Page 71 of Bravo

BRADYN

“First step is finding out what’s on that drive.” I take a drink of my coffee.

“I’ve tried. It’s locked down.”

“I know a guy. Two, actually, but we can’t currently get to one of them. Elliot says the ranch is being watched. They’re working on getting rid of them, but it’s not going to be easy. Especially since Brown has deep pockets.”

I hate that I’m so far away and that there’s nothing I can do right now. Nothing but hopefully make it to my “Plan B” before they catch up to us. Something that will be immensely more difficult if I can’t find a way to Maine.

“Very deep,” she replies. Kennedy has been relatively quiet ever since we walked into the diner. Her eyes are still red from the tears I heard her crying in that bathroom. It gutted me to hear her pain, and I’d walked away long enough to wipe down the SUV before returning to find her still deep in it.

How I wish I could help her heal. There’s only One who can though, and she seems shut off from Him at the moment. My hope is that Elijah will be able to crack the USB drive when he and Jaxson Payne get here. They’re flying into Kansas City, and we’ll be meeting them at a motel down the street.

With any luck, they’ll be able to get us some answers, and we’ll finally know what we’re up against.

Bravo is lying at my feet, catching curious and sometimes angry glances from the other diners. With hisworking dogvest though, there’s not much they can do except glare.

“We’ll get it figured out,” I tell her.

“Refill, honey?” the waitress asks as she crosses over to our table.

“Yes, please. Thank you, ma’am.”

“You are most welcome. How about you, sweetie?”

“Sure. Thanks.” Kennedy offers her a half smile then turns her attention back out the big picture windows. She’s watching the parking lot, completely and utterly on edge.

“Can I give him this?” the waitress asks then pulls a piece of bacon out of her apron pocket. “Snuck it from the kitchen.”

I laugh. “He would love that.”

“Ooh, yay. I love dogs.” She drops the bacon down on the ground, and Bravo eats it happily.

“Thank you.”

“You are most welcome.” With a wider smile than when she first approached our table, she heads back toward the kitchen.

“You’re great with people.”

“What?”

“People. You make them feel comfortable.”

“As opposed to—” I laugh, and Kennedy smiles.

“You don’t intimidate. Though I’m sure you could if you wanted to.”

I smile. “That’s quite a compliment. I think?”

“It is. I’ve not known anyone like you. Your brothers are kind, too. But there’s just something different about you.” She looks so tired, so worn down that every smile must take everything in her. The fact that I’m at the receiving end of them makes me more grateful.

“I’ve always said I was the best Hunt brother.”

She lets out a soft laugh then takes another drink of her coffee. “All of you are great.” She clears her throat and directs her gaze to the steaming mug of coffee in front of her. “Your mom reminds me a lot of mine.”

“Yeah?” I can see how it hurts her to bring her mother up, but I also imagine not being able to talk about her at all is just as painful. “Tell me about her.”

Kennedy’s eyes mist, and she crosses her arms on the table, closing herself off just a bit to feel less vulnerable as she rips herself open. “She was great. Happy almost all the time. Loved to bake, and she’d sing while she did it. Occasionally, my dad would slip into the kitchen and put his arms around her just so they could dance together. When I was younger, I was mortified by it.” She laughs nervously. “But as I got a bit older, I realized that that’s what true love was, and I’d hoped to find it one day.”

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