Chapter 36 Grae
GRAE
“It’s animal blood,” Lawson said, leaning against the counter in Caden’s kitchen.
The dark circles under his eyes had gotten worse over the past two weeks, and guilt pricked at me.
“What type?” Roan asked, barely restrained rage coating his words.
“Don’t know that yet, just that it isn’t human.”
I burrowed deeper into Caden’s hold. At least there was that. But it didn’t make me feel a whole heck of a lot better that Bambi or some other innocent creature had lost their life just so whoever this was could terrify me.
“Can you part with one of the photos?” Holt asked.
The gang was all here again. My four brothers. My parents. Even Wren and Maddie had come. I’d forced Jordan, Noel, and Eddie to go back to our makeshift office, not wanting them to miss even more work because of me.
Just thinking about the photos made me shudder. Private moments where I’d had no idea someone watched, let alone photographed me.
Lawson eyed Holt. “What are you thinking?”
“My team can run it through our private lab and see what we can find out about the paper and the printer.”
Lawson pursed his lips and then nodded. “You can do that. You’re technically a consultant, after all.”
“Yeah, that whole dollar retainer you pay me really comes in handy.”
Nash slapped him on the back. “Your nosy ass just wanted in on the action.”
“It’s true,” Wren agreed, rubbing her belly. “He gets bored. And when he gets bored, he gets in my way.”
“Hey,” Holt protested.
She shrugged but did so while grinning. “It’s the truth.”
Lawson turned to me. “I’d like to call my friend, Anson, and go through the case with him. He used to work as a profiler for the FBI.”
Nash shot him a questioning look. “Last time you called him, he told you to F off.”
Lawson’s jaw tightened. “His time with the bureau didn’t exactly end well, but I think he’ll help if he knows my sister’s at risk.” Lawson glanced my way. “Is that all right?”
My fingers twisted in Caden’s shirt. “You’re asking me?”
His gaze flicked to Nash. “It’s been made clear to me that I might have been doing my fair share of steamrolling.” Apology flickered in his eyes. “I don’t want to make you feel like your life isn’t yours, G. It’s just hard to turn off the big-brother thing, even when I might need to.”
I slipped out of Caden’s hold and crossed to Lawson, throwing my arms around him and squeezing tightly. “I always want you to be my big brother.”
“Nash said we were suffocating you.”
“Maybe a little. I just want to feel like we’re fighting all our battles together, not that you’re fighting mine for me.”
Lawson rubbed a hand up and down my back. “I get that. And I’m sorry I made you feel that way. I just—”
“You’re a protector. It’s hard for you to turn that off, even if it’s just to pause to include someone else in the plan.”
He released me, nodding. “I’ve gotten used to running the show.”
“That makes sense. But I really appreciate you asking me on this one. I think having your friend take a look at the case is smart. Go ahead. And if he needs any more information from me, just let me know.”
Surprise lit Lawson’s expression, and I laughed. “I can be pretty agreeable when you work with me.”
“It’s a Christmas miracle,” Nash said with a grin.
I elbowed him in the gut.
Lawson just shook his head, but that hint of amusement quickly slid from his face. “I had the crime scene techs take shots of all the photos. I’m going to need your help with creating a timeline of everything.”
“Is that really necessary?” my mom asked, a hint of panic making its way into her tone. “She shouldn’t have to look at them.”
Dad squeezed her shoulder. “Kerry…”
“I can handle it,” I assured her. It would probably give me nightmares, but I wouldn’t waste the opportunity to show my brothers that I was stronger than they realized.
“This could be the break we’ve been waiting for,” Holt said.
Caden wrapped an arm around my chest, pulling me back into him again as if he needed my body against his. “What are you thinking?”
Holt shifted on his feet. “We’ve been hoping the unsub would get mad enough to make a mistake. Removing Grae from his orbit has done that. If she can tell us when these photos were taken, we’ll have a list of times he wouldn’t have had an alibi. We’ll cross a lot of people off our list that way.”
“And we know they must have been placed between last night when the scene was cleared and this morning,” Lawson added.
Caden’s fingers stroked my arms in a calming rhythm. “Anyone could’ve seen the fire department taking down the crime scene tape and known no one would be on the premises.”
Nash nodded. “It’s true. Our best hope is to figure out a timeline from the photos. We’ve got officers setting up a room at the station with all of them on display.”
I shivered again, and Caden pulled me tighter against him. He dipped his head, his lips skimming my ear. “I’ll be with you every step of the way.”
“If you can come down tomorrow, that would be great,” Lawson said.
“Sure. But we have the gala tonight.”
“You don’t have to go,” Caden said. “You’ve been through a lot—”
I turned in his arms. “I’m going. This is for Clara. And I’m not letting you deal with your family alone.”
“Gigi…” He brushed the hair from my face.
“I’m going, and that’s final.”
“Don’t argue with her, brother,” Nash said. “She’s stubborn as an ox.”
I stuck out my tongue at him. “I’m going to take that as a compliment.”
“We’ll be there, too,” Maddie assured me.
“You’re all welcome,” Caden said. “But I’m afraid it’s black tie, so you’ll have to dress up.”
Maddie grinned. “I love an excuse to see my man in a tux.”
Nash’s eyes heated as he pulled her into his arms. “Got a James Bond fantasy, Mads?”
“Maybe…”
“We’ll go, too,” Wren offered.
Holt nodded. “That way, you’ll have extra backup.”
Roan’s jaw went tight. “I’ll wait outside.”
Guilt pricked at me. “You don’t have to. We’ll have plenty of people around.”
“I’ll be outside,” he insisted.
“Okay,” I acquiesced.
Lawson pulled out his phone. “I’ll have your usual two-man detail on the premises in case more support’s needed.”
“We have security working the event, as well,” Caden added. “I’ve briefed them on the situation.”
Maddie grinned at Wren and me. “You know what this calls for, right?”
“Uncomfortable shoes?” I suggested.
She rolled her eyes. “Spa day!”