Page 15 of A Mile of Ocean (Pelican Pointe #19)

D olly had set out a buffet-style breakfast in the main dining room. The sideboard was filled with scrambled eggs, country hashed browns, pancakes, sausage and bacon, biscuits and gravy, and hot, strong coffee in a stainless-steel urn.

“Have you been cooking all night?” Trent asked as he leaned down to plant a kiss on the cook’s head while ushering the tired crew into the room, one by one.

“I won’t lie. I got up earlier than usual. But I wasn’t up all night riding in the nasty weather. Unlike all of you, I was glad to get to bed at a decent hour and fall asleep when I did. Now eat. If you run out of anything, let me know. There’s plenty of food.”

“I’ll say,” Savannah noted as she heaped eggs and potatoes onto her plate. “This looks delicious.”

The others filed past the dishes, scooping up everything their plates would hold. Even Birk, Beckett, Lucien, and Brogan stood in line to get a hot meal in their bellies before catching a few hours of sleep.

Trent waited for everyone else to get their food before he went down the buffet line. He sat between Savannah and Tate, avoiding eating at the head of the table.

“We never saw anyone come into our sector,” Lincoln provided, forking up the eggs on his plate. “How does this guy keep disappearing?”

His grandmother set down her coffee mug. “We didn’t run into him either. Toby and I made sure of that by cutting off the northern corridor.”

“We waited there until dawn,” Toby added. “Nobody showed.”

“The cameras don’t cover everything,” Trent stated between bites. “My guess is after Colt and Theo found his campsite. Our guy headed for higher ground. He’s hiding in those rocky foothills. There’s only one way to take this up a notch.”

“We have to go up there and flush him out,” Woody finished.

“Exactly. And during the daytime.”

“He has the advantage. He’ll see us coming a mile away,” Cecil noted. “He could pick us off one by one with that assault rifle.”

“I could take the helicopter up,” Eastlyn offered, entering the room and heading for the sideboard where the coffee was set up.

“He sees a flyover that will tip him off to move again,” Trent pointed out. “We don’t want that. But sending a drone up to pinpoint his location would certainly be to our advantage.”

Beckett nodded. “We could fly it in from the mountaintop. Since he’s so active at night, we might catch him asleep. It’s worth a try.”

“What do you think, Birk?” Trent asked.

“I think this guy is beginning to piss me off. His end-game is to outlast us. Hiding up in the foothills is one way to do that. Hiding anywhere nearby and hitting us in a surprise attack is his way of controlling the situation. The only other way is to set a trap for him and lure him into it. We all know he wants something in this house. We bait him and see what happens.”

“You’re saying everyone pretends to leave, and you think he’ll make a play for the house like he did before right in front of the security detail,” Trent prompted.

“Yeah. Because he’s either arrogant or crazy, probably both. Send the drone up today. Eastlyn and Trish carry one in their trunk at all times. You need to find out if he’s even there. Then we trick him into thinking the coast is clear, that he’s won. Draw him out tonight and see if he’ll bite.”

“Risky tactic,” Hawk expressed, biting into his bacon. “But then, so is everything else we’ve tried. We can’t keep up the patrols twenty-four-seven. Not enough men.”

“Look, if he’s up in the foothills and wants to get into this house, he has to make his move at some point,” Birk reasoned. “If Beckett or I get a chance to pick him off, your problem is over. We go home, and you return to ranch life like before.”

“Give it some thought while we catch some shuteye,” Beckett urged. “Your grandmother offered us a room upstairs. I’m taking her up on it. Kelly’s away at a marine reforestation conference. The dogs are here, so there’s no reason for me to go home until Thursday.”

Birk nodded. “Same here. Jade’s busy with a true crime blogger from the Bay Area. They’re trying to solve a cold case from five years ago.”

Trent steepled his fingers over his plate. “So, let me get this straight. My one and only option —other than to charge up into the hillside where he’ll see us coming—is to send up a drone, locate him, make sure he’s there, and then lure him back into the house tonight in a trap that hopefully works.”

“There is no sure-fire option, no easy answer,” Birk lamented. “You’re between a rock and a hard place, as they say.”

“And what do you use as bait?” Savannah asked.

“If I understand the gist, to make it look real, our guy needs to believe that everyone packed up and left, except family and the ranch hands. Those remaining behind would be at risk until the rest snuck back to the ranch somehow, someway without being detected, and took up their positions again to surprise him.” Trent shook his head. “It sounds crazy. Am I the only one who feels that way?”

“It sounds too complicated to pull off,” Hawk said. “How do they return to the ranch without anyone seeing them?”

“Wait a second, I think I’ve got it. We could use the weekly supply run as a cover,” Trent submitted. “For example, let’s say Toby heads into town for supplies. He drives my Ford crew cab with our largest horse trailer hooked up. He drives out of the gate and heads to Pelican Pointe. Meanwhile, everyone gets into their vehicles and leaves the ranch. They follow Toby into town. They meet up with him and hop into the truck or climb in the back of the horse trailer. Toby brings them back, pulling straight into the barn and unloading where no one else sees what’s happening.”

“That might just work,” Woody said, nodding in approval.

Beckett stood up to put his dirty plate and utensils into the plastic bus box nearby. “You decide which way you want to go. Right now, I need some sleep.”

Birk followed his brother’s lead and deposited his dirty plate and cup into the plastic bin. “Eastlyn can work the drone. Get her to help you with it and let us know what you find.”

The brothers walked out and headed upstairs to their rooms, leaving everyone else to finish their meal.

Brock walked in, looking paler than usual. “I heard the commotion. What can I do to help?”

“Let that wound heal up,” Woody directed. “You’re no good to anyone until you can use that arm again.”

“Dr. Blackwood said there was no nerve damage, but he should get physical therapy to regain function, strength, and muscle tone faster,” Tate added. “I made him an appointment with the new physical therapist in town at the end of the week. Her name’s Dakota Fallon. And I promised we’d all donate blood at the first opportunity.”

“There’s a new physical therapist in town?” Monty asked. “I might just get myself injured so she can work her magic on me.”

“I wouldn’t recommend getting shot so you can meet her,” Tate scolded. “Just ask Brock about how difficult it was getting patched up. Besides, Dakota is gorgeous and way out of your league.”

The bickering went on until Savannah cleared her throat. “Whatever happened to the genealogy project you were doing with Cooper Richmond, Mrs. Callum?”

“Postponed until this mess is over with,” Duchess muttered.

“Maybe postponing it isn’t such a good idea,” Savanna advocated. “No one seems to know why this man is bent on revenge, right? Going back into the family background might provide some answers and uncover a reason.”

Having recently gone through her own genealogy bombshell, Brogan traded concerned looks with Lucien.

“Expect some surprises,” Lucien cautioned, squeezing his wife’s hand. “Be careful opening up that Pandora’s box. The results could be emotional and gut-wrenching. Maybe both.”

“It’s true. I speak from experience,” Brogan admitted. “But as long as you’re willing to accept whatever Cooper learns and promise not to shoot the messenger, it’s a two-sided coin. You may get the answers you’re looking for, but you’ll also discover things you never knew or wanted to learn. Or it could be a boring process, and there’s nothing to worry about. Either way, I guarantee that if there is a family secret somewhere, it will come to light. If Cooper is willing to research the entire family tree, you should turn him loose.”

“What harm could it do?” Tate asked, buttering her toast. “Imagine getting to the bottom of why Granddad was murdered like he was. Wouldn’t that be worth knowing? What could possibly be so bad that it would change things?”

Carrying her cup of coffee, Eastlyn took a seat at the table. “Cooper has already started researching the family tree, beginning with the Callums. He hasn’t gotten to the de Haviland side of the family.”

“I wanted the Callums researched,” Duchess reminded them. “There’s no need to go into my side of the family. I already know their history. It’s the Callums we know nothing about.”

Before going on, Eastlyn eyed Duchess, who was sitting at the head of the table. “Cooper’s been thorough with the information Duchess provided when they first discussed the project. I know because he and I discussed the ramifications of undertaking this the day after Barrett died.”

“How did that conversation go?” Savannah asked.

“Despite my concerns, he decided to go ahead with it.”

“What were your concerns?” Duchess wanted to know.

“The same things Lucien and Brogan went through. After learning the big family secret, I’ve known people whose lives were upended. To be honest, I didn’t want Cooper involved. And before you ask, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that someone from his past wanted Barrett dead. So much so that he’s camped out here and killed again. He wants access to this house for a reason. Can anyone here tell me why that might be?”

Tate glared at her grandmother, looking for answers. “This could all be happening because of something from decades earlier. Do you know what he might want here in the house?”

“I’ve answered that,” Duchess insisted. “I don’t know who wanted Barrett dead. I don’t know what’s so valuable that this lunatic would kill for it.”

“Oh, really,” Tate pushed back. “What about the safe? Is there anything in there worth all of us dying for?”

“Tate,” Trent began, trying to play peacemaker, “this isn’t the time or the place.”

“When is a good time to discuss what happened to our parents, Trent?” she said, tossing down her napkin. “Nobody ever wants to discuss anything about that. Answer me this. Why are we out there night after night, trying to catch this guy when we don’t even know why he’s here?”

“I’m headed to the bunkhouse,” Woody tossed out. “Anybody coming with me?”

The ranch hands got up without saying a word, deposited their dirty dishes into the bins, and followed Woody out the door.

“Are you happy now?” Duchess charged, scowling at Tate. “You’ve ruined everyone’s breakfast.”

“Me? You’re the one keeping secrets. You’re the one who wanted to forget about how your own son died and refused to talk about him ever again. You even talked Granddad into avoiding the subject. Who does that? That was my father and mother. And yet, all this time, I couldn’t even bring them up for fear I’d get the death stare from you. You’re the one who got the facts wrong about their accident. They were not heading back to the ranch from town. They’d been somewhere else because they were driving over the bridge headed north back to the ranch, not south. So don’t talk to me about ruining anything. If anyone’s ruined anything, it’s you!”

Tate got up and stormed out of the dining room, slamming the back door as she went.

“Family dynamics are difficult,” Savannah uttered.

“They certainly are,” Lucien commiserated. “I can vouch for that.”

“More like theatrics,” Duchess remarked. “She’s always been our resident drama queen.”

Trent let out a weary sigh and glanced over at his grandmother. “You know that isn’t true. She’s not prone to drama. You have to realize she hasn’t slept for two days. She spent all her downtime at the hospital with Brock.”

“She was great,” Brock related. “When I woke up, she was right there beside my bed.”

“You’re family,” Duchess maintained. “I’ll put your physical therapy appointment on my calendar. When the time comes, I’ll drive you there myself.”

Eastlyn stared at Trent. “Would you like me to get the drone ready to go?”

“Yes. Thanks. Give me thirty minutes, and I’ll meet you outside.” He got to his feet, picked up his plate, and disappeared into the kitchen.

Savannah glanced around at the others before getting up to follow him. She found him inside the walk-in pantry, speaking softly to Dolly. When he emerged, he took Savannah’s hand and steered her outside.

“There’s something I’ll never understand,” Trent stated. “Dolly is the only person here who let us talk openly about Mom and Dad. Tate’s upset at Duchess because she never allowed us to bring up our parents. Don’t you find that odd?”

“Yes, I do. My dad never wanted to talk about my brother being gay. Are you sure there wasn’t any tension in the family before that car wreck? Do you remember arguing, raised voices, that sort of thing?”

“Not that I remember, but then Tate and I were seven. I was into baseball cards, sports, and horses. I don’t remember picking up on any arguments. But then, this is a big house with two wings upstairs. There’s plenty of room to argue without anyone hearing it.”

“Maybe you should ask Tate what she remembers. You have a lot going on, Trent. You need a minute to gather your thoughts. You can’t afford to make a mistake while trying to catch this guy. Sending up the drone is a good idea. But that plan to storm the foothills is downright crazy. It’s too risky.”

“In case you haven’t noticed, I’m running out of options. Our enemy is cunning, familiar with the terrain, and always seems one step ahead of us. Tricking and luring him in might be the best way with the least number of casualties. Do you think I want to consider casualties? I don’t. I’d just like to know where he is. What does he do during the day? He has to be somewhere sleeping while the rest of us are working our asses off.”

Her heart went out to him. She ran a hand down the stubble on his cheek, kept a hand on his jaw. “What can I do to help?”

“Go get a few hours of sleep. We’ll spend another night on patrol if we don’t pinpoint where this guy is. Are you sure you want to keep going, to keep doing this? I understand if you don’t.”

“If you’re out there, I want to be out there.”

He pulled her into a tight embrace before his lips met hers. He covered her mouth in a tender kiss that sent shockwaves through them down to their toes. “You’re the bright spot in all of this. I hope you know that.”

“I think I do.”

With a final squeeze of his hand, Savannah turned to go back inside. As he watched her walk away, Trent’s gaze lingered on her retreating figure, a silent promise to protect and prevail hanging in the air.