Chapter 10
Sebastian’s phone vibrated on the coffee table, a shrill notification jarring amidst the roar of the virtual race car engine on his screen. He glanced down, momentarily distracted. It was the live feed from the security camera he’d rigged near the barn at Grace Meadows.
He muted the game audio and snatched up his phone.
The screen displayed Samantha reaching toward the camera with her face etched with worry.
Her agitation clawed at him, twisting his gut.
Would she recognize the difference between their father’s security cameras and the ones he hooked into the system?
What was she doing that close to the camera?
A tuft of black fur smeared against the screen.
It came down with a blur of a shirt sleeve, then refocused again to show the back section of the barn.
Frantic energy filled him. He scrolled down, checking the other cameras, finding the one showing Sam holding a kitten and shaking her finger at it before handing it off to a teenage girl in jeans and a flannel shirt hanging off her shoulders.
Sebastian let out a breath. A cat. The tension seeped out of his shoulders, replaced with amusement.
He could almost hear Samantha scolding the feline intruder.
The image on the screen was far from the nightmare he’d conjured in his mind.
After checking the other cameras, satisfied all was well, Sebastian didn’t linger, watching Samantha as she worked in the barn.
He missed his sister. He hadn’t realized how much until coming this close to home without being home.
Before he dwelled on it too long, he went back to the game.
Leaning to the right as his on-screen car swerved and curved around obstacles, Sebastian tried to catch up to Owen on the virtual racetrack.
Caitlyn’s kid hooked him on the video game, and he seemed content with a controller in his hands.
As Sebastian got caught up in the thrill of racing, he heard Owen’s voice come back online.
“Hey little dude, all good?”
“Dan.”
Startled out of his reverie, Sebastian crashed his car on the screen.
“What’s wrong?”
“There’s a man here, and I think he’s threatening my mom.”
Sebastian stood up from the couch, setting the controller on the coffee table. His heavy work boots clunked against the hardwood floor as he paced around the room. “Where’s Welder?”
“I don’t know. He’s not here.” A familiar panic sent a jolt through Sebastian. It mirrored the frantic calls he used to get from back in the day, the kind that never ended well.
“Is your mom okay?” he managed, his voice tight. Scaring Owen wouldn’t help, but the question hung heavy in the air.
“I dunno,” Owen mumbled, fear thick in his voice. “He’s yelling at her, and she doesn’t look happy.” Sebastian gritted his teeth.
“Dan?” Owen said, and Sebastian realized he must have been silent for too long. “Dan? Are you still there?”
Sebastian flinched at the urgency in Owen’s voice. “Yeah. I’m still with you.”
A cold sweat prickled Sebastian’s skin as static crackled through the headset. Owen’s voice wavered through their connection. “What do I do?”
Sebastian ran a hand through his hair. Caitlyn asked him to stay out of her personal business. But the memory of Audra’s tearful face, the fear shaking in Owen’s voice, warred against him.
“Do you know the guy, O?” Sebastian asked, shortening the boy’s name the way another online player might.
“No.”
“Has he hurt your mom?” A surge of adrenaline went through him. God forgive him if the man laid his hands on Caitlyn or Owen before he got there.
“I dunno.”
The safety of their online game world shattered, replaced by urgency. “I’m coming over,” Sebastian said, feeling this time was different. This time, he wouldn’t fail.
“No, wait!” Owen pleaded desperately. “That dude just came inside!”
“I’m on my way,” Sebastian said, throwing his headphones on the coffee table.
Grabbing his phone, wallet, and keys, he sprinted out of the house, a silent prayer escaping his lips. Shocking him because, after all this time, he’d found a reason to pray again.
He sent a quick text to Yeats, who was going off to meet a woman for dinner and the movies. He glanced at the company truck and then at the Rebel motorcycle. Sebastian grabbed his helmet and mounted the bike.
He picked up a secondhand gunmetal grey Honda a few days ago.
It was a plain, anonymous bike with no distinguishing features.
Just what he needed for his new life. The tan leather seat, however, reminded him of the Indian Scout he had left behind in Johnstown.
The fire, which destroyed his motorcycle and several others at Brooks’ Motorcycle Shop, still rose in his mind like a wall, and he shuddered as he remembered what he had done—what he’d had to do—to protect his brothers and sisters.
He couldn’t stay in Johnstown now, not after everything that had happened.
He was no longer Sebastian Daniels, the cop.
The woman he hadn’t been able to save the night before her death saw to that.
The low rumble of Sebastian’s motorcycle echoed through the quiet evening as he parked on the street across from Caitlyn’s house.
He scanned the street for any sign of additional vehicles—a black pickup, a Harley with chrome accents.
Either might belong to any of the Ghost Riders.
His gut clenched, the engine ticking as it cooled.
A tense silence followed, broken only by a passing car on the street.
Steeling himself, he considered the best course of action.
He dismounted his Rebel and strode toward Caitlyn’s house.
Bursting in without warning could escalate things.
Why hadn’t he told the kid to call 911 and let the police handle it?
Because for a moment, he forgot he wasn’t a cop anymore.
Then, a sound—a muffled clatter from inside Caitlyn’s house—lengthened his stride.
He jogged to the porch, and the door flew open.
Caitlyn stood there with a look of shock that quickly shifted to confusion. “Daniel? What are you doing here?”
Behind her, Owen rushed up, shaking his head back and forth.
Gritting his teeth, forcing a smile, Sebastian said, “Hey bud, came to check on your game. It’s not working, right?”
Owen tilted his head, his eyes widening. Smart kid. “Totally. I mean, it wasn’t, but it’s good now. I’m sorry.”
Sebastian spun a tale about playing Mad Dash online with Owen when the boy’s system crashed, so Sebastian offered to come over to help fix it and finish their Mad Dash match.
The explanation sounded flimsy, even to his own ears.
It wasn’t far from the truth. They had been playing, but Owen’s fear of the strange man had crashed their game.
Lying came easily to him over the years of keeping his cover, but lying to Caitlyn made him uncomfortable.
A nervous tick played out in her jaw as she chewed on a thumbnail, her gaze flickering repeatedly toward the back of the house.
Sebastian followed her line of sight, catching nothing but a glimpse of a hallway before it disappeared from his view.
He glanced back at Owen, whose shoulders slumped farther in Sebastian’s presence.
“You good, bud?” Sebastian asked, trying to sound casual. He gave Owen credit for not panicking after their earlier exchange, but seeing Caitlyn unharmed and a little rattled made him doubt the situation was as intense as Owen had made it. Or had he assumed it?
“Yeah,” Owen mumbled, kicking at the floor with his foot. The playful glint in his eyes was missing, replaced by a wary uncertainty.
“You should have asked me first.” Owen flinched at the harshness of Caitlyn’s voice.
He’d hoped to deflect from the situation, but his presence was clearly unwelcome.
And there was no sign of another man in their home.
He scanned the room, searching for anything out of place, any evidence of a struggle.
But there was nothing. Did Caitlyn know the man Owen mentioned?
Was the guy here on some legitimate business, like getting his motorcycle painted?
“You know you can’t have people over when I’m not here.” Caitlyn’s hand flew to her cheek, her fingers brushing away a smudge that hadn’t been there before. Color flooded back into her pale face, a telltale sign of tears quickly wiped away.
Sebastian couldn’t help but notice how her full lips parted slightly when she finished.
He chuckled and gave her a crooked smile as the tension between them built further.
Their gazes locked, and time seemed to stand still.
He wiped his sweaty hands on his jeans and swallowed hard, knowing this was more than just a staring contest.
“But you are here,” Owen piped up, oblivious to the undercurrents. A hint of defiance in his voice.
Her gaze, filled with raw vulnerability, left Sebastian speechless. Fear flickered like a trapped flame in her depths, a stark contrast to the defiance she projected. For a fleeting moment, he glimpsed Audra and remembered how she confided in him—trusted in him.
The playful banter he’d planned died on his tongue. This wasn’t about finishing a video game. Or even Audra. This was about Caitlyn and her son. Protecting them. But apprehension lingered within him. He still didn’t know who the stranger was, and Caitlyn clearly didn’t want him involved.
“Are we finishing the game or what?” Owen’s voice cut through the tension.
Caitlyn’s gaze lifted toward him, breaking their intense connection. She turned to Owen; her voice was tight. “I called off, so I’ll let it go for tonight.” Her voice softened. “This once.” Her gaze moved to Owen. “But only until Pops returns.”
Relief flooded Owen’s face. He did a fist pump and grinned. “Come on, Dan!”
“Be there in a minute,” Sebastian mumbled, watching Owen retreat towards the living room. He needed a moment. His cop training screamed at him to investigate, to find out who the stranger was and why Caitlyn seemed on edge. “Your father’s not here?”
A flash of alarm fluttered over her face. “He’s out with one of his old pals.” Caitlyn huffed, about to move away, when Sebastian reached out, his hand hovering hesitantly near her arm. He stopped himself before making contact. “You, okay? Did one of your father’s friends do something?”
Her face twisted into something that wasn’t quite a scowl, but close enough. “Did Owen tell you? Is that why you came?” The hitch in her voice betrayed her bravado. “I don’t need you coming around here and making things worse for us.”
Sebastian held up his hands in surrender, taking a slow step back. “Hey, I came to play video games with Owen. We’re buds, right, kiddo?” he called out, hoping to lighten the mood.
Caitlyn’s knuckles turned white as she gripped her hips. “You can’t keep coming around here, Daniel. We work together, nothing more.” Her voice was laced with desperation that lit him with anger inside.
“Is it because of the Ghost Riders?” he asked. “Or your father?”
“We work together. Nothing more,” she repeated.
“Yeah,” he said. “I’m just here to hang with the kid,” Sebastian lied, his heart heavy. Getting involved deeper was a roadmap for disaster, but the thought of leaving them vulnerable bothered him more.