“Little Williams,” I bellowed as I strode toward Wren’s desk in dispatch.
“Must you continue calling me that? We’ve been over this. I’m not particularly little, and there’s no Big Williams.”
“Sorry, once a nickname has been appointed, it can’t be undone.”
She rolled her eyes. “Why are you over here bothering me? Don’t you have work to do?”
I straightened my shoulders. “If you must know, I’m investigating a crime.”
Wren arched a brow. “And that crime is?”
“Someone stole my last donut out of the break room.” My gaze narrowed on her, taking in every hint of a reaction. “You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”
Wren’s eyes slid to the side, and my jaw dropped. “It was you!”
She pressed her lips together to keep from laughing.
“Did you not see the writing on the danged box that said it was mine?”
Wren drummed her fingers on the desk. “Hmmmm, did I see Do Not Eat, The Penalty Is Death? Or Nash’s Donuts, Eat And I’ll Put Ex-Lax In Your Coffee? Or my personal favorite, These Are Poisoned, You’ve Been Warned?”
“Next time, I am going to poison them just to get back at you bunch of traitors. I only got four of those donuts today. Four. That is not enough for a growing boy.”
Wren’s laughter finally won out, bursting free. “I’m going to keep eating your donuts every time because it’s too fun to watch your reaction.”
I stalked toward her. “I am going to—”
Lawson caught me by the back of the shirt. “Don’t finish that statement. I’d hate to have to report you.”
“Report me? What about the thief in our midst? Can I press charges?”
Lawson shook his head. “You should know by now that if you want food protected, you need to keep it in the locked drawer at your desk.”
My eyes narrowed on my brother. “Holt taught her how to pick locks. Last week, she stole the cookies Mom made me.”
Wren threw a paperclip at me. “You mean the snickerdoodles Kerry made Holt and me that you stole off my desk?”
“Mom said I could have some,” I huffed.
“She said you could have one. But you took all of them.”
“Children…” Lawson began.
The phone in dispatch rang, and all humor instantly fled Wren’s expression. “Cedar Ridge police, fire, and medical. What’s your emergency?”
She listened intently for a moment. “Hey, Maddie. It’s Wren.”
My entire body went cold. Maddie. Calling 9-1-1?
Lawson gripped my arm. “Just wait. She called the non-emergency line. See?”
He pointed to the light illuminated on Wren’s phone. It wasn’t the one that corresponded with 9-1-1 calls. But there was no loosening of the vise around my chest. Why the hell hadn’t Maddie called me?
Wren’s fingers flew across her keyboard. “Nash and Law are right here. I’ll have one of them come over and make a report. I’m so sorry this happened. I bet it was tourist teenagers. It wouldn’t be the first call of vandalism I’ve taken this week.”
She paused for another moment. “Okay. Hope your day gets better from here.”
Wren disconnected the call and spun around in her chair.
“What happened?” I growled.
Wren’s eyes flared at my tone. “Maddie’s fine, but all the tires on her car were slashed.”
Lawson let out a slew of curses as a mixture of anger and fear coursed through me.
Confusion lit Wren’s expression. “It sucks, but she has insurance. I’m sure it was the same kids who spray-painted the dock.”
“I gotta go,” I mumbled, already moving for the door. God, I hoped it was nothing more than a couple of angry teens with too much time on their hands. But the worst fears filled my mind. Adam being here. Watching.
“I’m coming, too,” Lawson called.
I didn’t wait for my brother. I charged out of the station and into the afternoon sunlight. My mood didn’t come close to matching the beauty of the day. Looking around the picturesque downtown area of Cedar Ridge, a person would never think a dark deed could happen here. But we all knew they could. A small town didn’t save you from that.
“Would you hold up?” Lawson barked.
“She’s alone,” I gritted out. Unprotected. She’d been that before and had gotten hurt. She’d almost died.
Lawson picked up to a jog to catch up with me. “She’s okay.”
“You don’t know that.”
“I do. She was just on the phone with Wren.”
“And how many seconds have ticked by since she hung up? It only takes one for her to get hurt.” My voice cracked, betraying my emotion.
Lawson sent a worried look in my direction but didn’t argue. “Let’s get to her then.”
We both began jogging. That was the thing with my siblings, we could give each other hell, even be at odds, but when the chips were down, we always had each other’s backs.
We passed the now-dark café and rounded the corner. Maddie stood there, arms wrapped around herself, staring at her SUV. She looked so small and vulnerable. As if the entire world were against her. I wanted to burn alive the person who’d done this.
My legs ate up the space between us, and I pulled her into my arms. I tried to be mindful of her injuries, but all I wanted was to hold her as tightly as possible and never let go. “Why didn’t you call me?”
“You were working.” The words were muffled against my chest.
“I don’t give a damn if I’m working. If something happens, I want to know.”
She let out a little huff of air. “I kind of called you. I called the station.”
“Not good enough, Mads.”
She pinched my side, but I didn’t miss the slight tremble in her fingers. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re overbearing?”
“Only every day for his entire life,” Lawson said as he strode up. “But, usually, those control issues come out with food.”
A laugh bubbled out of Maddie, and she looked up at me. “Am I equal to donuts in your life?”
The corner of my mouth kicked up. “No, you’re Boston cream pie status, all the way.”
Lawson let out a low whistle. “Shit, Maddie. I don’t think I’ve ever heard such high praise.”
She shook her head and extricated herself from my hold. I didn’t miss the slight wince as she did. “Are you hurting?”
Maddie gave me a sharp look. “I’m fine. Just a long day.”
One where she’d been on her feet for the entirety of it. Her ribs were probably killing her.
“I’ll grab your statement, and then we’ll get you home,” Lawson said.
Maddie sent a sidelong look at her SUV, nibbling on the corner of her lip. “I’m gonna have to get my car towed.” Her brows pinched. “Buying new tires was the last thing I needed.”
Lawson’s gaze lifted. “Your insurance should cover it.”
“But how long will that take?”
“We’ll get the report done today,” I said. “Take pictures and get them to your insurance company. I’ll have a word with them about moving swiftly.”
Maddie turned to me. “A word?”
“He means he’ll threaten whoever he talks to,” Lawson added helpfully.
“Way to throw me under the bus,” I muttered.
Lawson’s lips twitched. “Hey, it’s the truth.” His focus shifted to Maddie. “What time did you get off work?”
“I think I locked up right around four-fifteen.”
Lawson typed a few things into his phone.
“Did you see anyone around when you came out to your vehicle?” I asked.
Maddie shook her head. “Not that I noticed. Once I realized the tires were slashed, I looked around and didn’t see anything out of the ordinary.”
Lawson studied the tiny side street we were on. “I don’t think any of the shops here have cameras, but I’ll check.”
There was only a gift shop and a stationery store, and they were on the other side of the street.
Lawson continued typing. “Did anything unusual happen today?”
Maddie shifted in place, her gaze pulling to the side.
“What happened?” I growled.
The uncertainty morphed into a glare. “Don’t you growl at me, Nash Hartley.”
“Uh-oh, she full-named you. Watch your step,” Lawson muttered.
I struggled to keep my breathing even. “Mads, something obviously happened today. Please, tell us what.”
“That’s better.”
If I hadn’t been so worried, I would’ve grinned. No one could put me in my place like Maddie. But right now, I was too worried to smile.
Maddie twisted her purse strap around her finger. “There were a couple of things. Dan McConnell came into the café.”
My back teeth gnashed together. “What did that asshole do?”
“It wasn’t anything horrible, but he was rude. Said some stuff about you. Aspen told him if he didn’t start behaving better, she’d kick him out.”
“Who’s Aspen?” I asked.
“The manager of the café. Red hair. Real pretty.”
I nodded. The woman had waited on me before when I came in to pick up a to-go order, but I’d have to come in and give her a hell of a tip now for having my girl’s back.
“What do you mean by rude?” Lawson prodded.
Maddie shrugged. “Just said some crude things about Nash and me. It’s not like he threatened me.”
Lawson nodded. “I’ll have a conversation with Dan.”
“I’ll be coming along for that,” I gritted out.
Lawson turned to me. “The last thing we need is you sitting in on that conversation. You’d probably deck him, and then I’d have to arrest you.”
“I won’t deck him.” Not when I was in uniform anyway.
“Not happening, Nash.” Lawson looked at Maddie. “You said something else happened?”
She shifted again, her gaze dropping to the pavement. “It wasn’t today, but I ran into my mom yesterday. She said they granted my dad a parole hearing. If he thinks he’s getting out and knows I’m back in town, he might’ve had one of his buddies send me this lovely message.”
My blood went cold. “What did you say?”
Lawson gripped my arm, squeezing hard. “Dial it back a notch.”
But I could barely hear him over the blood roaring in my ears.
Maddie swallowed hard, her gaze lifting to mine. “No one told me. I put a call into Victims’ Rights to see when the hearing was, but I’m guessing it was yesterday or today.”
“Why?” Lawson asked.
Maddie’s lips pursed. “My mom was getting her hair done for the occasion.”
A slew of curses slipped from my mouth. That waste of a woman was supporting the man who had terrorized her daughter. Hell, I was sure he’d done the same to her.
Pain carved itself into Maddie’s face, so deep and raw I knew it was the kind you never recovered from. I closed the distance between us and held her against me, doing everything I could to stuff down my anger. She didn’t need that from me right now.
“I’m so sorry, Mads.”
She burrowed deeper into my hold. “I didn’t think they’d give him a shot at getting out early. I thought for sure he’d have to serve his entire sentence. I always write a victim impact statement when they consider parole. I just thought…”
Her words trailed off. She thought the system would work to protect her, but it had failed too many times to count.
“He’s not getting near you.” Each word was a promise and a vow.
“I’ll call and find out what’s going on,” Lawson said. His gaze swept over Maddie in my arms, his jaw tight. I knew he hated this almost as much as I did. He’d always seen Mads as a younger sister, and it killed him what she’d been through. “We also have to consider one other thing.”
Maddie looked up at him in question.
“Are you sure your ex is still in Atlanta?”
Maddie stiffened in my arms, her gaze turning slowly to me. “Did you tell him?”
“Mads—”
She jerked out of my hold. “That was private, Nash.”
“I know, but—”
“But nothing. I told you that in confidence. Told you I didn’t want anyone else to know.”
“He didn’t want to tell us,” Lawson broke in, trying to help.
“Us?” Maddie gaped.
Lawson winced. “Roan, Holt, and I could tell you were injured at dinner. We knew something was up and hounded Nash.”
Her hands fisted at her sides. “You didn’t have any right to share that, even if they are the nosiest bunch of fools I’ve ever met.”
“I’m sorry,” I whispered. I knew she wouldn’t be happy with me for sharing, but I hadn’t expected a reaction this extreme.
Maddie let out a ragged breath. “It’s done now.” She turned back to Lawson. “I just saw a social media post that showed him in Atlanta at a function this morning. And slashing tires isn’t really his style.”
Lawson nodded slowly, not uttering another word.
“Is that it?” Maddie asked. Her tone wasn’t sharp, not even annoyed. It was flat. Empty. As if all the life had drained out of her.
“I think we’re good for now. I’ll have the police truck tow this to the shop for you.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it.” Still no emotion in her voice. Everything about her was a blank mask. I hated it.
“I’ll take you home,” I offered.
Maddie opened her mouth to argue and then gave her head a little shake. “Sure. Thanks.”
She started toward the station, not waiting for me.
Lawson sent me a concerned look. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to throw you under the bus.”
“It’s not your fault.” It was mine. I’d let Maddie down again.
