Chapter 30
Thirty
Mo sat in the passenger seat of the Jeep and texted Aunt Carol.
How long until I can drive?
It wasn’t that he cared if Bronwyn drove his Jeep. Much. It was that he wanted to be the one behind the wheel in case some fool tried to run them off the road. Now that they were off Quinn land, his protective instincts were coming in rapid-fire, and he was not enjoying the experience.
They made it to the police station without any issues, and when they walked inside, Mo took Bronwyn’s hand. “You okay?”
She looked at the new arrangement of wooden flowers Meredith had made for the front office area. “Am I supposed to be okay?”
Fair enough. “I don’t guess so.”
Gray called them back then. He took one look at Mo and his eyes widened.
“Whoa. I wasn’t expecting that, man.” He pulled him into a bro hug that carefully avoided putting any pressure on his stitches.
Then he tugged on Bronwyn, and she went into his arms. He squeezed her close.
“Meredith made me promise to give you a good hug. She’s up to her eyeballs in some kind of dental emergency, but she says we’ll be at the firepit tonight and she’ll see you then. ”
They both sat at the small table in Gray’s office. He joined them with a stack of files. “I’ve already spoken to Katrina this morning. She’s at work and says she’s okay but will be taking advantage of the spa’s hot tub and sauna this afternoon.”
“She gets massages from a good friend of hers in Asheville. I’ll schedule her an appointment.” Bronwyn rubbed her temples. “I should have already done that.”
“No, you shouldn’t have.” Gray’s tone was kind but exasperated. “You were shot at. You went to the hospital with Mo. You’re already in a sleep deficit. You aren’t behind. You haven’t dropped the ball. Got it?”
Bronwyn sat straighter in her chair. “Yes, Chief.”
He gave her a sour look. “I do not understand women. Why do you assume you have to do everything? No one else expects you to do it all.” He gestured toward Mo.
“He doesn’t expect you to. I don’t. Katrina doesn’t.
She was worried about you and told me that I’d better not wake you up or call you in before you got the rest you needed.
She also said that you need another massage because you undid all her hard work. ”
Bronwyn dropped her head. “Okay, okay. I get it.”
Gray patted the files on the table and looked between the two of them, then focused on Mo.
“Why don’t you start by telling me why Bronwyn’s been crying.
You’re still speaking to each other, so I’m hopeful the answer won’t include anything about you being a moron.
I’ve been given instructions from my beloved to kick your rear if you’ve done anything to, and I quote, ‘mess things up.’ And here you walk in together, but she’s been crying.
I realize I haven’t lived here as long as most, but I’ve never seen her cry or even appear teary-eyed. ”
Mo wanted to tell Gray to mind his own business, but Bronwyn spoke before he had a chance.
“Gray, you’re awesome.” She sounded amused and maybe a little bit touched by his words.
“Thank you for the concern. But between you and me”—and at this her tone changed—“I’m going to have a chat with your beloved.
We’re done with assuming that Mo has done something wrong.
If he does something, that will be between us, and we’ll deal with it. ”
Gray sat back in his chair. “Acknowledged.”
“This”—she pointed at her face—“is the result of a conversation I had with my parents this morning.”
Gray leaned toward her. “What happened?”
“Words were exchanged.”
Mo couldn’t let it stand at that. “She said some things she probably should have said a decade ago, and they didn’t like it.”
She cut her eyes at him. “As I said, words were exchanged. And I may or may not have a job anymore. Too soon to tell.”
Gray seemed to absorb that. Then he opened the top file in front of him.
“Okay. Let’s talk bullets. We sent the bullet casing from Mo’s wound to forensics, but this isn’t a TV show and there’s no telling when we’ll learn anything useful.
We have a BOLO out on the vehicle, but it didn’t show up on any cameras going in or out of town. ”
“Is that normal?” Bronwyn asked.
“Around here? Yes and no. If they were from out of town, I would expect them to show up on the traffic cams we have set up on the edges of the county. But if they’re local, that truck could be in any of a hundred barns, sheds, or outbuildings by now.
It could be parked in the woods somewhere.
If they’re willing not to drive it, we might never find it. ”
“It was a nice truck. No way they won’t drive it.” Mo pulled the file toward him. “Anything on the plate?” He’d seen the license plate and had given that info to Gray yesterday.
“Stolen off a Toyota Camry in Charlotte.”
“Awesome.”
“Mo, is there anything you’ve found in The Haven files that would account for this?”
“Maybe. There’s some hinky stuff going on. I can almost taste it. It’s right there. I have some searches running. What I need is time to work on it.”
“He has a headache and isn’t supposed to be looking at screens.” Bronwyn gave the phone in his hand a pointed look. “Not that he’s obeying that guidance.”
“If you can’t keep him in line, I imagine no one can.” Gray made the comment in such a matter-of-fact way, it almost slipped past Mo. But based on Bronwyn’s expression, it didn’t slip past her.
She frowned and looked from Mo to Gray. “Why would you think I could keep him in line?”
Gray looked between them and grinned. “Oh, this is going to be too much fun. I do believe I’ll let you figure that one out for yourself, Ms. Pierce.”
He opened another file. “Until we receive forensic results on the bullets or find the truck, there’s not much we can do.
I’m sorry about that. However, I do need you to sign these statements.
” He slid the papers to them. “This is what you told me yesterday. Please read it, make any corrections, then sign.”
Mo took his. It was significantly shorter than Bronwyn’s. Probably because he’d been bleeding at the time. When he handed his signed statement to Gray, he asked about the grocery store. “Was there any damage?” He couldn’t remember.
“Just to you. I’ve stationed an officer there today. Lionel’s been busy. He sold a lot of pizza at lunch. I think he’s relieved. He was worried people would be scared off, which wouldn’t be good for business. But he’s fine. The employees are fine. No one quit. So yeah, he’s good.”
That was a relief. Lionel was a good man. Mo hated for any of the Pierce family drama to have a negative impact on him or his business.
Bronwyn’s phone buzzed, and she glanced at it. Then she handed it to him.
The text was from Marcus.
Ms. Pierce, William and Nathan are having it out in Nathan’s office. Lots of yelling. I specifically heard William say he was going to call the board to an emergency meeting. I thought you should know.
Bronwyn sagged. “I guess I should go find out what’s happening.”
Mo didn’t think she should, but he wouldn’t argue with her in front of Gray.
She slid her statement back to Gray. “Are we done?”
“We are. I’ll keep you both informed of any developments.” He glanced at the phone as Mo handed it back to Bronwyn. “Everything okay?”
“Lots of yelling between my uncle and cousin. That doesn’t bode well.” Bronwyn stood. “I’ll also keep you informed.”
Mo followed her as they walked out. When they reached the Jeep, he touched her arm. “May I make a suggestion?”
“Sure.”
“Don’t bust up the argument.”
“Mo—”
“Hear me out. If you really want to head to the office, then let’s go back to your house first. Do your hair, makeup, put on a power suit, then walk in there like the CEO you are. I’ll support you all the way.”
“But you don’t think I should go at all?”
“I think it would be more prudent to carry on with your day the way you planned. Show no weakness. Don’t let on that you care what they’re up to.”
He hoped he wasn’t wrong, but he didn’t think he was.
“I do, however, think you should pay a visit to your grandmother. She was worried about you. She should see you. Face to face.”
Bronwyn climbed into the Jeep and waited for Mo to get in on the other side. “You have a devious streak.”
“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean.” He batted his eyelashes at her.
She cranked the engine. “I can’t go to my grandmother’s like this though.”
“What’s wrong with what you have on?” Mo waved a hand in her direction. “You look great.”
She didn’t believe him. No, that wasn’t right.
She believed that he thought she looked great.
She didn’t think she looked great. “I lost my temper with my parents, but they’re a different situation.
I won’t go so far as to say they don’t deserve anything from me, but they have actively worked against me for too long for me to owe them any loyalty. ”
And didn’t those words cut to the quick?
“But Grandmother?” she continued. “She has expectations. Meeting those expectations is more about respect. She’s not perfect, but at least she loves me .
. . in her own way.” She didn’t say that she didn’t think her parents loved her at all. She wasn’t quite ready to go that far.
Mo rubbed the back of his head and winced. “I hear you, but do you think you should go alone?”
“I wasn’t planning on going alone.” She gave him what she hoped was a confident smile. “Since I’m being all kinds of bold and brash today, I thought I’d see if you’d care to join me.”
The words surprised her, but hearing them, she knew it was the right call. “There’s so much going on, I don’t feel safe . . .” She stopped herself before she finished the thought with “unless I’m with you.”
She waited for him to say something, but he looked like she’d surprised him. She lost her patience and asked him flat-out, “Will you come with me?”