He felt a rush of relief and foreboding at the same time. He had the right person. Ink had mentioned that Mia had a brother. But he knew what that would mean…?. “Of course. That’d be perfect.”
“I can help you. Come on in.” Pleased to have a paying customer despite the late hour, she reopened her store and did exactly as she’d promised. She helped him choose a dress for Mia and some sporting equipment for Jake, whom she admitted liking better than anyone else in the family. Then, as he stood at the register to pay, he said he was afraid he might have trouble finding the address, since he’d never visited before.
So she drew him a map.
21
When he saw Vivian’s Blazer turn down their street, Myles breathed a huge sigh of relief. Arriving home to find that she was still gone at nearly eleven o’clock had left him with a growing sense of panic. He’d asked the deputies he had on duty to look for her or her vehicle, but when no one was able to spot it, he couldn’t help wondering if Ink and Lloyd had bumped into her after tearing out of Trudie’s Grocery—and dragged her into the woods.
With such terrible thoughts churning in his mind, he’d been cursing himself for not going with her this morning and sticking with her all day. That would’ve been the only sure way to protect her. He’d briefly considered doing so when he saw her packing up. But Rex was there, at least for half the trip. Myles had decided his own time would be better spent in Pineview, trying to catch these guys. But he hadn’t made as much progress as he’d hoped.
While she parked, he waited on the porch steps so she’d see him. He didn’t want her to be frightened. He also didn’t want her to shoot him.
“Where’ve you been?” he called as she got out. He couldn’t hide the concern in his voice, but he figured he was allowed to feel concerned. He was the sheriff. It was his job to care about the people in his jurisdiction. The fact that he was more worried about her than he would’ve been about anyone else made him wish he could’ve left Campbell here, or assigned someone else to keep her safe through the night. But he lived right next door; he was the obvious choice.
She checked to make sure the street was clear before hurrying toward him.
“It’s true, you know,” he went on. “The Crew is here. Two guys. They killed Pat, and now they’re looking for you. A few hours ago they went into Trudie’s Grocery, asking for Laurel Hodges. I got the call on my way home, and rushed over there, but we couldn’t find any trace of them.”
Her shoulders slumped. “Did Trudie get their license plate number at least?”
“No, she fell when she was trying to hurry outside. They were gone by the time she made it.”
She reached him and jogged up the porch steps. “Is she okay?”
“Bruised and a little spooked but otherwise okay.”
“Claire saw them, too,” she said. “So now you understand why you can’t stand out in front of my house. It’s like painting a red bull’s-eye on your chest. These people won’t care that you’re a cop. They’d rather kill a cop than anyone else. Except for me—or Virgil, Peyton and Rex.” She brushed past him, fumbling with her keys, and nearly dropped them in her rush to get the door open.
“And now you know why I was so worried.” He could hear the edge to his own voice. But it was the relief flowing through him, and the way his body reacted whenever she came close, that bothered him.
“Hang on a sec.” She was so focused on getting inside that she couldn’t concentrate on anything else. Her hands shook as she tried to put the key in the lock, so he insisted on taking over.
The second the tumbler fell, she pulled him inside with her. Then she locked the door and sagged against it. “Welcome home, huh?” she said with a weak grin.
He understood so much more about her behavior now, and he had to sympathize. She’d been living in fear all the time. Hiding. Watching. Worrying. Dodging the kind of relationships that might threaten her cover. No wonder she was so guarded. And yet, even after all that, the people she’d been hoping to escape were coming after her again. That she fully believed she might not survive the next few days was apparent from the pallor of her skin. Just coming home had been a terrifying ordeal, knowing she could be shot walking to her front door.
But he didn’t want to feel sorry for her or admire her courage or anything else. He wanted to do his job, professionally, unemotionally. That was all. If the way he’d felt since seeing Rex in Vivian’s kitchen had taught him anything, it was that he wasn’t ready to care again. Not that much.
Although they hadn’t turned on any lights, he could see her in the moonlight streaming through the side windows. “So where have you been?” He’d already asked, but he wanted an answer. “With Claire?”
She nodded. “I was reluctant to come home. And she was pretty reluctant to let me.”
“You should’ve stayed at her place.”
“And have them track me there instead? No.”
“Does she know what’s going on?”
“Yes, I told her.”
“What’d she say?”
“She couldn’t believe it, but she wasn’t angry, like I expected. She probably would’ve been, except she’d just seen Ink and whoever he’s with.”
“Where?”
Vivian seemed so weary. He wished he could do something to bolster her strength, to reassure her that this would end well, but he had no guarantee. “At Mailboxes Plus. They were in a white truck. But you don’t need to rush over there. They’re gone now.”
“What I need to do is set up some surveillance on this place. But with summer vacations, I’m short-staffed. Tomorrow’s the earliest I’ll be able to pull that together.”
“I assume we’re okay for tonight, anyway,” she responded. “If they’re still asking around town for me, they don’t know where I live. And that close call at Trudie’s should’ve rattled them a bit, made them less likely to approach people. Most guys would keep their heads down for a while, wouldn’t they?”
He frowned. “There’s no way to be sure. I’d start surveillance tonight if I could. I just don’t have the manpower and keeping you safe is my priority. I’m having a deputy drive by every hour or so. It’s not a lot, but…”
“At least we know what Ink and his friend are driving,” she said. “That might come in handy later.”