, twirling her rings. “Kent and I met on a Wednesday night in August. Right before the wedding…”
She tells us how he approached her at a bar; she was instantly attracted to him and he charmed his way straight to her bed. Rowan has to hold me down when she replays their first weekend together here.
The story goes on, filling in the blanks from her side of what Kent already said yesterday. She was an easy mark, having full access to our house for that short time. She goes on and on, finishing with the confirmation that he gave her the leads on Rowan’s history with Craig Johns.
Harley hands her a glass of water when she’s done, and she takes it gratefully.
“You brought a man we didn’t know, into a house that isn’t yours, and let him have free rein?”
She nods guiltily, her eyes welling again.
“Why would you do that?”
“I was living here. He worked with a federal agency. I didn’t think it was a big deal.”
“Is that why you pushed to stay here?”
She nods again. “He told me we’d move in together in a few months, and staying here would be less hassle than breaking a lease.”
“Are you that gullible?”
“No!”
“He marked you. Saw us on television, looked into our lives, and found you as the easiest link.”
“I know that now!”
“Miss Sails, you can leave. But we’d like you to come to the station tomorrow and make a formal statement.” Captain Boyd hands her his business card.
“I’ll be there.” She gives us all one last glance, stopping on me and Rowan. “I’m truly sorry.”
She hightails it out before anyone says another word.
“I was at my storage unit,” Rowan intercepts. “We’re decorating the house and the salon this week. Ford was busy, and it was only a few boxes. When I walked out, a guy was waiting for me. He pulled a gun and forced me to drive here. There wasn’t much I could do but leave small clues in case Ford came home. The man wanted to know where the office was set up, so I took him to the media room. He was yelling about not finding anything, demanding I turn on the computer. When he heard a sound, he ushered me out of the room and that’s when Talon got him.”
“Talon, how’d you know what was happening?” James inquires the million-dollar question.
Talon sits a little higher, flinching as his shoulder rolls. “Went to get some food and passed Rowan on the road. Something had spooked her. Tried calling, and it went to voicemail. My instincts kicked in. I parked on the side street and came around the back, avoiding any cameras. Found a guy on the back porch, talking on his phone. He said they couldn’t find anything in the office. Then he said they were taking Rowan to draw out Ford. I incapacitated him, then went searching for Rowan. I had him until a cheap shot gave him the advantage of getting his gun. When he trained it on Rowan, I conceded. He swore not to hurt her if we cooperated.
“We got to the location and they separated us. Two punks took out their aggression while Kent asked questions.”
Rowan shivers, folding further into my body.
All eyes come to me for my story. I repeat what happened here. Then explain I drove a mile before being run off the road and the third guy hijacking my truck. Kent was waiting. His men were anxious and ready for more blood. They wanted to know who we were working for, where we had been, who our contacts were.
