Page 16 of Valor (Long Hot Summer: Christian Romantic Suspense #2)

CHAPTER THREE

After an hour of looking through files, Allen offered Heather another slice of pizza. She declined as her brow furrowed.

“I’ve looked through more than thirty of these drives, and nothing looks out of the ordinary. All I have to show for my time is a sore back from hunching over.” She closed her laptop and stretched.

His first inclination was to change the subject and possibly find out how much she knew about his father, which would be the only thing her father would hold against him. Dad was literally the only skeleton in his closet, at least, that he’d been able to find.

The fatigue painted shadows on her usually cheerful face, so he held his tongue. Trust had to be earned. She would share with him once she trusted him. She’d said she didn’t know, so maybe he was jumping to conclusions. It wasn’t like they’d become good friends over the course of this case. With her father’s distrust and dislike, they probably wouldn’t even be cordial after they found him.

He headed to the sofa and grabbed the remote to turn on the television. The house was far too quiet. Some noise would help break the tension and give them something to talk about other than pizza and her father. The ten o’clock news blared to life and images of two men splashed across the screen.

The correspondent spoke to the audience, “Two men were murdered in Rapid City, South Dakota. They were found within a block of the Police Department. Police are asking for your assistance. If you recognize either of these two men, please contact the Rapid City Police department at?—”

“I know them,” Heather’s voice shook as she stared, open-mouthed, at the screen.

He waited to see if she said more. Every hint of the pink tinge to her cheeks had evaporated like snow in spring.

“What do you mean? Like, you know who they are or were they were good friends of yours?” His police training kicked in.

She shook her head and seemed to recall she was there with him. “I took pictures of them in the Badlands. They acted strange, like they wouldn’t smile, and they crowded around us afterward to look at the pictures. When they offered to take a shot of us in return, I almost said no because of how odd they were. The only reason I really remember is because, while the one was taking a shot using my phone, the other took a picture of us with his. I assumed it was to say something on social media about the nice people who offered to help them, especially since they asked for my business card. I thought it might be good for business. There was never a tag on any socials, so I figured they changed their minds.”

His thoughts whirred with possibilities and none of them were good. “Unless they gave you something without your knowledge and took your picture so they could find you again later, but never got that far.”

If possible, her face paled even more. “And now they’re dead. So, whoever found their phone is after me.”

He nodded because the police would know who they were if they’d been found with their phones. “That makes the most sense. If the victim’s phones were missing, then IDing the bodies is harder. The police would start with a Driver’s License, but a phone is nearly as handy in finding out who someone is and who their relatives are.” Which meant her picture was probably one of the last things these two men had on their camera roll before someone—probably the killer—took them.

“What could they have hidden on me?” She looked around her as if she would have inspiration by looking at things in his house.

“A thumb drive. They wanted a drive. It’s what they asked for in the note. What did you have with you that day?” If he had to guess, it would be in her purse or camera bag. Women’s purses were notoriously full of things. Noticing a random, tiny thumb drive would be unlikely.

She turned toward her bags on the sofa. “I only carried my camera case with me. I’ve never had my purse stolen, but when I’m distracted by getting the right light and filter for a shot, I’m not thinking about my purse. So, I don’t bring it.”

Smart woman. He nodded toward the sofa, inviting her to get the bag. He would not touch her personal belongings unless she asked him to. She rushed over and gently took the camera and lenses out, then dumped the remaining contents on the table beside the couch. Lamplight bathed the random items in a soft glow. There were lip glosses, pens, a few slips of paper, a few crumpled receipts, and six thumb drives. One stood out, though, as she clearly used the same brand for business use. The odd one was gray and shaped differently.

Heather picked it up and looked at it. “What do you think is on here? It’s not mine.”

He wished she hadn’t touched it as he pulled an evidence bag from his uniform pocket and breathed deeply.

“I don’t know. Whatever it is, those two men died for knowing.” Suddenly, things were not looking good for Heather’s father. If he hadn’t been able to tell them where the drive was, he was likely already dead. They’d probably taken him to lure Heather into a situation where she would meet them to get her father back.

“I could give it to them. Maybe they would exchange it for my dad.” Her brows rose in unveiled hope.

“What if something on that drive harms people? What if they don’t believe that you didn’t look at it? Do you think they aren’t willing to kill you?” He wasn’t trying to frighten her senseless, but she couldn’t simply hand over the drive to people she didn’t know and think life was going to return to normal.

She looked at the clear baggie holding the drive. “I don’t know. I just want Dad back. He’s all I have left. Mom is gone. I don’t have any other family.”

He could relate. He’d never known his mother, so he didn’t know any family besides his father. Dad wasn’t exactly a model citizen, though no one else seemed to think Dad’s lack of character affected his son. No one else knew what his dad had done to get him, except Heather’s father.

“I should let the Rapid City PD know you have this.” He wasn’t sure his force could handle something this big.

“What good would that do? This is part of my case. My father’s case. Not that one. The drive was in my bag and we’re assuming there’s a connection. I want to see what’s on it. If I know, then I’ll have more to bargain with when it comes to getting my dad back.”

Her grit was exciting, but not something he could encourage. “If you tell them too much, you could put a bigger target on your head.” He didn’t want to see that happen. Not to her or her dad.

“I have a mark on me already. This way, the guys who did this are more likely to get caught.” She clenched her fist.

He nodded and felt the need to tell her what he innately knew. “I need you to be prepared for the fact that your father might not be coming back. Whoever this is, they feel like the information on that drive is life or death. Those two men were trying to get whatever is on that drive to someone else, maybe the police. It cost them their lives. They may have known the risk. The bodies of those men were found within a block of the police department, so whoever did this wanted them found. They wanted you to know they aren’t afraid to kill to get their hands on what they want.”

She crossed her arms as she stared at the bag. “I don’t know what to do.”

Jasper growled and headed for the front door. Allen followed, holding up his hand for Heather to stay silent and where she was. Jasper didn’t growl for delivery people or his father, so whoever was out there wasn’t known to him. The dog pawed at the door to be let out, but Allen held him back. Instead, he used his thumbprint to unlock his gun safe.

Heather sucked in a breath behind him, but he couldn’t turn back to her. He had to focus on who could’ve found his house. Had someone followed them home that he hadn’t seen? He was good about watching his rearview, even when he wasn’t on duty. Being a cop could be dangerous on or off the clock. He looked through the peephole in the front door to see if anything seemed out of the ordinary.

His security light had tripped, meaning something was moving out in the yard. It could be a rabbit, but it could also be someone. Having Heather there and knowing her life was in danger made him certain it was nothing innocent.

“I think you should go downstairs,” he said. He’d barely finished when the glass in his back door exploded, raining down all over the floor.

“Scratch that. Come over here. Now.” He hated yelling, but someone was breaking into the house, and he wasn’t about to let them get Heather.

She grabbed the thumb drive, shoved it in her pocket and raced to his side. “What should I do?”

While she’d seemed afraid when she was only thinking about the danger, in the thick of it, she didn’t seem to have any fear.

“Stay behind me so I can shield you. We need to get out get out of here safely.” He grabbed his cellphone and quickly called in his situation, keeping his voice down now that he could be heard outside.

A chill wind raced down the hall and cooled his heated skin. Who was out there and how close were they? Was the front safe? If there was more than one of them, it might not be. Just because they’d shot out the back didn’t mean they hadn’t left someone to watch the front. This felt like a trap.

“Allen? What should we do?” Heather’s urgent whisper ratcheted his heart rate.

“We hold this position until we’re forced to move.” If he went out the front, straight into a trap, he’d never forgive himself. Until someone came in the back door, he would stay right where he was. Someone would have to reach in through the broken back window and down to get to the knob to unlock his door. The pane was only in the top third. That left him open to return fire if they showed themselves.

Tense moments passed and sweat gathered on his forehead. Jasper lunged toward the back door, barking and growling. “Jasper, stay,” he commanded. The dog obeyed, skidding to a stop halfway through the kitchen. Deep growls seemed to fill the whole house.

He heard someone touch the doorknob behind him and yanked Heather away from it as he took aim at where the center mass of the invader would be. The door slowly opened, and his father stood there, his eyes wide.

In the next instant, Heather screamed as Jasper broke out in urgent barking. He whipped around as a shadow crossed the open window of the back door. Allen took off after the person, Jasper directly on his heels.

“Freeze!” he called as he unlocked and opened the back door. Pitch black darkness met him. He should’ve installed security lights back there too, but he hadn’t gotten around to it yet. The house had needed a lot of work when he’d purchased it, so that was on his list.

Grabbing a flashlight from the cabinet near the back door, he took chase after the shadow. “Freeze!” He tried getting them to stop once again. A moment later, he heard a door slam and an engine start.

If he could get close enough, he might be able to get a license plate number. That would tell him where the car was from, since the first number on South Dakota plates corresponded with the town the owner was from.

The car didn’t turn its lights on. He only saw it getting away because of brake lights for a mere second before the sound of the car disappeared. He called in what had happened, hoping his backup could take chase. With no clue what the car looked like or what the person looked like, they would’ve had to see the car in his driveway.

Dispatch called him right back and let him know that they were still five minutes out. The shooter had gotten away yet again.

* * *

Heather kept her thoughts to herself as Allen took her back to the police station. In her coat pocket, she clutched the thumb drive. That was the only possible connection to her father she had, and she wasn’t about to give it up.

“We should go back to my house if that note is still there. I want a picture of what it says.”

Allen glanced over at her, the dashboard lights creating an eerie glow over his angled features. “It’s in evidence. I can get a picture of it. Why?”

She took a deep breath. They’d focused most of their attention on the threat in the note, not the other information. There had been numbers listed that looked like coordinates. “I want to look up what those numbers mean.”

“I have my men looking into all of that. They didn’t find anything yet.” He sounded a little put out that she would question him. Given how her father felt about him, she understood why.

“Look, I’m not trying to step on your toes or get in the way of your men. I want to find my father. End of story. Am I to a point where I trust you? Maybe. You saved my life when you could’ve shoved me toward the door with the thumb drive and no one would’ve known what happened to me. It’s not like we let anyone know where I would be.” She adjusted her watch back and forth until it felt more comfortable on her wrist.

“Your trust is appreciated, however begrudging. I know how hard that can be. I saw you carrying signs with your father, so I know you probably feel the same way he does. It doesn’t matter. You’re still under my jurisdiction, which means I don’t want anything to happen to you. Just so you know, two of my men knew where you’d be. I’ll give you their names if you want them. I don’t think either of them are a part of this, but if it makes you trust me more, I’ll do that.”

She wasn’t na?ve enough to think that the offer to give up department information was common. He really wanted her trust. “Unless it happens again, I’ll assume these creeps somehow followed us. I don’t like the idea that someone on your team might be trying to kill me.” Not only did that give her a massively uneasy stomach, but it would also make hiding from them impossible unless she left the safety of Allen’s protection. So far, trust or not, she was safest with him.

He tapped the steering wheel as he drove down the deserted road. He’d left his father back at his house with one of the officers who was checking the damage and looking for evidence. His father hadn’t seemed concerned in the slightest about the broken window. He’d stumbled to the room she’d planned to use and closed the door before they’d left.

“I thought your dad rarely came by.” She’d heard her father and Oliver talking about Allen’s dad. He was a drunk, though apparently harmless. He knew to get rides from friends after he’d been drinking, but that was all she knew about the man.

“He shows up when he needs a place to stay for a day or two. We have the talk about how he should sober up and start coming to church. He grumbles at me, then leaves. It’s a pretty consistent cycle.”

Her dad had suffered after losing Mom and he’d turned to drinking for a very short time. She’d confronted him and his shame had forced him to throw the bottles away. That was different though, because her father had only been drinking for a brief time, not a lifetime.

“I’m sorry to hear that.”

“You sound like you didn’t know.” Allen pulled to a stop in front of the police department.

“I knew he drank because of what I’d heard, but I didn’t know anything else. I’m not up to date on my Wall gossip.” Heat burned her ears. He’d probably been trampled by the gossip train enough and here she was, bringing it back up.

“I’d assumed you were aware, given your feelings about my election.” He turned off the engine, then the headlights.

“I had no feelings on the matter. I was supporting my father, who feels deeply about drinking and fornication. He’s a good man. If he says I have reason to want someone else in that position, then I believe him.” Though that hadn’t gone as far as the actual voting booth. While Allen’s lack of a mother didn’t mean anything bad had happened, Dad had hinted that was the reason.

“You had no feelings on the matter. How could you not if you voted against me?”

She laughed, not that what he said was funny but because that’s how she dealt with confrontation. “I didn’t vote at all. After helping Dad with his campaign against you, I was run ragged, not to mention all the shoots I had during that time. I would never vote in an election where I couldn’t do my own research. Just because I helped hold signs doesn’t mean I hold enough of an opinion to vote that way.”

Control of every muscle made him look like a statue in the near darkness. “What if other people thought you did? What if you changed minds just because people trust you ?” He held completely still and stared ahead.

“I’m sorry for that. As of today, I’m glad you won.”

Allen snorted. “I’m sure Chase Brown would’ve helped you just as much. He was actually a pretty good cop. I wanted to win, but the county wouldn’t have done worse if he’d been elected.” Allen got out of the car and pushed the door closed.

Before he could come around, she got out and gathered her belongings from the back seat. She met him at the front and, without asking, he took the two heaviest bags from her, then headed for the keypad entrance. “Where will we go?” She shivered in the chilly breeze.

“I’m not sure yet. I’m going to check in with dispatch and see if anything else is going on. If not, then I’ll use an unmarked car to take us to one of the summer rentals around Wall. They shouldn’t be in use right now and the county will cover it so you can hide. Might be chilly though, they rarely have heat.”

Her chest tightened. “What about you?” They knew where he lived now. He shouldn’t assume they were only after her when they’d gone to his house and shot through his back window.

“I’ll be there with you. Dad will take care of Jasper while we’re gone. Without me there to pester him about his habits, he’ll probably stay. He might even fix the window if he gets a mind to.” Allen’s long stride made her rush to keep up.

“And the drive?” she whispered as she noticed the cameras along the hallway documenting their arrival.

“I’d like to know what’s on it too. I just hope that it won’t corrupt whatever computer we use. It might have a virus embedded on it. That’s how cyber threats spread, and secrets are kept. If there’s a virus, you’d have a few seconds to put in a code to disable the corruption before it hacks your computer.”

She certainly couldn’t afford a new one with what she made as a photographer. They’d already need to repair Dad’s, so she couldn’t take the risk of destroying her own. “What do you recommend?”

“We wait until I can talk to a friend in cyber security. I don’t have anyone like that on my force, but I have friends. We’ll have them look into it as soon as possible.” He stopped at a wide window with a narrow ledge. There was one small area where items could be passed under the glass, but it was filled with a door.

“Jackie, she’s with me.”

A woman sitting behind a bank of computer monitors nodded her head and pushed some buttons in front of her. The door next to the window buzzed, then opened. Heather had never seen a door quite that thick, yet it swung out all on its own.

She hurried into the room behind Allen, and it closed behind her, much quieter than she expected, with a click to lock them in.

“Any calls?” Allen sat down in a rolling desk chair near Jackie.

The dispatcher looked at him, then over at Heather, and back again, as if to ask if she was allowed to say anything in front of the stranger. Allen nodded at the unasked question, and Jackie proceeded.

“We’ve had one drunk and disorderly. The only other calls tonight were out to your house. Did you see anything? Is everyone alright?”

Heather didn’t want to look too closely at anything, since she knew she really shouldn’t be there. He’d only brought her because she was in danger and there was no one else she could stay with. She wandered to the window and noticed a keypad near the side which had to open the little door under it to allow things to pass through without opening the big door to the side.

She ignored most of the conversation going on behind her, telling herself that she shouldn’t make anything here her business. She had enough with what was going on in her own life.

Allen’s deep voice penetrated her thoughts. “Is Shady Oaks still open for the season?”

The place was old and out of the way, if she recalled correctly. Mom used to rent one of the cabins there every summer, just to get out of the house. The owner gave Mom a discount because they’d been school friends. That fact hadn’t sat well with Dad, but he always enjoyed their mini vacations all the same.

“Far as I know, they are. I think they try to stay open until the temperatures get below a certain point, but you’d have to ask Ben.”

In the reflection of the window, she saw Allen check his watch. “It’s early for Ben. Doesn’t he do campfires out there with doughnut making?”

Jackie laughed. “That he does, though he may have stopped for the season. I think business slows down quite a bit after school starts.”

Allen snorted. “There are enough people homeschooling now that it’s probably busier for longer. I’ll head to my office and give him a call. Thank you for the update.”

Jackie waved him away and after the sound of a few buttons clicking, the heavy door opened once more. Heather wanted to ask more questions, but she’d already been a burden on Allen tonight. He’d been shot at in his own home for her, someone he didn’t like. His comment about voting had made her feel like he was losing trust in her as much as he’d thought she didn’t trust him. Being an elected official, he probably thought people who didn’t vote at all were useless. She’d always felt that if she didn’t know exactly what someone stood for, she would not go into a voting booth and elect them.

She followed him further into the belly of the building, which felt very closed in, despite looking large on the outside. Even the florescent lights made the space feel cramped. Allen used a scan card to open his office, and he let her inside.

Papers scattered his desk and file cabinets lined the back. Even though he’d been in office for almost a year, nothing on the walls was his own. Allen sat at his desk and made a call to Shady Oaks. Ben answered and she heard his muffled voice tell Allen they could use a cabin free of charge. He’d even lock up the security gate to keep people out.

For some reason, that didn’t make her feel any more secure about going there.