Chapter 20 #2
Chase placed a hand on her shoulder. “Of course, you’re welcome to attend.
When Lizzy and Michael have the arrangements made, I’ll ensure you have the information.
It may take some time before they have a date, depending on what the coroner tells them this morning.
Let me have Allie bring up the leash for you. I’ll be right back.”
She nodded numbly. Her brain seemed foggy, yet she knew sleep would never come.
“Do you feel up to meeting with Leo? Chase can make a call, and you can go over later, or they can come to you,” Ty informed her.
“No. If I go to my room, I’ll keep replaying everything. If you still have time to take me, I’ll meet them.”
A few minutes later, Chase returned with the leash.
After showing her how it worked, he gave her permission to meet Leo.
Ty assisted her off the bed and lightly held her arm while he escorted them to radiology and then to his truck.
It only took a minute or two to reach the facility she heard Sledge talk about.
When they arrived, Ty escorted her to the entrance and rang the doorbell. A voice came over a speaker, “Hey, Ty, Scarlett. Shadow will be there in a moment.”
Shadow opened the door, allowing them to enter. Ty’s hand went to the small of her back, leading her down the hallway. The room opened up, smelling like bacon and eggs, and she assumed they sat in the kitchen.
“May I get you a cup of coffee?” Shadow asked as Ty brought her to a chair.
“No, thank you. If I drink any more, I won’t be able to sleep,” she said.
“I’ll take one. Do you have any herbal tea and Bear’s honey?” Ty asked. “It won’t have the caffeine, and the warmth will do you good.”
“Tess made us bacon and eggs with homemade muffins. She put two plates in the oven to keep warm. Doc called and told us you were headed over. I have chamomile or peppermint,” Shadow informed her as the rest of the men drifted in.
“I’ll take peppermint, please.”
“Hello, Scarlett. I’m sorry we have to meet under these circumstances. Sledge has talked a lot about you. I’m Leo. I run Serenity Securities. To your left, in order, you have Shadow, once he finishes your tea, Saint, Knight, Patch, Taco, Bear, and Ivan.”
The men murmured hellos.
“It’s nice to meet you,” she said. “Saint, I’m sorry to hear about your wife’s bakery. How are Edie and Barb?”
“They’re still in shock. Kassie has contacted my wife, and they have a plan. You did a brave thing, Scarlett. Everyone here appreciates what you did. I’m especially grateful to you for alerting my Mama. She said the fire alarm never went off, but she didn’t have her hearing aid in.”
“I didn’t do anything you wouldn’t have done,” Scarlett replied as Shadow placed a plate of food before her and Ty.
Leo stared at the woman who sat beside Ty, imagining how tired she must’ve felt since she stayed at the accident scene long after they left to coordinate their efforts on catching the person responsible for killing one of their own.
“Sledge said you and he met while he served. He never said what you did,” Leo said, watching her.
“I’m not in the Navy, sir.”
The men glanced around the table and back to Leo. “What branch of the military did you serve?” he asked.
“Air Force, sir.”
“Oh, we got ourselves a zoomie. What did you do?” Leo sipped his coffee.
Scarlett paused and pursed her lips. “I worked as a J Tac-Air Force attached to a SEAL team.”
He glanced at his men. A couple of them arched their brows in surprise, Patch’s mouth hung open, and Shadow crossed his arms, shook his head, and frowned. Leo didn’t like getting lied to, especially when the woman saved his nieces and nephews and two women he considered family.
“Don’t take this the wrong way, Scarlett. I’ve never met a woman J Tac before in my career,” he said tactfully.
“With all due respect, sir, that you know of. Surely, a Navy man doesn’t listen to a bunch of scuttlebutt and believe a woman can’t do as good a job as a man,” Scarlett shot back, her jaw tensed.
“Not at all, Scarlett. You’re not on trial here. I’m a bit surprised, is all,” Leo reassured her.
“Respectfully, most men don’t believe it. Sledge can vouch for my position as long as I give my permission. I don’t go around bragging about my title. I’m more concerned with getting the job done.”
“I agree with you. Do you mind if we ask you a few questions about last night?” Leo asked, still regarding her. Her shoulders remained straight back, and she blinked, most likely from fatigue, yet she didn’t show it.
“No, sir.”
“You can dispense with the formality. We’re all here to get to the bottom of this,” Leo said, watching her relax slightly. “Can you give us a rundown of what you did before and after you discovered the community center on fire. You’re the best lead we have.”
“I went to the Pizza Palace for a late-night snack. I felt restless and wanted some fresh air. The teens grew louder as they played video games and I went outside to eat at one of the picnic tables,” she informed the group.
“By yourself?” Patch asked, his protective nature showing in his tone.
“No. With my dog, Ice,” she shot back.
Leo frowned. “What did you do after?”
“My friend Rayne plans to visit me. I wanted to show her how well Ice and I worked together. Since Serenity seemed deserted, it seemed like a great time to practice crossing the street.”
“Alone?” Patch asked.
Scarlett put her elbows on the table. “Do you need someone to hold your hand? Let me know, and Ice and I will help you out.”
Ty chuckled beside her as she shot blind daggers at the person who seemed to believe women couldn’t do anything without a man.
A soft, feminine giggle came from behind her.
“Hello, Scarlett,” Claire said. “You’ve pegged my fiancé to a T.
Please don’t take it personally. He’s overprotective of me since I got kidnapped by a colleague, and now one of his friends has died. ”
Patch rose, moving his chair over to allow room for Claire. “Please accept my apologies, Scarlett. I don’t mean to offend you. We’re SEALs, and it’s in our blood to protect. I’m still on edge over Debbie,” Patch admitted while Claire intertwined her fingers with his.
“I’m sorry, too. You lost a family member, and I shouldn’t be so sensitive,” Scarlett said, sending him a tired smile.
“How far did you go?” Leo asked, sending Patch a nod of approval. Despite his needling her, Scarlett held her own.
“I walked to the grocery store and turned around in the parking lot. It took me a few minutes because Ice stopped a few times, and I didn’t recall a crosswalk or anything.”
“Did he seem distracted?”
“No. We’re still new and learning about each other. The only time he went off script…” Scarlett stopped, recalling having to readjust her hand.
“What did you remember?” Ty asked her gently, rubbing her good arm.
“After I turned around, Ice walked in front of me, sideways. Allie called it shielding. It’s the first time I heard him growl, and I remember smelling something familiar.
I can’t place where, though. Then a minute later, I smelled the smoke,” Scarlett said slowly.
“It’s the scent, a cologne or soap of some sort. ”
“How do you know?” Knight asked.
“Ty smells like the earth, herbs and smoky. Leo smells woodsy. Doc smells like pine. Kassie smells like lavender. We all have a scent. I guess since I’m blind, I pick up on it faster,” she explained.
“Do you think you might recognize it if you smelled it again?” Leo asked as he rested his elbows on the table.
“Yes, without a doubt,” she assured them.
“Patch. Scarlett needs some sleep. When she wakes, I want you to take her back to town. Walk the sidewalks with her and see if anyone stands out,” Leo ordered. “The fire will draw spectators. Our suspect might want to see his handywork.”
He turned back to Scarlett. “It appears you’re one of us for the time being. What’s your call sign?”
“Sassy Pants, sir,” she said. Her whole body began to shake, and she stifled the smile threatening to show.
“Oh shit,” Leo said, rubbing his forehead. “I’m not touching that with a ten-foot pole. My wife will string me up by the balls if I call you Sassy Pants.”
“Sledge calls me Sassy P,” she suggested.
Leo rubbed his eyes with his thumb and finger. “Ummm, that’s not much better. I’m not even gonna entertain what Kit Kat or any of the women will think if we call you that.”
“I’m not sure if it’s wise to insult your wives. Surely you say more insulting things than my name,” Scarlett grinned.
“Well, boys, she has us there,” Leo said. “We’ll go with Scarlett for now. Once we’ve resolved this, I’d like to invite you back for a formal meeting. We may have a position for you on Team Asshole.”
“Team Asshole, sir?” she asked.
“Team Hawk, but they’re all a bunch of assholes, and I need someone to keep them on their toes. From what I see, you fit the bill.”