Chapter 10
CHAPTER TEN
Dylan was returning to the kitchen when his cell went off. He glanced at the screen. “I’m going to take this in the living room, okay?”
Raleigh gave him a tight nod.
He quickly moved from the foyer to the far corner of the living room. “Gabe. Thanks for getting back to me so quickly.”
“Your text sounded like it was a bit of an emergency. What’s up?”
“So I, um, need help. Since I’ve been kicked off the team and assigned to desk duty I can’t access anything at work. Not that I would anyway since it’s a personal thing but—"
“Dylan, I’m gonna stop you right there. I’m happy to help if I can. It’s not a big deal but I will point out if you worked with me, this would just be another day at the office,” Gabe said.
Dylan paused. When Gabe had offered him a place at Risk Strategic Security, he’d automatically turned the opportunity down.
Maybe the job deserved further consideration.
“Can we table that for now? Long story short, I’m doing a favor for my cousin.
That woman you saw me with earlier, I’m supposed to be her bodyguard for the weekend. She’s having stalker issues.”
There was a pause. “Explain stalker issues.’”
“She has a stalker, or at least she says she has a stalker. Thing is, local cops couldn’t find any proof that he’s real, and they’ve written her off as crazy.”
“I see.” Gabe’s voice was slow, hesitant. “But you don’t think so.”
Dylan glanced at the doorway. “I—” He paused, unsure of what to say. Did he believe Raleigh or not? He thought about her reaction to the scarf. “You know, in the beginning, I thought she might be making it up, but now I’m not so sure.”
“Tell me exactly what happened.”
Spurred on by Gabe’s willingness to hear the story, he spent the next few minutes filling in the details as he knew them, including the cover he was using for the wedding. “I just don’t think anyone could fake a reaction like that. She was white as a sheet.” He stopped speaking.
Raleigh was definitely being stalked. He knew it in his gut. There was no way she’d faked her responses this evening. And if her stalker was here, she needed his help. And Dylan needed Gabe’s help.
“Okay. I’ll call a friend and see if I can get a copy of the police file on the original incident, and I’ll see if I can speak to the responding officers.
If the stalker is operating at this level, this isn’t his first time.
I’ll have Connor pull all records for stalking in Queens but it’s a large borough so it’s probably not going to help.
“You said she’s been working for the Harrises for a while now.
Maybe the stalker came from up there? I’ll see what we can find on Bedford Hills as well.
See if anything stands out. If you get me a copy of the guest list we can run the names against stalker complaints from the last few years, see if anything pops. ”
Sweat broke out between Dylan’s shoulder blades.
“Um, I can get you the list, but you know how high-profile this wedding is. I’m not sure how you’re planning do the checks.
If your inside source knows some of the people and happens to mention it, things could get problematic.
If the guests find out you’re running their names, there’ll be hell to pay.
I don’t want you do anything that gets you or Raleigh in trouble. ”
There was an amused chuckle at the end of the line. “You think I can’t be discreet?”
“No! I just…”
“Don’t worry, Dylan, I’ve got it. I appreciate you questioning me though. Shows that you’re not only concerned about me but about your client. That’s a good quality, especially if you’re going to work for me. Just make sure you watch your back.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“You’re at your ex-fiancée’s wedding to a cop from your old unit and, until just now, you thought the woman you’re with might be mentally unstable. Just be cautious.”
Damn. That sounded ridiculous even to him. “Um, yeah.”
“Okay, get me the list, and we’ll start things at this end. I’m going to run a deep background on Raleigh. We need to be one hundred percent certain she’s not making this up.”
Relief washed over him, followed by guilt. He’d wanted to ask Gabe to look into Raleigh, but it had felt disloyal somehow. He was grateful that Gabe hadn’t made him ask.
“And, Dylan, you sure lead an interesting life.” The chuckle was back. “Let me know if anything else comes up.” And then Gabe was gone.
Raleigh was sitting on the stool holding her mug when he walked into the kitchen. He could tell she was lost in thought. He didn’t want to scare her, so he called her name softly as he approached. “Raleigh.”
She jerked the mug and spilled a bit of tea.
“You ok?”
“Yeah.” She looked up at him a bit sheepishly.
He grabbed the sponge from the sink and wiped up the spill. “You want more tea?”
She sighed. “No, I’m good. Thanks, though.”
He debated and then decided to tell her the truth about his conversation with Gabe. “Remember the guy from earlier, Gabriel Risk? I texted him and he called back. He said he’s going to read the report on your stalker and talk to the original officers who responded to your call.”
She sighed again. “Wonderful. They think I’m crazy. He really won’t believe me then.”
“I wouldn’t be so sure. Gabe is a straight shooter.
He’s former military and he was a cop briefly before he decided to go out on his own.
He’ll be able to see through the bullshit.
He’s going to have one of his guys see if there have been any similar cases in Queens and in Bedford Hills over the last couple years.
“Your stalker is obviously smart, and he must have some experience at this if he’s managed to get in and out of your place without getting caught. This isn’t his first time out of the gate.”
Her eyes got big, and the knuckles of her fingers gripping the cup turned white. “I hadn’t thought of that. I don’t know if that makes it better or worse.” She looked up at him.
“Better. He had to start somewhere, and chances are good he’s made a mistake somewhere down the line. This could establish a pattern and, with luck, ultimately, help us catch him.”
He reached out and squeezed her other hand. “As scary as it is, it’s a good thing he’s here. It limits the pool of suspects, and we don’t have to search all over to find him. I know that doesn’t make you feel much better, but I promise to look after you, okay? You’re going to be fine.”
He sat down on the stool next to her. “Gabe needs a copy of the guest list. He wants to be able to cross-reference the names on it with any names the team pulls up from other stalking incidences. Any ideas on how I can get a copy? It’s not like I can ask Jenn,” he said with a small smile.
“That’s easy. I’ll ask Donna. I’ll email her and say I need a copy to make sure I get the spelling of everyone’s names correct. Let me get my laptop.”
She stood up and started to move away and then jolted to a stop.
Dylan stood up behind her. “You want me to get it for you?”
She turned and looked at him. Biting her lip, she nodded. “I feel so stupid, but I just can’t get myself to go back to that room.”
He put his hand on her back. “You’ve had a big scare tonight, and you’ve been under pressure for quite a while. Terrorized, really. It’s okay to not want to see the evidence of that. It doesn’t mean you’re weak. Give yourself a break.”
She nodded and took a big breath.
“Are you sure you’re up for this? We can start everything in the morning after you’ve had a chance to rest.”
“No, it’s fine. Working always takes my mind off things.
Anyway, it will be good to focus on something else for a while.
Besides, I checked my cell when you were on the phone.
My boss, Max, says I should write up tonight’s event like Lydia wants, but I don’t have to use her suggestions.
It’s a compromise. I’m not totally convinced, but Max is usually the voice of reason so I’ll think on it. ”
“Okay. Let me get your computer bag.” He started out of the kitchen.
“Dylan?” Raleigh called.
He came back into the room. “Yeah?”
“Thanks for believing in me. It means a lot.”
He nodded quickly and made his way to the bedroom.
Guilt hit him like a two-by-four in the gut.
She was thanking him for believing in her while Gabe ran a deep background check to make sure she was legit.
She deserved better. Unfortunately, the reality was that being prudent was the smart, safe thing to do, whether it upset her or not.
Now, if he could just convince his conscience of that.
He brought her the computer bag and watched her set up in the living room. “Do you need anything?”
“No, I’m good.” She looked up at him. “Actually, I could use a drink. Do they have any soda?” she asked as she kicked off her heels and settled on the sofa.
He nodded and walked back to the kitchen. He grabbed her a can from the fridge, brought it back to the living room, and set it down next to her.
“Thanks,” she mumbled as she continues plugging everything in.
“I’m going to go…” He wanted to say he was going to check the room out in greater detail, but he didn’t want to upset her. Fortunately for him, she was already involved in reviewing emails and was too distracted to notice.
He left the room and moved down the hallway to the master bedroom. He stood at the threshold and looked the room over with a cop’s eye. It was time to get down to business.
He’d thought about asking Gabe for a tech crew but had dismissed the idea.
No need to tell the whole wedding there was a stalker in their midst. Besides, that would just put the stalker on his guard and make their job harder.
Not to mention the Harrises would have a meltdown and blame him. He wanted no part of that mess.