Whispers of You (Lost & Found #1)(67)

Dad shook his head. “You’re both finally getting what you’ve always wanted. I don’t want anyone taking that from you.”

But I heard the words he really meant. Someone wanted to finish what Randy and Paul had started, and Wren could be next.





32





WREN





I rolled my chair back and stood. Arching my back, I twisted to one side. How was it that sitting still was somehow harder once the sun went down? And working alone made me twitchy.

No other dispatcher was on duty tonight, and there were only a couple of officers in the station. It was a ghost town. It was better than the few occasions I’d been in the building with only the officer behind the reception desk, but still too quiet.

One of the things I loved about working here was the constant buzz of noise. I had the officers on the radio, but even they were typically quieter at night. Tourists pulled over for speeding or DUIs, and the occasional party that needed to be broken up for noise complaints would pick up soon.

I’d have given anything for those calls right now. Instead, I waited, muscles tense and ready to spring into action at the first call of trouble.

It seemed everyone else was feeling the same way. Officers were patrolling neighborhoods, looking for anyone who might be up to no good, their windows rolled down, listening for the sound of a bullet.

Heat crept up the back of my neck, along with a prickling sensation. I glanced over my shoulder to meet a glacial stare. Amber didn’t make any move to avert her gaze.

I sighed inwardly and lowered myself back into my chair. So much for Clint talking to her.

The phone on my desk beeped. It wasn’t that of an incoming call to nine-one-one but an internal call from within the police station. “This is Wren.”

“It’s Lawson. Can I talk to you for a minute? Route dispatch calls to my office.”

My stomach twisted. “Sure.”

I hung up and set up call forwarding. Keeping my head high, I made my way to Lawson’s office, studiously avoiding Amber’s gaze. Why did I feel like I was being called to the principal’s office?

I knocked softly on Lawson’s door.

“Come in.”

Stepping inside, I shut the door behind me. “I didn’t know you were still here.” It was almost midnight, and Lawson liked to keep his nights free for the boys.

He grimaced. “Too much to look into. I asked the sitter to stay the night.”

The dark circles under his eyes looked even more pronounced than a few days ago. “Just make sure you get some sleep at some point.”

The corner of his mouth lifted. “You mothering me, Wren?”

I crossed my arms. “Somebody needs to.”

“Trust me, Kerry Hartley does plenty of that.”

“But you’ve gotten too good at hiding how much stress you’re under from her.” Because Lawson didn’t want anyone to worry about him. He was always the one who assumed the role of caretaker.

His jaw tightened. “She doesn’t need anything else on her plate right now.”

I lowered myself to the chair opposite his desk. “It’s okay to ask for help now and again. You know that, right? We’d all love to help with the boys. And I know the other officers here would be happy to take some of your load.”

“I can handle my responsibilities,” Lawson said, an edge slipping into his tone.

I was treading into the no-go zone. “Okay. I’m just saying we’re here if you need us.”

His expression gentled. “Thank you. I appreciate it.”

Unfortunately, he would never take me up on the offered help.

Lawson leaned back in his chair. “I heard you and Amber had a little run-in.”

It was the last thing I’d expected to come out of his mouth. I’d thought Lawson might be updating me on the case or checking to see how I was holding up. “Run-in might be too strong a word.”

“Not from what I heard.”

My eyes narrowed. “Did Holt call you?”

“No, but he should’ve. I won’t have my officers being cruel to each other.”

“She’s been through a lot.”

Lawson sighed. “I know that. It’s why I’ve given her as much lenience as I have. But she’s about to cross a line that she can’t come back from, and she’s not getting the message.”

My teeth toyed with the corner of my lip. “She didn’t say anything that awful.”

Amber had been hurt, grieving, and had needed to let loose some of that pain. It might not have been fair, but I understood.

“Did she throw the shooting in your face?”

My mouth pressed into a hard line.

“That’s what I thought.”

“Don’t get her in trouble over this, Law. I don’t want it. And it’ll only make things worse between us.”

There was a brief moment of hesitation before Lawson shook his head. “I’ll make it clear that you didn’t want this and weren’t the person to report it. But Amber needs to realize the ramifications of her actions. There’s no way she’ll become the cop she’s capable of if she doesn’t.”

The twisting sensation was back in my stomach. Because I got his point. Lawson did everything he could to create a healthy environment for his officers and the town. He didn’t take the trust the town had put in us lightly. Anyone who put that in jeopardy by behaving badly was dealt with swiftly.