My footsteps slowed, but I kept hold of Maddie’s hand. We came to a stop a few feet from The Brew. The sun shone brightly, making the lake sparkle in the morning light. You never would’ve known that such darkness had surrounded those depths only hours before.
I wrapped my arms around Maddie as if that alone could keep her safe. “You sure you’re up for working today?”
She laid a hand over my heart. “I’m sure. I’ve got a little bit of a headache, that’s it.”
There was a little bruising near Maddie’s hairline, but that was the only sign she’d been attacked. Her dark locks disguised the worst of the lump. But that didn’t mean she should be on her feet so quickly.
Maddie leaned forward, brushing her lips against mine. “I’ll text you if I’m feeling out of sorts. I promise.”
My gaze narrowed on her. “I’ll know if you’re lying.”
She chuckled. “Normal is good right now. I need it.”
I understood that. Maddie had fought hard to get back to this slice of normal, and it had become her respite amid all the craziness happening around her. I gently pressed my lips to her temple, just shy of her injury. “Call me if anything seems out of the ordinary. And don’t go anywhere—”
“Alone,” she finished for me. “I won’t. Believe me, I’ve learned my lesson there.”
A heaviness settled in my gut at those words. I hated that it was something Maddie had to think about at all. “I’m sorry,” I whispered against her skin.
Maddie’s hand pressed against my chest. “You have nothing to be sorry about. This is on whoever hit me, no one else.”
My mouth curved. “I like it when you get all bossy.”
She snorted it. “Good, because I’m about to do it again.” She stepped out of my hold. “Go to work. Write some speeding tickets. Scare the bejeesus out of some shoplifters.”
I didn’t miss how she left the more serious cases off her list. But I’d let her have that. “Don’t forget the most important duty.”
“And what’s that?”
I grinned. “Eating donuts.”
Maddie shook her head. “Such a cliché.”
I chuckled. “Sometimes, things are a cliché for a reason. And donuts are damn good.”
“Well, they aren’t going to eat themselves, so get to it.”
I dipped my head to meet her gaze. “After you’re inside.”
She huffed out a breath. “Yes, Officer Overprotective.”
Maddie turned and headed inside the café. I didn’t walk away until I saw her talking with Aspen. She was safe. She’d have people around her all day long, and Aspen would have her back.
I still waited a few more beats. Turning to walk away felt wrong on every level, but I did it anyway. I headed back toward the station. Main Street wasn’t crowded this morning, but it wasn’t empty either. A handful of people were out and about, a mixture of tourists and locals.
My gaze caught on a single familiar figure headed in my direction. I fought the groan that wanted to surface.
A smirk played on Dan’s mouth as he approached. “Hey, Hartley. Heard you ran into a little trouble with the mayor.”
Don’t rise to the bait. I said it over and over in my head. Lawson would kill me if I got into it with this joker. “Not sure what you’re talking about.”
Dan’s smirk faltered, then he forced it back. “I guess they don’t tell cops when they’re under investigation.”
I shrugged like it was no big thing and not potentially career-ending. “Or there’s nothing there that anyone would ever be concerned about.”
A muscle in his cheek ticked. “You’ll get what’s coming to you.”
“I certainly hope it’s donuts.” I didn’t give Dan a chance to say another word. I simply side-stepped him and headed into the station.
I waved at our newest officer behind the desk. She nodded at me. “Chief Hartley wants you to meet him in his office.”
Great. Lawson had psychic radar when it came to me getting into trouble. He probably knew I was two seconds away from decking that jerk.
“Thanks, Smith.” I wove through the sea of desks as I traded hellos with other officers and staff.
Lawson’s door was closed, and I gave two quick knocks. He beckoned me in a second later. As I stepped inside, my brows rose. “No one looped me in on this meeting of the Hardy boys.”
All three of my brothers filled the small office space. Roan sat on the couch, the seat most removed from everyone else, Lawson was behind his desk, and Holt occupied one of the chairs. I crossed to the other seat and lowered myself into it.
Lawson leaned back. “I didn’t call them in. They came on their own.”
Holt scowled at our eldest brother. “And Law hasn’t been very forthcoming with information on Maddie’s case.”
“You’re not law enforcement,” he defended.
Roan cleared his throat. “Excuse me?”
Lawson sent him an exasperated look. “Is this a poaching case?”
Roan shrugged. “You never know how cases could be connected. Never hurts to have another set of eyes.”
Holt leaned forward, resting his arms on his knees. “This would be a hell of a lot easier if you just brought me on as a consultant. I already work for county emergency services. My background check is on file.”
Lawson groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. “You guys are trying to send me into an early grave.”
Law might’ve been frustrated, and I understood why. He played by the rules. It helped him feel like his world would stay safe and orderly. But to me, my brothers butting in where they definitely shouldn’t was nothing but an act of love.
I looked over at Holt and Roan. “Thanks. Both of you.”
Roan just nodded, looking a little uncomfortable. Holt slapped me on the shoulder. “I’ve got your back. And if brother dearest over there brings me aboard, I’ll share with the group what I’ve found.”
Lawson’s eyes narrowed on Holt. “Are you bribing me?”
Holt shifted, reclining in his chair. “Call it what you want, but teammates share information.”
Lawson grumbled something under his breath but opened a drawer and rifled through the contents. A second later, he pulled out a sheet of paper, handing it to Holt. “Sign this.”
Holt scanned the page. “You already had this contract drawn up.”
“I had a feeling you’d continue being a nosy bastard now that you’re back. Congratulations, you’re being paid exactly one dollar for every case you consult on.”
I choked on a laugh, and even Roan’s lips twitched. “You’re brutal,” I muttered.
Holt scrawled his signature across the paper. “Whatever. I just want to be in the loop when I need to be.”
I turned to face him. “What’d you find out?”
The humor fled from Holt’s face. “All the numbers that have been texting Maddie are associated with burner cells purchased at three different convenience stores outside Atlanta.”
Tension wound around me like a boa constrictor. “Bastard.”
“That’s not all.” Holt scrolled through something on his phone. “Adam Westchester has a high-end private investigation firm on retainer.”
A muscle beneath Lawson’s eye twitched. “And what the hell does the CEO of a charity need a P.I. firm for?”
Shadows swirled in Roan’s eyes. “To make sure all the skeletons stay hidden.”
None of this said good things. We already knew that Maddie wasn’t Adam’s first victim, but this spoke of something darker.
“Do you have any idea what he’s using them for?” I asked.
The corner of Holt’s mouth kicked up. “For a bunch of PIs, they really need to invest in better cyber security.”
“I didn’t hear that,” Lawson mumbled.
Holt rolled his eyes. “Say it came in as an anonymous tip.”
“Because that always holds up so well in court,” Lawson shot back.
“Both of you shut up.” I motioned at Holt. “What’s going on?”
“I can’t shut up and tell you what’s going on.”
“Holt…”
Roan grabbed a rubber band from Lawson’s desk and shot it at Holt. “This is about Maddie. Do you really want to explain to Wren why you came home with a black eye? Because Nash will punch you.”
Holt winced. “Sorry.” He scrolled a little more on his phone. “Adam Westchester is currently keeping tabs on ten different women—Maddie included.”
A cacophony of curses filled the air as fresh rage pulsed through me. “And this company didn’t consider that there might be a less-than-ethical reason someone might do that?”
Holt tapped his fingers on the arm of his chair. “They have some notes in the file. When he’s in a relationship with the women, his reason is always that they may be a target due to his wealth.”
I scoffed at that. “And after the relationship ends?”
“To make sure they don’t get any ideas about trying to get money out of him.”
“This guy is a piece of work,” Lawson muttered.
“It’s a lot worse than that,” Roan said quietly. “This is serial. Obsessive. The fact that he tracks them after the relationship ends? It’s not good.”
“Roan’s right,” Holt said. “The firm delivers dossiers on each woman to Adam every month.”
I realized what this was. “He gets a thrill out of knowing he has overpowered them. Even the two who pressed charges. He still got away with it. Maybe he had to pay one of them some money, but it never hurt him.”
“I want this asshole out of my town,” Lawson gritted out.
“What’s his alibi for last night?” I asked.
“He was on a work call with someone in Australia. I talked to that colleague, a woman by the name of Corina Saltzman. She swore up and down that they were on the phone at the time of Maddie’s attack, but he could be paying someone to cover for him.”
“Or it could be a new woman he’s got on the hook,” Holt added.
“That, too,” Lawson agreed. “We need to consider other suspects. I need to talk to Jimmy Byrne—”
“I’m coming with you.” I needed to see the look on Maddie’s father’s face, read if he was lying.
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Lawson protested.
Holt straightened. “Roan and I are coming, too.”
Lawson pinched the bridge of his nose again. “A consultant and a Fish and Wildlife officer can’t question a suspect in a Cedar Ridge PD investigation.”
Roan studied our brother. “We can wait in the car, and Nash can just happen to have his phone on speaker.”
My lips twitched. “I butt dial people all the time. It’s a real bad habit.”
Lawson glared at all of us. “You’re riding behind the cage, and I don’t even care.”
Roan shrugged. “Just as long as you cleaned up the vomit from the last drunk you had back there.”
Holt wrinkled his nose. “Gross.” He glanced at me. “But worth it.”
My brothers were the best.
Lawson pulled to a stop in front of the trailer that looked exactly as it had the last time I’d been here, just a little worse for wear. It’d been years. Maddie had moved out the second she turned eighteen, renting a tiny studio apartment over one of the shops in town. The place hadn’t even had a true kitchen, but it was a million times better than this sty.
Lawson glanced at me. “You sure you’ll be able to keep yourself in check?”
“I need to look him in the eyes. See if he’s lying.”
“That’s not exactly an answer,” Lawson said.
It wasn’t. Because I wasn’t sure I’d be able to keep myself from shooting Jimmy Byrne where he stood for what he’d done to Maddie. It was something I’d happily go to prison for.
Holt leaned forward and squeezed my shoulder, hard. “Nash has this. He knows getting into it with Jimmy will only hurt a case against him.”
I did know. And that might be the one thing that could restrain me. A quick death would be too merciful for Maddie’s dad. He deserved to rot behind bars for the rest of his days.
I stared up at the house. “I can do it.”
Lawson nodded and opened his door to exit the SUV.
I pulled out my phone and hit Roan’s contact. He hit accept on the first ring and sent me his version of a grin, which looked more like a grimace. I looked back at him. “Mute yourself.”
He nodded and tapped a button on his phone.
I climbed out of the vehicle and followed Lawson up the walk toward the trailer. My throat tightened as I took in the series of cement steps. Stairs that Jimmy had thrown his daughter down without a care in the world.
“Hold it together,” Lawson warned.
I nodded, too afraid that he’d know my hold on my control was tenuous at best if I spoke.
We climbed those damn steps, and Lawson rapped on the door. The aluminum screen door smacked against the wooden one with each contact.
Only silence greeted us.
Lawson knocked again.
“Keep your pants on, would ya?” a gritty, feminine voice called from inside.
A few seconds later, Betsy Byrne hauled open the door. The woman couldn’t look less like Maddie if she’d tried. Dark hair bleached to within an inch of its life, smeared makeup, and a haggard complexion.
“Do you know what time it is?” She blinked a few times, and then rage filled her expression. “My crybaby of a daughter calls the police because I had words with her in a bar?”
I stiffened. Maddie hadn’t said anything about a run-in with her mom last night.
Lawson kept his expression carefully blank. He’d always been a master at it. “That’s not why we’re here. You were at Dockside last night?”
Betsy straightened her spine. “It’s still a free country, ain’t it? I don’t have a restraining order against me, do I? But then again, seems like you give ‘em out for hurt feelings these days.”
The anger pulsed again. Blinding fury at a woman who should’ve cared for her daughter but instead sided with her asshole of a husband. “Attempted murder is a little different than hurt feelings, Betsy.”
“Pfft. That girl was always a troublemaker and drama queen. Always had a sob story for everyone she met.”
“Who’s here, Bets?”
That voice. I hadn’t heard it since the trial. My parents hadn’t wanted me to attend, but I wouldn’t let Maddie go through it all alone. And even then, they’d understood the special bond the two of us had. But I’d never be able to unsee the photos. Never forget the testimonies. And through it all, Jimmy hadn’t shown a flicker of reaction. Not a single emotion.
“Fuckin’ pigs, that’s who,” she shot back.
Jimmy appeared from the hallway. He wore a rumpled T-shirt and boxers. His eyes narrowed on us. “Whadaya want?”
“Mr. Byrne, we need to know where you were between the hours of eight p.m. and eleven p.m. last night,” Lawson said evenly.
“Why?” Jimmy’s gaze didn’t stray to my brother; they stayed locked on me.
“You aren’t the one asking questions,” I clipped.
An ugly grin spread across Jimmy’s face. “Shoulda guessed you’d become a pig. Always were an interfering bastard. Even when you were a kid.”
Lawson shifted his stance. “Mr. Byrne, I’d be happy to place a call to your probation officer and let him know that you’re being less than helpful. But be warned that a call like that can increase drug tests and random inspections.”
“You’re a buncha bastards!” Betsy shrieked.
“Shut up,” Jimmy barked at his wife. “Get in the bedroom.”
Betsy snapped her mouth closed, her face paling. But she dutifully walked away.
The whole scene made me sick to my stomach. Most of all because this was what Maddie had lived with for far too long.
Jimmy turned cold eyes on Lawson. “I was home. Shootin’ the shit with a couple of guys. That against the law?”
“Were there drugs or alcohol present?”
Jimmy’s hands clenched. “Not against my parole to be around alcohol. Just can’t drink it.”
Lawson nodded. “Names, please.”
Jimmy rattled off the names of two of his closest friends from back in the day. Ones who would do anything to cover for him.
“You ask Dale or Mitch to do anything for you lately?” I asked.
There was a spark of something in Jimmy’s eyes, and a smile stretched across his face. “I ask them to do lots of things for me. Help me change my oil. Fix that chipped front step. They’re my friends, after all, and pals help each other out.”
Lawson straightened. “You know anything about Maddie’s vehicle being vandalized?”
Jimmy let out a low whistle. “That’s a real shame, but I guess that kinda thing can happen when you’re a snitch.”
I ground my teeth together so hard I swore I felt one crack.
“What about an attack on Maddie last night?” Lawson pressed.
Jimmy’s smile only got wider. “That daughter of mine just can’t stay out of trouble.”
Lawson’s gaze narrowed. “We’ll be checking your alibi. We’re also pulling camera feeds from any shops in the area. If you were anywhere near Dockside last night, we’ll find you.”
Jimmy just laughed and turned those dead eyes on me. “Tell my daughter to be careful. Karma has a way of coming around.”
