Chapter 28
Harlan stared at his phone lying on the conference table. Once he did this, there would be no putting the genie back in the bottle. She didn’t belong there anyway. The truth needed to come out. Storm deserved to know who was after her. That meant finding out which person close to her wanted her dead. He placed another call.
“Hey, man, how’s it going?” Waylen asked on the other end. Loud voices and music filled in the spaces between Waylen’s words.
He was eternally grateful for his teammates. He could count on them for anything. They always answered his calls, came to his defense and his rescue. Whatever he did in his life, he wanted to be near his teammates and hoped they would find a way to stay together in civilian life.
“I need another favor.” And this would be a big one. He’d owe Waylen for this.
“What else is new? What’s it going to be this time? Hang on. I need to go somewhere quieter.”
He waited until silence swallowed up the noise. Waylen might be at a restaurant or coffee shop, but Harlan didn’t ask. He was pressed for time.
“I need you to run a check on these four people.” He gave Waylen the names. “I’m looking for anything you can find for the past two weeks, where they went, who they interact with, what websites they use. ASAP.”
“Does this have to do with that woman you’re protecting?”
“It does. One of those people tried to poison her. I just can’t prove it yet.” He needed to know more details. One of them had to have left a clue. He doubted this was a random act. Poison was personal. Whoever did it would not raise suspicion by being close to her. They had all tried to create an alibi for themselves. He wanted to find out which alibi was a false one.
“And you think whatever I come up with will help with solving the crime?”
“This person isn’t a pro. They made a mistake somewhere. My guess is it’s a digital mistake. One either caught by camera or recorded somehow. How fast can you get it to me?”
“I’ll work on it right away.”
“Thanks, man. I owe you.”
“Just bring the beers next time.”
“Will do.” He ended the call.
There was still one more call to make. One he had been neglecting the past couple of days. He waited for Meg to answer.
“Hey, Harlan.” Her voice sounded upbeat and strong. She was getting better and he couldn’t be happier about that.
“Hey, sis. How are you feeling?”
“Honestly, better than expected. How’s it going in Hawaii?”
“Long story. I’ll fill you in when I come out.”
“Still keeping secrets.” She laughed. Meg was used to his life in the military. The deployments he couldn’t talk about. The places he’d seen that had no proof he was even there.
“Not this time. I have to get back to the investigation. I promise I can share more of this story than the others.” He would only tell the parts that Storm wanted him to share. “There’s something I do want to talk to you about.”
“Uh-oh. This sounds serious. Are you going to reenlist?”
He choked out a laugh. “Nothing like that. There’s someone I’d like you to meet.” How did he refer to Storm? He wasn’t good with labels like boyfriend and girlfriend.
“I’m not in the mood to date.”
“Not for you to date. Someone I think I want to date.” Every time he met a woman he thought he wanted to spend time with, he discussed it with Meg. She had been the one to tell him getting married might be a bad idea. He hadn’t listened that time. If Meg said she thought Storm was wrong for him, he would heed her words this time.
“You don’t even know if you want to date her, but you want me to meet her? I don’t understand. Hang on. I have to shift positions. I’m a little uncomfortable.”
He waited.
“Okay, I’m back. Tell me more about this woman.”
“I like her. We’ve been spending time together. I want you to meet her so you can give me a read. Tell me if I’m acting crazy.”
“My, my. Is my big brother in love?” Meg giggled like when they were kids. It did his heart good to hear her so much like her old self.
“Not possible. I just met her.” He didn’t want to define what he felt with the word love. Infatuation, yes. Sexual, definitely. Love… how could it be?
“It’s possible. In fact, it happens all the time. You deserve to be happy, Harlan. You’ve suffered enough in this life. Whoever she is, enjoy her. And of course I want to meet the woman who has stolen my brother’s heart. She must be special.”
“She is.” He debated on telling her more. “Meg…”
“Yes?”
“Storm is part of the investigation. She’s the woman who needs protecting.”
“Protecting from what?”
“Someone tried to kill her.”
“You fell in love with a woman someone else wants dead? You couldn’t meet a quiet librarian or schoolteacher?”
“I’m not in love. It’s not like that.”
“Give it a rest. You’re in love with her. That’s why you called me. You know a woman with that kind of baggage is only going to make life hard and you want me to talk you out of it.”
He couldn’t deny all of that. “What happened to Storm doesn’t mean life with her would be difficult. This is an isolated incident performed by a crazy person. She needs someone in her corner. What if someone tried to kill you? Would you appreciate it if I stayed away, stating you were too dangerous?”
“I don’t like the sound of it. You asked. I told you. It’s your life. You’ll make your own decisions. You always do, anyway. You don’t need anyone.”
“That’s not true.”
“Sure, it is. You learned that little trait from the Navy.”
“I learned how to lean on my teammates when times are too tough to handle alone. Everything is better with a teammate. That’s what they teach.”
“So, what is this new romance, then? Your team broke up because of retirement and you’re jumping into the first pair of arms or should I say legs opening for you?” Her words were a string of hisses.
“Don’t talk like that.” He didn’t want to entertain the idea that Meg might be correct. Sure, his team wasn’t active any longer, but they were still together. They’d been traveling all over the place for the last six months.
But what would happen in the months to come? Would they stay together? Would any of them find love and settle down? Hell, Raider’s past had shown up on this very island according to his text messages. Who knows what that would do to his friend and their relationship. Maybe he didn’t want to be alone and Storm had been willing.
“Harlan, I want you to be happy. Whatever that looks like. But I don’t like the idea of you getting involved with a woman whom someone else has tried to kill. What if they come after you? What if I lose you over this after you survived combat? Something so stupid as a woman’s ex-lover feeling jilted.”
He didn’t have to see Meg to know she shook her head and pressed her lips in a thin line. She’d gnaw on her bottom lip as the frustration at him grew.
“You aren’t going to lose me.”
“Today. Maybe. Look, I’ve got to go. I have to take my meds. I’ll call you tomorrow. See ya.” She ended the call.
He didn’t want her running off mad at him. He tried to call her back, but the call went to voicemail. He shot her a text saying he didn’t want to fight and that nothing would happen to him.
A promise he knew better than to make.