Page 16 of Island Protector

He nodded. His brow furrowed. “I do know that, Molly. This isn’t something I take lightly.”

Of course he didn’t. He had raised three healthy boys with his first wife. And probably done everything perfect as a dad to make sure his kids not only made it to adulthood, but turned into fully functional, independent men.

She was suddenly swamped with guilt and doubt. There’s no way she had moved that seat recently. The last time was when she gave the car a deep cleaning. That had been a month ago. And when she put the seat back, she’d done it just the way he taught her. If there was a problem with the seat, she would have noticed it long before now.

She didn’t take chances with Bryce. Hell, she didn’t take chancesat all. “This… This isn’t right,” she stammered. Cold all over, her voice shook.

“We really need to go,” one of the medics said to Will.

“Wait!” Molly reached for him. She needed him to understand. “I don’t see how it possibly could’ve been in there wrong. Is there anything you can do? Any investigating?”

Now Will’s salt-and-pepper brows arched. “You think someone tampered with it?”

Her heart fluttered in her chest. “It’s the only answer I have. I’m careful. I follow your instructions to the letter. I check it regularly, just like you told me to do.”

She bit her lip remembering the way the seat bounced around during Bryce’s antics earlier. Maybe she had made a mistake.

“A warning isn’t a big deal,” Will said. “At worst, it’s a fine and I can discuss that with Caldwell if money is tight.”

But it would be an official record of an error. Something the Graingers could use against her. “I swear I had that seat in properly.”

“Relax.” Will patted her hand. “You take care of yourself and let me deal with this mess. I’ll look into it. All of it. We’ll do everything we can to find the driver of this hit and run. With substantial damage like this, we’ll examine every detail.”

Should she tell him about the custody issue? Would someone accuse her of slander or whatever if she suggested the Graingers were behind the car seat problem? Even in her head it sounded far-fetched. Who would take that kind of risk?

“We really need to get her to the clinic,” the paramedic interjected. “You can pick this up over there.”

“Of course.” Will watched them load her up. “We’ll get to the bottom of this, Molly.”

She had to believe him. Had to trust that he really would investigate. Because this was the worst time to be blamed for a mistake she hadn’t made.

Chapter Five

Workingon his current restoration project, a neglected E-scow he’d picked up for a song, Miles heard the sirens. Police and ambulance. A moment later another siren wailed as the fire department joined the party. The island was small enough that whenever there was action around town—good or bad—news spread quickly.

Much as he’d like to, he couldn’t ignore the full emergency response. He set his tools aside and picked up his cell phone to check the police-scanner app. He had a real scanner in his office that he tuned into like most folks listened to the radio. Smart precautions were essential after his undercover assignment. Knowledge was power and he was all about staying a step ahead of any threats from the Vedras clan. Staying alert could mean the difference between life and death.

Not long ago, he wouldn’t have cared if his enemies caught up with him, as long as Gamble and Swann could use that kind of dumb aggression to see justice done.

Little by little, that cavalier attitude had changed since moving to Brookwell. At first he blamed the shift on the scenery, the friendly faces, and laid-back pace. The views werespectacular, especially the sunrise over the water during his morning runs on the beach. He found satisfaction and peace in the muted sounds of his steps on the sand. The breeze off the ocean filled his lungs with air clean enough to sparkle—a rejuvenating contrast to the busy urban landscape of his previous assignment.

Sharing paved paths through city parks with strangers coming and going would never be enough for him again.

That new awareness had set off an earthquake in his soul, restoring a measure of his hope and faith in the world at large. The folks here in Brookwell had immediately set out to include him, long before he was ready. It had been great for business and eventually—after his buddy Knox dropped the hammer and called him out for being a jerk—Miles stopped resisting.

More than all of that, more than anything or anyone else in town, Molly’s son Bryce had won him over. Made him appreciate surviving. That kid had been the spark that reignited Miles’s determination to become his best self.

Again.

Restarting was becoming the central theme of his life. Granted, life happened and adapting to circumstance was part of surviving. Still, at this point he probably qualified for some kind of restart lifetime achievement award.

Was he grateful for overcoming the crappy hurdles of his early life? Absolutely. He was equally thankful for the help he’d had along the way. But he kept looking in the mirror, wondering why he never seemed to find a way to stick in one place.

One career. One team.

Bryce’s unwavering passion for all things boats had stirred something long-buried inside Miles. The kid made Miles want to stick with sailing and do it here in Brookwell. The little guy’s enthusiasm recharged Miles’s excitement for teachingothers about the joys of being on the water. There was nothing better than flying over the surface, sails full, under a clear sky.

And then he’d met the kid’s mother.

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