Page 33 of Missing Pieces (Brantley Walker: Off the Books #12)

JJ sat in the rocking chair, cuddling her daughter, unable to stop smiling.

They had allowed her and Baz to visit the babies in the NICU for short periods.

This was her third visit of the day and unfortunately the last until tomorrow morning.

If it were up to her, she would live in there with them until they were strong enough to go home.

On a positive note, the doctors informed her they’d seen a marked improvement in such a short time.

A soft tap had her looking up. There, on the other side of the glass, were Brantley and Reese.

“Uncle B and Uncle Reese are here,” she whispered. “I promise, one of these days you’ll get to meet them. Aside from your daddy, they’re the best men I know. Oh, and Tesha. You’ll love her and she’ll love you. You get stronger, and you’ll get to hang out with them sometime.”

Offering a small wave so Brantley and Reese knew she saw them, JJ turned her attention back to her daughter.

Her time was quickly running out, and she wanted to cherish every single second.

In a week, maybe two—she hoped—they would be strong enough to go home.

According to the doctor, they would stay for the better part of ten days—based on their current assessment—but they were already getting stronger.

The fact that they were eating well went a long way toward proving they were thriving.

JJ took that as a good sign. As much as she wanted them home, she wanted them healthy more, so she would be patient.

Ten minutes passed in the blink of an eye.

Because they were sticking to a schedule, JJ didn’t want to disrupt that, so she passed her daughter over when the nurse came by.

She stopped by her son’s bed, peered down at the sleeping baby.

He was hooked up to a bilirubin light due to his jaundice, and tiny goggles protected his eyes.

JJ bent down and pressed a gentle kiss to his head before rubbing his little fingers.

“Good night, peanuts,” she said, the same as she’d said every night.

With a heavy but hopeful heart, she made her way out into the hall where Brantley and Reese were waiting.

“Hey, Mama,” Brantley greeted. “How are they?”

“Good.” She couldn’t stop smiling. “They’re perfect.”

“I bet they are. You want me to get you some wheels?” he offered, pointing toward a wheelchair.

“I’d rather walk, but we’re takin’ it slow.”

Brantley linked her arm to his and moved at her pace. It took some time, but it allowed them to give her an update on their day.

“Do you think there’s any truth to it?” she asked when Brantley finished. “A conspiracy? Really?”

“It’s got merit,” he admitted.

“What about you?” she asked Reese.

“I think it’s worth lookin’ into.”

“So that’s what we do now? Chase conspiracy theories?”

JJ felt Brantley’s mood shift as he slid his arm back and opened her hospital room door.

“You tell me.” His tone had an edge. “The information you held back seems to plug right into this one.”

JJ shot a look at Reese.

“We had to keep it from you,” she told Brantley. “It was too close to the wedding.”

“That’s what I hear,” he said, his jaw ticking.

“Come on, B. You know we wouldn’t’ve kept it from you otherwise. At the time, we didn’t know whether the information meant anything.” She looked at Reese again. “We still don’t. Do we?”

“Not yet. We need to map it out first.”

JJ eased into bed, watching Brantley pace in frustration.

“What’re the next steps?” she asked.

Brantley didn’t respond, but Reese finally did.

“Darius is digitizing the information Holt has. Once we have a chance to review it, we’ll map it out on a timeline, see what it tells us.”

“Okay, good.” JJ felt a flutter of excitement. She liked the idea of something to dig into. “How can I help?”

Brantley stopped pacing. “We need to bring the team in first. Get their input. See if they want to take on something like this.”

She watched her best friend, admiring how much he’d grown in the past couple of years.

Back in high school, he was so gung-ho, plowing ahead without considering the consequences.

Time, maturity, and likely the structure of the military had changed him.

He was a strategic thinker now, and she found it fascinating.

“And if they do?”

“Then we’ll go from there.”

JJ patted her lap. “Well, you know where to find me when you’re ready.”

“How long did the doc say you’ll be here?” Reese asked.

Watching Brantley, JJ felt his frustration and, yeah, a hint of betrayal, too.

She got it. She did. They’d kept some information from him.

At the time, she hadn’t wanted to, but Reese and Baz had convinced her.

And they were right. If they had shared that information, there was a good chance the wedding never would’ve taken place.

“At least another day,” she told him.

“And the babies?”

“Ten to fourteen days. They’ll assess them every day, so that could change.”

“Hopefully, you can get some sleep during that time. You’re gonna have your hands full.”

Yes, she was. And she was looking forward to it.

“We should go,” Brantley said, looking at her, his expression masked once again. “Let you get some rest.”

“Don’t be mad, B.”

“I’ll get over it,” he told her, and she knew he meant it. Brantley didn’t hold a grudge, and he didn’t let things fester. He addressed it and then moved on. She appreciated that about him.

“When you meet with the team, I’d like to be there,” she said, smoothing the blanket in her lap. “Even if it’s a video conference.”

Brantley moved closer, leaned down, and kissed her forehead. “We wouldn’t do it any other way. Get some rest.”

JJ watched as they walked out of the room, letting the information they’d shared sink in a bit.

She knew without a doubt that they were going to pursue this.

Secretly, she was excited about the prospect.

She was also nervous, but she wasn’t sure why.

She got the feeling they’d left something out. Something big.

Relaxing against the pillow, she sighed. Then again, there was a good chance she was the one looking for something that wasn’t there. These next few days were going to crawl by, and she wanted something to keep her busy until the twins were strong enough to come home.

At that point, there was a good chance she wouldn’t care one iota what case the team was working on. Her heart would be too full to worry about anything except for her sweet babies and the wonderful man who’d been by her side through it all.

Archer sat on his Harley, staring out at the land that seemed to go on for miles.

To his left, there was a small brick house, and straight back, a few hundred yards in front of him, what appeared to be the beginning of a barn.

Directly in front of him was a closed gate that held a sign that read: CAMP K-9 / STORME SHELTER COMING SOON.

Reese had called a few minutes ago, asking if he wanted that introduction to the owner of Camp K-9. Rather than sit on his ass at the B&B, Archer had eagerly jumped at the opportunity.

Now, as he waited for Brantley and Reese to arrive, he took it all in, wondering what the owners intended to do with so much space.

The idea of building a sanctuary for animals was one that Archer had given considerable thought to.

When he was a kid, back when he’d lived with his grandmother, he’d shared his big dreams of owning a lot of land and taking in all the injured and abandoned animals.

Every time he saw a dog or cat in a cage, their eyes wide and pleading, his heart had clenched, and he’d wanted nothing more than to steal them away and let them run free in a space made just for them.

Of course, taking on a venture such as that required far more money and resources than he had, so the dream had been just that.

He contributed by donating money to local no-kill shelters to help in whatever small way he could.

He wondered whether Camp K-9 would take on an endeavor like that.

Perhaps he could also donate his time, as well as money, if they did.

The sound of an engine had him peering back to see a black Chevy heading his way, bumping along the uneven dirt path.

It came to a stop a few feet away. A moment later, a man got out.

He was tall and broad, with long hair that was tied back with a leather strap.

He was wearing boots, jeans, and a dark blue T-shirt that hugged what looked to be a rather muscular body.

“You must be Archer,” the man greeted. “Reese just called. Said they were a few minutes out.”

Archer climbed off his motorcycle so he could greet the man. He walked toward him, holding out his hand when the man did the same. They shook.

“I’m Trey. Brantley’s brother.”

“Nice to meet you.”

“Magnus and Ava should be here in a few minutes. We’re supposed to be reviewing the blueprints for the new facility.

Construction starts in two days.” Trey pointed to what looked to be a barn that was being erected.

“We started the Ag barn for the high school first. They tell me it’ll only take a couple of weeks to complete it, so we were hopin’ to get it done before the rest of the construction begins. ”

Trey stepped up to the gate, unhooking the chain that was holding it closed.

“How much land are you working with?”

“We bought ninety-five acres,” he said, then pointed to the east. “And we’re gonna close on another two hundred in the next couple of weeks. It’s more than we anticipated when we started lookin’. We’ll be relocating the current Camp K-9 from Embers Ridge to here once it’s complete.”

“The sign says Storme Shelter. Is that something different?”

Trey nodded, pulling a set of keys from his pocket and unlocking the door of the small construction trailer.

“It’s a rescue sanctuary,” he explained. “The shelters in the area are so overcrowded, and there aren’t many options for large farm animals—horses and whatnot. Ava talked us into expanding.”

Archer smiled. Trey sounded put out, but his tone didn’t quite match the smile on his face.

“Here’s the blueprint,” Trey said, walking over to a large wooden table. “We finalized it last week.”

Archer skimmed the drawing, noticing there was a house and several other structures on the plan.

“We’ve got an aggressive timeline,” Trey explained. “We’re hopin’ to have it completed by March.”

“Six months?”

“Like I said. Aggressive.”

“Doable?” Archer asked, chuckling.

“With Ava driving, I’d say so. She managed to get all the permits before we even signed the papers.” Trey looked up, his grin growing wide. “Speak of the devil and she will appear.”

Archer glanced out the window to see a man and a woman heading toward them at a jog. No. Not a jog. They were running full out and not in a straight line.

“Is he … chasing her?”

Trey laughed. “He is. And if I’m right, he’ll paddle her ass when he catches her.”

A moment later, the door swung open and the woman barreled inside, giggling and squealing.

The man wasn’t far behind, growling softly.

Trey cleared his throat. “Magnus. Ava.”

They stopped instantly, clearly just realizing they weren’t alone.

“Hi,” Ava said, waving as she gasped for air.

Magnus looked at Trey, then at Archer. “Hey.”

“Archer, this is Magnus Storme and Ava March. My soon-to-be husband and wife.”

“Husband and wife. Interesting.” Archer shook their hands.

“Best of both worlds,” Magnus said, gripping his hand firmly. “You’re the investigator the task force just hired, huh?”

Archer nodded. It wasn’t official, but he figured it probably should be. There was no reason for him to pretend otherwise. “And you must be the Storme in Storme Shelter.”

“In my defense, I didn’t come up with the name.” Magnus’s eyes were a bit dreamy as he looked at Ava.

“What do you think of the plans?” Ava asked, glancing from him to the blueprints on the table.

“It’s impressive.”

“We hope it will be,” she said. “For the animals, anyway.”

“I think it’s commendable what you do.”

“Thank you. It’s not just us, though,” Magnus said. “We’ve got a great team, and if we’re lucky, we’ll have some volunteers.”

“Well, you can count me in if you’re looking for someone to sign up.”

“Animal lover,” Trey muttered with a smirk.

“That I am.”

“We’ll gladly take whatever help you’re willing to offer,” Magnus said. “If all goes well, we’ll be up and running by May or June.”

“March,” Ava corrected. “We’ll be open for business in March.”

Magnus grinned, mouthed, “May,” and subtly shook his head. Evidently, he was a bit more pragmatic.

“In the meantime, you can swing by Camp K-9 in Embers Ridge. Check out the search and rescue operations. Reese mentioned you’ve bonded with Tesha.”

Archer chuckled. “Like you said. Animal lover.”

A knock interrupted them a moment before the door opened, and Reese and Tesha strolled into the cramped space.

Tesha’s hind end started wagging before Magnus could crouch down to pet her.

“Hey, beautiful. What’s shakin’?”

Tesha lifted her paw to shake.

Archer watched the interaction, noticing how easily Magnus communicated with Tesha.

“Where’s Brantley?” Trey asked.

“We dropped him at the house.”

Archer heard something in Reese’s tone, but he didn’t know the man well enough to identify what it was.

Obviously, Trey noticed too. “Problem?”

“It’s all good.” Reese stepped over to the table. “This looks great. Construction startin’ soon?”

Archer crouched down when Tesha came over. He rubbed her head and her back, listening while Trey and Ava outlined what was what, noting the construction timelines.

“If you need anything, just holler. I’ll stop in whenever we’ve got a few minutes to help out.”

“We’re gonna put Archer to work, too,” Ava told him.

Standing tall, Archer smiled. “Whenever you need me.”

“As long as we don’t need him first,” Reese corrected.

“What he said.”

Reese cocked an eyebrow, clearly anticipating an answer.

Archer managed to sidestep the conversation for a few minutes, chatting with Trey, Magnus, and Ava about the accommodations they were working on.

But when they were back at their vehicles, Archer waited until the trio had left before giving Reese the answer he was waiting for.

“You already know I’m all in,” he said sincerely. “Just like everyone else on your team.”

“Then I guess I should welcome you.” Reese held out his hand. “We know you’ll be an asset to the team.”

Archer would agree with him there. But only because he consistently gave 150% to everything he did.