Page 73

Story: Guilty as Sin

“Baby, I’ve got moves you haven’t seen yet.”
“Uh-huh.” She drank again and retreated. “I’m going to have to take your word on that. I need a shower.”
“We’ll talk about breakfast when you finish.”
“I just bet we will. Although it’ll be closer to brunch by that time.”
He watched appreciatively as she headed for the bathroom. Despite the temptation she presented, Hayes knew he needed to give her space. If he pressed too hard, too fast, she’d pull away. Her defenses had been decades in the making. They wouldn’t be reversed overnight.
But he was equally aware that he was running out of time.
While he waited for her,he went down to the front desk and retrieved the package he knew would be waiting. He carried it back to their room and ordered food before setting it up, patiently working through the various protocols demanded by Adam’s formidable cybersecurity.
He barely finished before the food arrived. Minutes later, he was plating their meals when he heard the bedroom door open. “Omelets and breakfast potatoes.”
“You’re pretty handy in the kitchen.”
“I can make a few simple meals. Or, in this case, a phone call.”
She strolled closer, clutching her cell in one hand, the empty mug in another. “Delivery?”
“Room service.”
“Even better.” Reese went to the coffee maker for a refill. “More coffee?”
“I’ve got some, thanks.”
Setting her mug and phone next to her plate, she sat. Waited for him to take the second dish from the microwave and join her. “I missed a text from Kervin early this morning. He sounded pretty excited. Wanted to meet me at the diner again before he went to work. Says he has some big news about Ben to share. His price is a thousand dollars this time.”
Hayes snorted. “Sometimes the rude finger emoji is the perfect reply.” When she was silent, he glanced at her. She’d done something different with her hair, so it half covered the fresh bandage on her face. “You aren’t seriously considering it?”
“Last night, he got into the annex where Ben’s room is. He claims to have pictures and some surprising information.”
“Or he thinks he’s found a money spigot and is now turning the faucet on full blast.” He cut a piece of the first omelet on his plate and lifted the forkful to his mouth. Chewed and swallowed before continuing. “Jennings texted that Lorna Eckworth disputes McNulty’s claim about siccing him on you, but his testimony and the phone records will still weigh heavily with the judge determining Ben’s conservatorship. You’re probably weeks away from learning all the answers this guy says he has.”
She fiddled with her fork, not meeting his gaze. “Even if the judge does rule in my favor, I don’t think I’ll ever get permission to visit the facility and see for myself. I fully expect that Sedgewick will block any attempt I make to look in on him, which renders me fully dependent on whatever she chooses to tell me.”
“That doesn’t mean she couldn’t be required by a judge to show video evidence of his well-being.”
Reese began eating. Between bites, she said, “Kervin’s crazy if he thinks I’d give him that much, but I do want to hear him out.” She held up her free hand when Hayes opened his mouth to object. “We can put it off until it’s safe to leave here. Unless they’ve already found Thorne?”
Hayes would have preferred to wait until they finished with their meal before broaching the subject. “He appears to have slipped out of the canyon undetected.” A flash of alarm flickered across her expression before she blanked it. He mentally damned himself for the fear he knew she was masking. But he couldn’t protect her from the truth. And she wouldn’t want him to.
“I thought the chopper…the night vision…”
“He may have gotten away when the helicopter left to refuel. They had the open paths covered at both ends, but he could have crossed the stream and lost them in the trees. One of the trails is closed because of a rockslide. If he knows the area well, hemay have realized that and taken his chances. Their K-9 unit has picked up his scent. They’ll find him, Reese.”
Her smile looked forced. “That scent is worthless once he gets into a car.”
She was right. “But the vehicle he’d driven to the house he was staying in was confiscated. They geo-fenced the area. If he plans to call for help, once he turns on his phone, they’ll have his number and can track it.” Her silence spoke louder than a reply. She probably knew that a geo-fence warrant would capture all of the cell phones used in the warrant’s defined area. Sifting through those cell records and investigating the right one would take time. And significant manpower.
Hayes kept the last part of Mendes’s text to himself. Hopefully, they wouldn’t need to accept the deputy’s offer of an officer escort to wherever they went. They were safest just staying put. But a quiet Reese made him edgy. So did her next questions.
“Why haven’t they been able to track the occupant of the house? Or the vehicle Thorne was driving?”
He put his fork down to stare at her. “You’re starting to sound like a cop.” Those wide brown eyes held his. Demanded an answer. “The home is supposed to be empty. It’s part of an estate, and the family are feuding about the terms of the will.” He lifted a shoulder. “He’d already switched vehicles from the Caravan he was seen in before. The current car had stolen plates. They traced the plate owner, but the theft was reported four months ago. And the last known driver to register the car got rid of it ten years earlier after it was totaled in an accident. No documentation of it since.”
A slight frown marred her brow. “How is that possible?”