Chapter Six
Along with everyone else, Archer watched the monitor as four people—three men and one woman—spilled out of the black SUV in the parking lot. As soon as the woman’s face became clear, he recognized her from the photos he’d seen numerous times over the past month or so.
“That looks like … um … Eddie,” Atticus said from beside him, his voice low, but probably not low enough.
“Because it is,” Brantley confirmed, still watching the screen.
What were the odds that the woman at the center of this conspiracy just showed up at their door? And yeah, okay. That was a stupid question since that was most definitely her.
“Who is she?” Gage asked, looking to Brantley for an answer.
“I guess technically she’s your mother-in-law.”
Gage’s head snapped around, eyes slamming into the monitor. “That’s Kylie’s mother?”
“It most definitely is,” Brantley said, sounding a little too chipper to be sharing that information.
“I thought her name was Meredith.”
“Eddie’s a nickname.”
“Did you know she would be here?” Travis prompted. He didn’t look entirely surprised to see her.
Brantley shook his head. “Had no idea. Then again, I didn’t know you would be here.”
“Who’s the guy with her?”
Archer figured Gage was referring specifically to the glaring man who had taken her hand and was leading her toward the barn.
“Decker Bromwell. He works for RT and Z,” Reese explained.
“How does he fit into this?” Gage asked.
“He had a relationship with her when he was a teenager,” Brantley said, his distaste for the subject evident. “She was his teacher, he was her fourteen-year-old student.”
“Jesus Christ,” Travis muttered. “That’s disturbing.”
“Understatement,” Brantley added.
Archer would’ve found this situation somewhat comical if it weren’t quite so dire.
The entire case they were working sat like a house of cards right on that woman’s head, and here she was, making an appearance in Coyote Ridge.
He wondered how long it would take the feds to figure out she was there.
And once they did, what were they intending to do about it?
Which, now that he thought about it, maybe that was how they could draw out Martin Calloway.
If they used Meredith as bait, Archer was sure the guy would come running.
Then again, he was a Fed, which meant he’d likely pull rank and haul her off, throwing up protections as a federal witness that would keep them from getting to talk to her.
So maybe they needed to keep her presence a secret.
Reese moved to the door, opening it when the group approached.
“Hey,” RT said softly, eyes full of apology.
“Inside,” Z ordered Decker, looking as though he was ready to kick the guy to get him moving.
Beside Archer, Atticus stared in wonder, looking confused and intrigued in equal measure. Archer understood the feeling all too well.
Welcome to the Big Top, folks. Archer was positive the price of admission to a show like this would be astronomical. And here he was with a front row seat.
Once inside, Z made introductions. “Brantley, Reese, meet Meredith Prescott. Over there, that’s Atticus and Archer.”
Not sure what to do, Archer lifted a hand and waved. He felt like a fool, but his brain was momentarily on the fritz. Just last night, they’d been deep diving into this woman’s existence, and there she was.
No one said anything in response, and somehow the tension managed to ratchet up another notch, which Archer didn’t think was even possible.
Based on the tension Decker had carried into the building with him, they were moments away from turning into pink mist. As it was, he was fighting the urge to tug on his shirt collar, wondering if anyone else was choking on the suffocating silence.
Finally, Brantley spoke up. “This is my cousin Travis and his husband, Gage.”
Meredith’s eyes widened as she took in both men. Based on her expression, she recognized them. Their names, at least.
Because no one seemed to know what to do, Archer decided to take the lead. That was his job, after all. He moved closer to the group. “Did you drive here?” he asked Meredith directly. “From New York?”
Her eyebrows tipped downward. “I did, yes.”
“Very recently?”
“I got here yesterday.”
He noticed the lingering question, so he nodded toward her left arm. “You’ve got a tan on one arm. That’s usually from driving long distances.” And since it hadn’t faded, he knew she hadn’t been in the area long.
Meredith put her right hand on her left arm and rubbed.
“Why’s she here?” Brantley asked, his tone lacking civility.
“She showed up at the B and B late last night,” RT explained. “We figured it was safer to keep her presence on the DL.”
Driving her around Coyote Ridge was this man’s version of the DL? Good to know.
Reese stared directly at her. “You realize there are feds lookin’ for you.”
It wasn’t really a question, but Meredith nodded.
“What do you expect us to do with her?” Brantley asked RT.
RT looked at Z, who looked at Reese, who was still staring at Meredith.
“Is there somewhere she can go that won’t draw attention to her?” Archer asked when no one else seemed to know what to say. “I think it’s in her best interest to stay off the radar. We don’t want the FBI swooping her up.”
Meredith looked at Decker.
Archer was surprised to see he didn’t look directly at her.
Although they’d walked in hand-in-hand, Archer got the feeling Decker was trying to put some distance between them.
For a man who’d gone on the defensive to protect her honor not too long ago, he didn’t seem to be thrilled that she was there.
“She can stay at our house,” Gage offered.
“The hell she can,” Travis bit out.
“The kids’ll be with your parents,” Gage said, his tone calm. “We’ll be in Dallas. She can stay there until we get back.”
“I can’t ask you to do that.” Meredith’s voice was soft, almost meek. Completely unexpected.
“You’re right,” Travis said, glaring at her. “You can’t.”
“She can stay at the B and B,” Decker said, still not looking at her.
“I’d prefer somewhere that isn’t in the heart of town,” Archer told them. “What about a hotel in Round Rock? Or maybe Taylor? It’s not too far from here, and it’ll reduce the risk of anyone seein’ her.”
“Good idea.” Z pointed at Decker. “You can take her and keep an eye on her.”
Decker’s heated glare could’ve melted plastic.
Gage opened his mouth to say something, but Travis cut him off with, “I’ll spring for the room.”
Meredith was watching him closely, probably not sure how to take the gruff, outspoken country boy who clearly did not like her.
“Now that that’s settled,” Brantley said, “we need to get packed so we can head up to Dallas. We’re meetin’ with Max,” he told RT and Z.
“We’re headin’ back, too,” Z informed them. “Figure people might start talkin’ if we stick around.”
“Especially if we’re not here,” Reese noted.
“Where’s Simon?” RT asked, his gaze scanning the room.
Shit.
Shit, shit, shit. Archer forgot all about Simon.
“He’s with Violet,” Brantley answered. “Her dad’s MIA, so he’s workin’ on that. We’ll pick him up on our way outta town.”
Well, at least the guy was otherwise preoccupied. Perhaps he might even forgive Archer for forgetting him.
“You two get to a hotel,” Atticus told Decker and Meredith. “And stay put.”
Decker nodded, looking none too happy at being ordered around by anyone. Archer, on the other hand, was impressed by Atticus’s desire to take the lead. He might not have a lot of cases under his belt, but he got the feeling the man would come into his own soon enough.
Atticus turned to Brantley and Reese. “If it’s cool with you, we’re gonna head up in a bit.”
Brantley nodded. “We’ll send you the hotel info when we have it.”
“This one’s on me,” Travis said, not looking at anyone as he turned toward the door. “I’ll get the reservations taken care of and send you the details.”
“We’ll see you at seven, if not before,” Gage said to the room before following Travis out.
Atticus swore the room deflated when Travis left. He figured it would ease up even more as soon as Decker sought fresh air. The tension those two brought to a conversation was the equivalent of an atom bomb. Geezus.
Now it was just a matter of grabbing his stuff and urging Archer out into the sunshine. A three-hour drive was just what the doctor ordered to relieve some of the stress that was currently weighing him down.
“Can we have a quick chat before you head out?” Reese asked once most everyone had left the barn.
Oh, boy. A one-on-one with the boss was never a good thing.
“Sure, what’s up?”
“I got a text from Slade.”
Speaking of shoulder-hunching stress…
Reese didn’t continue right away, and Atticus wasn’t sure what to say. Did he apologize? Pretend not to know what Slade was messaging about? Or leap right into an explanation of his own so that Reese had both sides of the story?
He opted for the latter.
“I don’t know what Slade told you, but if it’s all the same to you, I don’t want to change partners.”
Reese’s gold eyes skimmed his face. “I’m glad to hear you say that.”
As for why Reese was glad, Atticus didn’t know.
“There’s no rule against dating in the workplace,” Reese continued, “but—”
Atticus stopped him. “I know. And that’s not a problem. Not anymore.”
He could tell by Reese’s expression that he wanted Atticus to elaborate, but he didn’t feel like getting into it.
For the moment, he had too much to deal with to worry about the status of his relationship with Slade or Carson.
The only thing he knew for sure was that he was not going to let it dictate how he lived his life.
The relationship was supposed to be fun, but Slade was ensuring it was anything but.
And Atticus didn’t think he was the only one feeling the pressure since Carson seemed to be keeping his distance, too.
“I plan to talk to Slade,” Reese informed him. “I want him to know it’s our preference that you work with Archer.”
“Our?”
“Mine and Brantley’s.”
Atticus nodded. “I agree.”
And that much was true. He’d officially worked with Archer for less than a day, but he got the feeling he was going to learn a lot from the man. Plus, it helped that Archer treated him like an equal, rather than a newbie who was lacking in the smarts department.
When Reese didn’t say anything more, Atticus gestured toward the door. “We’re about to head out, if that’s cool.”
Reese nodded. “Y’all be safe on the road. We’ll let you know as soon as we have hotel info. And we’ll shoot you a text when we get there.”
With a quick thumbs up, Atticus headed for the conference room to pack up his things.
After leaving Brantley’s, Travis headed for his parents’, wanting to make a plan for where the kids would be staying while he and Gage were in Dallas.
It was an impromptu trip, and while they were usually happy to let the kids stay the night, he did not want to bombard his mom and dad.
Five kids were a lot for anyone to deal with, even if most of them were relatively self-sufficient at this point.
“Did you ever meet Kylie’s mother?” Gage asked.
“No. She was gone by the time I met Kylie,” he admitted.
“Did she ever talk much about her?”
Travis shook his head. “I got the impression she was angry at her, so I never pushed.” He glanced at Gage. “She ever talk to you about her?”
“Not much. I tried a time or two, but she closed up whenever Meredith was mentioned.”
Yeah, that was how Travis remembered those conversations going.
According to the story, Meredith had up and left when Jessie turned eighteen, heading out for greener pastures and never looking back.
Kylie and her sister were close with their father, and they didn’t have a problem with their father’s girlfriend.
Now that they had bits and pieces of Holt’s conspiracy theory, Travis had to wonder whether Meredith had left in order to keep them safe.
Or maybe she disappeared because she was a selfish bitch and didn’t give a shit about anyone.
It was far too early to tell.
“Did she ever mention her mom havin’ an affair with a student?”
Travis’s nose curled in distaste. He’d heard the same in Brantley’s voice when he relayed that detail. If it were true, he hoped like fuck that woman had spent at least a portion of these past couple of decades in prison.
“No. I have to think she didn’t know.” At least he hoped she’d been spared that information.
“Do you think we should tell Jessie that her mom’s in town?”
Travis jerked his head toward Gage. “No. Jesus.”
“You don’t think she might want to know?”
“Why would she? The woman ran out on them.”
“True. But that doesn’t mean she’s given up on her altogether.”
Travis didn’t understand why not. Why would Jessie want to let Meredith back in her life when she couldn’t be bothered to stick around when she should have?
“I don’t think we should mention it,” Travis told him. “Not until Brantley and them have more information.”
“And you think Max is gonna just pass over details to enlighten them?”
Travis huffed a laugh. “Not a chance. But I want to see Max’s reaction when he hears about it.”
“Chances are once that happens, this Martin Calloway guy will end up missing or dead,” Gage drawled, his attention out the window.
Yes, there was a good chance. That tended to happen to people who crossed Max Adorite. While Travis didn’t condone what the man did, he had to admit he admired his ability to take care of his own. Right or wrong, Max protected what was his, and Travis couldn’t fault him for that.
Not that he would share that with Gage. His do-gooder husband would never understand the darker side that resided in Travis. Nor would he want him to. That was why he loved Gage. The man made him a better person simply because Travis would do anything not to hurt him.
As he was turning into his parents’ driveway, he glanced at Gage. “Let’s see what my parents are up for, then we’ll call my brothers to see who we can offload to them.”
Gage laughed. “You talk about our kids like they’re furniture.”
“Yeah, well, sometimes I think they might need to be surgically removed from it. At least this way, they’ll get out some of their energy.”
“True. But you know good and well that Zane’s gonna hop them up on sugar when we get back. That’s his way of punishing us.”
Travis grinned. Yeah, even at thirty-three, his baby brother was still a pain in his ass.