Chapter 9
“That must be Levy back there!” Dom hadn’t wanted to meet with the US Marshal, but now for sure he knew the guy was involved. If they hadn’t followed Kendra’s instincts to get out of there, they’d have been shot. Possibly killed.
No wonder they kept getting found!
“We shouldn’t jump to conclusions.” Kendra’s expression was tense as she wove through the neighborhood, heading to the opposite side of the city. “While I agree it’s suspicious, I don’t think there was enough time between Raine contacting Levy and the truck showing up at Grady’s.”
“He’s involved.” Dom didn’t for one minute believe the truck showing up so quickly was a coincidence. “Has to be.”
“Maybe.” Kendra’s brow furrowed as she continued putting distance between them and Grady’s home. She dug her phone from her pocket and tossed it into his lap. “The last number is Raine. Let her know what’s happening.”
He found the number and did as she asked. This time, the call was picked up. “Kendra?”
“It’s Dom. The gunman showed up at Grady’s place. We’re on the road.”
“What?” Raine sounded horrified. “How did that happen?”
“You tell us.” Dom’s tone was hard and flat. He was tired of playing nice. “Come on, Raine. The answer is obvious. Levy is a part of this. He must have been closer to Grady’s than we realized to show up so fast after you made the call.”
“I didn’t even talk to him,” Raine protested. “I mean, I did, but when I called the second time to give him Grady’s address, he didn’t answer.”
“That’s because he was here, shooting at Grady’s house!” His temper flared hot. “The truck passed us seconds after we left the place. I’m telling you, he’s the gunman.”
“I understand your concern. It does seem odd that the gunman got there so quickly. Wait a minute, this is Levy now, calling me back.” Raine paused, then added, “I’m going to take this. I’ll call you back when I’m finished.”
“You do that.” He stabbed the end call button and slid the phone into the center console. “Raine still believes in Levy.”
Kendra glanced at him. “What exactly did she say?”
“She said she never gave Levy the address because he didn’t answer her call.
” He twisted in his seat to look behind them.
There were other cars on the road now as Cody residents headed off to work.
He felt naked and vulnerable driving around like this.
Maybe if the SUV was made of bulletproof windows, he’d feel better.
“I’m not sure that matters. Not if Levy has been tracking us all this time. ”
“I agree. If Levy can track our disposable phones, then he wouldn’t need the address from Raine.” She shook her head. “I don’t like this, Dom. Not one bit.”
“I know.” His heart was still racing in his chest. This running from bad guys was getting old. “The good news is that we’re safe now.”
“Yeah.” Kendra’s expression was still troubled. “But that was a close call.”
No lie, he thought wearily. “Where to?”
“I think we need to find another restaurant.” Kendra pursed her lips. “We need a place we can meet with Raine, Justin, and Griff.”
“Without Levy.” He glanced at the phone in the console. “We should probably make one last call to Raine and then ditch our new phones.”
“Yeah, let’s do that.” Kendra shot him a quick look. “I don’t want to use the Hitching Post or the Sunny Side Up Café.”
He nodded. Scanning the road, he noticed a restaurant up ahead. “What about that place? Dinah’s Diner.”
Kendra drove past the place. “Looks only half full, which means we should be able to get a table for five.”
“I’ll let Raine know the plan.” He reached for Kendra’s phone. “Then we need to find a place far away from the diner to get rid of our phones.”
“I know.” Kenda’s expression was solemn. “I just can’t believe Levy is a part of this.”
Raine answered on the first ring. “Dom? Where are you?”
He trusted Kendra’s family and quickly gave her the information. “We’d like to meet with you, Justin, and Griff at Dinah’s Diner, without Levy. Do you know where it is?”
“I don’t, but I’m sure Justin does. We’ll meet you there, and I won’t let Levy know.”
“Don’t let him track your phone either.” He knew he sounded paranoid, but he couldn’t help it. “I believe he’s been tracking our disposable phones. We’re getting rid of them before the meeting.”
“I understand. I’ll toss mine too.” Raine’s somber voice soothed his fears. He was grateful she was taking his concerns seriously. “We’ll see you soon.”
“Okay.” He lowered the phone, then pulled his out too. “Let me know when you find a good place to ditch these.”
“I’m heading to the other side of town.” She sighed. “The side that’s closer to Grady’s house. I figured that’s best as it was our last-known location. I hope the gunman didn’t damage the place too badly.”
“I’m just glad we got out of there in time to avoid the attack.” He understood she was concerned about her brother’s friend’s place. He didn’t like knowing the house they’d used for what, barely forty-five minutes, had been targeted too.
Dom waited until he recognized some of the landmarks, then lowered his passenger-side window. After tossing the devices out, he lifted the window. “Okay, that’s done. We can turn around now to head back.”
She nodded without responding, her gaze focused on the road before them. He reached over to touch her arm. “Thank you for helping me. I know you didn’t have to stay, especially with the shooter finding us at every turn.”
“Yes, I did.” She shot him an exasperated glance. “This involves both of us, Dom. And I really believe the best way to get this guy is to stick together.”
She was amazing. Far too sweet and noble considering the nonstop danger. Dom dropped his hand and turned to look behind them. In the crate area, Smoky lifted her head.
He was struck by a wave of anger. There was no reason for anyone to kill Kendra or her K9. Him either, for that matter, but they were the true innocents in this.
Helen Gingrass had been innocent too. Her only crime was comforting a dying Stuart, listening to his confession. Now she was dead. Like his father and Kendra’s parents.
No more, he silently vowed. No more death or close calls. They needed to figure out a way to trap Levy into revealing himself.
How, he had no clue. But that was something Raine and Griff could do. Or so he hoped.
Kendra continued taking side streets to make their way back to the diner. He noticed two SUVs parked side by side with back crate areas. Her family must already be inside.
After pulling into a parking spot that was two down from the other SUVs, Kendra killed the engine and opened the back hatch. “Let’s head inside.”
With Smoky trotting at her heels, Kendra strode toward the door. Dom fell in a step behind her, casting a glance around the area to make sure the GMC Sierra truck wasn’t nearby.
The warmth of the restaurant surrounded them, along with the welcoming scent of freshly brewed coffee. Kendra wove through the restaurant to a large round table set for five. Three people were already there, although they all stood as he and Kendra approached.
One guy had Kendra’s dark hair. He stood beside a petite woman who Dom assumed was his wife, Raine. The other guy had blond hair, not unlike his own.
“Hey.” Kendra’s smile didn’t quite reach her eyes. “This is Dominic Lakeland. Dom, this is my brother Justin, his wife, Raine, and my brother-in-law Griff.”
“Nice to meet you.” Dom offered his hand. All three shook it, then dropped back into their seats. Smoky crawled beneath the table to join a beautiful yellow lab. If Dom hadn’t noticed the thumping tail, he’d never have known there was a dog lying under there.
“I’m not sure it’s really nice to meet you,” Justin drawled. “Seems to me you dragged our baby sister into the line of fire.”
“Knock it off, Justin. This isn’t Dom’s fault.” Kendra narrowed her eyes. “We were working on trying to figure out what happened to our parents when the gunman found him. He’s an innocent victim too.”
“Kendra is right.” Raine’s mouth curved into a rueful smile. “Dominic didn’t ask to be placed in WITSEC. That was his father’s doing.”
Dom didn’t blame Justin for feeling protective of his sister. He held Justin’s gaze. “I tried to convince Kendra to head back to the ranch. Unfortunately, it’s too late now. Levy will likely try to eliminate her, too, the way he has gotten rid of the hospice nurse, Helen Gingrass.”
“We don’t know for sure Levy is responsible,” Raine protested.
“Who else has the resources to track our disposable phones?” Dom stopped speaking as their server approached.
“Coffee?” She held up the pot. When he nodded, she poured some for him and Kendra. “Are you ready to place your order?”
“I’ll stick with coffee,” Dom said. He glanced at the others. “You should eat, though.”
“We will.” Justin rattled off his order. Raine and Griff followed suit. Kendra shook her head.
“Coffee is fine for me.” She managed a smile. “Thanks.”
When they were alone again, Dom leaned forward. “I’m good with technology. I was able to hide our ISP address so we could use our laptop. Yet somehow, we kept getting found.”
Griff nodded. “I can see why you suspect Levy. It’s possible he’s involved. But why would he come after you now?”
“Because Stuart Ramsey confessed to murdering my father.” Dom shrugged. “That seems to have been the inciting incident. Prior to that, I didn’t have any clue that my father was in witness protection.”
“That makes sense,” Raine agreed. “You instigated the call to the marshal’s office.”
“I did.” Dom frowned as he thought back. “Although I ditched my personal phone before we even got to the hotel. I used a disposable phone to call Levy. I’m not entirely sure how he figured out which disposable phones we were using. We paid for them in cash.”
“Speaking of which, I have new devices for you.” Justin rummaged in a backpack that looked identical to the one Kendra carried. “Here. These are from a previous operation. Also purchased with cash.”