Page 32 of Shrouded Past

JT turned onto one of the tree-lined drives.

The long driveway led to a granite walkway. The massive two-story gray shingle-style home had a stunning, unobstructed view of the bay.

“I can see why your friends bought the place. That’s quite a view.”

JT used a garage door opener to gain access to the garage. He killed the engine and faced them. “Let’s get you both inside.”

Bryce grabbed his and Piper’s bags along with the cat carrier.

She got out, holding Bella tight.

JT unlocked the house, and they stepped inside. The interior of the house was just as impressive as the exterior.

A granite fireplace soared up to the cathedral ceiling some twenty feet above. The dining room adjoined the living room and led to a gourmet chef’s perfect dream kitchen.

Bryce let out a low whistle to which Piper laughed.

“Yeah, right. I don’t feel worthy of staying in such a place.”

Rachel chuckled. “Nonsense. Make yourselves at home. There are bedrooms down the hall as well as upstairs.”

“Shall we?” Bryce asked, and Piper nodded. He opened the first door on the right. It appeared to be the master bedroom. “Why don’t you take this one?” He set her bag down near the door. “I’ll take the next room down.”

He left her to get settled in and checked out the next room. It was smaller, but it would be sufficient. He placed his bag on the bed and then checked out the view from the room. It was just as impressive as he’d seen from the driveway. But as impressive as the view was, he closed the curtains with a sense of being hunted.

Just the effects of what they’d gone through.

Still, he’d go through the house with JT and make sure everything was battened down.

An alert beeped on his phone. Hurricane Henre had gained momentum. It had regrouped out in the ocean and was now barreling toward the Atlantic coastal towns at a disturbing Category 5. He opened the alert and scanned the expected time of contact in Maine. A little more than twenty-four hours from now. The pit in his stomach doubled. Not only were they facing an unknown attacker with an agenda no one understood, but now the weather had chosen to play a part in the danger.

As he headed down the hall, Piper stepped from her room still holding Bella.

He told her about the storm. “The power is likely to go out if we take a direct hit. But I’m sure this place has a generator.”

“I hope so.” But she didn’t sound so confident.

“At some point, we’ll need to get some plywood to cover the windows,” he said as they entered the kitchen.

They found Rachel and JT talking to someone on speaker phone.

JT waved them over. “Just a sec, Will. Bryce and Piper just walked in.” His gaze darted between them. “We have a name for Protector.”

Piper set the cat down and pulled out a chair from the table.

Bryce was too anxious to sit. “What’s his name?”

“Edmon.” JT kept his attention on Piper. “Do you recognize the name?”

She repeated it a couple of times before shaking her head. “I don’t.”

Bryce’s hope vanished. A lot had been riding on her recognizing the real name of Protector. For him, it meant she might be getting her memories back. In his mind, without her missing memories they might never figure out what was going on. “Do we know anything about Edmon?”

JT shook his head. “Not much yet. He’s lived in his house for going on twenty years, completely off grid.”

“He didn’t want to be tracked,” Bryce concluded.

“That’d be my guess. Anyway, the closest town is about thirty miles from Amos and the stolen car.”

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