Finding Carly (SEAL Team Hawaii #5)(31)

“You just described yourself, Jag. You can be intense, and I certainly would never want to be on your bad side, but you’re definitely sexy as hell. Even without the silver part.”

He rolled his eyes. “Whatever.”

Her man didn’t take compliments well. Carly made a mental note to make sure she told him often how great she thought he was. “Well, if the others think he’s good-looking, I’m sure he is, but I’m more concerned with his investigative skills.”

“He’s good,” Jag said simply.

Carly nodded. “So, I’ll get to meet him?”

“I’ll make it happen.”

“Thanks.”

They were silent the rest of the way to his apartment complex. But it was a comfortable silence. And for once, Carly let herself close her eyes and relax. She was with Jag, he wouldn’t let anyone ambush them. It was almost scary how quickly she’d let herself trust him, but she knew without a moment of doubt that if something happened, Jag would take care of it…of her.





CHAPTER NINE





Almost a week later, Jag finally got a chance to sit down with Baker and find out what he’d discovered about Carly’s situation. The retired SEAL had come down to the Naval base and the team had commandeered a conference room, waiting anxiously to hear what he had to say.

“Thanks for coming down,” Jag told him.

“I was in the area anyway,” Baker said. “I needed to speak with a couple people last night, so I figured I’d just stay down here and meet with you guys this morning.”

“Where did you stay?” Mustang asked.

“With a friend,” Baker said mysteriously.

“You could’ve stayed with us,” Aleck said. “You know we have plenty of room, and Kenna would’ve loved the chance to catch up.”

Baker raised a skeptical eyebrow.

Aleck chuckled. “Okay, she would’ve given you the third degree, but still, you know you’re welcome to bunk at my place anytime.”

“I think that goes for all of us,” Midas chimed in.

Everyone agreed.

“It’s fine. I didn’t get done until late, and the last thing I’d want to do is disturb anyone.”

“Whatever. As if you’d disturb us,” Slate said with a drawl. “You could’ve stayed at my house and gotten some wave time in this morning.”

“Who says I didn’t?” Baker asked.

Slate dipped his chin in acknowledgement. “Right.”

“If we can get this started…I’ve got someone else to track down today before I head back up north,” Baker said.

Jag leaned forward and pinned his gaze on the man. He really needed to hear some good news. That Baker had either figured out who was working with Carly’s ex or that he didn’t think there was a threat from anyone. His gut didn’t think the latter was a possibility, but he could still hope.

“First off, is Carly in danger?” Mustang asked.

Baker hesitated—and Jag’s stomach dropped.

“From what I’ve been able to uncover, no, but…” He trailed off.

“But?” Jag prompted after a moment.

“This entire situation stinks to high heaven,” Baker said in a hard voice. “Someone’s lying. Or they all are. The people I’ve talked to have all said the right things, but I’m not getting warm, fuzzy feelings from any of them.”

“Who did you talk to and what did you find out?” Pid asked.

“I started with the son. He’s a prick,” Baker said bluntly. “A misogynistic asshole who doesn’t have the least bit of respect for women. I’m guessing he learned that from his old man. I grilled him pretty hard, and he stuck to the same story he told the cops. That he was with his girlfriend.”

“How’d he explain the fact that Carly actually saw him on the beach near Duke’s that night?” Aleck asked.

“He swore that he was there looking for his dad, to try to talk him out of doing something stupid—Luke’s words, not mine,” Baker said.

“You believe him?” Pid asked.

“No. But then again, if the timeline Carly gave the cops is correct, he didn’t exactly have time to go from the beach to a marina, then head out to the ocean so he could pick up his dad,” Baker said.

Jag clenched his teeth in frustration. He’d thought the same thing. “You think there was more than one person working with Keyes?” he asked.

Baker turned his green gaze on him and shook his head. “No. The son knew about his dad’s plan—he all but admitted it by sayin’ he was at Duke’s to try to talk him out of something. But I don’t think he was part of the plan to actually kidnap Carly. So someone else had to have known as well. Maybe Luke had a role that would come into play later, maybe he was looking forward to having a spin with Carly once his dad brought her to wherever he’d planned to take her. Or maybe he was supposed to help dispose of her body. But I don’t think he was part of the actual kidnapping plan.”

“Motherfucker!” Jag said, pushed up and out of his chair. He began to pace in agitation. He couldn’t sit still and listen to Baker talk about Carly being assaulted.

“What I believe Luke Keyes was doing at Duke’s that evening is irrelevant,” Baker continued, ignoring Jag’s outburst. “There simply wasn’t enough time for him to drive to a marina, get a boat, and go out into the water. Especially because I uncovered some video of him in his car, right around the time everything was going down.”