Page 49 of Insidious Threats

At the sound of her voice, the IT guy slammed the laptop closed, and the other three jumped back.

“Nothing,” Maisy squeaked.

“Very believable,” Sasha told her dryly.

A brief, but awkward, silence followed.

She rolled her eyes. “I don’t actually care. Connelly, I need to talk to you for a minute.”

“Is everything okay?”

“Yep.” She tilted her head toward the hallway, and he got the message.

He followed her outside and lowered his head. “What’s up?”

“I need to go to New York for a day, maybe two. Are you good with the kids or should I get my parents on standby?”

“We’ll be fine,” he assured her.

She twisted her mouth and looked up at him. “Are you sure?”

He caressed her stiff shoulders with his open palms and lowered his chin so he could look her in the eye. “I’m positive.”

She felt her shoulders soften, but the tightness in her gut remained. “Okay, thank you. We can do a video call tonight, okay? I don’t like leaving without saying goodbye to the twins, but if I stop by their classroom, it’ll only be disruptive.”

“They’ll be fine. We’ll do pizza with homemade dough for dinner. That’ll keep them busy until you can call.”

She managed a small smile. “Thanks,” she said, before stretching up on her toes to kiss him lightly.

“Be safe,” he murmured against her mouth.

“Always,” she breathed back.

The door creaked, and Maisy’s face appeared in the opening. “Um, should we wait for you?”

Sasha answered before Connelly could, “He’s all yours. Ellie’s waiting for me in the car.”

“You’re taking her with you?”

“She’s gotta earn her keep somehow. Chauffeuring me around is a good start,” she joked.

He grabbed her hand and squeezed it before he went back into the storage room.

“Take care of him,” she told Maisy.

“You got it,” Maisy promised before pulling the door closed.

Before she walked away, she listened for a moment to their indistinct voices. Although she couldn’t decipher the words, she could detect an unmistakable undercurrent of excitement, as if they’d made a breakthrough in their search for answers about Landon.

She only hoped she and Ellie would have similar luck in their search for the younger woman’s missing father.

25

Stasia hopped out of the car, slammed the door shut, and leaned in through the open passenger side window. The handsy pervert who’d picked her up on the side of the road in Maryland smiled expectantly.

“Change your mind?” he asked.

“No.” She breathed out through her nose, reminding herself to keep a handle on her temper. “I’m definitely getting out here. I appreciate the lift, Frank. But I have some advice for you.”