Chapter 8
Chapter Eight
Tessa glanced at the older Rourke male. “Thanks for coming out to pick me up.”
Whether she wanted to be going home or not was a different story. But Caleb, the federal agent on his case, wasn’t willing to allow her to slow him down. Considering he was going after her father, maybe she didn’t have much to argue about.
But that didn’t mean she liked it. She was a woman, which meant that even if logic dictated one thing she reserved the right to feel differently about it. Or to just be irritated for no reason at all.
“You warm enough?” Pops reached out a hand in front of the vent, feeling the heat pumping out.
She still shivered, gathering her coat tighter around her. But out in the cool winter air hadn’t bothered her at the time. Not even when she’d been sliding down the hill. Now the adrenaline had worn off and she’d overexerted herself with all that walking after, she couldn’t seem to get warm.
Pops reached over and patted her knee. “Caleb will find your dad.”
“I hope so.” She motioned to the next corner up ahead on the highway.
“It’s just around the bend where we found his car.
” And it was where she’d left hers, the spot he was taking her to.
Because there was no point in him driving her home if she was stranded there with her car on the side of the highway behind her father’s.
As soon as they rounded the bend she spotted a Sheriff’s Department SUV behind where her car was parked. Up in front of her dad’s car, a tow truck had winched up the front end so that it was raised up off the ground.
As soon as Pops pulled over by the sheriff’s department vehicle she climbed out and rushed over to the deputy. “You’re taking my dad’s car already?” At least they hadn’t started to load hers onto the tow truck.
“Can’t stay here.” Deputy Simmons stuck his thumbs in his belt, the quintessential Montana law man with a handlebar mustache, dark blue eyes and a belly that hung over his belt.
In high school when he had won several state championship sprint races, so everyone knew that if you ran from Simmons he would definitely catch you.
Criminals were just asking to get caught if they tried to run from him.
She said, “Are you taking it somewhere that it can get tested for forensics?”
Simmons frowned, his nose red from the cold and a beanie pulled down to his eyebrows and over the tips of his ears. “Why would we do that?”
Tessa put her hands on her hips. “Because my father was kidnapped out of his car.” She pointed to the woods where she and Caleb had gone, catching herself before she said his name. “There’s blood…and broken branches. He ran from whoever was here and we couldn’t find him in the woods.”
The tracks that Caleb had noticed earlier were now buried under the tow truck tires. All the evidence Caleb had seen that caused him to rush off into the woods…and the police were just going to ignore it? Unbelievable.
She couldn’t even tell Simmons that it was Caleb who was out there. That would’ve explained so much. Not that the deputy would appreciate where she was coming from.
“The sheriff mentioned he was missing.” Simmons glanced at Pops who had come over to stand beside Tessa, then said to her, “But there’s no evidence that he was kidnapped.”
“Because he ran from them!”
Pops set his hand on her shoulder. “I’m sure it will all get sorted out once Simmons calls the sheriff and more investigation is done. We wouldn’t want your father alone out there, in danger.”
She knew he was emphasizing those facts for Deputy Simmons’ benefit. However, it struck a pang in her that squeezed her heart. Until she remembered that Caleb was out there, with all those weapons and his skills. Ready to take on the bad guys and get her father back.
Sure, he didn’t want her help, but it wasn’t like he was leaving her stranded.
She lifted her chin and zeroed her gaze on Simmons. “I suggest you take a look at the car. My father wouldn’t abandon his vehicle without a good reason.”
She twirled around and tried not to stomp back over to her car. At the end of the day, she was a female. Having an attitude was often the simplest way to explain to annoying men how she felt. Sometimes it even made them wake up and listen to her.
And why did she think that Caleb wasn’t necessarily the guy she would need to do that with?
It wasn’t manipulation, because whatever they did it was their choice. But they did it knowing how she felt about things. Still, it seemed more like he would hold her hand and try to help her instead of realizing how she felt and doing what he wanted anyway.
Tessa climbed in the front seat of her car, determined not to get sucked under by the fantasy of a strong man with big shoulders who swept into her life.
A guy who put everything on the line for his work.
To save people and bring justice to the world.
A guy like that wasn’t going to stop and take notice of her.
Life just didn’t work that way.
Even if he held her hand it was only because he knew she’d been worried about her father and was trying to comfort her. It wasn’t because he had any kind of feelings for her outside of that.
No new messages, or calls.
No updates from Caleb.
Just a couple of app notifications she had never gotten around to turning off, and an email about a sale at JC Penney.
Where is my dad?
God knew—and it was the only solace she had.
She waved to Pops and flipped her car around on the highway, heading back to town. She could try to call Caleb and find out if he’d seen anyone else out there in the woods. But she didn’t want to disturb him if he was in the middle of a dangerous situation.
Tessa really did want to be the one out there protecting her father, making sure he was safe. Wasn’t that part of her role as a daughter? But she really didn’t know how, even if she wanted to do it. She would probably just end up getting herself and anyone else killed.
See, she didn’t have to like that Caleb had dumped her off. But if she were honest it really was the best way to resolve the situation.
She let out a long sigh, shifting in the seat enough to feel the bruises she had sustained earlier.
With all the adrenaline and the walking and meeting up with Pops she really hadn’t had a chance to assess her own situation.
Side of her hip smarted, like she had banged her bone there. Maybe she even had some road rash.
Tessa drove, praying in her mind that her father would be found safely. That he wouldn’t be injured or killed today or because of these people.
Usually she felt pretty equipped to do what she needed to do—the things she was called to do in her life. But this was a situation where she was completely in over her head.
Lord, help us all. Give Caleb the skills and the wisdom to find dad. Keep dad safe until Caleb gets there. And show me how I can help with any of it.
As she drove back to town, her phone rang in the little clip on the dash. Dad appeared on the screen. She tapped it and put the call on speaker. “Are you okay? Dad, what’s happening?”
“Tessa?” His voice croaked. He sounded tired, or even in pain.
She’d checked his phone location again when she had signal earlier, but it hadn’t been transmitting. Caleb had told her it was probably turned off.
“Where are you? What happened?” Sure, she was repeating herself. But she needed all the information she could get right now.
“I’m…safe. I made it as far as my hunting cabin.”
He didn’t sound convinced that he was safe, but maybe he was still just scared from so much running. “Do you want me to come get you?”
He didn’t answer right away, but finally said, “Yes. Come get me, Tess.”
Was someone else there?
She had visions of a TV show where the person was under duress, reading from a card. Or forced at gunpoint to say what the kidnapper wanted.
“I can do that.” She had to sound sincere, and like she knew nothing. And definitely like there wasn’t a trained DEA agent out there in the woods with a big gun and plenty of bullets. “But I don’t know where the hunting cabin is. I’ve never been there.”
“I’ll send my location. Share it.”
She frowned; unsure he even knew how to do that. He’d never done it before. That only solidified the idea that someone else was there. “Okay.” She got a ping on her phone. “I have it already. I see where you are.”
“I’ll need you to go talk to Ian Rourke. Tell him I need the white envelope. He’ll know what I’m talking about.” Her father paused. “Come quickly, Tess.”
Her throat started to close, and she had to swallow against the sensation. “Are you safe at least?”
“If you can bring me the white envelope.”
“I’ll get it.” She squeezed the steering wheel, unsure what to say.
She didn’t feel like she could tell him she knew about it.
Something about this conversation wasn’t right at all.
She should turn around and go back to the deputy, but everything in her said she’d have better success with a certain other lawman.
“Come quickly.”
The call ended.
Tessa hit the brakes and jerked the wheel, pulling over to the side of the road.
She took a few deep breaths and stared at the asphalt ahead.
The trees. The mountain peaks she saw every day.
The place she called home, where she had sought comfort from the familiar and the things she considered mundane.
Now the world was far too much like a strange place she didn’t understand. Somewhere she felt like she had to navigate blind, not knowing the rules or how anything worked.
In a single day her entire existence seemed to have been upended.
She tapped her phone screen and called Caleb. The last thing he’d done before he walked away back down that path was get her number and give her his. Then he quickly picked up his stride into a fast jog she never would have been able to keep up with.
Now her reason for calling was something far different.