Page 44 of Night Moves
She nodded. “Not that it’s a huge number of people. The syndrome mostly affects adoptees where their adoptive families treat the adoption as a secret and don’t openly talk about it. The Gentry children will require very special parents.”
“Sounds like you have your work cut out for you to ensure they all find the right match.”
“Yes.” She let her mind wander. If only she could take them in. She would provide the kind of life and stability they needed. But these children deserved two parents as she suspected it would take two people working together to care for them properly. Still, would it be better if she took them in and kept them together than if they were all separated? She just didn’t know, but she had to decide by the time they incarcerated Kirk so if she did take the children, they wouldn’t have to be separated in foster care.
She closed her eyes and prayed then repeated positive thoughts to improve her mood. She must have dozed off, as the next thing she knew Drake was exiting the highway near his cabin.
He tapped the media screen on his dash. “Call Brendan.”
The call connected, and Brendan answered. “Yo.”
“We’re just about there,” Drake said. “Turning onto the road now. Everything quiet?”
“It’s a regular snooze fest.”
Drake huffed a laugh. “You okay, or do you need a break?”
“Aiden spelled me, and I caught a few winks while you were gone, so I’m good.”
“Roger that.” Drake ended the call and glanced at her. “He’s watching the road. We want a heads-up in plenty of time if Gentry decides to come out and play.”
She smiled at him. “You all really know what you’re doing, don’t you?”
“Yeah,” he said. “It’s almost as if we’ve done this before.” He flashed her a quick grin, that playful smile she was coming to love, then turned his attention back to the road. They soon reached an SUV matching the one they were riding in.
Drake flashed his lights, and the other vehicle responded. When they passed it, Drake saluted his brother.
“You all are giving up so much time for this. I need to figure out a way to repay you.”
“No need. Honest. We couldn’t walk away. We have to be sure you and the kids are safe. It’s just who we are.”
“Yeah, I can see that now.” She also saw a group of men who were selfless and willing to give of their lives for others. Just like that. No questions asked. They were the guys who ran into danger to save others. And that made them a very special breed indeed.
And he was a special man, one she thanked God for putting in her life at the right time. Maybe what he’d said about accepting help was the truth, that she should just accept it as provided by God. Not feel obliged but embrace their assistance.
He glanced in his rearview mirror, and she thought about what it would be like if Kirk were following them. Coming to end her life and take his children. Might she have prevented that? “I keep wondering if I’d done something different if Kirk would be behind bars.”
“I’ve learned over the years that it does no good when looking for a fugitive to think about what could’ve been. There’s only what is and what could be. And that’s what we have to do here. Take what is and turn it into the result we need. Review what we know and plan. Hopefully the guys will have a good start on creating a solid background report on Gentry, and we can go from there.” He pulled up to the cabin and shifted into park. “But first we get something for lunch and rest.”
“Rest? But Kirk might be out there, maybe another woman in his sights. Maybe me. Maybe someone else.”
He met her gaze. “We won’t be any good to the investigation if we don’t sleep and eat regularly.”
“Sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. You need to rest. I was out of line questioning you.”
“No worries.” He opened his door then glanced back with another one of his grins. “And speaking of eating, I can smell my mom’s cooking all the way out here.”
This boyish smile revealed a dimple in the side of his left cheek. Fun loving and magnetizing. Drawing her to him in a way she hadn’t experienced before. She felt almost as if she had to have him in her life. Had to get to know him, and there was no other option for her.
Strange yet captivating.
Tired.Like he said. She was tired. That was it. She was getting loopy and needed more sleep. Sure, that was it. She would take a long nap when he and the children did, and when she woke up, this crazy need to know Drake Byrd would be gone.
Half of her wanted that to be true, but as she slid out of the SUV and joined him, the other half wanted to slip her hand in his and claim him as hers.
At the door he paused to look at her. “I’ve been dreading telling you this, but you need to know.”
“What?”
