Chapter 33
Michael
I ’d planned to talk to Grace the next morning.
We’d gotten past our fight in the best possible way and shared some things, but I still hadn’t been completely honest about my feelings for her.
My plan was to make the promised pumpkin pancakes and talk to Grace over breakfast. We were about halfway done, and I was working my way up to it when Grace’s phone rang.
It was Detective Chase.
Grace froze for a second looking at the screen, then cleared her throat and tapped to answer on speaker.
“Detective Chase?”
“Is this Grace Baron?”
It was the first time since the wedding that I’d heard her addressed that way and I loved it.
“Yes, this is Grace,” she replied, seemingly unfazed. “Michael is here with me.”
“Good morning to both of you. I hope this isn’t too early to call.”
“It’s fine,” Grace reassured him. “Is there something we can do for you?”
“I’m calling with an update. Last time I talked with you I told you that we knew your brother was keeping tabs on you, but we weren’t sure how. We think we know.”
Grace and I locked eyes over the phone. Were we finally getting somewhere?
“I mentioned a man, Jim Stokes, who didn’t ring any bells for you.”
“I remember,” Grace murmured.
“When we talked with him, he claimed he was ministering to your brother and knew nothing about the attack on you. He’s an ordained minister in some online church, so even if it’s a cover story, it holds some water. Since then, we’ve connected him with a man named Junior Peters.”
Grace’s reaction to the name was immediate. She straightened in her seat and gripped the edge of the table.
“That’s...Ellis knows him from racing. I can’t remember how, but I remember Ellis talking about him.”
“Would you recognize him if you saw him?”
“No.” Grace chewed on her bottom lip. “I’ve never met him or seen him that I can recall. I just remember Ellis and Seth saying his name.”
“So, your ex knows him, too?”
“I think so, but I can’t say for sure. Probably, since Seth was involved in the racing stuff almost as much as Ellis.”
“Okay, we’ll check that out. We think Mr. Peters may be feeding information about your location and activities to Mr. Stokes. Mr. Stokes just happens to be Mr. Peters’ cousin and has been in regular communication with your brother.”
“How did the Peters guy know where Grace is or what she’s doing?” I asked.
“We haven’t answered the question of how he found her, if he’s the one who did, but as far as how he knows what she’s doing, his probation officer has a home address for him that’s about fifteen miles from you. It looks like he has an efficiency unit in a low-budget rental.”
Grace’s eyes slammed shut as her breath hitched. I reached for her hand, and she grabbed hold, gripping my hand like a lifeline.
“We’ve been keeping an eye on him and were very interested to see that he and Mr. Stokes met up for a drink a few nights ago. We don’t know what they discussed, but what we do know is that Mr. Stokes paid a visit to Grace’s brother yesterday and shared something with him that upset him, we’ll just say. To the extent that he nearly ripped the phone in his visitor’s center cubicle off the wall and swung at the guards as they were trying to subdue him.”
“He found out we got married,” Grace said quietly, the strain evident in her voice.
“That’s what we’re assuming. He didn’t say anything specific during his rant, so we don’t know for sure.”
“What did he say?” Grace asked. “I know...I know how he can be. What did he say?”
There was a pause before Detective Chase responded. “I’d rather not get into specifics. You said you know how he can be. I’m sure you can imagine.”
“I’m sure I can.”
“What happens now?” I hated the resignation in Grace’s expression.
“For now, he’s still being kept in general population, but he’s lost all privileges. Among other things, that means he won’t be having visitors or calls for a while. We’ll keep watching him, but while he’s somewhat limited in what he can do, we’ll see if we can have a conversation with Mr. Peters, and also follow up on any connection between him and your ex.”
“Can you back up a second?” Grace asked. “You’re going to talk to Junior Peters? Can you do that?”
“Sure,” Detective Chase responded to Grace’s question. “We can ask, we just can’t require it. He’s also on probation. One condition of that is usually having no contact with people or activities related to whatever led to you being on probation. If it had to do with illegal racing, and he’s having contact with your brother, he may be in violation. If so, that gives us certain leverage.”
“Thanks for explaining all that.” Grace squeezed my hand, then let go and sat back in her seat. “And thanks for all you’re doing on this case. I do appreciate it.”
“We’ll get this resolved for you, I promise. All the pieces are there, we just need to put them together.”
A minute or two later, the call ended. Grace stood and carried her still half-full plate into the kitchen without a word.
I followed her in and found her standing at the counter staring at nothing. I did what I’d wanted to so many times since she’d moved in with me. I stood behind her, wrapped my arms around her, and held on.
She leaned back against me with a sigh. “I’m so tired of all this.”
I kissed her temple and rested my head against hers. “I know, baby. If I could fix it for you, I would.”
She squeezed my arms around her in a hug. “I know you would. I might even let you. If I had any clue how to do it, I’d fix it myself. But I don’t.”
She turned to face me, and I let her go, resting my hands on the counter on either side of her.
“For what it’s worth, my vote on the pumpkin pancakes is a definite yes.”
“A yes?” I looked at her unfinished plate then back at her. “You only ate half.”
“I got distracted.” She stepped into me, sliding her hands over my chest and around my neck to tangle her fingers in my hair as I felt my body stir. “In fact, I’m feeling a little distracted right now, too.”
“So am I.” I lifted her up and sat her on the counter, careful to avoid the dishes. Her legs came around my waist and I dipped my head, kissing her neck and nipping lightly at her shoulder. “What do you think we should do?”
“Find something to focus on.” She tilted her head, giving me better access. “Like each other. I think we should forget everything else and focus on each other.”
I boosted her up into my arms and headed toward my bedroom. “I couldn’t agree more.”