Chapter Twenty-Three
Running club had a new member, and Luke was quite smug over it. He’d been working on Abriella for months. It should have come as no surprise to him that it was Connor who finally convinced her to give the group a chance. The two of them were peas in a pod when it came to their shared interests. An added benefit of her joining them for this scheduled run was that all their partners could spend time together, too. With Taz, Lily, and Theo back at Connor’s house, the three of them could relax their protective instincts enough to truly enjoy the camaraderie of the support group.
The late afternoon had turned to evening during their circuit of the National Mall, the sun riding low on the horizon as they gathered in a circle on the lawn. One of the members shared a solemn story with the group, quietly memorializing the passing of a fellow soldier on this date years earlier. The somber atmosphere, reverent and sobering, inspired them all to share the memories of those they’d lost. It was an unfortunate thing that every single one of them had a list of names tucked in the back of their memory. It wasn”t just service that brought them together, but shared loss, too.
Those of them who had moved into civilian careers as law enforcement or agency personnel, of which there were many, had additional names to add to those memorial lists. Luke felt the weight of Connor’s sadness and guilt as he spoke about his former coworker Miles Fitzpatrick. He didn”t miss the way Abriella snuck her hand into his as his voice wavered and cracked with the emotional burden of living when others did not. The choices all of them had made were rewarding, but the cost was weighty.
Contemplative and lost to their memories, both good and bad, the group spared a moment of silence in honor of the fallen. Sunset colored the world rose gold, but the rose-colored glasses had long since been discarded by each and every one of them. Still, as the iconic white landmarks all around them turned pink-hued and gilt-edged, Luke found beauty in the sadness. There was something precious about their ability to sit in this space together while holding space for those who could not be with them. He wiped his fingers over his eyes to dash away the physical evidence of how profoundly the moment affected him.
Eventually, the lighting faded to cool blue and grey. Participants dispersed in ones and twos, exchanging quiet parting wishes and promises to come together again next week. Luke thrived on those promises. He suspected Connor had grown to rely on the routine as well. Even Abriella made promises of her own to join again. Luke smiled to himself over it. There was strength in numbers when it came to living civilian life after service in the armed forces, no matter how long any of them had been on the civilian side.
“Ay, I”m hungry.” Abriella jumped to her feet and held a hand out to Connor. The fact that she was a full foot shorter than him made the action comical and brought a levity to the somber atmosphere that Luke clung to.
“Y’all wanna grab dinner? Theo said he was making something for them to eat, so it”s just the three of us.” Connor stretched and twisted, cracking his neck with an audible pop.
“I”m game. As much as he protested, I know Taz was looking forward to spending time with the kids.” Luke collected his water bottle and climbed to his feet.
“He”s an idiot,” Abriella added with a laugh. “The more he complains, the more he loves whatever he is complaining about.”
“Reckon that’s true. I never looked at it that way.” Connor fell into step with Luke and Abriella as they walked toward the nearby parking lot. “Y’all ever gonna have kids of your own, Luke?”
“Nope. No way.”
Abriella made a soft tch sound and shook her head. “I don”t believe that at all.”
“It”s true. We’ve discussed it before.” Luke shrugged, pulling the keys from the pocket of his running shorts. “Taz is still working through a lot of stuff. I was always apathetic toward kids, but he’s downright petrified over the idea. We’re okay with fun gay uncles status.”
“How about y’all, Bell?” Connor turned his attention toward her as they walked.
“We haven”t talked about it. I want kids, but… I do not know what Lily thinks.”
“Huh,” Connor exhaled, growing pensive and quiet beside them.
“Biggs, spit it out.”
Connor did not, in fact, spit it out. He pretended he didn”t hear the question at all as an awkward, weighty silence fell over them. It followed them into Luke’s car, all five blocks to the diner Luke had decided on, and all the way to the booth the waitress pointed them toward. Luke smothered a laugh as Abriella made Connor jump with a well-aimed kick to the shin under the table.
“Fine, good Lord.” He rubbed his hands over his face before pushing them back through his sweat-damp short hair. “I got kids, technically. Anna and Toby. I reckon it ain”t the same but it is.”
“Si, but,” Abriella added, propping her elbows on the tabletop. “You always wanted to raise a family. Babies. A whole football team”s worth, if I remember correct?”
“Yeah,” Connor mumbled with a small smile toying at his dimples. Luke reached across the table and struck a fist to his shoulder.
“What does the partner think about it?” Luke sat back to peruse the menu, even if he already knew what he was ordering.
“I mean, we only briefly touched on it. Reckon he”s on board with a proper talk on it, though.” Connor shrugged and drummed the edge of the table with his fingers. “Prolly not for a while, I reckon.”
“I will spoil all your babies, Biggs. Start now. Why wait?” Abriella grinned and flagged the waitress down with a wave.
“Mayhaps ‘cause we got two troubled kids to worry about already?”
“Mn, perhaps. But it”s also something to discuss. Often and in great detail.” Luke paused and relayed his order to the young girl. All three ordered burgers and water. He wasn”t at all surprised there. Once they were free from distractions, he returned his attention to the antsy blond across the table from him. “I”m sure the kids have an opinion on it too. You can discuss it all as a family.”
Connor’s dimples deepened as his gaze dropped. He’d clearly been pondering a lot of things, and the mention of family brought a brighter smile to his face. Luke was thrilled to see him shine with optimism—the young man’s outlook had been so bleak and troubled for too long.
“Ay. Dios mio.” Abriella clapped her hands together once. “When is the proposal? We will help.”
Connor”s eyes shot up so fast, Luke was worried the man would give himself whiplash. Laughter bubbled from his lips over Connor’s horrified expression.
“Jesus, Bell… I ain”t tryna rush nothin’ here. We’re barely back on solid ground.” He passed a palm over his mouth and down his chin.
“Pssh. As if you are not a sure thing. That man loves you. You had a bump in the road, but you didn”t crash. It”s okay to hope, mi sol.” Abriella stood up briefly to pat the top of Connor’s head, promptly returning to her seat as the waitress appeared with three ice waters.
“Mayhaps, but I ain”t taken shit for granted again. Been there, done that. No thanks.”
The conversation turned to lighter topics as they rehydrated and waited for their food. It didn”t take much longer for it to arrive, and the conversation dwindled out in preference for consuming their burgers. Three former Marines after a long run meant it didn”t take them long to plow through dinner. It was like a boot camp mess hall as food disappeared in mere moments. Some habits died hard, others were immortal.
Plates were cleared from the table and their water glasses were topped off before the conversation returned, taking a turn for the ominous as they lowered their voices and broached the sensitive topic. Connor hadn”t responded well at all the first time Abriella and Luke tried to discuss it with him.
“Now that you”ve had a little time to adjust,” Luke carefully began, taking time to select his words carefully. “I could really use your gut on the subject of the location where we found the pottery and the picture of everyone.”
“Mn. It”s all wrong and it ain”t sitting right.” Connor sat up straighter and scowled. “It all means something. The location. The pictures. The slashed tires. I just ain”t able to figure what it”s supposed to mean. It”s a sick joke and way too personal for my tastes.”
“Si. Clearly, it is someone on the inside, but who?” Abriella tore strips from her napkin as she spoke. “Who, why… without a motive, it doesn”t make sense. This isn”t about politics. This isn”t about Adelaide. It”s about us.”
Luke turned her words over in his head before adding to the conversation. “Are we even dealing with the same group? The messaging is different. So are the targets. Theo was originally a pawn to get to his mother… but now he, and to a lesser degree Taz and Lily, are the targets.”
“Yes, but the threats are being sent to us.” Connor spun his water glass in a circle with his fingers, scowling at it as he worked through his thoughts out loud. “They”re communicating with us about them. And you”re right. It ain”t political. It”s personal.”
“Forgive me, I know this won”t sit well, but are they even threats or are we simply being toyed with?” Luke held his hand up as Connor shot him a dirty look. “Hear me out… the unsub has had multiple opportunities to make good on his threats. He had them in his literal sights multiple times without detection. What purpose is an empty threat other than to incite paranoia? If he was truly targeting them, wouldn”t he have already taken the opportunity to do it?”
“Sick game or not, I ain”t gonna pretend like it ain”t serious. Not making that mistake again.” Connor swiped his water from the table and downed it in three gulps before setting it back down with more force than was necessary.
“And right you are to do so. It is serious, and I”m not minimizing the seriousness of it. I”m just trying to get one step ahead of the motivation so we can stop these fuckers.” Luke waved his hand toward the waitress with a nod.
“Marissa promised she is working on it. All we can do is stay aware, si?” Abriella reached out to snatch the bill from the waitress with a victorious whoop. “Dios mio, I finally win!”
“Since when is it a win to pay the bill, Bella?” Luke tried to swipe it from her, with no luck.
“Since this cabrón always poaches it.” She wagged her finger at Connor”s guilty expression. “It is my turn. I win. Ha! You will need to be faster next time.”
Connor’s troubled expression melted into a soft, subdued smile. “Faster… or smarter? I reckon I could always drop my card on my way to the bog, eh?”
Abriella narrowed her eyes and threw a wad of torn napkin across the table. Their laughter was a balm to the previously tense atmosphere and eased Luke’s apprehension just enough for him to relax his posture. The relief was short lived as all three of their phones, face down on the table, vibrated in unison. Every eye was drawn by it as an ominous silence blanketed their bubble. There was no way that was a coincidence, and that usually meant something bad.
In unison, the phones were grabbed from the table. A collective gasp rose as they opened the group text from an unknown number. Luke’s stomach dropped, and then flew into his throat as bile churned with the burger and his abject fear. A grainy, unfocused photo appeared on his screen and he knew that Connor and Abriella were looking at the same thing. Theo, Taz, and Lily were pictured sitting in a semicircle on the familiar patio of Connor”s home. Text had been overlaid atop the image, labeling them in sequence.
Eeny. Theo.
Meeny. Taz.
Miny. Lily.
Before they could react, each phone vibrated again, one by one. This time, the message was sent only to Luke. He navigated to the new message and felt rage build in his core as a close up picture of Taz appeared on his screen. The text on this image read “MOE” in all capital letters. His eyes shot toward Bell and Connor to find similar expressions of rage and fear. They turned their phones toward one another. Connor”s screen displayed a close up of Theo with the same caption. Likewise, Abriella had been sent a similar image of Lily.
The trio went from freeze to flight and fight in the blink of an eye. They were on their feet in a flash, out the door even faster, and inside the car before Luke had even fully registered the implications. Connor was on the phone in the passenger seat, his voice wavering with the intensity of his terror.
“Baby, Teddy. Listen to me. I need you all to go inside right now. Move slow, but do it right this instant. Close the doors. Arm the system. Shut the blinds. Stay. Away. From. The. Windows. Understood?”
In the backseat, Abriella made a phone call of her own. “This is Agent Abriella Garcia, FBI. I need every available unit on Maple Avenue immediately!”
All Luke could do was drive. Hands clenched tight around the steering wheel, he let his adrenaline push the accelerator and tried not to let the fear cloud his reaction time as he darted in and out of traffic with the singular goal of getting to Taz. The technicolor red and white lights of the cars around him became the focus of his attention, stark in contrast to the dark of the night. Sick game or not, the threat was real. The fact that he didn”t have a target to focus on made the nightmare even more terrifying.