Page 23 of Night Hawk
“I don’t know—”
“Of course you’ll be there.” Peggy smiled again.
Russ handed Peggy a bright red coat from the end of the couch. With a flick of her wrists, she tossed it over her shoulders and headed for the door.
“Night,” Russ said, following her.
Toni watched them leave.
When the door closed, Clay turned to Toni. “Sorry about that. I had no idea they’d be here.”
“It was fun to meet them, and now I understand a bit more about you.”
“You mean why I’m a lunatic?” He laughed.
No. why you’re the special person you are.
And why working together to find Hibbard was going to be so very difficult if she didn’t find a way to gain control of her growing feelings.
Clay packed a bag for the night and decided he might as well prepare for the next few days too. He didn’t like the reason for their trip, but they would be headed to one of his favorite places—the beach house handed down from his grandparents. He had no idea how many days to pack for, but the house had a washer and dryer, so he could do laundry if needed.
He closed the duffle and changed the sheets on his bed for Toni. Warmth curled in his heart just thinking about her sleeping in his bed. It was almost like an unspoken connection between them.
He shook his head. He’d been taking hints from his mother for too many years to find a wife, and he needed to forget about anything developing between him and Toni. They would always have the memory of losing her father to overcome to be together, and he doubted she’d dealt with it. After all, it was clear tonight that she hadn’t gotten over losing her mother, and how many years had passed?
He shoved the dirty sheets into the hamper in the bathroom. Put out fresh towels and took a minute to clean the sink with a disinfecting wipe. He wasn’t the neatest of guys, not like his brother Brendan, but he wasn’t a slob either. None of them would disappoint their mother that way.
He chuckled. To anyone watching the family from a distance, they might think the guys were all henpecked. Truth was, they often did things out of respect for their parents. Their mom and dad raised them with the utmost care and compassion, and each of the kids wanted to make them proud and repay them by becoming the adults their parents had hoped they would be.
His phone rang, and he dug it from his pocket to see Kelsey’s name on his screen.
“Hey, Kelsey. What’s up?” he asked, assuming her late-night call would be related to the body they’d found.
“Just a heads up.” She sounded very alert despite the time of night. “The FBI called me in to recover the body at the high school, and I’ve done a preliminary assessment.”
“Glad to hear they chose the most qualified person in the area for the recovery.”
“Thanks to Hunter,” she said, referring to Hunter Lane, an FBI agent who’d married Maya, the Veritas Center’s toxicology and controlled substances expert last year. “He caught the investigation and persuaded Adair, who’s heading it up, to go outside of their agency and call me so they could get things moving forward.”
Perfect.Hunter might be a good source for them. “I’ll be sure to thank him, but that’s not why you’re calling, is it?”
“No, it’s not. Adair told me of your involvement, along with his agent, Toni Long. And he made it clear that neither of you are a part of the official investigation. Which means I won’t be able to share any information with you. I wanted to let you know right up front so there won’t be any hard feelings when I refuse.”
Clay fisted his free hand. “I understand.”
“Sorry, I wish we weren’t bound by the rules of engagement, but we are.”
“Hey, don’t worry about it. I get it. I’m just glad you’re the one doing the recovery. Means it’ll be done right and the girl will have the best chance at finding justice.”
“Girl?” Her voice went up. “Someone told you it was a girl?”
“Nah, I’m assuming it is. The remains were small, the shirt feminine, and with girls being trafficked at the school, it seemed to make sense.”
“I can’t confirm that, of course.” She paused for a moment. “But youdomake a lot of sense.”
He couldn’t tell if she was indeed confirming the body belonged to a girl or simply saying his logic wasn’t faulty. If he asked, she wouldn’t confirm it either way. “Thanks for the head’s up.”
“Sure thing. And good luck with your investigation.”
