Page 11 of Operation: Unify

Connor tugged his phone from his pocket and scrolled until he found Nadine’s number. She wouldn’t be asleep yet, but she was in charge of security and would want to know this development.

“Hey,” he said as soon as she answered. “We need to raise our alert status. Someone tried to break Viceroy out of jail.”

Nadine was silent for a moment, but he heard her typing.

“Are you still at work?” He glanced at his watch.

“No, sir. I’m at home, but I bring my laptop for occasions like this.” The phone was muffled for a moment, and he heard her talking to Edwyn, “It’s fine.”

She clicked some more then took a deep breath. “I just did a rapid scan of the cameras and there is nothing moving. We’re lucky it’s winter and the snow makes checking easy.”

“I trust you. Thanks for looking.” He hung up the phone.

“You’re not going to sleep tonight, are you?” Brendon frowned at him.

“Probably not, but not for the reasons you think.” Why was everyone else getting ahold of him and not Lacy?

“This isn’t enough to keep you up?” He rolled his wheelchair closer. “What’s going on?”

The last thing he needed was Brendon thinking he was having some kind of episode. Of all the guys, he’d kept his issues to himself as much as possible. Brendon was there for the others. Connor had to keep up the appearance of being the strongest. He couldn’t do that if his men didn’t believe he was capable in every way.

“Nothing.”

“If you can’t sleep, take that allergy stuff. It will help you.”

“I don’t want to be helped, but thanks.” In fact, he wanted to stay up in case Lacy called. What if she needed him? Then again, what could he do from hours and hours away?

Brendon held up his hands. “Okay, but I can’t help you if you don’t talk to me. I’ve been able to figure out a few things just by living here for a decade, but my boss should be the first one who makes sure he doesn’t need my services before anyone else.”

Connor snorted. “That’s how I know you’re trying to get one over on me. You know as well as I do that we’re equals here.” He’d done that on purpose. While he was the owner and signed all the checks, Brendon managed at the same level as Connor.

“Speaking of that.” Brendon glanced down the hall and then around the banister to the living room. “Now that Ferd is here and she owns as much as you do, my position should probably be evaluated. I doubt she knows about my interest, and I don’t want to come between family. This doesn’t have to get discussed tonight, but soon.”

Leave it to Brendon to be more on top of issues that could cause stress than he was. “Sure. We’ll talk at some point in the near future. Thanks for letting me know about the threat.” He headed up a few steps toward his room. “Night.”

Brendon waved even as his brows dipped together in thought. “Night.”

Yellow police tapeboxed Lacy in the house. She watched Melinda clutch her middle as an officer talked to her. She knew, without a doubt, the detective would see her as guilty when what Melinda was doing was masking her grief. She hadn’t been allowed to feel anything for so long that masking was a defense mechanism.

Finally, the officer finished but asked her not to leave yet. Melinda came over and though Lacy wasn’t typically a hugger, she took Melinda in her arms to let her know she wasn’t leaving. After the fear of running from Tod, then finding her aunt, Melinda looked exhausted.

“They think I did it. Relatives are always at the top of the list. Discovering us here in the house makes us look guilty. He said we were breaking and entering.” Melinda looked at her feet and swiped her hair behind her ear, her voice was calm, but her quivering fingers gave her away. She was barely hanging on to her emotions.

“I told them your husband was right outside. The one who had threatened me earlier by jumping on my car. The one who hit you and we documented it. I told him we were afraid, and your aunt would want us to come inside.”

“I can’t believe she’s gone.” Melinda pressed her lips together and her jaw trembled.

“It’s okay to cry about this.” Lacy touched her arm.

Melinda shied away from the contact. “I don’t cry. It doesn’t do any good anyway.” She looked away. “They aren’t letting me leave and I just want to get out of here. All I can see is her lying on the floor in that awful position. I just want to leave.” Her voice rose higher and higher until it broke.

Lacy brought her over to the living room and sat her down on a sofa bedecked in a huge flower pattern. Though it had to be thirty years old, the fabric looked like it was rarely sat on.

“Wait here.” Lacy held up her pointer finger letting her know she wouldn’t take an argument. Lacy was taking over.

She headed for the kitchen and asked the evidence technician if she could get a glass of water. She’d expected dust to cover everything, but that was probably just for TV drama, and old ones at that. They hadn’t used any in the kitchen and she hoped that meant they were focusing on the bathroom.

“No, but I’ve got a coke out in the van. I’ll grab one for you.” He stopped at the door, took off his booties, and headed outside.

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