Page 79 of SEAL's Promise

“We don’t have one. Sims is a friend of Taylor’s. He and Taylor arranged to meet at a restaurant for dinner.”

“Name of the place?”

“Derringer Steakhouse in Sharondale.”

“Never heard of the place.”

“I have,” McCord said. “Good food.”

“Yeah, whatever.” Barrel chest turned his gaze back to Eli. “What time were you at the restaurant?”

“We arrived at 8:00 and left at 9:30. When Sims didn’t show, we came to check on him. Took us two hours to drive from Sharondale. We found him on the floor, beaten and shot in the shoulder. Conner is a Fortress medic and a nationally certified paramedic. He treated Sims until the EMTs arrived.”

“I’m well aware of the rep for Fortress operatives. You’re all highly trained. You expect me to believe you didn’t do that damage to our vic?”

Jackson frowned. “Check our hands.”

“Right.” He glanced down at his notes. “How did you get in the house?”

Cal answered that question. “We rang the bell with no response. Sims’s car was in the driveway, but all the lights were off. He didn’t answer when we called out.”

A frown. “He might have been entertaining a woman and blew you guys off in favor of more pleasurable pursuits.”

With the favor he owed Cal and the scheduled meeting, that scenario was unlikely. Rachelle scanned the impassive faces of the operatives. How much of the truth would they volunteer?

“Sims would have called me to cancel.”

Barrel chest motioned for Cal to continue.

“We searched the back of the house and discovered a raised window with a circle cut from the glass.”

Barrel chest stared. “Was the door unlocked?”

“Because I feared for Blake’s wellbeing, I picked the lock. We found him on the floor.”

“You picked the lock.” His pen tapped on the notepad. “I could arrest you for breaking and entering.”

“You could.” Cal stared. “You won’t. The paperwork will be a nuisance when you have more important things to focus on.”

Barrel chest’s eyes narrowed. “What do you know about the paperwork?”

“Too much. I was a homicide cop in Nashville.”

“So, you know what you did was illegal.”

“I’d do it again in a heartbeat if I thought a life was at stake. Ignoring the law was the right call tonight. If I hadn’t, Blake would have died.”

“You brought your principal to a potentially dangerous situation.”

“Not my first choice. I didn’t want to leave her unprotected in the SUV.”

A snort. The older cop glanced at Rachelle. “If you’re smart, you’ll dump this clown and find someone with your safety in mind. You could have been hurt or killed.”

Rachelle raised her chin. “He saved my life more than once. I trust him.”

“I hope I don’t read your obituary in the newspaper because you trusted the wrong man.” He turned back to Cal. “Tell me the rest.”

“We called 911. You know the rest.”

---