Chapter Thirty-Two #2
I turned back to Lainey to see if she had a counter point. Instead, she replied, “It sounds like I win either way.”
Brian said, “Hey, your roommate and I wanted your permission to have access to the camera feed at the back of the bakery.”
“Oh. I guess I assumed you had access to it since you’re the ones who put it up. Which reminds me, I probably need access to it, too.”
Brian’s eyebrows shot to his hairline.
“ You haven’t set that up yet ?”
She shrugged. “Like I said, I thought you guys had access to it, so I wasn’t really worried about it.”
He shot me a look and shook his head, like he couldn’t believe what he was hearing.
“It’s a good thing you’re around to keep her safe.”
Lainey reached in her apron pocket and pulled out her phone, then handed it to me.
“When you guys set yours up, can you do mine, too?”
I held the phone out and said, “Put in your code.”
“Oh, it’s not locked.”
I thought Brian’s head was going to explode.
“For fuck’s sake, Lainey. Put a damn screen lock on your phone.”
“Why? It’s never out of my sight.”
“What if someone steals it?”
“In Haven Springs?”
“Did you ever think you’d get a threatening letter in Haven Springs? Or that someone would get assaulted with a baseball bat in the middle of town?”
She conceded, “Well, no.”
“Exactly. You need to be more careful.”
Lainey batted her eyelashes at the sergeant.
“That’s what I’ve got you guys for.”
Brian took a deep breath in through his nose, then smiled at her like he had no choice but to love her.
Her smirk and wink before she headed back behind the counter seemed to indicate she knew she was trying his patience but didn’t care.
He shook his head as he watched her go, then turned to me.
“Do you still have the camera instructions I gave you?”
“Yeah, I think they’re on her kitchen counter.”
“She’s lucky there hasn’t been a need if she hasn’t signed up for service yet.”
“It’s going to cost her money, isn’t it. Maybe that’s why she hasn’t done it.”
Brian closed his eyes and threw his head back.
“Aw, hell. I hadn’t even considered that.”
“I’ll pay for it. I think it’s an annual fee, and if there’s a credit card on file, it will renew automatically, so it’s never a problem.”
“I can pay for it. I’m the one who suggested it.”
“You bought the equipment,” I argued. “I’ll pay for the subscription. I can’t imagine it’s that much for one camera.”
“All right.” He gestured to my now-empty plate. “You ready? Let’s get this set up before your appointment.”
****
Lainey
I was sitting in my living room, nursing Conor, when the two men walked through the door.
Adam jumped when he saw me.
“Holy shit! Where did you come from? You’re like a little ninja.”
“I came from downstairs. I left you two and heard the baby crying, so I came up.” I noticed my phone with the pink case in his hand. “Are you going to connect my phone to the camera?”
“Yeah.”
He did some scrolling and typing, then asked Brian, “What’s the camera called? It looks like there’s more than one choice here.”
“It’s CamProPlus. We can customize the name once we get it set up.”
Adam clicked a few more buttons, then asked me, “What do you want your password to be?”
Brian chimed in, “And don’t say your birthday, or Conor’s birthday, or your favorite pet’s name.”
“I’ve never had a pet, so I don’t have a favorite.”
Both men turned to stare at me like I’d just told them I hated ice cream.
“What?” I demanded.
“You never had a dog or cat growing up?”
“Nope. Not even a gerbil. My mother didn’t think I’d be responsible for one, and she didn’t want to have to take care of it. Joke’s on her because I’m now responsible for keeping her grandson alive and probably should have had the practice.”
Adam had a crease between his eyebrows.
“You’re going to get Conor a dog when he gets older, though. Right?”
“I mean, maybe? I’m not sure living in an apartment is really conducive for that. Maybe I’ll consider a cat, although I’m not sure I’m a cat person.”
He shook his head.
“You’re a dog person.”
I pursed my lips—not convinced I was either.
“Well, I’ve got a few years to decide.”
His scowl seemed to indicate I didn’t have as long as I thought.
Brian impatiently asked again. “So… password?”
“Oh, um, how about capital C, lower case R, the number zero, exclamation point, S, S, the number four, N, T, S, and another exclamation point?”
Brian repeated back, “C-r-0-!-s-s-4-n-t-s-!” then looked up at me with a grin. “Croissants?”
“Why not?”
Adam punched some buttons on my phone, then flashed the screen at me to show me a live feed of my outside stairs.
“You’re all set up. The app is on your phone and the password is saved.”
Brian added, “The camera’s name is Beaumont Bakery.”
“You named my camera? Why not call it Fred or something?”
He rolled his eyes and shook his head.
I knew I was trying his patience, but honestly, that only made it that much more fun.
“We’ve got to go.”
“Where are you going?”
Adam answered, “I’ve got an appointment with Dr. Williams.”
“Already? That was fast.”
“I guess he had an opening this morning.”
I discreetly moved Conor to my other breast, then replied, “Well, good luck. I hope your brain healed faster than your face.”
He acted offended. “Hey! You said I was looking better.”
“I mean, yeah, better than it did on Sunday. But you still look pretty busted up.”
Brian nodded in agreement, but then, as if to soften the blow, added, “But you are healing nicely. Maybe by the time you fly to Massachusetts, you won’t even be able to tell.”
“Actually, I’m not going. I’m going to see if my brother, Alan, will bring my Bronco here with my stuff if I pay for his return ticket.”
That got my attention, and I asked, “Why aren’t you going?”
“I’m not leaving you and Conor until whoever sent that letter is caught.”
“You’re not going to inconvenience your family because of me.”
“Trust me, Alan won’t view it as an inconvenience. He’ll get to come check out where I’m living, probably hang around a couple of days, then fly home on my dime.”
Brian offered, “If he needs somewhere to stay while he’s here, he’s welcome to stay with me.”
“I appreciate that. I probably should think about looking for a house to rent, so I have somewhere to store my stuff.”
“Depending on how much you have, you can keep it in my garage or in one of my spare bedrooms until you get settled.”
“Everything I own can fit in my Bronco.”
“Piece of cake, then.”
“I still feel bad,” I grumbled.
“Don’t,” Brian and Adam both replied at the same time.
I think that was easier said than done.