Chapter 11
CHAPTER 11
Lizzie stepped out of the limousine into the cleanest parking garage she’d ever seen. There weren’t even dust bunnies in the corners. It looked as though it had recently been pressure washed because there wasn’t a single oil stain anywhere. Perhaps that was because it was private. She automatically headed toward the trunk to grab her bags.
“This way, ma’am.” Drew gestured toward the door five feet away. “Your bags will be taken to your room. Please follow me.”
This was better than any hotel she had ever stayed in her whole life. Although her parents made a point of traveling most school holidays—her mother loved to go somewhere warm during spring break—and almost always for one week during the summer, their family would vacation. Hotels were always mid-brand but never extravagant. Every trip had several educational excursions. With a schoolteacher as a mother and a farm insurance agent for a father, Lizzie knew that they’d save money all year long to enable them to take these trips as a family.
Lizzie wondered if this was the way the Wolf family lived; people bending over backward to handle their bags, riding around in limousines, and first-class seats on commercial airplanes like they had provided for Jeff and JT. Wealth didn’t necessarily make for a loving family. Just because somebody had money didn’t make them perfect parents, not that she was looking for perfection. There was no such thing when it came to parents. What she had to assure herself of before she would let JT stay with this family was that they were not only able to provide for him financially, but emotionally as well.
The three of them stepped onto a decorative rug; although commercial grade, it was well padded. A healthy live plant filled one corner. Three canvas panels with a few inches of space between them created a continuous cityscape with Welcome to Chicago written in script above the skyline. The door to the elevator was already open. Drew indicated they should precede him. Upon entering, he pressed the button.
“On our sixth floor are our apartments. For your safety, we ask that you stay within the building. We have excellent gym facilities on level five that you are both welcome to utilize. Our kitchen and dining room are on level four. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner meals are served for the men who work here as well as those who live here.” Drew looked at his watch. “Dinner won’t be served until six o’clock. Although there are refrigerators stocked with food and drinks all the time, I’ve asked our cook to prepare something hot for you.”
He smiled at JT. “Like you said, it’s been a long time since breakfast. It will be brought to your room within ten minutes. That should give you enough time to freshen up.”
Lizzie figured the term actually meant it was an opportunity to go to the bathroom and wash her face and hands.
When the elevator stopped, the three of them trooped behind Drew. Two doors down the hallway, he opened the door on his right. “This is one of our two-bedroom units that we prepared for the lieutenant and JT.”
Stepping inside, Lizzie was shocked. She’d been expecting a sterile hotel-style room, but found the apartment to be homey and cozy. The sage green walls were soothing with paprika accents picked up in the leather couch pillows, the geometric rug, and photographs of the city. A small, fully equipped L-shaped kitchen was separated from the dining area by a breakfast counter with three stools. In the other direction was a cozy living room where a couch and two recliners boxed in a huge wall-mounted television.
Drew led them to an open door in the living room. “JT, I think you will be very comfortable here.”
The young boy wandered past the uniformed armed guard and his jaw dropped. “I’ve never seen a bed so big,” he said as his head swiveled side to side taking in the room.
“Most of the people who come and stay with us are grown men. They need a bed this size. It’s just for tonight so I’m sure you’ll be able to handle it.” Drew’s smile widened. “Tomorrow you’ll fly to Washington, D.C. where you’ll meet Alex and Katlin. I’m sure you’ll get your very own bedroom at their house. For tonight, though, this is your room.”
JT turned and looked through the open door. “Mr. Jeff, I can sleep on the couch so you can have this room.”
“No need, son,” Drew reassured. “Jeff will be right next door. Do you want to come see his room?”
“Yes, sir, please.”
“Jeff, your room is over here.” Drew pointed to the open door on the adjacent wall. The room was a mirror image. “Each room has its own bathroom. Since you’re only here overnight, housekeeping would appreciate it if you would toss your wet towels into the hampers provided.”
“It sounds as though Drew is giving you an excellent tour of your home for the night. I want to welcome you to Guardian Security Chicago Center.” A tall, broad-shouldered man with dark brown hair and light brown eyes strode across the living room. He was dressed in the exact same uniform as Drew. He extended his hand to Jeff. “You must be Lieutenant Jeff Arwood. It’s nice to meet you. I’m Steve Norton, the manager here. It’s great to have another SEAL in the building, even if it’s only for one night. I was in…” He rattled off a number that made Jeff smile and shake his hand a few seconds more.
Steve turned to Lizzie. “I take it you are Elizabeth Hopewell.” He held out his right hand with a smile.
“Yes, I am.” She felt like she needed to say something else so she quickly added, “I can’t thank you enough for including me in these last-minute overnight arrangements.”
“It’s our pleasure,” Steve said with assurance in his voice that sounded real. “We’re glad to be of service to Alex and Katlin. They were very concerned when they discovered your flight was going to be canceled but as usual, they had contingency plans. In this case, it was us.”
Two men appeared behind Steve with their luggage. “Sir, I believe these bags belong here. We’ve already dropped the purple ones off in the single room.” The man smiled with two rows of bright white teeth as he rolled the Spider-Man suitcase toward JT. “My boy has one just like this, but we’d better check to be sure this one doesn’t belong to the navy lieutenant.” He made a production of looking at the nametag. “Are you Justin Chambers?”
The young boy’s head bobbed up and down. “Yes, sir. But everybody calls me JT. That’s short for Justin Tyler. My middle name comes from my dad, Tyler Malone. He was a Navy SEAL like Lieutenant Jeff. My dad was a hero.”
The smile instantly disappeared from the new arrival’s face. He handed the other suitcase off before he knelt in front of the boy and took his hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, JT Chambers. I’m Donny Rockwell. Call me Rock. I knew your father when he was a lieutenant junior grade, the same rank that Lieutenant Jeff is now. I was in the first platoon he was ever in charge of. He was fresh out of BUD/S and even then, he was one hell of a leader.” His gaze lifted to the adults surrounding him. “He got promoted fast after a few missions and was sent to a different team.” The man stood and put his hand on JT’s shoulder. “Your father was a hero.” He grabbed the military-style duffel bags from the floor. “I’ll just put these in your room, Lieutenant.”
“Ms. Hopewell,” Steve spoke before silence could overtake them, “may I show you to your room?”
“Yes, please.” She really needed to go to the bathroom.
Once in the hall, Steve asked, “Would you prefer to eat in your room alone or share the meal with Jeff and JT?”
“I’d definitely prefer to eat with them.” She was concerned about how JT was taking all these huge changes. On the surface, he seemed to be doing okay, but she was well aware of how children could hide their emotions, at least for a little while.
Steve opened the door on the other side of the hall about ten feet down. “I apologize that we couldn’t place you closer. The rooms on either side of theirs are occupied by men who live here. I assure you that you are completely safe. On the far side of you is a corporate trainer for hand-to-hand combat. On this side,” he pointed to a door a few feet from hers, “is a man who is transitioning to our San Francisco office. He’ll be leaving tomorrow as well, just flying in the opposite direction.”
Since the door wasn’t locked, Steve simply turned the handle. Lizzie followed him into her room for the night. Again, she’d expected something similar to a hotel room and once again was amazed at how inviting her accommodation was. Her room was done in a deep grayish blue with dark blue accent walls, the same color on the couch pillows, placemats on the counter between the kitchen and dining area, as well as blue matting on gorgeous pictures of Lake Michigan. She liked the blue theme to the point that she wanted to take pictures of it with her phone so that she could remember how the small area was designed. Her house back in Kansas really needed a makeover…unless she found a job in Florida.
“I hope you’ll find this apartment comfortable for tonight.” Steve handed her a plastic card. “This will give you access to levels four, five, and six. Just to remind you, you’ll find food on four, the gym on five, and your apartment is on six. Unfortunately, we cannot allow you access to several sections of Guardian Security.” He had the good manners to look sheepish.
“I can’t imagine why I’d need to go anywhere else.” She smiled as she scanned her new space. “This is more than I could ever have imagined. What a beautiful view. I’ll set up my computer over on the dining table.”
“Over there against this wall is a complete office area.” He walked around a corner and picked up the cable lying on the desk. “Hook your computer into this and you will be hardwired into our computer system. For security reasons, we don’t use Wi-Fi. With this,” he waggled the end of the cord, “everything going in or out is encrypted. But I will warn you, our system is constantly monitored.”
She gave him a cheeky smile. “So, what you’re telling me is that I shouldn’t be downloading porn.” Not that she ever had or would.
“Pornography is far from the worst thing we’re worried about.” She couldn’t read the smile he gave her. “I’ll guarantee you, though, if you start watching videos on how to build an IED or researching people on the No Fly list, we’ll be in here to question you before you can read the first paragraph.”
Lizzie held both hands up, palms facing Steve. “I probably won’t even be using the internet except to file my report on JT.” She grimaced. “I may use it to research Mr. and Mrs. Wolf. Only to add strength to my report. The state doesn’t want me to turn over JT to just anybody who says they want a cute little boy.”
When Steve laughed, she wasn’t sure if it was in humor. “Good luck with that.”
What the hell did he mean? What did he know about Mr. and Mrs. Wolf that might be bad?
“Is Mr. Wolf a terrible person to work for?”
“Most definitely not. He has to be the best boss I’ve ever had.”
“May I quote you on that?” She quickly added, “For the report.”
“Absolutely.”
Lizzie spotted her backpack and quickly extracted her computer. “What else can you tell me about Mr. and Mrs. Wolf?” She opened the laptop and turned it on while sitting down at the two-person dining table. “Please, help me help them.” She debated only a second before she explained, “JT is a ward of the state of Kansas. As his social worker, it is my legal and binding obligation to place him in a safe home.” She looked him in the eyes. “If I don’t believe that Mr. and Mrs. Wolf will be good parents to JT, it is my responsibility to take him back to Kansas where I’ll find another foster home for him.”
As though understanding the seriousness of the situation, Steve sat down across from her. “I’ve known Alex for five years, since he opened this office. Until just a few years ago, none of us knew that Katlin was his silent partner. I can tell you that they have recently married but have known each other since high school. I can also tell you that they have a baby. Riccardo is close to a year old now. You will not find any of this information online. I’m only telling you this because I think you should know this before you meet them.”
He sat back in his chair and crossed his arms over his powerful chest. “This is my personal opinion, but I’ve never seen two people more in love in my life. About two years ago, maybe a bit longer, the two of them traveled together for several months visiting each Guardian Security Center, and in case you haven’t discovered that yet, there are currently ten spread across the major U.S. cities. You will find some valuable information about our company on our official website. As the managing partner, Alex is a wonderful boss. I’m relatively sure Katlin still works for the government. You won’t find anything on her.”
Before Lizzie could ask why, there was a knock on her door. She got up from her computer to answer it.
“Ma’am, I wanted to let you know that dinner has just been served to the lieutenant and the boy.” The woman in her mid-fifties smiled and it took years off her face. “I was told that you would be eating with them. You might want to hurry and join them.” She giggled. “If you don’t, it might be all gone.”
“I’ll walk you back to their room.” Lizzie jolted. She hadn’t heard Steve walk up behind her. “Just in case you forgot which one was theirs. I’d hate for you to walk into the wrong room.”
The woman moved out of her way as she followed Steve down the hall. He knocked and moments later the door opened. She was immediately hit by the smell of home-cooked food.
“I wasn’t sure how hungry you were, so I’ve brought a little bit of this and a little bit of that,” the woman behind her said. “Supper is pot roast with all the vegetable fixings and mashed potatoes. We serve at six so save room. Oh, yeah, and there’s crumble apple pie for dessert.”
Steve groaned. “I’m going to have to run two extra miles tomorrow.” He smiled at Lizzie. “Because I can’t resist Betsy’s desserts. She was serious when she said save room.”
JT’s young voice came from within the apartment. “Miss Lizzie. Come eat. We saved you a seat.”
“If you’ll excuse me. I believe I have been beckoned.” She took one step into the apartment then turned back to Steve. “Thank you so much for the information. I appreciate your honest opinion.”
As she walked into Jeff and JT’s temporary apartment, she suddenly realized that she hadn’t used the bathroom. She’d been so engrossed in learning more about Mr. and Mrs. Wolf that she completely forgot about her bladder. She glanced around to see if there was a powder room in the common area. There didn’t seem to be one.
She smiled at the man and the boy who were just sitting down to the table for four covered in food. Lizzie held up her hands. “I need to wash up before I eat. Is there a powder room out here?” She made a show of looking around.
“No. Use mine.” Jeff tilted his head toward his bedroom.
“Please, please go ahead and start.” She smiled at the anxious look on JT’s face. “I’ll only be a minute.”
As she stepped into Jeff’s bedroom and closed the door, she quickly made her way over to the bathroom and took care of business. While washing her hands afterward, she noticed his kit was open. The most enticing aroma wafted toward her. She wasn’t sure if it was his shower gel, shampoo, or aftershave, but it was delightfully spicy in an earthy kind of way.
She liked it.
Even though she was mad at him for not calling her either last night or this morning to let her know his change of plans for JT, she liked Jeff. She always had, even in high school, although they had very different circles of friends. He had grown into one hell of a man…and it had been a long time since she’d had one of those. To be honest with herself, she’d never had a man like the one at the table in the other room. Not only was he handsome, but that body. She released a long sigh.
He was so out of her league, especially now.