Chapter Eight
The coffee was bitter, burned, and so weak it barely deserved the name, but Cal drank it anyway. Anything to keep his eyes open.
Across the cramped office, Alena scrolled through her phone, her expression tight, every flick of her finger sharper than the last.
Raines sat behind his desk, phone pressed to his ear. The sheriff’s face was lined, his voice clipped, but Cal wasn’t really listening. He was too aware of the weight in his own bones, the fatigue clawing at him now that the adrenaline had bled away.
But it wasn’t just the exhaustion.
It was the failure.
They’d had Melissa in their sights. She’d been screaming for help, only yards away, and now she was gone. Hauled off by a man they hadn’t even seen clearly, protected by a sniper they hadn’t known was there until it was too late.
Cal set the empty cup aside and rubbed a hand over his jaw. The caffeine hadn’t touched the knot in his gut. They’d come so close to pulling her out of that nightmare. And they’d failed.
Raines ended the call, dropped the receiver back into its cradle, and leaned forward on his desk. His gaze cut to Cal and Alena. “We got an ID on the shooter you took down. It’s Bryce Keller.”
Cal’s jaw tightened. The same name Dexter had thrown at them, the man with a rap sheet a mile long.
“Keller’s got ties to Kara,” Raines went on, his voice flat, “which makes this even messier. She should be here soon to answer some questions.”
Alena straightened, setting her phone aside. “What about Arneson?”
“He’s due in too,” Raines let her know. “The strip mall’s been tied back to his construction company, so he needs to explain why his name keeps coming up in this mess.”
Cal shifted in his chair, fatigue dragging at him, but his mind wouldn’t let up. Melissa was still out there. “Any word on her?”
Raines shook his head. “Not yet. No sign of her, but the CSIs are in the abandoned shop where she says she was held. If there’s anything to find, they’ll dig it up.”
Cal exchanged a look with Alena. He didn’t have to say what was written all over her face. They were running out of time, and Melissa was still in the wind.
Raines glanced at the clock on the wall and rubbed a hand over his face. “It’s after two, and none of us has had lunch. I’ll have something sent over from the diner up the street.” He pushed back from his desk, stood, and stepped out, pulling the door closed behind him.
The quiet settled heavily. Alena let out a low groan and pressed her hands over her face. The sound of it, the sheer weight behind it, clawed at Cal.
“I had to fight down a panic attack,” she said, her voice muffled but tight. She lowered her hands, and he saw the strain etched around her eyes. “When I saw Melissa being dragged like that, it pulled me straight back to the warehouse. For a second, I wasn’t here. I was there again.”
Cal was out of his chair before the words were even finished. He reached for her, took her hands, and tugged her gently to her feet. Then he pulled her in against him, wrapping his arms around her. She was stiff for a moment, then her head settled against his chest.
“I’ve got you,” he murmured. “You’re here. With me.”
Her breath shuddered out against him, but she held on tight.
Alena didn’t pull away. She stayed in his arms, her breathing uneven, her forehead resting against his chest. Cal smoothed a hand down her back, trying to anchor her here, not in the past.
“You know what Mason’s into right now?” Cal said softly. “Model rockets. He built one last weekend that almost cleared the school roof. He was grinning so big you’d have thought he’d just won the Super Bowl.”
That earned him a small, forced smile. She tipped her face up just enough to meet his eyes. “You’re trying to distract me.”
“I am,” he admitted. “Is it working?”
Her smile warmed, this one genuine. “Yes.”
For a moment, the tension eased between them. Then she whispered, “I took the next step in the adoption once. Just more paper but still the next step.”
Cal searched her face, his chest tightening. “You’re trying to distract me now.”
She gave him the same smile he’d just given her. “Is it working?”
Before he could think better of it, he dipped his head and kissed her. Just a brush of his mouth over hers, reckless and unplanned. He knew it was stupid, knew they shouldn’t cross that line. But he did it anyway.
The kiss lingered, her lips soft and warm against his, and heat slammed through him so hard it stole his breath. For a moment, he forgot the office, the case, the danger outside. It was only her.
He forced himself to ease back, his hands still resting on her arms. He searched her face, worried he’d dragged her into a memory she didn’t want, something that would cut her deeper. But her expression told him otherwise.
There was no fear in her eyes, no shadow of the past. Just a spark he knew too well, one that pulled at him as fiercely now as it had the first time.
They’d walked away from their marriage and told themselves it was over. But the truth was written in her gaze, in the racing of his pulse. They’d let go of the vows, but not the pull between them.
The sound of the door opening pulled Cal back to the present. Raines stepped in, his expression lined with fatigue. “Pizza’s on the way. Should be here in twenty minutes.”
Before Cal could respond, his phone buzzed in his pocket. Isla’s name lit the screen. He answered fast. “Talk to me.”
“I’m pulling what I can from traffic cams,” Isla said, her voice clipped but steady. “Melissa and her abductor might’ve been caught on one about three streets from the strip mall. I’m sending you the still now. Tell me if it looks right.”
The image popped up a second later. Cal turned the phone so Alena could see. A blurry sedan in motion, shadowed by the sun’s glare.
“It could be the one,” Alena said, squinting. “Hard to be sure.”
Cal nodded. “Yeah. Looks close, but I can’t swear to it.”
“I thought as much,” Isla said. “Plates are bogus. I’ll keep digging and see if I can find it again. I’ll call back if I get anything solid.”
“Do that,” Cal told her, then ended the call. He set the phone face down on the desk, frustration simmering low in his gut. So close again, and still nothing they could hold on to.
Raised voices carried down the hall, sharp and heated. Cal pushed back from the desk, Alena right beside him as Raines rose from his chair. They stepped out into the front of the station just in time to see Arneson and Kara storm through the doors, their words already cutting into each other.
“You kept him from me,” Kara snapped, her eyes flashing. “I know you did. You’ve hidden Dexter from me.”
Arneson’s face was pale under the fresh bandage wrapping his head. His wrists were dark with bruises, the marks standing out against his skin. He looked as battered as Cal remembered, but the fire in his glare hadn’t dimmed.
The second Kara spotted Cal and Alena, she veered straight for them and the sheriff. “You need to arrest him,” she pleaded, pointing at Arneson. “He’s the reason Dexter hasn’t come back to me.”
Raines kept his voice even. “Do you have any evidence of that?”
“Not yet,” Kara huffed, her chin jerking up. “But I will.”
Arneson let out a low snarl. “You’re delusional. Dexter broke things off with you, and you can’t accept it. So you blame me.”
Her face flushed, but she didn’t back down. “Yes, he ended it. But I know he’ll come to his senses. He loves me.”
Arneson shook his head, his voice full of disgust. “He doesn’t love you. He used you. That’s all he’s ever done.”
“You’re lying,” Kara shot back, her voice sharp enough to cut. “You’ve always stood in the way. If Dexter’s not here, it’s because of you.”
The two of them snapped at each other again, their words bitter, the animosity filling the room until it felt like the walls were closing in.
Arneson tore his glare away from Kara and fixed it on Raines. “I heard about the shooting at the strip mall. What happened? I heard someone was killed.”
Kara’s face drained of color, horror flickering across her features. “Oh, God. Was it Dexter?”
“No,” Raines said firmly. “The man was Bryce Keller.”
Kara gasped, one hand flying to her mouth. “Bryce? I know him. Dexter introduced us.”
Cal’s gaze sharpened. Introduced them, or more than that? His gut twisted with the thought. Kara had motive. She never wanted Melissa in the picture, and Keller fit the kind of muscle someone like her would hire.
He glanced at Raines, and the sheriff’s hard expression told Cal he was thinking the same thing.
“All right,” Raines said, his tone clipped. He pointed at Arneson. “You stay put.” Then he turned to Kara. “You and I are going into one of the interview rooms.”
Kara bristled but lifted her chin, ready to follow, still brimming with self-righteous energy. Arneson muttered something under his breath, but Raines shut him down with a sharp look before leading Kara down the hall.
Cal exchanged a glance with Alena. Too many pieces weren’t fitting, and every new turn seemed to twist the puzzle tighter.
When Raines led Kara out of the room and down the hall, the office felt quieter, though the tension hadn’t gone anywhere. Cal shifted his focus to Arneson, who was pacing just inside the doorway, his bandaged head glistening with sweat.
“How well did Dexter know the strip mall?” Cal asked.
Arneson stopped pacing, his jaw flexing. “He worked those properties. Helped with some of the cleanup and repairs before everything shut down. But I’m telling you, he’s being set up. He escaped because he was afraid for his life. That’s the truth.”
Cal heard it, but there was more than loyalty in Arneson’s tone. Bitterness threaded through, frustration that he couldn’t quite hide.
Alena leaned against the edge of a desk, her gaze steady on him. “You must be tired of always cleaning up his messes.”
Arneson’s shoulders sagged, the fight slipping out of him for a moment. He didn’t deny it. “When our mom died, I swore I’d look out for him. Protect him, no matter what. That’s what I’m doing now.”
Cal watched him closely, noting the strain in his face, the raw edges of guilt mixed with duty. Arneson had lived with Dexter’s shadow a long time, and it showed.
The door opened again and Raines stepped back inside. His gaze went straight to Arneson. “All right. You’re coming with me. We’ll move this into an interview room.”
Arneson’s brows pulled tight. “Why? I already told you what happened. Why am I being dragged back in here?”
Raines didn’t flinch. “Because there’s some doubt about your injuries. EMTs think they could’ve been self-inflicted.”
Color rose in Arneson’s face. “That’s bullshit. You think I beat myself up and tied myself down? No way.”
“You’ll get the chance to explain,” Raines said evenly.
Arneson’s hand shot into his pocket. He pulled out his phone, muttering under his breath. “Fine. I obviously need a lawyer.”
He pressed the screen, already making the call as Raines motioned for him to move. Cal and Alena stood silent as the sheriff led Arneson out, the man’s voice low and furious as he spoke into the phone.
The office door swung shut behind them, leaving the room heavy with tension and unanswered questions.
Cal watched the door swing shut behind Raines and Arneson, the echo of their footsteps fading down the hall.
Alena let out a breath, her arms crossing. “You buy his story?”
Cal shook his head slowly. “Not all of it. He’s hiding something, but I can’t tell if it’s to protect Dexter or himself.”
Before she could answer, Cal’s phone buzzed in his hand. Isla’s name lit the screen. He answered. “Yeah?”
“I found the car,” Isla said, her voice tight with urgency. “Sending you the image now.”
A second later, his phone pinged. Cal tapped the file open, and Alena leaned in close. The photo was grainy, captured off a traffic cam, but clear enough to freeze them both in place.
Through the windshield, Melissa’s face stared back at them.