Chapter 30 #2
“I didn’t. The probate lawyer said that he put one in some obscure little town paper somewhere to fulfill the letter of the law so that if there were any creditors, they wouldn’t find out she was gone until well after probate.”
Kyle nodded. “It’s no guarantee, but that helps our chances.”
“We still don’t have the code word,” Gina added.
“I think I might have it.” Maren stood up and crossed the room to Juni’s backpack on the leather couch.
She carried it back to the table, unzipped it, and pulled out A Blue Fairy’s Treasury of Tales.
“I’ve been through every page. There’s nothing physical in here.
However…” She set it flat on the table and opened the back cover to the sketch on the endpaper.
Colin had seen the look on her face exactly once before—standing above the river, when she’d said I understand why Sean loved it here.
Maren looked up at Gina. “I think this is the key.”
Gina nodded slowly, recognition dawning on her face.
Maren turned the sketch to show Kyle. “When we were kids, if one of us had a secret, or if we needed to talk where no one else could hear, we’d say ‘hammock.’” Maren’s voice was barely above a whisper.
“It meant meet me there. Just us.” She looked down at the sketch.
“Even after we moved to San Diego. Even after there wasn’t a hammock anymore. It still meant the same thing.”
Maren touched the sketch. “She didn’t hide the key inside the book we loved. She depended on me remembering our code word for our safe place.”
“Hammock,” Gina said softly.
Maren nodded. “That’s the code word. It has to be.”
Colin covered her hand with his.
She turned her hand beneath his and held on.
She did it.
And now it’s up to me to keep her safe.
“Okay,” Kyle said quietly. “Now we plan.”
Planning was hell.
Colin had been through mission planning in tents, aircraft hangars, back rooms, and vehicles moving through terrain where stopping meant dying. He’d planned extractions with bad intel, bad weather, bad assets, bad odds, and one truly memorable lack of working comms.
None of it had felt as horrible as this.
Because this time, the principal was Maren, and there was a child being left behind in Colorado who had no idea what was about to happen. He glanced out the windows. Juni, Arden, and Mac were at the barn, Juni ‘helping’ Arden with her chores.
Colin’s ability to think clearly was in active combat with every instinct in his body that told him to grab Maren and Juni and run, as Kyle laid out the bones of the mission.
Elissa would be their remote tech cover from LA, with Flint backing her from Lyons.
Gina would coordinate with Lynn long enough to verify whatever clean NCIS contact Lynn claimed to have.
Lachlan would stay in the loop but out of the visible chain, because if this turned into a federal hurricane, Watchdog needed one person watching the whole board who could bail them out.
Maren had to look disposable. That meant only sending Colin from Colorado. They had to assume Voss had eyes on both Watchdog offices. Elissa hated this almost as much as Colin did.
“I could cover their tracks, I know I could,” she argued over the screen.
Kyle shook his head. “Negative. As much as I want to send in every bodyguard we have including myself, we’re not risking it, not from this office or LA.”
That meant Mac would stay behind guarding Juni.
Colin hated that, which was unfair as hell.
Mac was steady. Competent. Good with Juni and ridiculously proud of his tea party invite. He was exactly who Colin would have chosen if he wasn’t busy being an unreasonable, jealous asshole over a preschooler’s affection.
He glanced out the window again. Maren noticed. Of course she did.
“Mac will keep her safe,” she said quietly.
“I know.”
“She trusts him.” Maren’s mouth curved, just a little. “But not as much as she trusts you.”
Colin grinned down at her. “You have a knack, you know that?”
Maren smiled back. But her smile faded almost as soon as it appeared. She looked away.
“I’m still scared.”
“You’re doing great,” Colin reassured her.
“I’m not sure impersonating my twin at an attorney’s office to retrieve evidence against a defense contractor qualifies as great.”
“It does in this room.”
She looked back up at him, her eyes filled with gratitude.
And love.
Colin never imagined he’d see that look directed at him from any woman again, let alone one as beautiful and brave as Maren.
I can’t lose her, he thought. Whatever happens in San Diego, I cannot lose the love of my life.
By the time the plan was ship-shape enough for Kyle, the sun had shifted west. Golden light spilled across the great room floor. Outside, Juni’s laughter came closer as they returned from the barn. Camo barked once—not alarmed, just announcing the return of his tiny commanding officer.
Maren closed her eyes.
Colin understood. San Diego was scary enough on its own. This part was worse.
The decision was one thing. The goodbye was another.
He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and steered her toward the fireplace, out of earshot of the others.
“You don’t have to explain everything,” he said softly. “Just enough.”
Maren nodded. “I know.” But her hands were shaking again. “I’ve almost never left her overnight since Mira died. She’s had one sleepover with a friend from preschool. A couple nights with my brothers when they were home.” Pink touched her cheeks. “And of course the night with Arden and Kyle.”
“I remember that night,” Colin said.
The pink deepened. He lifted her hand and kissed it, just once.
“I was always right there,” she said. “Close. Reachable.” Her throat moved. “This is different.”
Juni came in with hay in her hair, dust on her shirt, and the triumphant smile of a child who now considered herself a professional horse person.
Mac followed her in with a matching streak of dust across his cheek. He looked like a man who had been instructed in no uncertain terms that he was doing horse chores wrong.
Arden trailed them, wearing a bright smile aimed straight at her niece.
Camo came in last and went straight to Kyle as if giving report, then immediately returned to his new commanding officer, Juni. She giggled.
As soon as she saw Maren’s face, the giggle faded.
“Mama?”
Maren froze.
Juni didn’t seem to notice what she’d said. Or maybe she did. Her small face had gone serious. Maren crossed the room and dropped to her knees in front of her.
“Hey, Junebug.”
“You’re sad.”
“A little.”
“Why?”
Colin moved to Maren’s side without thinking.
Maren brushed hay gently from Juni’s hair. “I have to go help your…your mom with something.”
“How? Mom is in heaven.”
“I know.” Maren’s voice cracked. She steadied it. “But she left something behind. Something important. And I have to go get it.”
“Is it what the robbers wanted?”
Maren could only nod.
Juni looked at Colin. “You’re going with her?”
“Yes,” he said.
Juni studied him with Sean Volker’s eyes and the terrifying solemnity of a child who had been through too much and understood more than anyone wanted her to.
Then she nodded. “Yes. Mama can go.” Juni reached out and patted Maren’s cheek. “Colin’s going with you. You’ll be okay because Colin always keeps his promises and comes back and he’ll bring you home.”
Maren pulled Juni into her arms and held her tightly. Juni hugged her back. One little hand patted Maren’s shoulder. “Don’t cry. I’ll stay with Aunt Arden and Uncle Kyle and Mac and Camo.”
Maren laughed through tears. “And Camo.”
Juni pulled back and looked at Colin. He crouched to her level because his knees had apparently decided this child owned them now.
“Colin.”
“Yes, ma’am?”
“You have to bring Mama back.”
Mama. Maybe now Maren will understand what she means to Juni.
“I will,” he said. “I will protect your Mama and bring her home.”
Juni narrowed her eyes. “Pinkie promise.”
He held out his hand. His pinkie looked enormous next to hers.
“Pinkie promise.”
She hooked her little finger around his. This was not a kid’s game. Not anymore. This was as sacred an oath as he’d ever given.
Colin held Juni’s gaze. “I’ll bring her back.”
Juni nodded once, satisfied. Then she leaned forward and hugged him.
He closed his eyes for the briefest second as he wrapped his arms around her. She smelled like horse, sunshine, and the strawberry shampoo Maren had bought for her in town.
She’s not yours. The old memory of Lindsey saying those words, hand on her belly, came roaring in.
I wanted that baby so badly I’ve been walking around closed off to the world.
I didn’t want Juni, but she chose me.
And God help him, he was choosing her right back.
Juni pulled back, studied his face, then patted his cheek, too. He realized it was wet. “Are you okay?” she asked.
His throat was tight as he nodded. “I’m okay, Junebug.”
Then he did something that made everything truly okay. He put his arms around both Juni and Maren and pulled them close. Maren hugged him back and so did Juni.
When Colin and Maren finally stood up, Mac cleared his throat. “Well, while you two are off doing boring grown-up stuff, Juni and I have a very full schedule.”
Juni turned. “We do?”
“Oh, yes. First, we have to check on Pretzel. Then, there are more tea parties. Then we have to convince Aunt Arden to make more cookies for the tea parties.”
Juni looked at Arden, hopeful.
Arden nodded solemnly. “I can be convinced.”
Juni considered this. “Chocolate chip?”
“You got it.”
“Okay.” Juni looked back at Maren. “You can go now.”
Maren laughed and cried at the same time.
Colin bent again and swept Juni up with one arm. He put his other arm around Maren and she leaned into him.
Family, he thought.
My family.