Guarded (29 page)

“Shells, you’re brilliant!” Dev kissed her again. A fast, rough kiss that was both scintillating and intoxicating. She wanted to kiss him again. Really wanted to. She might have, but at that moment, every glass on the table exploded.

The men all jumped up, snatching at the files in an effort to save them.

Shelley jumped too, but not for the files, for Jules, who’d slid sideways out of the booth and onto the floor.

“What the hell was that?” Ian asked, stepping aside for the waitress who bustled over with a tub and a cloth.

Dev met Seth’s gaze and thought he knew. Last month, Seth had described a similar situation of lightbulbs exploding when Jules met with an angry ghost in the flower shop. But he couldn’t tell Ian that. Instead he shrugged and hurried to save the files on the table.

Seth and Shelley walked Jules to the bathroom. Dev would have preferred to help too, but that option became impossible when Deputy Payne Munro stepped through the front door.

“
You
are the police detective from Tidewater?” Payne said.

Fucking perfect.

“I am. Glad to see you.” Dev politely extended his hand. When Payne refused it, he said, “Sheriff Webber did send you to work with me?”

“Yes.” Payne propped his hands on his hips and glared at Ryan and Ian drying off a couple of their files with paper towels. “Do you normally go around talking about your cases with civilians?”

“These men run Tidewater Security Specialists. They’re private consultants here at my request.” Dev said, casually.

“Security specialists that you hired.” It wasn’t a question. More of an accusation. Payne glanced around the table with suspicion and eyed the waitress who had rushed over to help sop up the mess. She wiped away the last of the mess, then hurried away. “Detective Jones, why didn’t you identify yourself as an officer when we met on Wednesday?”

“It didn’t seem relevant at the time.” Dev shrugged. He didn’t miss the way Ian’s shoulders stiffened or Ryan’s head cocked. They were listening too. “I was on a date. Not on duty.”

“A date with a woman who turned out to be the prime suspect in multiple murders.” Payne strolled toward Ian, who straightened and handed Dev the damp manila folder. Payne glared at the exchange and said, “I’d say that’s very relevant.”

“If you spoke with the sheriff, then you know Dr. Morgan is alibied.” What was this guy’s problem? Dev stepped closer to Payne and lowered his voice, “So I ask you, why do you care if I was with Dr. Morgan at the zoo?”

*   *   *

S
HELLEY
HAD
BEEN
about to step out of the bathroom to ask for a glass of ice water for Jules when she heard the commotion out front. Payne’s nasal voice carried through the mostly empty diner.

Seth, who’d been cradling a semiconscious Jules, placed a hand on her shoulder. “Stay here,” he whispered.

Still, she opened the door a crack and listened.

“We have a witness placing Dr. Morgan at the clinic tonight.”

“That’s preposterous,” Ian replied at the same time Dev said, “They’re lying.”

“Really? We’ll see. I’d like to speak with Dr. Morgan regarding tonight’s attack on the clinic. You wouldn’t happen to know where to find her, would you,
Detective?
”

Payne used the word
detective
as if it were interchangeable with
asshole
.
Jerk.

“That witness placing Dr. Morgan at the scene wouldn’t be one Reyna Jameson, would it?” Dev demanded.

Oh, Dev. No.

Dev had his back to the bathroom door, no doubt blocking the deputy from getting to it, but there was no missing the macho stance both men took. Dev’s wide muscular shoulders seemed to expand as he folded his arms over his chest. He had that wide-legged,
don’t fuck with me
stance that would make most men cower.

Not Payne. He might be thinner than Dev, and wiry, but he was just as tall. And Shelley had seen the deputy run a baseball diamond last summer. The man could put on some speed when he wanted.

“Are you claiming my fiancée would falsely accuse Dr. Morgan?” the deputy bellowed.

“Damn right, I am.” Dev’s voice was quieter, but no less menacing. “I’ve only met her once, but I’ve already caught her lying about Dr. Morgan in order to get her thrown out of the zoo. She was escorted out by you, as I recall.”

“I escorted you out too
.
” The deputy punctuated his words with a jab to Dev’s chest. “It would be wise to remember you’re a guest in my jurisdiction before you throw around more accusations.”

Ian and Ryan moved to stand shoulder to shoulder with Dev. Shelley wasn’t sure if it was to show solidarity or to keep their cousin from striking back.

Dev exhaled a snort of disgust. “First, we’re not on your
turf
yet. Elkridge is still thirty miles west. Second, your sheriff asked for
my
help with your cases. Third, Sheriff Webber told me himself, Dr. Morgan was alibied for
all
of the murders. I know she couldn’t have been at the scene of the attack on the clinic because she was in Tidewater when it happened. Now I don’t know what game you’re playing, but I won’t help you railroad an innocent woman.”

At those words, Seth stepped out of the bathroom and strode the short distance to stand by Dev. “What’s going on?”

“Did you get your car fixed, Seth?” Dev asked, as if he and Payne hadn’t just been doing the tough-guy standoff.

“Yes, it just needed coolant.” He paused, then introduced himself to Payne. “I’m Detective English.”

“Deputy Munro,” Payne said, anger still darkening his voice. “Where’d you come from?”

Seth hiked a thumb over his shoulder, indicating the exit door across from the ladies room.

“Seth, it looks like we’re not needed in Elkridge. I’m just going to call Sheriff Webber and confirm that our assistance is not required.” He turned to Payne and asked, “Do you want to relay the information about the links between the murder cases?”

“Now, Detective Jones, don’t go getting your boxers in a twist.” Payne Munro’s voice carried clearly through the diner. “I never said your assistance wasn’t needed. What links?”

*   *   *

“S
HELLEY
,”
J
ULES
CALLED
out, her voice weak. Jules had been resting on the bathroom floor with Seth’s suit jacket between her face and the cold white tile. She pushed to her knees.

Shelley rushed to her sister’s side. Outside the bathroom door, the men’s voices continued, but their words were garbled. “Are you feeling better?” she asked, touching Jules’s clammy cheek.

Jules seemed to have difficulty keeping her eyes open but said, “Yes, a little. So cold.”

Trying to warm Jules, Shelley zipped up her sister’s jacket. Jules hadn’t fully regained consciousness since the glasses had burst on the table. Was it normal for her to drift in and out this much?

“Seth?” Jules murmured.

“He’ll be right back,” Shelley said, stroking the damp hair away from her sister’s forehead. In truth, she liked it better when Jules was talking. At least, she was alive. “Come on, Jules. Talk to me. Do you need anything else? Water?”

Jules’s eyes flew open. Suddenly hyperalert, she grabbed Shelley’s arms with both hands and said, “Tomás said someone is letting all the animals out of their cages. Beau’s there too and he’s hiding. Tomás is stirring up the animals, trying to give Beau time to run, but I think he’s too scared.”

Fear had her grabbing for her cell. She needed to get Dev in here. Or Seth. Or hell, even Payne.

“Shelley, the killer’s in the zoo. Someone else has died.” Jules shook her head, as if trying to clear the confusion. “I can’t understand the new spirit. Too many voices.”

“Beau. Is it Beau?” Fear squeezed Shelley’s chest, but Jules managed to give her head a small shake.

“No. In danger. The killer. The animals running free.”

Shelley jumped up. “Most of the animals in the cages are harmless, but not all. There’s a Komodo dragon and . . . Oh my God! Where’s Miah? Is she still locked up?” Shelley pushed down the image of a frightened Beau being hunted by a maniac in the zoo. But she couldn’t keep her stomach from knotting. “Jules! Where’s Miah?”

“Who?” Jules was fading again. “I don’t know. Seth. Where’s Seth? He needs to know the killer’s there. Call the police.”

“If Beau’s in the zoo with the killer and the animals are running loose, he’s in twice as much danger. I can get the animals back in their cages. I can save them.”

“Go. Get Seth. So tired.” Jules’s eyes rolled back in her head and she went limp. Shelley gently lowered Jules back to Seth’s jacket after patting it for his car key. Shelley pocketed it. Jules mumbled in her sleep.

She hated the idea of leaving Jules like that on the floor, but if she called out to Seth, everyone would come running. And there would be no one to help Beau or the animals in the zoo.

“I’ll call Seth as soon as I’m on the road,” she whispered, then stole out the door.

Dev and the others were steadily moving toward the front exit, so Shelley had to hurry. She slipped out the back door. Seth’s car had been parked there after Ryan had added more antifreeze. Whether it was luck or planning, there were no other cars on this side of the parking lot. She backed out of the lot and headed to Elkridge. Guilt and determination warred inside her as she sent Dev a text:
J had another V. B is at the zoo. Danger. Animals loose. Going to put them back. Tell S. that J. needs him now.

*   *   *

D
EV
HAD
BEEN
surprised when Seth volunteered to join the deputy on the ride to Elkridge. Especially when he’d turned to him and said, “Clean up that mess inside, kid. When you’re done, meet us at the sheriff’s office. We don’t have time to wait for you.”

Seth then gestured for Munro to lead the way to his squad car. The two men climbed in, Seth keeping up the conversation about the linked cases the entire time.

And just like that, Dev understood. Seth was playing the “kid” card to distract Payne, presumably so Dev could check on Shelley and Jules and get them headed back to Tidewater. He headed inside.

“Were all the chicks in your classes that hot?” Ian asked, popping a piece of grape bubblegum into his mouth. “Damn, I made a mistake joining the Marines. I should have gone to get my edumacation with you.”

Dev made his way to the ladies-room door and knocked lightly. No one answered. He glanced at Ian who took it as an invitation to speak.

“Cary Devon Jones, you’re being downright rude not answering me,” Ian said in a perfect imitation of their Gram.

Dev laughed in spite of himself. “Shut up.” He knocked again. “Jules? Shells? You in there?”

“What do you know? He does speak. I’m so shocked I don’t know what to do with myself.”

Dev was about to tell his cousin exactly what he could do, when he heard Jules weakly call his name through the peeling white door.

He pushed it open and his heart sank. Jules sat, pale-faced and swaying slightly in the empty bathroom. Crossing to her, he squatted down. “Jules, where’s Shelley?”

“The zoo.” Jules’s weak voice took on an urgent tone. “Shelley’s going to the zoo. We got a tip that Beau is in danger. He’s trapped in the zoo and someone is setting the animals free. But she left too soon. She doesn’t know she’s a target. Seth? Where’s Seth?” She sank back onto her makeshift pallet of jackets as if her energy was suddenly depleted.

“Seth’s with the deputy,” Ryan said, appearing in the doorway behind them. Without being asked, he pulled his cell from his pocket and dialed. He stepped into the hallway saying, “Seth . . .”

Dev turned to see Ian’s normally jovial expression harden. “Ryan can stay with her. Let’s go,” he said, as if Dev wasn’t already bolting out the back door and into the empty parking lot.

They were in his car and on the darkening road in under a minute. Dev pushed away his fear and his fury at her leaving him as fiercely as he pushed the gas pedal to the floor.

The scent of Ian’s grape gum mixed with the fumes of motor oil made Dev’s stomach twist.

“You wanna tell me how your girlfriend and her sister got a tip
in a bathroom
?” Ian asked, rubbing his chin with one hand and pulling out his cell with the other. Without waiting for a response, he dialed. “Ryan, it’s me. They back yet?” Ian paused, listening. “Good. That should put you only a few minutes behind us. Meet you at the zoo.”

Ian shifted in his seat and said, “Want to explain why your little girlfriend went all Mary Jane Watson on us? We were there to help her, but no. She has to put herself in danger.”

Dev considered not answering. Considered it long enough to let the silence in the car grow thick and heavy. God, he hated keeping secrets from his cousins. They were more than family. They were friends. As kids it had always been the McKinnon clan, back to back to back. It didn’t surprise him that Ian and Ryan would do what was needed without explanation, but it burned at his gut keeping something from them that could potentially put them at risk.

Counting on his cousin’s ability to see past the ordinary, he said, “It’s not like that. She’s not Mary Jane Watson.”

Ian snorted. “Right. Your little chica didn’t just jet off to the zoo, where a body was found in the trunk of her car
this morning
? She might be a hot piece of ass, but she has a proclivity for finding trouble. I say toss this one back.”

“Ian, I’m only going to say this once. Call her a piece of anything again, and I’ll make you eat your balls for breakfast.”

“Fuck you, Cuz.”

“Very mature. They teach you that phrase in the military?” Dev white-knuckled the steering wheel, pissed at Ian for being a dick. Pissed at himself more for losing his temper. Exhaling hard, he said, “Ian, it’s complicated.”

“Bullshit.” Ian’s normally easygoing personality evaporated. “You’ve dragged Ryan and me into this. We’re withholding information from the police. Oh wait, I forgot, you are the fucking police! Tell me how it’s
not like that
?”

Praying he was doing the right thing, Dev said, “You know Aunt Marlene? Shelley’s kind of like her, only—”