Page 11 of Flynn

Another brief silence as Flynn sipped coffee while listening to what Rhy was saying.

“Yes, sir. I brought Taylor to Zeke’s place since he and Sienna are out of town. I know Zeke won’t mind, and it was easier and quicker to come here than to find a hotel. You know how it is, we’re not exactly welcome at the City Central anymore after damaging the suite last month, and I figured we should avoid the American Lodge because it’s located in Brookland.”

Taylor shivered, thinking about the near miss at the City Central Hotel. Flynn had suffered a flesh wound from a bullet that nicked his arm. He and Zeke had managed to get her, Bailey, and Sienna out safely.

That was the reason she’d reached out to him in the middle of the night. She and Flynn were complete opposites, but she’d known he’d protect her without hesitation.

“I would like to be kept in the loop on the double homicide investigation,” Flynn said. “I heard something about a fingerprint being found in the homeowner’s office. Steve Miller is the president of Brookland Bank; it stands to reason he was the primary target. His wife, Robin, does interior design for people with money for that kind of thing.”

She took the strips of bacon from the pan, adding three slices for each of them to the plates, then she finished flipping the eggs and slid them onto the plates. She caught his eye as she held up the two plates, indicating breakfast was ready.

“Anything you can find out would be helpful,” Flynn said, nodding at her. He crossed to the table. “I’m afraid I’ll need to take some vacation time until the gunman has been found and arrested.”

After setting the plates on the table, she turned to grab silverware and her coffee cup.

“Thanks, Rhy. I appreciate your help on this. I’ll call for reinforcements as needed.” He nodded at something, then said, “Yes, later.” Ending the call, he set his phone aside. “We’re set. Rhy told me to take as much time off as I need.”

“Your boss sounds like a nice guy.” She dropped into the closest chair. “I seem to remember Zeke reaching out to him for help, too, when Sienna was in danger.”

“We hit the jackpot with Rhy and Joe leading our tactical team,” Flynn said. He sat beside her, then reached for her hand. “I’ll say grace, the way Zeke and Sienna would if they were here.”

“Okay.” She bowed her head, keenly aware of the warmth of Flynn’s fingers around hers. She’d attended church while growing up but hadn’t lived it the way Sienna had. After spending time with Sienna and Bailey, Taylor had found herself leaning more and more on prayer.

“Lord Jesus, we thank You for this food we’re about to eat. We ask You to continue to keep Taylor and Max safe in Your loving arms. Amen.”

“Especially Max, as he deserves a family who will love him. Amen,” she added.

“I know you’re concerned about the baby, but I’m sure he’ll be well cared for.” Flynn took a bite of bacon. “This is great, thanks.”

Thinking of Max made her sad, but she forced herself to eat, knowing she needed to be strong to get through this. “I hope you’re right about Max being placed with a nice family. To be honest, I’m glad Max wasn’t in the car earlier. I really don’t understand how the gunman found us.”

Flynn scowled. “He must have been hiding near the scene of the crime and watching the place when I drove up to the house. Either that or he was waiting near the police station, knowing you’d have to give a statement.”

She stared at him. “But he didn’t see me. I was hiding the entire time. I only happened to catch a glimpse of him walking past, but he didn’t turn his head to look at me. If he had”—she stopped, swallowed hard—“he’d have shot me.”

“I know that he didn’t see you in time to get rid of you,” Flynn agreed. “But the fact that he used a flashlight to look inside your bedroom indicates he knew there was at least one more person living in the home.”

A cold chill washed over her. Because Flynn was right. The flashlight beam proved the killer had come back to try to find her but ran out of time after hearing the sirens.

It hadn’t occurred to her until this moment that the gunman might know what she looked like.

And that he was likely more determined than ever to silence her once and for all.

Flynn wishedhe could say something to reassure Taylor he wouldn’t let this guy touch her, but they’d already been followed. And had been shot at.

He hated the thought of failing in his mission to keep Taylor safe. He should have anticipated the guy might stake out the Brookland police station.

He made a silent promise not to underestimate this guy again.

“Well, I guess that means I should keep going through mug shots,” she said, after a prolonged silence. “It would be helpful for me to identify him before he finds me.”

“Going through mug shots would help.” He knew it would be better for her to do something constructive, even though he wasn’t convinced the killer was in the system. “I’ll ask Cassidy to bring a computer for us to use.”

“Okay. That would be great.” He appreciated her attempt to stay positive. “Are you sure Zeke or Sienna don’t have a computer here we can borrow?”

He finished his breakfast, then rose to carry his plate to the sink. “I’ll take a look around, but it might be better to have two computers anyway.” He wasn’t sure what he could do to help figure out who had a reason to kill Steve and Robin Miller, but he couldn’t sit around doing nothing either.

Leaving the dishes in the sink, he refilled his coffee mug, then moved through the house. He didn’t like invading Zeke and Sienna’s privacy but reminded himself that his buddy wouldn’t mind.

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