Chapter 18
Brandon had kept thenews from Leah that they had found Will hiding in town mainly because they still weren’t able to locate him. His hope was that when Mrs. Haggerty had spotted him, he’d finally just left town. He knew it was a long shot but for Leah’s safety, he hoped it was the truth.
Nothing else bad had happened in town and the girls had security both at home and at the studio. Plus, they tried to stay together still, especially in secluded areas.
But Brandon wasn’t giving up on finding him.
He and Tim were researching the shed that he had fled from in Mrs. Haggerty’s backyard, in the hopes that they missed something the first two times.
“I’m gonna take the inside,” he told Tim. “You take the outside and surrounding areas.”
“Got it,” Tim said and walked away after the doors were open.
Mrs. Haggerty kept the shed in immaculate condition, only putting her lawnmower and her gardening items inside it.
When Tim had first searched the shed, he had found a blanket and some food that Will had obviously been using.
Those items were back at the station where Brandon had been looking at them daily trying to find any clue that could help him find Will.
Looking around inside the shed, nothing new stood out to him. It was exactly the same as the pictures he had hanging up at the station. Lawnmower, leaf blower, garden bucket, tools. And then something hit him.
“Hey Tim, can you come in here for a minute,” he yelled.
“Did you find anything?” Tim poked his head in.
“It’s what I didn’t find that has me concerned. If this is where she keeps the lawnmower, where is the gas can?”
“Huh,” Tim said. “I don’t remember there ever being one. I’m almost positive there wasn’t one in the pictures we took.”
“Go ask Mrs. Haggerty,” he directed.
Tim ran off and Brandon contemplated the missing gas can. Could Will be planning something so dangerous as burning something down? Or was it something else entirely?
The idea that Will was now more dangerous than originally thought, had him realizing that he needed to tell Leah what was going on.
He pulled his phone out and sent her a quick text asking if he could come by the studio so they could talk. Tim was walking toward him, his face showing his worst fear.
“It’s supposed to be there,” he said looking glum. “She’s not sure how she missed it when we first searched but it must have just slipped her mind.”
“Fuck,” Brandon swore. “That means we now have a psychopath on our hands who very likely wants to burn something or someone.” That someone being Leah.
“What do we need to do?”
Brandon wasn’t sure. “I don’t know. I think I might be in over my head here.” He didn’t really have anyone to call. His predecessor, Chief Dodd had passed away and there was no one else in Cedarville with experience.
“What about Woodridge?” Tim said, reading his mind. “They have a Chief who has been around for a while and since they are a bigger town than us, maybe he will have some suggestions.”
Brandon looked at Tim. “That’s a great idea, Tim. I’ll call over there and see what he says.”
They left Mrs. Haggerty’s in their separate cars. Tim was heading back to the station and Brandon was going to tell Leah the bad news.
He knew she was getting stronger and gaining more self-confidence every day. He could see it in the way she spoke and acted. She was no longer afraid or worried that people knew who she was, and that was a big deal. The thought of giving her this news and changing that, worried him.
Pulling into the studio, he parked next to Leah’s car which was the only one in the lot. He found her typing away on her computer at her desk.
Her hair was pulled up into some kind of strange ponytail with stray pieces coming out all sides. Her foot was tapping to the song that played, one that he didn’t know but liked immediately.
“Who is this?” he said leaning against the door frame. She didn’t seem startled, which was also something that had just come in the last few days. When she had first gotten to town she jumped at every sound.
Glancing to him for just a second before continuing to type she said, “Cold War Kids.”
“I like it.” He stepped into the room and took a seat at what he knew was Melanie’s desk. “Where are Carly and Mel?”
“They went to grab some food.” She typed a few more words. “Done,” she said and turned to face him. “Hi.” Her face lit up in a huge smile.
“Hi,” he leaned in and gave her a kiss.
“I didn’t mean to ignore you,” she said. “I just had to finish that or Mel would add ‘Kill Leah’ to her to-do list.
He laughed but knew full well that Melanie would do that.
“What did you need to talk about?”
“We’ve had a development.”
“Did you find Will?” Her eyes went wide.
“No.” How the hell did he tell her about him hiding in the shed and the gas, knowing that it would break her spirit.
“It’s bad, right?” She was picking the nail polish off one of her nails, something he’d seen her do when she was nervous. Wanting to comfort her, he slid forward in his chair and took her hands in his.
“It’s come to our attention that Will has been staying in a shed on someone”s property and he has stolen gasoline from the shed.”
Her brow furrowed. “What does that mean? That he stole gas?”
“It could mean nothing.”
“But you don’t think that?”
“No,” he shook his head. “I think he plans to use the gas to start a fire. I just don’t know where.”
He watched her face carefully looking for any indication that she would revert back to her previous self. It never came.
“What do you need me to do?” Her voice was strong and confident.
Confident that he would be able to keep her safe. And that was the problem. He had no idea if he could.
“I know you guys still try to go places in groups and spend as little time as possible alone, but it has to be even more now.”
“Okay.” She nodded. “What else?”
“I...I don’t know.” He answered honestly. “I’ve never done an investigation like this. I’m flying by the seat of my pants.”
Her face softened. “After my dad and my uncle devastated our family by stealing from their clients and friends, I thought that trusting someone meant giving them control. And I swore that I would never do that again. But then I met you. And I realized something. Trust doesn’t equal control. And Brandon, I trust you, with my life. And part of the reason I trust you is that you don’t ever try to control me. You let me be crazy and insane when I need to be. But because I trust you, I almost never am crazy or insane anymore.”
He was floored by her words. “I’m going to do everything in my power to not let this guy get near you. But what if it’s not enough?”
“It will be. You aren’t the bad guy here, Brandon. You are the one who is doing everything he can to make sure I am safe. Please don’t forget that.”
He was just going in for a kiss when they both jumped back from a loud siren.
“What the hell.”
“That’s the alarm,” Leah said and pointed to a panel on the wall where it was flashing red.
Brandon stood and pulled his gun out. “Stay here,” he said and left the office.
He turned the corner, gun pointed out only to find Carly and Melanie arguing and trying to shut off the alarm.
“What the hell you two,” he said and re-holstered his gun.
“Thank God,” Carly said. “Do you know how to shut this thing up?”
At the control panel, he punched in a code and the alarm stopped blaring. “How did you set it off?”
“We both had our hands full and couldn’t hit the code in time,” Melanie said.
“Leah, it”s okay!” he called out. “It’s just Carly and Mel.”
Leah came out of the office. “Thanks for scaring me to death.”
“Sorry,” Carly said, handing her a bag. “But I brought lunch.”
“What are you doing here, Bran?” Carly asked as they all walked back to the office.
“Actually,” Leah put her hand on his arm, “he has some news for us.”
Melanie sat her food and drinks down on her desk. “I take it from the looks on your faces that when you say news you don’t mean ‘hey I won the lottery’ kind of news.”
“Unfortunately, no,” Brandon said. “It seems like Will Huntington might be thinking about burning something down.”
“Are you sure you didn’t date this guy, Leah?” Carly asked. “This is like, serious boyfriend gone wrong shit.”
“I did not date Will.” She shivered. “He always gave me the creeps.”
“It seems like your instincts were right on there,” Carly pointed out.
Brandon should have been shocked that none of them seemed freaked out about a crazy, possible fire starter, maniac that was on the loose. But really nothing shocked him when it came to these three women.
“So give us the plan, Brandon,” Melanie said. “Are we all gonna be locked in a cell at the station until you can find this guy?”
That was a thought. “As much as I’d love to lock you away, especially you,” he looked at Leah, “I can’t. I just need you to be even more vigilant than you already are. Don’t be alone. Ever.”
“But if he wants to start a fire and we are inside the house, won’t that be bad?” Carly asked.
“I know but I don’t know what else to do. I’m going to talk to the chief of police over in Woodridge and get his help.”
“Isn’t Tony’s dad the Chief in Woodridge?” Melanie asked.
“He is,” Leah said. “He mentioned it one day when he was here working.”
“I didn’t know that,” Brandon said. “Maybe I will take Tony and go visit.”
“Fucking Anthony,” Carly spit out and walked away.
Brandon gave Leah a look and she said, “Don’t ask.”
“I guess I should go,” he said. “Want me to pick you up tonight?” he asked Leah.
“I have my car but in the interest of not being alone, maybe you should come by and get me,” she said and leaned into him, his cock going hard at her body touching his.
Gripping her hips, he pulled her closer. “Have I mentioned today that I love you?”
“Not for hours,” she teased.
“Be safe,” he kissed her lightly on the lips, “and I’ll be back at eight.” He kissed her again forcing himself to take a step back before he threw her on her desk and took her right there.
“I love you,” she said when he was halfway out the door.
When she said those three words to him, it made him feel as if he could conquer anything. Unfortunately, the anything here meant finding a crazy person. And even Leah’s love might not be enough to help him with that.