Chapter 13
13
“ A little change of plans.” Garth set his cell in the cupholder in the truck's console before punching the gas. “Before we go to the marina, we’re going to meet Rusty.”
“The cop?” Amber jerked her head and glared. “I’m a person of interest. Don’t you think that’s a little dangerous for me right about now?”
“He wouldn’t ask us if it wasn’t important.” He put on his blinker and turned toward the diner. “His wife, Shea, went to high school with Arthur’s wife, Maren. He’d never put any one of us at risk. He knows what’s at stake.”
“Maybe, but he has a job to do and that could include arresting me.”
“If that were to happen, I’d have fair warning.”
“I can’t believe you just said that.” She poked his leg.
He backed the pickup into a spot near the main door. “Okay, so that didn’t come out right, but you know what I mean.”
“Actually, I don’t. But whatever.”
“Wait right there.” He jogged around the hood of the vehicle and yanked open the passenger door, taking her hand. “Lean on me.”
“What are you going to do when my leg is all healed and I don’t need you anymore?”
“Find things wrong with your house so I can be useful.” He kissed her cheek, letting his lips linger against her warm skin. “And give you all the orgasms that you’re going to beg me for.”
“Oh my God. Not only is that inappropriate at a time like this, but I don’t beg.”
“You did the other night and in the shower.”
“That was an exception,” she muttered.
He chuckled as he pulled back the door to the diner, spying Rusty as soon as he entered.
“Hey, Rusty.” Garth helped Amber into the booth. She seemed to be limping a little less, but her face still scrunched up in pain with every step. It broke his damn heart.
“Thanks for meeting me.” Rusty sat in the corner booth near the front of the diner.
“You said it was important.” Garth waved to the waitress, who knew him, and pointed to the coffee mugs.
“I wanted to tell you in person that the investigation into Kelly’s death has moved from suspicious to murder.”
“Wonderful,” Amber muttered.
Garth stretched his arm over the back of the booth, resting his hand on her shoulder, giving it a little squeeze. He hoped that would help ease her nerves, even though it did nothing to help his.
“Oh, it gets worse. Jeff Bellen is up my ass. Turns out, Kelly wasn’t just Sandra’s roommate, but they both went to college with Jeff’s wife. He’s way too invested in this and I don’t like it.” Rusty waved off the coffee when the waitress showed up with a fresh pot. “Coke, please.”
“And Jeff’s wife is Moore’s daughter, who was also friends with Ashley, who dated my brother briefly.” Amber folded her arms across her chest in disgust.
Things were starting to sound like six degrees of separation. “Any luck on finding out who Julia really was or who the other people in the picture are?” Garth had gotten a text from Logan, saying he hadn’t any luck with the image and Darius was in the air, on his way to Florida, so he didn’t expect to hear from him until later.
“Actually, I’m glad you asked, because I do have something on that.” Rusty pulled out a piece of paper from inside his sports coat. He spread it out over the table, turning the image toward Garth. “Darius got me info before he got on his first flight. This guy, next to the woman you said was Julia. His name is Hickey Dawson. He’s a known drug dealer for Rocco Tias, and he works for Moore. Or should I say worked for Moore. He’s currently in jail awaiting trial. I talked to him this morning, and at first, he acted like he didn’t know anyone or anything. But as it turns out, Julia is actually Emily Dawson.”
“Wife? Sister?” Garth asked.
“Sister. I sent someone to her last known address. She’s not there. But I’m not putting an APB out yet.”
“And why not?” Garth asked with a little more venom than he had planned.
“Because of Bellen. First, he asked me not to, saying he had a valid reason. One that he couldn’t fill me in on yet. I find that odd. But Bellen has been acting strange for a few years now, and he’s twitching left and right over this last murder. I can’t put a finger on what’s up with Bellen. I’ve known him for years and thought he was one of the good guys, but I have my doubts these days. For now, I want to keep him at arm’s length during this for more than one reason.” Rusty tapped the picture. “See this guy. That’s Jeff. You can tell by the bald spot. But this woman, that’s not his wife. That’s actually Kelly, according to Hickey, who also said they were having an affair right up until Kelly died. But Hickey also said Bellen is a player and had a brief affair with Ashley. Hickey said he’d seen them all the time in a corner somewhere, deep in conversation and that he’d seen them a few times in a parked car talking. Hickey is a bit fishy, so don’t trust his intel. But I’m not liking where this is leading.”
“Holy fuck, that’s a mouthful.” Garth rubbed his temples. “So, you think Bellen is tied up in these murders?”
“I’m trying like hell not to believe that. I will try to skirt around Bellen, but I can only keep so much from him. I need to check out some of Hickey’s story. He told me that Moore had been pressuring his son-in-law to help make the criminal accusations go away, or he’d tell his daughter all about his affairs.”
“That puts a little more perspective on this.” Garth took a whiff of the bitter coffee. Best worst brew known to man. “But why kill off the women he was screwing, and was he doing it with Sandra too?”
“Second question first.” Rusty leaned forward. “Not according to Hickey. He can’t say for sure, but he thinks she and Steve were killed more over the criminal accusations.”
“But my brother and Ashley were really close. Even after they broke up. They knew they were toxic for each other, and then when they both got off the drugs, they just decided to remain friends. It worked for them,” Amber said, shifting and leaning closer to Garth. “My brother was pretty good with computers. He could have hidden things I wouldn’t find, but he knew me well enough to know that I would question if something happened to him. Maybe he knew about the affairs.”
“Maybe he knew who killed Ashley,” Garth said.
“Exactly what I’m thinking. Tell Darius to give me a shout tonight when he lands,” Rusty said.
“Will do. What about interviewing Amber? I understand she’s a person of interest. I don’t like it, but I get you have a job to do,” Garth asked. He didn’t like the idea of her sitting anywhere in a police station and being questioned for something she had nothing to do with, especially when she was the victim.
“I just did. Bellen does know I’m meeting with you. He pushed hard for me to haul Amber in, but I got him to agree that would be over the top and this would be enough. For now, I’ve got no reason to continue any line of questioning. He’ll balk, but he can’t do much right now without making himself look like he’s hiding something or pushing an agenda.” Rusty tossed a five on the table. “You two stay safe. I’ll be in touch.”
“This is a bad made-for-TV movie,” Amber muttered. “I’ve got a headache thinking about all the moving parts.”
“Trust me, I totally get that.”
“What do you think?”
“It’s a lot to process.” Garth lifted his mug and gulped, letting the caffeine hit his brain, hoping it helped organize the information. “There’s a hell of a lot we don’t know and the pieces of the puzzle that we do have, don’t fit together nicely. The only thing I know for sure is we poked an angry bear. Uncovered something that someone wants desperately to stay hidden and will do anything to keep it that way.”
“Including killing me.” Amber pushed her mug away.
“Unfortunately, that’s a fact, but I’m not going to let that happen.” He gave her a little nudge. “Let’s get out of here. We’ll pick up some groceries and head to the boat. We’ll be safe there.”
Garth pulled into the marina, parking next to Arthur’s SUV. “Stay in the car. I’ll be right back.”
“You promised you’d?—”
“Leave the window rolled down. You can hear everything. I don’t want you putting any weight on your leg.”
“I’m such an ass.”
“No. But you’ve got a nice ass.” He winked, snagging the computer from the back of the sedan.
“So do you,” she whispered.
He did his best not to smile as he approached Arthur, who had rolled down the window. “You bring the goods?”
“Yeah.” Garth handed Arthur the computer.
“You remember Darius.”
Garth leaned against the vehicle's hood. “It’s good to see you again. Sorry it’s under these circumstances.”
“I remember how instrumental you were in saving Maren’s life,” Darius said.
Garth’s cheeks heated. “Arthur saved his wife. I just moved out of the way when bullets flew, letting Rex take one for the team.”
“You always did have a good sense of humor about things,” Darius said, resting the computer on his leg. “A good trait to have in times like this.”
“I have to agree on that one,” Garth said. “Amber thinks her brother might have hidden something on that computer.”
“If there’s something there, I’ll find it. Don’t you worry about that.” Darius nodded, waving to Amber. “I think you should both know something. Bellen was interviewed by the FBI a few years ago. I haven’t been able to find out why. My sources are being very tight-lipped. My wife has a lot of contacts with the CIA and the FBI. She’s doing her best to work her magic on that front.”
“Can you speculate on what the FBI wanted with him?” Amber asked through the window. “My brother thought maybe Bellen helped squash the charges against his father-in-law.”
“It very well could have been about that, but what makes me wonder if something else is going on is that men and women I know well aren’t telling me anything. They are giving me the standard we can’t discuss it at this time . That means either they can’t because it will jeopardize an operation for one of their agents, or they don’t know,” Darius said.
“But you think it’s the former.” Garth glanced between Amber and Darius.
“That’s what my gut tells me. However, that doesn’t mean I couldn’t be read in on a case, considering the circumstances. But Bellen is married to the daughter of a man who has been under investigation for a few things, one of which is money laundering, complicating the hell out of this entire case,” Darius said.
“We knew about the securities fraud. When did the money laundering case get filed?” Garth asked.
“I don’t know how long that’s been active. The laundering for Rocco Tias is the only thing my source at the FBI would give me. I suspect that’s why they’ve had their sights on Bellen. The question we have to ask ourselves is, is Bellen one of the good guys or one of the bad guys?” Darius arched a brow.
“My money is on the latter,” Amber said.
And based on everything that had happened so far, Garth had to agree. But it seemed obvious that Darius had his doubts.
And so did Arthur.
That gave Garth pause.
“Give me a couple of hours with this computer and let me talk to a few more people,” Darius said.
“We’ll be in touch.” Arthur gripped the gear shift, putting the truck in drive.
“Thanks, Arthur.” Garth stood in the parking lot, watching Arthur pull out onto the main road.
“I like Arthur. He’s a good man,” Amber said.
“He’s the best.”
“How do all of you know Darius?” Amber asked, reaching her hand out, coiling her fingers around his biceps.
“The military may be large, but special forces is small. Plus, the organization that Darius works for is similar to the Aegis Network. We’ve done joint cases together. But Darius and Arthur go way back. Darius helped him solve the murder of his high school sweetheart, along with everyone in her family.”
“Shit. That’s horrible.”
“It was. Not only that, but the people who killed that family, nearly killed Arthur’s wife. Darius helped him find the killers and made sure they were put away for good.”
“I’m grateful to you and your friends. I don’t know what I’d do without you,” Amber said.
“I’m not going anywhere. Now, let’s get you to the boat.”
“This isn’t a boat; it’s a fucking home that floats,” Amber said, staring at a shiny yacht floating in the water. It was massive and nothing like she’d ever expected any of Garth’s friends to own. Not on a firefighter’s salary. Granted, she had no idea what an Aegis Network agent made, but not enough to afford that.
Garth laughed as he set her down on the back bench. “It’s a very expensive fifty-foot yacht, and by the way, Rex and Tilly are loaded. I mean, collectively, they have to be one of the richest couples in the state.”
“I’ve heard of her foundation, but damn. This is real leather. I’m going to be a nosy bitch; where does the money come from?”
“Both families. They were high school sweethearts and what’s really funny is that they were also stepsiblings.”
“That is oddly romantic and really weird at the same time.” She fluffed a soft pillow under her knee and stared at the Intracoastal Waterway. The sun kissed the water as it made its way across the sky. She’d always loved being near the ocean. It had become her happy place. The sound of the waves lapping against the shore calmed her nerves and soothed her soul.
“Tell me about it,” a deep voice vibrated against her ears.
She turned her head to see a handsome man with a stunning blonde with legs to die for on his arm.
“I wasn’t very happy about her being my stepsister. Took me ten years to get over it.” He helped the blonde onto the boat and stretched out his hand. “It’s good to see you again,” Rex said. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
“Thank you so much for letting me stay here. You must be Tilly.” Amber smoothed down her shorts before tucking her hair behind her ears.
“Anything for this guy.” Tilly reached up and grabbed Garth’s cheeks, shaking his head.
“You’re worse than my mother,” Garth mumbled, bending over and giving Tilly a peck on the cheek. “Where are the kids?”
“Annabelle is over at her future husband’s house,” Tilly said, shaking her head. “She and Kent’s son, Nicky, have had this weird thing since the day they met, and I wouldn’t be surprised if they did end up together, which would be fine by me.”
“Let’s just hope they will never be stepsiblings,” Garth said, laughing, but the joke didn’t go over too well as both Tilly gave him the evil eye. Garth shrugged. “I was kidding.”
“I know,” Tilly said. “I just like giving you that look.”
“You’ve got three kids, right?” Amber asked, moving her leg, making room for Tilly to sit beside her while Rex leaned against the side of the boat.
“We do. Lucas is five, and Charlie is one.” Tilly smiled. She had a genuineness about her that made it hard to believe that she was as loaded as Garth made them out to be.
Then again, her ass was on the finest leather known to man.
“Are you going to have any?—”
“Nope,” Rex said, interrupting, carrying a little boy in his arms. “But when we dropped off Annabelle, Kent told us they are expecting another one.” He held up four fingers, waggling them. “He’s nuts.”
“He’s always got to outdo you, doesn’t he?” Garth smiled. “Aw, little Charlie looks pooped.” He patted the boy on his back.
But these weren’t two men who worked together.
They were brothers in the truest sense of the word.
“We’ll gladly let him win that one and I’m shocked Charlie fell asleep on the way over. It’s not like him to nap in the car.” Tilly tipped her sunglasses up on top of her head. Her skin glowed in the late afternoon sky. “Are you two all settled in?” Tilly asked.
“We just got here. I’ve still got shit in the rental.” Garth had a buddy take his truck back to his place and hang out in his house all night, just in case someone was watching. It made sense to Amber, and so far, they’d taken odd routes, stopping in odd places, and he didn’t believe they’d been followed.
She, on the other hand, felt like there were a million eyes on her at every turn. Whenever he turned the car on, she braced herself for an explosion.
“I’ll help you unload.” Rex handed Charlie off to Tilly. “You two ladies sit back and relax. We men will do the heavy lifting.”
Tilly waved her hand. “Go flex those muscles like you’re on a photo shoot for the next firemen and puppies calendar, babe. And I’ll sit here and drool to my heart’s content. Then we’ll go home and have all sorts of fun.”
“As long as no girl babies are made, I’m down,” Rex said.
“Are you suggesting you’d have a fourth if you could guarantee it was a boy?” Garth asked.
“I could not handle another Annabelle in my life.” Rex smacked his forehead. “When I dropped her off at Kent’s, she informed us that she and Nicky were going to run off, get married, and make us grandparents. I almost didn’t let her stay.”
“I can’t imagine what Kent had to say about that, he’s so damn uptight.” Garth laughed.
“Oh, he was all ready to pack their little overnight bags and drive them to the chapel, he thinks it’s so fucking cute. I wanted to throttle him. Wait until Elle starts dating. He’s going to freak out, and I will be front and center with a big bag of popcorn.” Rex shoved Garth down the dock. “Come on. Let’s go. Charlie will want to stay and play with his uncle Garth if we don’t get a move on.”
“Does everyone on his team have a wicked sense of humor?” Amber asked, tilting her head, watching a very tall Garth strut beside a broad Rex.
“Yep. And they are all freaking eye candy.”
“So is that little one in your arms. He’s adorable and looks just like his father.”
“So does Lucas. I’ll be beating the girls away with a stick.”
Amber laughed. “Ah, the double standard.”
“You haven’t met my Annabelle. She’s got Rex’s stubborn streak and my tenacity. It doesn’t matter how pretty she is; it will take a special man to tame that chick. Besides, if she truly takes after me, she’ll go the distance with Nicky. I’m seriously not kidding about that. I’ve been in love with Rex since middle school, and Nicky’s the cutest little bugger you ever did lay eyes on. And he’s put some weird spell on Annabelle because whenever little Nicky is around, Annabelle behaves. It’s amazing.” Tilly shifted, tucking her feet up under her butt, all while rubbing Charlie’s back as he squirmed, rubbing his tired eyes. “I’m sorry about your brother. I understand loss, but I can’t imagine what you’re going through right now.”
“Thanks. I appreciate that.”
A cool summer breeze rippled the water. Birds flapped overhead, and a rumble of thunder rolled in from somewhere out at sea. If darkness didn’t loom in the background, this would be the kind of day she relished in.
“You’re in good hands with Garth, and the rest of the team has his back. Not a single minute will go by that someone won’t be nearby. We’ve all been through some shit together. Hell, right here on this dock, Rex took a bullet for Arthur.”
“Not the kind of stories you should be telling my girlfriend right about now,” Garth said as he jumped on board. “And you weren’t even there. I was.”
Charlie turned his head and wiggled his fingers toward Garth, pumping his little legs.
“Oh, good Lord. I don’t want to know anymore,” Amber said, pointing over her shoulder. “It looks like we’ve got a storm coming in.”
“You two batten down the hatches,” Rex said.
“Wunckle Gwarth.” Charlie crawled up his mother’s lap, reaching for Garth.
“Come here, little buddy.” Garth scooped him up in his arms. “Are you being a good boy?” He kissed his cheek.
“Yeesssss!” Charlie held his pudgy hands around Garth’s cheeks, hugging tight. “Fishy. Dada. Fishy! Pweaseee.”
“Not today, little buddy.” Rex took Charlie. “We’re going to head back to Uncle Arthur’s house and get Lucas from Grandma Gretchen, and then we'll go get ice cream.” Rex took his wife’s hand and helped her off the boat. “Call me day or night if you need anything.”
“Will do.” Garth waved.
“I bet they fight over who wears the pants in that family,” she said softly.
“Oh, one hundred percent, it’s Tilly. But I’ve known Rex a long time. He was a lost soul before that woman came back into his life, and now that she has, he’s about as happy as a pig in shit. He’s a great dad, too.”
“I can see that.” Her mind drifted back to an earlier conversation where he mentioned he wanted to settle down someday. Get married. Have kids—the whole ball of wax. “You were good with his little boy. I was waiting for a meltdown.”
“Charlie doesn’t have too many of those as long as you redirect him quickly.” He sat on the back sofa, looping his arm around her shoulders. “He’s such a smart little boy. How talkative he is for a boy who’s only fifteen months old amazes me.”
“You’ll make for a great father someday.”
“I hope so.” His bright smile sucker punched her senses.
She’d always wanted to have children and a husband. But she hadn’t given it much thought while she pursued being an independent woman. Then there was her parents’ deaths and now Steve. Too much had been going on, and the men she dated weren’t the kind of men she saw her being with in a forever way.
Garth checked all the boxes. He was kind and attentive, going out of his way to give her space when she needed it but also understanding when she didn’t.
And he was a damn good lover.
He tucked a piece of hair behind her ears. “How do you feel about marriage? Children?”
“That’s a big topic.” She swallowed. Her relationship—if she could honestly call it that—with Garth was easy. They enjoyed each other, and things they chatted about ebbed and flowed like ocean tides. Once she’d gotten over her resentment toward him after he’d told her he agreed with the initial reports and got her head out of her ass, she saw him for the man he really was.
Thoughtful, compassionate, and fair.
Only, the last real boyfriend she had constantly pushed her into making commitments before she was ready. He wanted a timeline for when they would move in together. Get married. And when that first child would come.
Right down to the month.
It made her crazy.
Her life didn’t work that way.
“It doesn’t have to be,” he said. I’m just having a conversation.” He arched a brow. “Getting to know you better. Isn’t that what two people do when they’re dating?”
“I suppose it is.” Another big word, although she didn’t mind it. She was his girlfriend. Being with him was something she wanted a month ago, and that hadn’t changed. However, things had intensified quickly. It was as if they’d been hurled around the Monopoly board, buying up property, and setting up house. “So, to answer the question, I do want to get married and have kids. I just haven’t made it a priority.”
“Why not? Is it because you’ve been busy being independent or just haven’t found the right person?”
“My last serious relationship turned me off from it.”
“I have to ask. Why?” He ran his thumb across the back of her neck in a sensual dance.
“It was all he could talk about and he had to put everything to hard date. As in, he needed to know when I wanted to leap off the cliff. I couldn’t give him that answer at the time because I wasn’t sure. I had just gotten my real estate license, and I wanted to establish myself in the area. I’m also not so old that I have to be so concerned about having kids right away, but he was relentlessly reminding me that I’m not getting any younger.”
“That’s rude.” Garth leaned in and kissed her neck. “My mom is always reminding of my biological clock.”
Amber burst out laughing. “I’m sorry. But that’s funny. It’s easy for men to have kids later in life. You’re not the ones who have to carry the child.”
“That’s what I keep telling my mother, but I also know many women who have kids in their late thirties and early forties. Anyone who judges that decision is an asshole.”
“So, you don’t believe there’s a certain timeframe on when people should have children?”
“It’s up to the couple and what works for them as a family, or honestly, whenever it happens. I mean, if you had asked me that question ten years ago, I would have had a different answer. I thought I would have been married with a family by now. But life didn’t turn out that way, and today, I’d rather find the right woman than try to force anything.”
“I hear you on that.” She rested her head on his shoulder as a dark cloud floated over the boat. A sudden breeze kicked up, bringing cooler temperatures. “But at some point, I have to consider my age if I want kids.”
“I think we all do.” He kissed her forehead. “Come on. It’s going to pour like crazy soon.” He pointed to more clouds. “I’ve got a few phone calls I’ve got to make. Do you mind putting away some of the groceries and starting dinner?”
“Not at all.” She took his hand and stood. Even her last boyfriend, whom she loved, she couldn’t see herself walking down the aisle in a white dress or having a child with. There was something about him—perhaps how rigid he could be—that gave her pause.
But Garth?
She could see her sitting on the front porch with her grandchild crawling around her ankles.