Page 35 of Boxed In

“Maybe not,” Frank said. “The warrior could be a plus.”

“But he could kill Luke.”

“He needs Luke.”

“I guess for now.”

Decorah turned back to Beth. “Did she say anything else?”

“Yes, the warrior said his job is to protect the box and get it to the Master of the Moon.” She gave Frank a long look. “Do you know where that is?”

“Unfortunately, no.”

“So you sent Luke to keep an eye on the box, but you had no idea what he was supposed to do with it.”

“We wanted him to keep it safe until the owners made themselves known.” He cleared his throat. “Do you have any idea where Luke and Olivia might have gone?”

“To repeat your phrase—unfortunately, no.”

Decorah pulled a business card out of his pocket and handed it to her. “If you hear anything from them, call me.”

oOo

The two men left the house and returned to the SUV. As soon as the doors closed behind them, Frank swore.

“What?” Brand asked.

“This is a mess, and it’s all my fault.”

“You didn’t know what would happen.”

“I should have realized the danger swirling around the box. I should have sent more men with Luke.”

“To hang around Baltimore doing nothing?” Brand asked.

“Yeah.” He dragged in a breath and let it out. “And then I have to ask the question, why didn’t he call back?”

“His phone was in the office.”

“But there are still pay phones in the city. He could have called from one of them.”

“Why do you think he didn’t?” Brand asked.

“Probably because the warrior is insisting on secrecy. And he thinks they can handle the situation on their own.”

“And they can’t,” Brand muttered.

He started the engine, then realized he had no idea where they were going.

“What are we doing next?” he asked.

“If I had to guess, I’d say Olivia won’t go back to her apartment. But the men who trashed the office would look for her there.” Frank consulted his smartphone and gave Brand the address.

He programmed it into the GPS and started off.

oOo

Olivia watched Luke looking around. Probably he was evaluating the property from a whole new point of view—as a hideout.

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