Page 29 of Justified Fear
“Yeah, I’ve been rude making her do her job,” a tall man with dark hair and dark eyes said.He strode through the office with an air of command.“I’m Commander Delano.”
She smiled.“I hope it’s okay that I brought in some treats for the team.I can’t do much, but I can cook and bake.”
“She’s modest,” Kap said.“I told my mama about that French toast you made.She’s begging me to get the recipe from you.”
“No problem.”Then she saw a big, bald Hawaiian standing behind Del.He was huge and just as her Aunty Lulu had described him.“Mr.Lee?”
He nodded.“Please call me Adam.”
“I’m so sorry about Aunty Lulu.I didn’t think she would start a ruckus with your mother.”
He smiled, making him look less fierce.“Don’t worry.I’m accustomed to the Aunty Network.”
“Well, is there a place to put all these?”
Her father was holding four boxes of muffins and cookies.Insomnia had her baking all hours of the night.Every time she tried to sleep, she heard gunshots.She knew that it was probably some form of PTSD, but one way to deal with it was to bake.
“Of course.We have a break room.”
Keely watched her father be led back by Adam as she made her way over to Ryan.
“Hey, wait, why does he get something special?”Autumn asked.
“Autumn, love of my life, you’re doing it again.”
She sighed and looked at Ryan’s captain, Seth, then back at Keely.“Sorry.”
She didn’t sound very sorry, but Keely nodded in her direction.“This is actually for Maya.”
She handed the bag to Ryan, who opened it.Maya cocked her head.Keely stepped closer and slipped her fingers over Maya’s head, scratching her behind her ear.
“You said she didn’t have any allergies, and I’ve made a lot of these before when I worked at a bakery.There’s peanut butter, an apple, and oat varieties.I hope she likes them.”
“Thank you.You didn’t have to do it.”
“That’s why I did.”
Then a long, drawn-out silence until some whispers reached her.She glanced at Ryan’s team, who were all watching them.
“Did you need anything else from me?”
“Excuse me?”
“Yes,” Seth said.He picked up a device and clicked a few buttons.“You don’t know these men?”
The pictures of the dinner guests filled the screen.She discovered that the two white dudes were Walt Reynolds and Ted Mason.Then she looked at the other two.“They were the guests last night, but those aren’t the names Mrs.Kelly told me.Well, for two of them.The white dudes didn’t tell me their names, which I thought was odd, but sometimes rich people are jerks.But those other two aren’t the names I was given.”
“What?”Ryan asked.
She pointed to the picture labeled Victor Quan.“Well, that one was Mr.Pak.He ate a lot.Like he asked for seconds the moment Yasmin put down the plate in front of him.My mahi mahi is very popular.Then, the one with the dead eyes was Mr.Sato.”
“Dead eyes?”Ryan asked.
She nodded, pointing to the man whose name was Akio Ito.“He just gave me the creeps, but it was my hang up.I didn’t want to deal with him.I think it’s because he didn’t really talk to me.”
They all shared a look.“Did the Kellys seem to know them?”
“They were their guests.Of course, they knew them.”
