Page 25 of Seven

“We will.”

“I’m sorry about all this, Tal.” He sounded truly sincere as he said, “I wish it was me instead of you.”

“I don’t. I wish it was neither of us.” I let out a breath. “Regardless, we’ll get through this. Just get here when you can.”

I ended the call and immediately dialed the neighbor’s number. I let her know what was going on and promised to pick up Ford as soon as I could. I had just ended the call when the first officers arrived. They went in to make sure the house was clear, and then Mom and I joined them in Dad’s office.

They had just started asking us questions when Detective Joyner arrived. He took a quick look around and shook his head. “I don’t want to worry either of you, but this break in wasn’t random. Whoever did this was looking for something.”

“I thought the same thing, but what could they be looking for?”

“That’s what we need to figure out, and we need to find out fast,” Detective Joyner answered as he opened his notebook and jotted down a few notes. “Do you have any idea what’s missing?”

“No,” Mom answered. “We went outside as soon as we saw that someone had destroyed the office.”

“That’s good.” Joyner turned to one of the other officers and ordered, “I want a full sweep of the place. If you find something, I want to be the first to know.”

“You got it.”

“We were followed last night,” I announced. “It was a black Mercedes. They followed us this morning, too.”

Joyner’s brows furrowed. “Why didn’t you mention this earlier?”

“I thought it was just my imagination or something.”

“I thought I made myself clear.” He stepped closer. “If you know of something, no matter how big or small or insignificant it might seem, you need to tell me. It could make or break this case.”

“Yes, sir. I’m sorry.”

“Can you describe the Mercedes?”

“It was a newer model. Black with tinted windows.”

“And they followed you home last night?”

“Yes, but they turned off a few streets before we reached the house.”

“I see.” He wrote in his notepad, then asked, “And today? When did you notice them following you?”

“We weren’t far from the house... Maybe around Clay Brook Drive.”

“And did they follow you all the way to the station?”

“No, sir. They veered off just a few blocks before.” There was no hiding the concern in my voice when I asked, “Do you think they are the ones responsible for all this?”

“There’s no way to be sure.” He closed the notepad, then looked up at me and said, “I think it’s best for you and your mother to find somewhere else to stay for a couple of nights.”

“You think they will come back?”

“There’s always the possibility.”

“This is crazy.”

“I’m sorry, Ms. Warren. But it’s better to be safe than sorry.”

“It’s fine. We can go stay at my apartment.”

“Or we could stay at a hotel,” Mom suggested with a hopeful expression. “It’ll be safer.”

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