Chirp(51)

Damn. Seth wanted to tell him she planned to leave. But he couldn’t. All he could do was encourage Rance and hope it took. “No. But she doesn’t seem the type to make the first move, so you should.”

“Oh, take my word, she can make the first move when she wants. Besides, I’ve already tried to reason with her. She’ll be back on Monday, and we’ll hash it out.”

No, she won’t. “I see my truck’s gone, so I guess Nick’s left already.”

“Yeah. He hightailed it out of here pretty quick. You still want to go to the steak house?”

“Sure, if you do. There’s rain in the forecast, so we should hit the road.”





Tom Fraser


Tom Fraser gasped for air. It’d been too long since he’d had sex, but damn if it wasn’t as good as he remembered.

Helga ran her palm across his chest. “You okay?”

He laid his hand on top of hers. “Better than okay. You?”

“I’m downright giddy.”

“Good to know I haven’t lost my touch.”

“Well, I don’t have a before-and-after comparison, but based on this one performance, I’d give you a gold star.”

She giggled, and Tom loved the sound. He’d always appreciated younger women and even fantasized about them now and then, but in reality he would never make a move on one. He needed a woman with patience in case his execution took longer than normal. Thankfully that hadn’t been the case. Turned out, the thought of making love with Helga caused everything to work like he was forty again.

“I have a confession,” Tom said.

“Oh no. That’s four words a woman never wants to hear right after sex.”

He chuckled. “Nothing bad. I haven’t slept with anyone since my wife, so I was nervous. Crazy, huh? You’d think at my age I’d have the bedroom stuff down.”

“Believe me, you have it down.” Helga laughed again.

Damn, he liked this woman. A lot. And he sure as hell didn’t want this to be a one-time thing. “I don’t want you to stop seeing me because of the Montgomery case.”

She sat up, propped a pillow behind her back, and pulled up the sheet to cover her breasts. And they were beautiful. Full, rounded, still firm for a woman over fifty.

“You’ve found her, haven’t you?”

He sat up, too, and took her hands in his. “I think so.” What came next caught him off guard.

Helga burst into tears. “You’ll ruin her life.”

He pulled her to him and spoke into her hair. Thick and red, it smelled so damn good it made him dizzy. “No. I won’t. I promise I’ll help the kid all I can, yet still do my job.”

She gazed up at him, and that luscious bottom lip quivered. “You swear?”

He couldn’t stand it any longer, so he took her mouth. And when she pulled away, he groaned. “I swear on a stack of Bibles and the constitution. You’ve got to trust me on this.”

“How did you find her?”

“Been monitoring the reward website. Somebody from Bluebird, Texas, did a search. The IP address belongs to an old woman. With everything I’ve learned about the girl, it seems logical.”

“What do you mean?”

“Obscure town and an old woman with no connection.”

“Have you told Marla?”

“No, and I won’t until I’m sure. I’m going down there next week.”

“And if she’s there? What happens next?”

“I’ll send my report to Mrs. Montgomery, but who knows? The kid might be gone again before Marla gets it.”





24


Rance


By the time Rance and Seth finished dinner, swung by Walmart, and left Danvers, it was almost eleven o’clock. Little brother had been quiet during the meal, and Rance figured it had to do with the soon-to-be ex-fiancée. Even though Rance had never met her, he was glad Seth had decided to break it off. Earlier Seth had explained if he ever wanted to work in Houston, he had to come up with a way to make her think ending the engagement was her idea. Didn’t know how he’d go about that, but he was brainstorming.

The best plan so far was for Seth to put his foot down about including Rance in the wedding. He wasn’t sure it’d be enough. No doubt she’d throw a fit, but to save face, she’d probably agree.

There’d been something else, too. Seth had insisted on buying a new computer and small television. Rance pointed out those were things Seth could get at home, but for a guy with no job, he’d never seen his brother so adamant.

When they got back to the farmhouse, Rance helped unload the boxes. Once inside, Seth carried his carton to Chirp’s bedroom, where he’d been sleeping.

The door banged closed behind Rance, and he yelled, “Hey, don’t take the stuff in there. It’ll be easier to load into your truck from here.”

“No, there’s plenty of room in the closet. It’s empty except for my clothes.”

The wind picked up outside and whistled down the chimney. A loud clash of thunder jarred the house. Rance set the TV on the kitchen counter and sprinted down the hall. “What do you mean empty? Chirp has her stuff in there. I know she doesn’t have much . . .” He stopped short and glared at the space.