Page 55 of Outlaw Xmas
Before Belle could ask Cara what she meant, she scurried away. Wrinkling her brow, Belle pinched the skin at her throat.Something’s wrong.She’d noticed that when she’d called Cara the night before, she’d seemed preoccupied and sad. When Belle had asked if anything was wrong, she’d said no, quickly making an excuse to get off the phone.
“Garret!” Cara’s voice boomed.
Belle turned to the front of the room and saw Cara rushing out the door. She walked over to see what was going on.
“Garret!”
Cara’s voice sounded hollow in the large hallway as it bounced off the concrete walls. Belle walked into the open hallway. “Who’s that?”
Cara spun around, shaking her head. “I know he heard me. He just rushed off.”
“Who?”
“That guy,” she replied, pointing at a retreating figure with stringy brown hair. “He came into my office about a week or so ago. He gave me the creeps, and now he’s here in the building.”
“Are you suggesting he’s following you?”
“No, not exactly. I don’t know. It’s just weird that he’s here.”
“Maybe he works here. Anyway, if you’re freaked about it, you need to tell Hawk.”
“Have a nice day, Belle and Cara,” Evan said as he walked past them.
“Evan, do you have an employee working for you named Garret?” Cara asked.
“I don’t think so. Lindi? Does someone named Garret work for us?” He smiled at the women. “I don’t know all the seasonal employees.”
Lindi and Torey came over, shaking their heads. “Not that I know of, but I can double-check with human services,” Lindi replied.
“Could you?” Cara asked.
“Sure. I’ll give them a call this afternoon. I have another meeting I have to go to.” Lindi grimaced, then smiled as she scampered away.
Cara walked over to the floor-to-ceiling window that looked out at the parking lot. “He’s driving away!”
Belle came over and saw a sun-faded turquoise blue van plastered with bumper stickers and duct tape leaving the parking lot.
“What kind of car is that?” Cara asked.
“It’s a van, but I have no idea what make it is,” Belle replied.
“Can you see the license plate number?”
“I can make out the last two digits—75. Kimber, can you please come over here?” Belle looked over her shoulder and saw Kimber walking toward them. “Can you hurry it up?”
“What’s up? What’re you two looking at?”
Cara tapped the window repeatedly. “That van. Do you know what make or year it is?”
Kimber nodded. “It’s a 1975 VW van. Very popular. They were made from 1952 until 1990. A fuckin’ great van. You thinking of getting one? Hawk could make it into a beauty for you.”
The vehicle disappeared, and Belle turned away from the window.
“No, it’s nothing like that. I just saw someone I thought I knew. Thanks.”
“I wanted to ask you guys something, but I don’t want to do it in the hallway. Voices travel around here,” Kimber said.
Belle and Cara went back into the conference room.
