Page 48 of Crosshairs

“So Maddox is on the loose?”

“For a week now. Him and two others. They’re armed with both a pistol and rifle. His ex-wife’s family was notified and put in protective custody at a safe house. I was notified as well, but I was on the cruise.”

He frowned. “You didn’t check your email or your messages?”

She shook her head. “I turned my phone off and didn’t turn it on again until we docked. The emails and texts alerting me about Maddox were buried in the hundreds of emails and I have no idea how many texts.”

He couldn’t believe she’d turned her phone off. “What if there’d been an emergency with Rose or Cora like what happened last night?”

“I left Gran detailed instructions on how to get in touch with the ship if that happened.”

“But—”

“Linc, I’d just wrapped up an exhausting week at the law enforcement academy in Jackson, this after being involved in a search and rescue mission for a ten-year-old boy that did not end well.” She breathed in and crossed her arms. “I was stressed. Wanted, no,neededto get away from everything. After the training, I drove to Natchez and left my computer, my files, service revolver—everything—at Gran’s. Then I drove to the Port of New Orleans and boarded the ship.”

Linc got it that law officers needed to decompress sometimes, had needed to himself. He just wished she’d checked her phone occasionally on the ship.

“Is there any possibility he’s made it to this area?” he asked.

“Brent didn’t know.” She turned to him. “That’s not all. I didn’t mention it to Brent, but Maddox knows computers. What if he hacked into our system and found out where I was?”

The tent campers at Rocky Springs. Linc wished he’d gotten a better description from the other campers of the man who’d left. “Would he be considered old?”

She tilted her head. “It would depend on who was doing the considering.”

He told her what the campers had said.

“Yeah, they’d probably think so. Did you get their contact information?”

He nodded and flipped his notebook open. “Even got their email addresses. Can we get a photo of Maddox to send them?”

“Should be able to. What’s your email address and I’ll have Brent send it to you too.” Ainsley called her supervisor and requested the photo. “I’ll be careful,” she said before disconnecting.

“Want to just wait here until it comes?” he asked.

“Let’s go to Gran’s. At least in her house I won’t feel like he has me lined up in his crosshairs.” Suddenly, she sucked in a breath. “I can’t go there. It would put Gran in danger.”

Linc thought of his small apartment and winced. He’d been meaning to get a bigger place but hadn’t gotten around to it. “I’d offer for you to stay at my apartment, but it’s only one bedroom.”

“Thanks, but if that was Maddox at the church, it’d be too dangerous for the other people living in the building,” she said.

Both fell silent, then Linc said, “How about Cora’s house? Could you stay there?”

Ainsley pulled her bottom lip through her teeth. “Until she gets home. Then I’ll have to find another place.”

“We’ll catch him by then,” he replied.

25

All Ainsley wanted to do was lean back against the seat. The price for getting little sleep last night was making itself known, especially after talking to Brent.

“I’m beat, but I’m probably not as tired as you are. I don’t have someone trying to kill me,” he said. “Why don’t I take you to Cora’s and let you get a little shut-eye in her recliner? I’ll let your grandmother know what we’re doing, and if the photo comes in, I’ll send it to the campers.”

A nap sounded like heaven. “Just for an hour.”

It took all of her energy to climb out of the seat when they got to Cora’s. She removed her vest, then set her alarm on her phone. As a backup, she made Linc promise to wake her.

When the alarm went off, Ainsley jerked awake, unsure of where she was. Linc was leaning back on her aunt’s sofa, asleep as well. The alarm became louder and she silenced it.

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