Читать книгу Down to the Wire - Laura Scott - Страница 12

FOUR

Tess couldn’t bear to think of Bobby being in danger because of her. He was seventeen, old enough to take care of himself, but not if he trusted the wrong people.

And how could he protect himself from a bomb?

“I need to get home,” she said, straightening in her seat. “Right now.”

“Tess, it’s not safe for you to go home,” Declan pointed out. “There have been two attempts on your life already.”

“But that’s the first place Bobby will go,” she argued. Was he really going to just sit there and tell her what to do? She opened her passenger-side door. “Listen, I’m going home with or without your help. So what will it be? Should I get out and call a taxi? Or will you take me home?”

Declan blew out a heavy breath. “I’ll call the guys from the SWAT team to meet us out there. We need to make sure there aren’t any more surprises.”

The thought of a bomb being planted inside her home made her stomach churn. All the more reason to get home before Bobby did, she told herself. She closed her door with a swift thud. “Go ahead and call them, but hurry. We need to get there before anyone else.”

She listened as Declan called his fellow SWAT officers to arrange for them to search her property. She was surprised Declan still knew her address from the night he’d rescued her all those years ago and had taken her home in his beat-up truck, not unlike the one she’d purchased for Bobby. Declan finished his call and then put the truck in Reverse so he could back out of the parking spot.

“I really wish I had my cell phone,” Tess murmured. “It could be that Bobby is trying to call me right now.”

“Do you want to call him from my phone?” Declan offered.

She nodded and took his smart phone, quickly dialing Bobby’s number. Of course her brother didn’t answer, probably because he didn’t recognize the strange number. Still, she left him a message, instructing him to call her back on Declan’s phone.

Discouraged, she stared at the screen, trying to ignore the pounding headache she had, as Declan drove her home. He pulled up in front of her house and parked along the quiet, tree-lined street. When she moved to get out of the car, he caught her arm. “We have to wait for the SWAT team to clear your house first.”

After everything that had happened that morning, she knew he was smart to be cautious, and tried to find comfort in the fact that she didn’t see Bobby’s truck in the driveway.

However, she did notice her neighbor Allan Gray coming out of his house to stand on his front porch, openly staring at Declan’s police vehicle.

“Who’s that guy?” Declan asked with a frown.

Before she could answer, Allan came striding toward them. “Are you okay, Tess?” he asked, peering at her through the passenger window.

This time, Declan didn’t stop her when she pushed open her passenger side door. In fact, he climbed out of the vehicle, too, and came around to greet her neighbor.

“I’m fine, Allan,” she said, forcing a smile. “How are you doing today?”

He bobbed his head and glanced nervously over at Declan, who still wore his work uniform. “I’m fine, Tess, but why is there a police officer with you?”

“Hi, my name is Declan Shaw.” Greeting Allan causally, he stepped forward to shake the man’s hand. “I’m a friend of Tess’s.”

Tess wondered why Declan was using the friend routine instead of grilling Allan about where he was earlier that day. Allan Gray was a nice guy roughly about her age. As far as she knew he’d never been married, although he did have a full-time job working as a night-shift security guard for the local hospital. Today he was dressed in his usual baggy jeans and striped button-down shirt with a white T-shirt underneath. Allan was generally a nice guy, constantly offering to help Tess out, but she always felt as if she was walking a fine line around him. She wanted to be a nice friendly neighbor, but she also didn’t want to give Allan the impression she was interested in anything more than a platonic friendship. She couldn’t help thinking that he might not be emotionally stable, although he hadn’t done anything to truly make her uncomfortable.

“Allan, have you seen my brother, Bobby, today?” she asked in an effort to distract him from the fact that Declan had driven her home.

“Yes, I saw him this morning, Tess,” Allan said, always anxious to please. He bobbed his head again, a weird mannerism that tended to drive her a little crazy. “He left for school about fifteen minutes before you did.”

She tried to smile, even though the fact that Allan was clearly watching her way closer than she’d realized gave her the creeps. “But you haven’t seen him since then, right?”

“No, I haven’t seen him. Is there a problem, Tess?” Allan’s attention was centered on her, as if Declan weren’t standing right there beside her. “Do you need me to help you look for him?”

“There’s no problem at all,” Declan spoke up. “But thanks for your help, Allan. I’m glad you’re keeping an eye on things here. Have you seen anything out of the ordinary this morning?”

Allan frowned. “What do you mean?”

“You haven’t seen any strangers lurking around Tess’s house, have you?” Declan asked. “Or noticed any vehicles that don’t belong here?”

“Your vehicle doesn’t belong here,” Allan said in a blunt tone. “But other than that, no, I haven’t noticed anything unusual.”

“Okay, thanks. Here’s my card. You can call me day or night if you detect something strange.”

“I will.” Allan took Declan’s business card, looking a bit flustered. Tess knew Declan was trying to make a statement, basically warning Allan that he’d be nearby if anything happened. She only hoped Allan was savvy enough to understand Declan’s subtle message.

Their brief conversation was interrupted by the arrival of several SWAT vehicles. The way Allan’s jaw dropped in shock when he saw them made her grimace.

“What’s going on?” Allan asked anxiously.

“It’s nothing, really. They just want to go through my house to make sure it’s safe. Don’t worry, I’m sure they won’t find anything amiss.”

Declan walked over to meet with the other members of his team, leaving her with Allan. She tried not to compare the two, but Declan was so much taller and broader across the shoulders than Allan, it was difficult not to notice.

Not that she was interested in Declan on a personal level. He reminded her too much of her father, who had been the city mayor for almost twenty years. With her father, everything was about control and image. Serving the public was admirable, but the way her father used to yell, often made her wonder if he’d used her as a way to let off steam from the pressures of his job.

Her mother had never stood up to him, either.

She shook off the painful memories, focusing instead on Declan and his team, who’d entered her house.

“What are they looking for?” Allan asked.

She glanced at him in surprise. “Surely you’ve heard about the bomb that was discovered at the elementary school? I imagine it was all over the news.”

An odd expression filtered across his face, but then he nodded. “Oh, yes, it was. Terrible, just terrible.” Allan reached out to pat her arm awkwardly. “I’m glad you’re okay, Tess, that was a close call.”

A shiver of icy trepidation ran down her spine as she stared at her geeky neighbor. Close call? Did Allan know that her desk was the one where the bomb was planted? Declan had led her to believe that the details of the investigation would not be revealed to the press.

Had Allan been the guy she’d seen hanging around the parking lot? The man had seemed familiar but now that she was looking at Allan, she didn’t think so.

It could be that Allan was just making that statement because she’d been in the school, not because he knew that the bomb had been planted beneath her desk. Yet she couldn’t quite shake off the feeling of unease. Even though she knew it was highly unlikely that Allan had been involved, she was all too aware that she didn’t feel safe standing out here without Declan.

* * *

“First floor is clear,” Isaac said, meeting Declan in the kitchen.

“Agreed. Let’s split up between the basement and the second floor,” he directed.

“All right. Caleb and I will go down, leaving you and Nate to take the second level.”

Declan acknowledged the plan with a curt nod and headed upstairs. He automatically went to the left, leaving Nate to check the rooms on the right. There were three bedrooms and one office upstairs, and since Tess kept everything neat and orderly, it didn’t take them long to canvass the second level.

“Basement is clear!” Isaac shouted.

“Same goes for the second floor,” Nate added.

“Which just leaves the grounds,” Declan said. “Let’s sweep the yard, just to be sure.”

No one argued, and he suspected the bomb planted near the maple tree was fresh in their minds.

When Declan went out the front door, he noticed that Tess had made her way closer to the cluster of sheriff’s department vehicles parked in her driveway. Was it his imagination or was she trying to get away from Allan Gray?

He kept his gaze focused on doing his job, but as soon as the team had finished checking the yard, he hurried over to Tess. “Everything is fine,” he assured her.

“Good to know,” she said softly. “Can I go inside now?”

Declan nodded, unwilling to say too much in front of her weird neighbor.

“See you later, Allan,” Tess said, before turning away. Declan gave the guy a quick nod and then followed her inside.

“You can’t stay here, Tess,” he said the minute he’d shut the door behind him. “Just because we didn’t find a bomb doesn’t mean that you’ll be safe here.”

“You already said that, Declan,” she responded testily. “I just want to see if there’s any indication Bobby has been here since this morning, okay?”

Declan sensed he was skating on thin ice and tried to stay back, giving her plenty of room. Tess had been through a lot today, not to mention being worried about her missing brother. He knew better than to take her tense mood personally.

She disappeared upstairs and he stood in the living room, noticing how the side window gave a clear view of Allan’s house.

Did the guy watch Tess on a regular basis? Did he have a pair of binoculars that he used to spy on her? Declan couldn’t explain why he didn’t like him. After all, Gray hadn’t done anything overt, although he had admitted to watching Bobby and Tess leave earlier this morning.

Declan made a mental note to do a thorough background check on Allan Gray as soon as possible. Maybe he was overreacting, but it was clear to him that the guy was a bit obsessed with Tess.

But if the nosy neighbor was interested in Tess, why would he try to hurt her?

Declan didn’t have an answer to that question, but that didn’t mean the guy didn’t have something to hide, either. He glanced at his watch, realizing Tess had been upstairs for a long time. Despite promising himself he’d give her some space, he found himself taking the stairs two at a time, to get to the second floor.

“Tess? Is everything okay?” he called.

For several long seconds there was no response, and he had taken several steps toward her bedroom when she emerged carrying a small suitcase.

“Why wouldn’t everything be okay?” she asked, stopping short when she saw him standing there.

Declan felt stupid for worrying. What was wrong with him? Hadn’t he already checked the house and deemed it safe at least in the short term?

“I’ll take your suitcase for you,” he offered.

She handed it over and then brushed past him to precede him down the stairs. “I want to leave a note on the door for Bobby, because I’m sure he’ll come looking for me.”

“All right.” He followed her back down to the main level, setting the suitcase beside the door while she disappeared into the kitchen to write her brother a note.

He couldn’t help smiling when she chose a neon-green sheet of paper for her message, taping it to the front door where it could be easily seen from the driveway.

Isaac crossed over to meet them. “We’ll be clearing both your vehicle and hers next, Deck. I’ll let you know as soon as we’re finished.”

“Thanks.” He clapped Isaac on the back and watched as the rest of his team made their way back to their vehicles. Then he turned to Tess. “All set?” he asked, taking the suitcase over to his car. He glanced over his shoulder, half expecting to see Allan Gray peering at them through his window.

“I guess,” Tess murmured, in a less than enthusiastic tone. “I really hope Bobby contacts me soon.”

He nodded, hoping for her sake that her brother would get in touch with her. The fact that they hadn’t found anything at her house reassured him that the kid had probably skipped school on his own, rather than being a target for the bomber.

“Can I borrow your phone again?” Tess asked. “I’d like to send Bobby a text message.”

“Sure.” He handed over his phone, keeping his attention on the road. “We could stop and pick you up a new phone.”

“Really?” The spark of hope in her eyes made him feel like a jerk for not thinking of this option sooner. “That would be a huge relief.”

“No problem.”

It didn’t take long to stop at her wireless carrier store and upgrade her current phone to a new one. When they exchanged phone numbers, he was relieved to have a way of getting in touch with her.

“So, where are we going?” she asked once they were settled back in his vehicle.

“There’s a small hotel called the Forty Winks, not far from where I live. Their rates are very reasonable, and the place is clean.” He remembered the location from a while ago when Caleb had been on the run, trying to clear his name. Caleb, Noelle and his daughter, Kaitlin, had stayed there for a night, and he figured if it was good enough for Noelle, it should be okay for Tess.

“As long as it’s not too far from my house, then I’m fine,” she said.

Fifteen minutes later, he pulled up in front of the hotel and shut off the engine. Tess slid out of her seat, heading inside the lobby, but he stopped her with a hand on her arm.

“Tess, I think it’s best if I pay for the room.”

She scowled and shook her head. “I’d rather pay my own way.”

“It’s not about paying your way, it’s about keeping you safe,” he said, unable to contain his exasperation. “Please don’t argue about this. Don’t you understand that I don’t want anyone to know where you are?”

Her gaze clashed with his for several long seconds. “Fine,” she grumbled. “But I think you’re being overly cautious.”

“Thank you.” He pulled her suitcase out of the back and then followed her into the lobby. The woman behind the counter agreed to take cash for the room, probably because of his cop uniform, but insisted on having a credit card on file in case there was any damage.

Tess’s room was on the second floor. When she used her key to open the door, he was glad the place didn’t smell old and musty. “Thanks, Declan,” she said, when he swung her suitcase onto the bed.

“Stay safe, Tess. I’ll get in touch with you as soon as possible.”

“I’ll be fine,” she reiterated.

He hesitated, not liking the thought of leaving her here alone. If it wasn’t for the fact that his boss was waiting for him to report back, he’d take her out to lunch.

His phone rang, and he suppressed a sigh when he saw that Griff was calling. “I’m on my way,” he said in lieu of a greeting.

“You better be,” his boss said in a gruff tone. “The FBI is here and they want to talk to you.”

He couldn’t hide his surprise. “We’ve been keeping them updated on the investigation, and they’ve admitted they don’t think the bombs are related to terrorism. Have they changed their mind?”

“Not that I know of, but apparently they want to talk to you. So get back here, now.”

“I’ll be there in ten,” Declan promised. He disconnected from the call and glanced at Tess. “I have to go, but you need to know that the FBI has been involved in this since we discovered the first bomb, and they may want to interview you.”

She nodded grimly. “All right, let me know.”

Declan had the insane urge to give her a reassuring hug, so he stepped back toward the door. “Remember, don’t open for anyone but me.”

“Or Bobby,” she added.

“Call me if you need anything.” He told himself to stop procrastinating and to leave already. After all, his boss and the FBI were waiting.

But leaving Tess wasn’t easy, and he silently promised to return as soon as he’d fulfilled his SWAT duties.

* * *

Tess stared at the door, long after Declan had left her alone in the hotel room. Ridiculous to miss him when he’d been gone all of two minutes.

She gave herself a mental shake and quickly unpacked her small suitcase. She found a small bottle of over-the-counter painkillers and took a few, hoping that her headache would start to feel better. Then she sat on the edge of the bed, feeling as if she should be doing something to find Bobby.

But what could she do without a car? She could call for a taxi, that’s what. Actually she’d rather rent a car, but that wouldn’t work until she had her driver’s license back. She made a mental note to make sure Declan returned her personal items from the school, before she used her brand-new smartphone to search for taxi services.

Twenty minutes later, she left her hotel room and went down to wait for the taxi to arrive. She was glad to have found her spare stash of cash back at the house, or she’d be totally dependent on Declan for everything.

“Where to?” the cabbie asked in a thick New York accent. She wondered why he’d moved to Wisconsin from New York.