Chapter Eight
The image of Jared Ellis’s hands on Bree was enough to send fire through Tanner’s gut all the way back to Risk Peak. It had taken every ounce of control he possessed not to punch Ellis in the face, damn the consequences.
But that would’ve been a mistake that might have gotten the entire trial thrown out and made Jared a free man. Oscar Stobbart would’ve liked nothing better.
Bree was quiet on the way home. At first, he’d been worried that she’d been hurt and wasn’t telling anyone, but she’d assured him that wasn’t it, in a tight, almost distant voice.
Bree wasn’t a cranky or irritable person.
If she was short with him, it was because that brilliant mind of hers was focusing intently on something else.
Most people could multitask, or at least hold a conversation with other people while thinking about something else. Not Bree. When she was focused on something, inconsequential things—like talking to people—got lost for her.
So while she was still trying to figure out how Jared might circumvent the monitoring system, Tanner knew better than to interrupt her thought process.
“I don’t know how he could’ve done it,” she finally whispered as they pulled up to the New Journeys building. “He might have paid someone else to start the fire, but I don’t think there’s any way he did it himself. I’m sorry.”
Tanner reached over and cupped her cheek. “Don’t be sorry. Eliminating a suspect is also helpful. It means we don’t waste our time looking in that direction anymore.”
“If he or anyone else tries to hack the ankle monitor, I’ve put stopgaps in place to notify me. Unless he’s got someone smarter than me, there’s no way he’s going to get to Marilyn without us knowing.”
He kissed her. “He doesn’t have anyone smarter than you. I’m sure of it. So now we focus on finding who started the fire if it wasn’t Jared.”
He left her at New Journeys and spent the rest of the day attempting to do that and not getting very far.
He and Ronnie were back to looking into the significant others of the residents of New Journeys and scouring over the fire inspector’s report.
Neither the timing mechanism nor the detonator matched any particulars of the fire department’s list of known arsonists, so that was a dead end too.
Tanner’s investigating brought him back around to Jared.
Just because the man hadn’t set the fire himself didn’t mean he wasn’t involved.
The more Tanner looked into Jared’s fraternity brothers, the less he liked what he saw.
This was a tight-knit group. Even now, years after college, they still got together regularly.
There seemed to be a group of five of them who were closest. Not all of them lived in Colorado, but most of them were here now, celebrating Jared’s bail.
The preliminary background checks on all of them had come back clean. Tanner wasn’t surprised. These guys were too smart to keep their dirty laundry out in the open.
But that didn’t mean it wasn’t there.
The trick was going to be catching them while keeping Marilyn safe.
Until Jared’s trial, it looked like the protective shifts around Marilyn and her kids would need to continue. Tanner would do his part too, particularly because if danger was coming after Marilyn, it would definitely be too close to Bree for his liking.
He was ready to get married to her and have her right beside him every night. With their track record, he could pretty much guarantee trouble would still be coming, but at least he’d have her by his side where he could be sure to protect her.
Just twelve more days. Twelve more days and they’d be tied to each other forever.
He was smiling as he finally left the office at 8:00 p.m. and walked toward his car. Forever didn’t scare him in the least.
“I don’t even want to ask what that smile is all about.” Noah was leaning against Tanner’s SUV.
“Just happy to see you, brother, of course.”
“Got time to hang out in Denver?”
Tanner rolled his eyes. “You know I’ve already been there once today, right?”
Noah pushed off from against the vehicle. “I know Bree said Ellis isn’t hacking his ankle monitor—”
“He’s not.”
“—but I need eyes on him and his crew myself,” Noah continued. “I’m going with or without you.”
Tanner studied his brother. He didn’t like the look in his eyes. “Then I’m going.”
Noah gave him a surprised nod, like he had more arguments he could pull out if he needed to. He didn’t need to. Tanner wasn’t letting him go alone. After what happened this morning, things were already too delicate.
Tanner threw his bag into the back seat, then got in the driver’s side. Noah got in on the passenger’s side.
“I’m a little surprised you even told me you were going,” Tanner said once they were a few miles down the road. Noah was more than capable of handling any sort of surveillance by himself.
He was capable of a hell of a lot more by himself too.
Noah shrugged. “I respect you, little brother. I respect that you chose the same route as Dad and choose to help uphold the law. And, even though I don’t spend much time hanging out in the town itself, Risk Peak is my home.”
“None of which actually explains why you invited me on this little adventure.”
Noah stared straight out the windshield. “I needed someone I could trust.”
“Trust to do what?”
“Trust to keep me from killing these bastards if the opportunity presents itself.”
Those words coming from anyone else would’ve had Tanner shifting straight into law-enforcement mode. But this was his brother. So Tanner kept himself relaxed, even if he didn’t really feel that way. “You know we have absolutely no proof that Jared or any of his cronies were involved with the fire.”
Noah didn’t say anything for a long time. “Ellis doesn’t realize how lucky he is just to be still breathing after what he did to Marilyn.”
Tanner’s hands gripped the steering wheel more tightly. “Noah, you’re going to have to let the system be his judge and jury. Not you.” He glanced over at his brother. “Make no mistake, I will lock you up until after the trial to keep you from doing something stupid.”
“It’s why I’ve got you here,” Noah muttered. He stared out the passenger window for a long time.
“I’ve seen stuff, Tanner. You know that. In special ops, I saw all sorts of violence against men, women and children that is the stuff nightmares are made of. But nothing I ever saw there puts me anywhere near the killing rage I feel when I think about Ellis hurting Marilyn.”
Tanner wasn’t sure his brother was aware of the reality of his own feelings. “You do know that’s got more to do with Marilyn than it does Ellis, right?”
Noah’s eyes, so much like Tanner’s own, pinned him with a glare. “I know you’re not trying to say what Ellis did was okay.”
“Not at all. What I’m saying is that killing rage you feel isn’t just because of his actions.
It’s because of him doing it to her.” Tanner held a hand out to stop Noah’s argument before it could go any further.
“I’m not saying the bastard doesn’t deserve to rot in jail.
I’m just saying that rage you’re talking about is because of her, not because of him. ”
Tanner returned his eyes to the road. Noah didn’t say anything further as he processed it all. It may take Noah a while to recognize the truth, but he didn’t lie to himself.
“I’ve been working with Marilyn,” Noah finally said softly, still looking out the window.
“Self-defense stuff, even before we knew Ellis’s release was a possibility.
She’s so damn little. Doesn’t seem to have any sort of warrior instinct.
She’s not like Bree, who survived on her own for so long.
Marilyn is the type of woman who is meant to be cared for.
She’s not someone who should have to fight tooth and nail just to exist.”
“Marilyn is stronger than you think. She has to be to have survived what she’s survived.”
Noah rubbed the top of his black hair—still cut military short even though he’d been out of the army for nearly five years now. “Oh, believe me, I know she’s strong. I have never mistaken her quietness for weakness.”
“You’re doing the right thing, teaching her what you can. Whatever she doesn’t have as natural intuition can be made up for with other skills. She may not have the attack instinct...”
“But she can be taught other ways to make up for that.”
They were silent for long minutes.
“I want to fight her battles for her,” Noah said. “But I know that in the long run I’m doing a disservice to her by feeling that way. The best thing I can do for her is teach her how to fight the monsters herself.”
Tanner waited for him to say more, but evidently, he was done talking about it. It was the most he’d heard his brother talk about anything personal in the five years he’d been home.
Noah might be teaching Marilyn some things, but it seemed she was teaching him some things, as well.
It wasn’t long before they were pulling up at the downtown Denver town house where Jared was staying.
Neither of them said what both of them were thinking: that something was definitely not right when Ellis currently resided in a million-dollar home while his wife and children lived in a shelter designed for people without a home at all.
Tanner had researched this property earlier today. “Town house is owned by a guy named Marius Nixon. He’s the same one who put the money up for Jared’s bail. Of all this little posse, Nixon is the cleanest. I’ve got confirmation that he’s not even in the country right now.”
Noah nodded, staring at the building. The window shades were open, allowing them to see inside to parts of the living room and dining room.
“The rest of Ellis’s clan includes investment banker George Pearson, Paul Wyn, owner of a chain of restaurants, and of course his lawyer, Oscar Stobbart. None of them have ever been arrested or in any trouble with the law besides Ellis.”
Noah grimaced. “Completely clean. Convenient.”
“Almost squeakily so.”
“Any of the rest of them married?”