Chapter 27
The morning light streamed in soft and golden, filtering through the blinds and casting lines across Izzy’s bare shoulder as she lay curled beside him. Mitch watched her for a long moment, her breath even, her face finally relaxed. It was the first time in days she looked peaceful.
Last night had changed something. Not just between them, but inside him.
He slipped out of bed carefully, not wanting to wake her. Padding into the kitchen, he started the coffee pot and checked his phone. Two texts waited, one from Jayson and one from Chief Fielding.
Jayson: Sadie texted me some photos. You need to see these. They match known packaging from two prior cases in Lexington.
Fielding: We’ve confirmed the powder from Delilah’s matches a fentanyl-laced compound. High risk. High distribution value. We’re getting a warrant for a full search.
Mitch exhaled slowly, dragging a hand through his hair.
Sadie had come through. That duffel bag in her closet wasn’t just damning, it was dangerous.
Combined with what he found in Delilah’s salon and Noah’s increasingly erratic behavior, this was shaping into something bigger than he’d first thought.
A network. A local operation with multiple points of contact.
Travis might be the low-level mover, but someone had to be supplying him.
And then there was Noah.
The man gave Mitch the creeps. The way he hovered near Petal Pushers, his fixation on Izzy, the delivery she hadn’t ordered. Mitch couldn’t shake the thought that Noah wasn’t just watching her, he was studying her. Like she was his and didn’t even know it yet.
He sent a text back to Jayson.
Let’s meet. I want to review everything again. Salon. Noah. Sadie’s pics. We’re close.
I’ll come to your office in an hour. Bringing full files and surveillance pulls.
Izzy shuffled into the kitchen, wrapped in his t-shirt, her hair a sexy mess of curls and waves. She looked sleepy and beautiful and far too brave for the hell she was navigating.
“You okay?” she asked, rubbing her eyes.
He crossed the room and kissed her temple. “We’re getting close. Fielding’s acting on the salon. Jayson’s bringing more evidence.”
She nodded, trying to be strong, but he saw the flicker of worry in her eyes. “And Sadie?”
“She’s smart. Careful. You were right to warn her. What she found might be enough to take Travis off the board. But that substance is also dangerous. She should get away from there for the time being.”
Izzy leaned into him, resting her cheek against his chest. “I want this over, Mitch. I want to breathe again. I want to go back to my shop and feel safe there. And I want Sadie safe too.”
“You will,” he said fiercely. “I promise you. I'll do my best to make sure Sadie is safe, too.”
His arms tightened around her. In his gut, he knew the final push was coming. But he also knew that promises weren’t always enough. Not in his line of work.
After breakfast, he kissed her goodbye, made sure all the security systems were live, and headed out.
Today, they’d connect every thread. And if things went as he expected, one or both of the men circling Izzy would be facing justice soon.
But as Mitch pulled out of the driveway, a cold shadow settled over his thoughts.
Because he had a sinking feeling that one of them wasn’t going down without a fight.
Mitch pulled into the small parking lot behind his office building, a modest brick structure tucked between the funeral home at the end of First Street.
The sign on the door still read DeMario Security Consulting, though lately, his work had blurred the line between private sector and law enforcement.
In towns like this, lines had a way of doing that.
Jayson was already inside, seated at the small round table with a laptop open and several folders spread across the surface. He glanced up when Mitch walked in.
“Morning,” he said, tapping the spacebar to wake the screen. “You’re going to want to see this.”
Mitch dropped into the seat across from him. “Lay it out.”
Jayson flipped the laptop toward him. The screen showed three photos side-by-side: one of the duffel Sadie had photographed, one from a past drug bust in Lexington, and one from a DEA file he’d pulled last night.
“Packaging match is damn near identical. Same baggies, same colored zip tops, same white residue on the seams. This isn’t small-time dealing.
It’s part of a known fentanyl ring operating out of Louisville and Lexington. My guess? Travis is a runner.”
Mitch’s jaw tightened. “And Delilah’s salon is a drop point.”
Jayson nodded. “Looks that way. She’s got the location, cash problems, and motive. If she keeps the front legit, no one thinks twice about the back. And customers come and go in a business like that.”
“And Noah?” Mitch asked.
Jayson pulled another file forward. “This is where it gets twisted. He was let go from his previous employer after a harassment complaint.”
Mitch’s stomach dropped. “Okay. What was the harassment?”
“The pattern fits. Female coworker. Claimed he followed her home. Left her gifts. Nothing technically illegal, but definitely creepy. He was warned, then fired. No charges filed. Since then, he’s been delivering with his own truck as a third-party service and working under the radar.”
“Which could explain the mysterious order. He could have ordered it for Petal Pushers since he'd be picking it up, he could deliver it, see Izzy, and act like he wasn't sure what was going on, he's just the delivery guy.” Mitch rubbed his jaw. “He’s escalating. He’s always watching, always nearby. I think he’s getting bold.”
Jayson nodded. "I dug into ancient history on Noah. Harassment doesn't just start. It's a pattern. He's had similar issues at previous jobs. He becomes fixated on someone and can't let go."
"He's fixating on Izzy."
Jayson nodded. He tapped his computer a couple of times and pulled up an arrest record from Washington State.
"About twenty years ago, he went so far as to kidnap a victim.
He waited for her outside her workplace and surprised her from behind.
Hand over her mouth, he easily picked her up and carried her to his delivery truck.
He tied her to the rails and drove her out of town.
Luckily, she'd managed to get her hands loose on the ride and slipped out of the ropes.
She found a bat or a large stick in the back of the truck and waited near the door.
When he opened the door and climbed in to get her, she hit him on the back of the head and ran like hell.
He was arrested and spent only five months in jail due to overcrowding.
He was a first timer, no previous record, so he was chosen for release. "
"I'll be damned. So he is dangerous."
“And unstable,” Jayson added. “Which makes him more dangerous.”
Mitch leaned back in his chair. “Okay. We’ve got Sadie’s photos, the drugs from Delilah’s salon, surveillance of Travis entering multiple times, and now a potential pattern of stalking behavior from Noah. All roads are converging. Do we have anything tying Noah to Delilah and Travis?”
“We also don’t know who’s pulling the strings,” Jayson said. “Someone’s supplying that fentanyl. Could be local, could be someone in Louisville.”
“Doesn’t matter,” Mitch said firmly. “We take the players off the board here first.”
Jayson nodded. “So what’s the move?”
Mitch stood and began pacing the small office. “We need to get Sadie out of that house. If Travis suspects she knows anything, she’s a target.”
“I’ll reach out. Tell her we’ve got a safe house in town. You okay with her staying there?”
“Yes. Get her out quietly. Don’t let her pack anything. Just tell her to bring her phone and come now.”
Jayson made the call while Mitch grabbed a notepad and began sketching out their timeline.
The salon had to be searched, Delilah questioned, Travis arrested, or at least brought in for questioning, and Noah.
Noah needed to be watched until they had enough to put him away for good.
Preferably before he got close to Izzy again.
When Jayson hung up, he gave a nod. “Sadie’s on her way. She didn’t argue. She actually seemed relieved.”
“Good. We’re going to need her statement, and she’ll be safer out of that house.”
“What about Izzy?”
Mitch’s eyes narrowed. “I’m reinforcing security at the condo and staying close. If Noah tries anything, I want to be the one who sees it coming.”
Jayson nodded. “And if he doesn’t?”
Mitch’s tone turned cold. “Then we find him before he gets the chance.”
Mitch pulled up his phone and tapped Izzy's number.
"Hi."
He smiled despite his mood. "Hey. I'll come home and drive you to the shop this morning. Please don't leave the house without me there."
"Why, is something wrong?"
"I'll tell you when I get there. Don't open the door, don't leave the building. I'm leaving the office now."