Chapter 21
Dutton woke before dawn. His brother and Melissa had graciously allowed him, Dahlia, and Shortcake to stay with them.
Once they’d arrived, the four of them had conducted a thorough search of the property to make sure it hadn’t been targeted, and only when they were certain it was safe did they sit down for dinner.
The evening had been subdued. Briggs and Melissa had questions, ones he didn’t particularly want to answer. His brother knew about his past, but only in vague terms. So explaining that he’d been an enforcer and that he used to be in a crime family with Grady had been Dutton’s worst nightmare.
Thankfully, they hadn’t judged him. Briggs had also been in a foster home and understood that, as kids, neither of them had autonomy over their lives. And Melissa… Well, she seemed to be the salt of the earth, and Dutton could see why his brother was so in love with her.
Dutton had called it an early night. He really was exhausted after the day’s events.
Dahlia and Shortcake had joined him. Now they were sound asleep while Dutton was staring at the ceiling, trying to anticipate Grady’s next move.
He knew enough about how the crime family had worked before to know that he hadn’t just run away.
If he was here to bring Dutton down, he wasn’t going to stop until he did just that.
After trying and failing to go back to sleep, Dutton gave up and got out of bed.
He quietly pulled on his jeans and a sweatshirt and then crept down the stairs to the dark kitchen.
He was surprised when Shortcake didn’t follow him.
Usually anytime he moved, she was right at his heels, but apparently he hadn’t been the only one exhausted by the day they’d had.
Not wanting to wake anyone, he skipped the coffee and grabbed a throw from the couch before slipping out onto the front porch.
The sky was still dark but just starting to show signs of daybreak, and if it had been any other morning, he’d have found the slight chill and the quiet surroundings peaceful.
But this morning, all he could think about was Grady and what he might do next.
If it were Dutton, he’d be staking out any place the mark might be hiding out. Which meant if Grady wasn’t seriously hurt, he’d be trying to find out where Dutton might go next. And that could make Briggs’s place the next target. But only if Grady knew about Briggs.
He paced the porched. They really should have gone and found somewhere else safer to hole up. A short-term rental, or a hotel over at the coast. But he also knew that if he disappeared, Grady might just go after his loved ones. And that would still put Briggs and Melissa in the line of fire.
Frustration rolled through him. He felt like a sitting duck with no options.
There was only one thing to do; he had to find Grady before he found Dutton or those in his closest circle.
With his mind made up, Dutton went back into the house, slipped on his shoes, grabbed his keys, and wrote a note telling Briggs and Dahlia what he was up to and not to worry.
When he found Grady, he’d call for backup.
Then he crept out of the house and prayed no one woke up when he fired up the T-bird he and Dahlia had retrieved on the way to Briggs’s place.
Normal people from out of town would stay at the inn or another nearby hotel.
But that’s not what Benny taught his foster kids.
He was a crime boss and acted like one. He’d search out places that wouldn’t be on anyone’s radar if they were looking for him or his crew.
If at all possible, they’d stay in rundown places where no one would pay much attention to them.
The top places that Benny had preferred were trailer parks, abandoned buildings in crappy neighborhoods, and no-tell motels where they rented rooms by the hour.
Since there weren’t any no-tell motels, bad neighborhoods, or trailer parks in Keating Hollow, that significantly cut down on places to look.
There were some abandoned buildings on the outskirts of town.
It was also possible Grady could be staying at one of the many campgrounds around the area.
If those failed, he’d have to start looking toward the coast. But Dutton was fairly positive that Grady would stay as close to Keating Hollow as he could.
One of the first rules Benny had taught them was to stay invisible as much as possible. And traveling thirty miles one way just to sleep or regroup added too much exposure when someone was intent on committing any number of crimes.
Dutton steered his T-bird toward the outskirts of town, looking for the old logging warehouse that hadn’t been used for a number of years.
He pulled the car into the unkempt parking lot and wished there had been anywhere else to park.
If Grady was inside, he already knew Dutton was there.
Sneaking up on him would have been preferable, but Dutton could hold his own when he wasn’t jumped from behind.
He sent out a tendril of magic, searching for any traces of new or old fire magic. His fingers started to tingle, and Dutton went on high alert. Someone had used fire magic there at some point.
Except the signal wasn’t very strong, and Dutton couldn’t tell if it was masked or just faded from being too old. He ground his teeth and kept moving.
The closer he got to the building, the more anxious he became.
If Grady was in there, he should call for backup.
Dutton pulled out his phone, ready to call Drew.
In a perfect world, he’d be able to call the Magical Task Force, but considering they had it out for him, they were the last people he’d involve.
After walking the perimeter, he spotted a door with a cut chain on the ground nearby, a clear sign someone had used a bolt cutter to get in. He took a deep breath, steeled himself, and slowly pushed the door open.
The place appeared to be deserted, and the residual fire magic didn’t intensify. He took a moment to look the structure over from top to bottom to make sure no one was lying in wait for him and then walked in.
It didn’t take long to find a makeshift fire pit that someone had created. Other than a pile of ash, there was nothing to indicate that anyone had been there. He crouched down and placed his hand in the ash. The magic had a stale, moldy scent, indicating it was old.
Unless Grady had been there sometime last winter, he wasn’t the one responsible for the ashes.
Dutton stood and then walked the entire warehouse, looking for a trace of his former foster brother. When he was satisfied the man had never been there, he left and headed toward the woods.
He spent the next two hours searching various camping sites. He was almost ready to give up when he spotted an RV park with lots of trees and some rundown campers.
The sign out front read, Monthly RV sites. Any rig acceptable.
If Grady had been looking for a place where the neighbors wouldn’t pay him any attention, this would be it.
Dutton found a place to park at a trailhead about a half mile away and then walked back toward the RV park.
When he got to the entrance, he strolled right in as if he belonged there and walked around, sending out his magic, searching for any rig that might be tainted with the remnants of a fire spell.
It wasn’t that Dutton thought Grady was trying to burn down the RV park, but he’d likely prepped his spells first before setting them. He knew the firebomb spell that was used at Dahlia’s would take some time, and prepping it first would mean less time to be seen when setting it.
He’d walked halfway through the park when he finally sensed a hit coming from a spot that was mostly hidden by the trees.
Jackpot. The closer he got to the RV, the more certain he was that he’d found the right place. The energy just felt… familiar. It made his skin crawl, just like it had when he’d lived with Benny.
The RV was an older Winnebago, class C model.
It was the type of rig that would be very noticeable if it was parked around town, which led Dutton to believe that Grady must either have towed another vehicle or rented one.
After a quick check, he noted that there was indeed a tow hitch on the rig and figured he must have towed something.
Since he didn’t see another car, he was pretty certain Grady wasn’t there.
Unease rippled through him. If Grady wasn’t in his RV, where was he? Booby trapping Dutton’s house? Or Dahlia’s? Or maybe somewhere else in town? The only thing to do was take a look around and see what he could find.
All the blinds were closed on the rig as well as the front curtains. If he was going to find anything out, there was only one thing to do. Ignoring the ache in his gut, he walked up to the door and knocked.
There was no answer. No sound. No obvious movement.
He knocked again.
Nothing.
After glancing over his shoulder, Dutton tried the door. Locked. That was no problem. He’d learned long ago how to pick a lock, and the one on the RV was one of the easier ones. It took only a few seconds, and he was in.
Dutton hesitated and felt a tinge of sadness, realizing he was breaking the law for the first time since he’d left his foster family behind. They’d once again pulled him back into the fray. But if this helped him figure out Grady’s plan, then he’d do what he had to do.
The RV was a mess of take-out wrappers and beer bottles and what appeared to be some sort of drug paraphernalia. The sight made his stomach turn. It was all too familiar. The drugs were the one thing he’d managed to stay away from when in Benny’s home.
Dutton quickly searched the RV and found a notebook with a list of names. Dutton Williams, Yvette Townsend, Hunter McCormick, Brian Knox, Gideon Alexander, and Wanda Danvers. Addresses for all of them were listed.
He blinked at it.
Then it hit him. Every single person on the list was a fire witch in Keating Hollow.