The Belial Stone (The Belial Series #1)(23)

She nodded, her fingers crossed behind her back. “Absolutely.”





CHAPTER 17



Jake pulled into the parking lot of a fast food joint just past the exit, off the highway. At the drive-thru, he got them both some coffee.

He glanced over at Laney. She was still shaking, both hands curled around her coffee cup. For a woman who’d just survived two attacks in less than twelve hours, she was holding up amazingly well. Hell, she was holding up phenomenally well. Although her small size and pale skin gave the appearance of fragility, she was obviously a lot tougher than she looked.

She gestured towards her coffee. “Thanks for this and the rescue." She expelled a long, shaky breath. “This is not my usual day. Is it yours?”

“Will it freak you out if I say yes?”

A small grin appeared on her face. “I think it might actually make me feel better.”

Jake couldn’t help but contrast their lives. From the dossier Henry had rustled up, he knew she was highly educated with a warm, secure, predictable world. He’d gotten his GED when he was seventeen and barely knew what country he’d be in week to week. She eyed him over the rim of her cup. “Let me guess. SEALS?”

He inclined his head. “Got it in one. I left them three years ago and started with Chandler.”

“Must keep you busy.”

He looked away, his tone lower as his thoughts returned to Tom. “Yeah, too busy.”

Jake wrestled with the guilt eating away at him. Maybe if he’d stayed in touch with Tom or at least called him when he got out, none of this would be happening.

“Jake?” Laney asked, pulling his eyes back to her. He was startled again by how incredibly green they were. They seemed almost unreal. “You want to tell me about your brother?”

A memory of Tom flashed through his mind. They’d been walking down the street hand in hand to get an ice cream. Tom couldn't have been more than eight and he’d chattered the whole way, debating what flavor of ice cream to get. Because back then, ice cream was his most pressing concern.

“Tom’s my foster brother. I went to live with him and his grandmother when I was fourteen. But I’ve known them since I was a little kid. Tom got mixed up in gangs after I joined the Navy and did time for a B&E that went bad. He got out four months ago. He was doing good - job, girlfriend, church group. But three days ago, he disappeared.”

Jake could see the calculation in Laney's eyes. He could practically hear her doubts. And hell, it wasn't like he didn't have some. But he knew Tom hadn’t skipped. He had to believe in that.

He ran his hands through his hair. “Look, I know. He’s a parolee. Going missing is not exactly unheard of. But Tom didn’t do that. He had support, a job, a relationship. He wouldn’t just toss that all aside.”

“Okay. But even so, I’m not sure how I can help. Why would you need a criminologist?”

Jake smiled. “Well, it’s not your criminology skills I’m looking for. We’ve found a connection between Tom’s disappearance and an archaeologist named Arthur Priddle.”

Laney jolted at the name. “Priddle?”

He nodded. “We also know his partner, Drew Masters, sent you a file you shortly before his death.”

Laney paled at the mention of Drew’s name. He could practically see the sadness spread over her. They hadn’t been just colleagues. She cared about him.

Oh, I am a jackass, he thought as he watched her try to hide her reaction from him. Her face had become a mask, but she couldn’t hide the subtle tremor in her hands. They’d been involved. The feeling of disappointment caught him by surprise.

He reached over and took her hand in his. He wasn't sure who was more surprised by the action. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you two were a couple.”

She shook her head, but didn’t pull her hand away. “Not like that. Drew was pretty much my brother. Much like Tom is yours. Sometimes families don’t need a blood link, do they?”

He nodded, feeling her pain. Oh crap. She was a walking wound right now. He didn’t want to add to that.

Of course, she’d be in trouble whether he was here or not. But he felt an incredible sense of protectiveness towards her. Where the hell had that come from? He’d just met the woman. He flashed on the Terminator they’d left back at the safe house. Of course, that guy might need an entire squad to take him down. He’d probably feel protective of anyone he was after.

She pulled her hand from his and wrapped it around her cup again, her brow furrowed. “I’m not sure how Drew’s email can help you. I haven’t had a chance to finish reading it.”

Jake raised an eyebrow. “Is it that long?”

She gave him a small grin. “Only about fifty pages. I had just started it when my uninvited guest stopped by this morning. From what I did read, it can’t be related to your brother.”

“Why? What’s it about?”

Her eyes met his. “It’s an argument for the existence of a technologically advanced pre-historic civilization.”

That wasn’t what he was expecting to hear. “What? Like Atlantis?”

“Exactly like Atlantis. I’m not sure how that can help you with the search for Tom.”

Jake shook his head, his hopes dimming. “I don’t know, either. But if it doesn’t, I don’t have any other leads to follow.” And that means Tom is lost for good.