Page 38 of Island Protector

He hadn’t gone straight home from Molly’s last night. He’d come here to the office in search of a distraction, but he couldn’t get his mind off that kiss. Couldn’t drag his thoughts away from the anticipation of kissing her again.

Even now, he recalled the dazzled look in her eyes and clung to the satisfying awareness that she was equally affected. That had to be a good sign for their budding relationship. He wondered how the kiss would change things. Would she be more open to public affection? Probably not right away and not until Bryce caught on.

Well that would happen soon enough, because Miles was sticking close. As a protective measure, sure. But now that he’d had a taste, he wanted more. Everything. And he wanted to give her everything in turn.

And seeing Bryce on the screen brought him back with a jolt. He’d been daydreaming so hard he’d missed any potential clues. Again. Cycling back, he forced himself to focus on the images from yesterday, determined to find something Caldwell could use.

There was a quick shadow before the camera was hit with a substance that blurred the image. Minutes later the same thing happened on the second camera. Nothing to go on but a vague shape trashing his boat until the film evaporated. He sent a text message to Knox. Maybe if they figured out what was used it would lead them to the vandal. A longshot, but what else did they have?

Caldwell had sent an email with the photos he’d taken of the vandalism and Miles went through those next. The whole thing seemed sloppy and a little over the top. More and more, he discounted any connection to his undercover work. Maybe that was simply wishful thinking, but the Vedras family would rather kill him than insult him. In the criminal world they’d dominated for so long, traitors died. Anything less would imply they were a soft target ripe for a takeover.

“Working hard?”

The question startled him and he discovered Knox in the doorway. “I didn’t hear the bell.”

Knox arched an eyebrow. “Guess I’m just that stealthy.”

“Hardly. You’re just a pain in the butt.”

“You were pretty focused.” Knox walked closer. “Anything?” he asked, seeing the security footage.

Miles rewound to when the cameras were hit. “I sent you a text. Any idea what kind of substance would evaporate without a trace after a few hours?”

“Not yet,” Knox said. “Research is on it.”

Miles nodded and leaned back in his chair. “You talk with Jess about it?”

“Along with the tech team at headquarters,” Knox confirmed. “Just finished a chat with Chief Caldwell. He searched the CCTV nearby during the vandalism, but didn’t get any closer to an identification than we did.”

“Well that sucks.”

“It does.” Knox slapped his shoulder. “You can rest easy, though. Nothing indicates Vedras is involved.”

“Yeah, I reached the same conclusion,” Miles said.

“Any other enemies I should know about?”

“Not really. I can’t claim to be Mr. Popularity anywhere, but I don’t have enemies in Brookwell. And just going off the shadows,” he pointed to the monitor, “this person doesn’t move like a kid.” He queued up the footage that bothered him. “Did anyone on the tech team notice the hitch in this guy’s gait?”

“They did,” Knox said. Grabbing a second chair, he flipped it around and straddled the seat, resting his hands across the top. “Which has me leaning toward your alternate theory.”

“That this stunt is about Molly. Or Bryce.” A chill slithereddown Miles’s neck. “How would anyone use this against her in court?” he wondered aloud.

“Who knows? People do dumb things in the pursuit of what they want,” Knox reminded him. “Do you think the kid’s grandparents would hire someone for this? Maybe the goal is to prove she’s guilty by association or she neglects her son by dropping him with you.”

“Not once has she dropped that boy here alone.” Miles squeezed the arms of the chair until his knuckles turned white. “She’s an amazing mom. He’s the luckiest kid on the planet.”

“Agreed.” Knox straightened. “And I know that look. You’re spoiling for a fight. This isn’t the time,” he warned. “You need to keep it together.”

“Nobody should be messing with her,” Miles groused. “She’s the best person.”

“You’ve got it bad,” Knox observed. “Are you sure getting involved is smart?”

He wasn’t going to ice her out after she’d finally kissed him. “I’m involved. I’m staying that way.”

Knox held up his hands in surrender. “I don’t mean to tread on tender areas. Personally, I think she’s awesome. You don’t have much to worry about from Vedras. The agency has so many feelers out, no one in the family can sneeze without us knowing.”

“If I’m so safe, why are you still here?”

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