Chapter Nine #2
He smiled, pleased to see a return of the sassy confident woman he’d met in Gatlinburg.
“Yes, well. I was on hiatus from the Seekers at the time. So you weren’t officially my client.
But I did want to help you. So after I threw you out, I called Pierce and asked him to give you an insider’s reading of the Ripper cases and to answer any questions that you had. ”
Her brows crinkled in confusion. “Why would you do that? You told me that looking into the Ripper case was the wrong approach.”
He started to move closer, but Zeus stood up, his ears flattening. Shooting her dog to defend himself was the last thing he wanted to do, so he took a step back.
“I’m glad you have Zeus with you, for protection,” he told her. “That’s smart.”
She winced and looked away.
Understanding had him filled with regret. “I wasn’t trying to say that you shouldn’t have been out here without him that first time.” When she didn’t answer, he leaned to the side, trying to get her to look at him. “Teagan?”
She sighed and met his gaze. “What?”
“It wasn’t your fault.” He waved his hands along the path. “None of this is your fault. A woman should be able to dance naked through the streets without worrying about some Neanderthal attacking her. It’s never the victim’s fault. The only person to blame is the monster who hurt you.”
A reluctant smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. “You sound like my parents.”
Now it was his turn to wince. “Ouch.”
She laughed, then winked, looking more like her old self again. “Don’t worry. There’s exactly zero chance of me confusing Hot Guy with my parents.”
“Good to know. I think. Assuming I’m Hot Guy?”
She grinned. “Definitely.” Her smile dimmed, and some of her earlier uneasiness had her glancing around again.
“I’m staying with my parents for a few days.
And like I do every time I see them, I walk this trail.
Not because I want to go...where it happened.
..some survivor’s weird hang-up or something.
But because it’s the same routine I had before the attack.
I’ve walked these trails almost daily since I was a little girl.
And I refuse to change that because of..
.because of what happened. He took so much from me.
It might seem silly, but letting him take away my joy of nature and long walks would be letting him win.
” She patted the dog beside her. “My only concession now is to bring my mom’s dog Zeus and Annie along. ”
The dog seemed to be licking his lips in anticipation of sinking its teeth into his hide—if dogs had lips.
“Wait. Annie? Who’s Annie?”
She slid her hand into the pocket of her jeans and pulled out a compact .22-caliber pistol. “Meet Annie.”
“Let me guess. After Annie Oakley?”
Her gorgeous smile made another appearance. “Very good, Sherlock. Maybe you should be an FBI agent.” She shoved it back into her pocket.
“Been there, done that.” He gestured toward her pocket. “Should I ask for your concealed carry permit?”
“That depends. Did you become a police officer since the last time we met?”
“Touché. Don’t worry. Your secret’s safe with me. I won’t call any of my JSO contacts to tell them about Annie.”
“Is that how you got past the gates? Someone from the Jacksonville Sherriff’s Office told the guard to let you through?”
“Actually, I got in the old-fashioned way.”
“The old-fashioned way?”
“Ben Franklin. A bribe.”
He’d expected a laugh. Instead, her face turned ashen.
“Teagan? Are you okay?” Risking the wrath of Zeus, he leaned toward her.
Predictably, the dog barked and pulled against the leash trying to reach him.
She frowned and yanked him back. “Zeus, enough. Friend. He’s a friend.” She motioned toward Bryson. “Hold your hand out for him to sniff, palm down.”
“You’re kidding, right?”
“No. I’m serious. Let him smell you.” She slipped her hand under the back of the dog’s collar. “Friend, Zeus. Friend.”
Telling himself he was an idiot, he did as she’d asked, holding his hand out.
Zeus snuffled his hand for a good ten seconds, then his tongue lolled out and he gave it a long sloppy lick before sitting back on his haunches.
Bryson made a face at the saliva on his hand, then looked up in time to see Teagan trying to hide a grin. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “You did that on purpose.”
“Yeah, well. It’s kind of funny, seeing you dressed up in a business suit with dog slobber all over your hand.”
After a quick glance at Zeus, who seemed far more interested in a butterfly flitting around a nearby bush now that he’d supposedly accepted Bryson as a nonthreat, he reached out and wiped his hand on Teagan’s shirt.
She gasped in dismay at the wet stain on her formerly white blouse. “I can’t believe you did that.”
“We’re even now. Don’t go planning your revenge.”
“Hmm. We’ll see about that.” She glanced around again. “You said you bribed the guard at the gate to let you in? You didn’t show him some kind of old FBI credentials or anything like that?”
Now he understood why she’d paled earlier. “You’re surprised at how easy it was for someone who doesn’t live here to get in. Is that it?”
She nodded. “Not that I should be surprised. After all, the police ruled out the suspect as living in the community. They supposedly researched every single resident. We knew he had to have come from outside somehow. I just didn’t think it would be that easy to drive on in.”
“Yeah, well. It’s not like you have to be a former cop to be a security guard. Pretty much anyone can be one. And they aren’t paid enough to make them above reproach, some of them anyway. I’m sure most are great people and genuinely try to do a good job.”
She snorted. “Now you’re pandering, trying to make me feel better. I preferred it when you were being brutally honest.”
“Brutal? Ouch again.”
“If the truth fits.” She shrugged, then winked as if to soften her criticisms.
“This isn’t going at all the way I’d planned when I flew down here late last night.”
“You thought I was in Georgia. You didn’t plan on running into me.”
“No. I didn’t. But now that I have, I’m wondering why I did. After being so intent on finding information on the Ripper, why would you come back to Jacksonville? Are you taking a break from the investigation? Returning to school to finish your master’s?”
She straightened her shoulders. “No break. I’m digging in harder than before. And I’m taking your advice. I’m starting at the beginning. And this—” she waved her hand toward the trees and bushes around them “—is where it all began.”