Page 4 of Dangerous December
Felt the searing pain.
And stared in horror at the crumpled bodies—all that was left of his squad.
They’d been his buddies for the past ten years, and the only family he knew beyond the parents who’d estranged themselves from him so long ago.
That he’d been the only one left standing, with non-mortal wounds and hearing loss, filled him with renewed guilt and sorrow every single day.
He forced himself to relax and look over his shoulder, and found Nora Henderson sauntering toward him with a briefcase in one hand and a stack of manila folders held in the crook of her other arm.
She nodded toward the law office across the street. “Mondays are usually quiet, and I finished with my previous appointment a little early. If you’re ready, come on over.”
“And Beth?” The name felt soft and sweet, like the woman herself, and he found himself reining in emotions he’d thought long dead.
The attorney shifted her load and snagged a cell phone from her briefcase. “We definitely need her, too. I’ll give her a call.”
“Can I ask why she has to be there? I thought everything was settled during our divorce.”
A flicker of a smile touched the older woman’s lips as she veered away to cross the street. “I’m simply following your mother’s instructions,” she said over her shoulder. “She was always remarkably specific, you know. See you in a few minutes?”
Memories swamped him as he watched the attorney walk away.
Remarkably specific.
Now that was hitting the nail square on the head, he thought with a hollow, silent laugh.
His parents had planned every step of his education, no matter what he’d wanted, right down to where he would go to college for premed, the GPA he had to earn, and which medical school he would attend.
They’d brooked no arguments. Hadn’t listened. Within their social circle, they’d been lauded as model parents.
When he’d run off after the first semester to join the military, it had been as much an escape as it was a career choice.
And his father had never spoken to him again.
CHAPTER TWO
Beth felt a prickle of uneasiness skitter down her spine when the legal secretary gave her a knowing smile and waved her back to Nora’s office.
Her uneasiness exploded into full-fledged anxiety when she arrived to find Dev already seated, his broad shoulders dwarfing one of the two leather chairs facing Nora’s desk.
Clenching her jaw, she wished she could be anywhere else.
She’d expected gaunt, hospital pallor. She hadn’t expectedthis.Her heart gave an extra thump.
His overlong midnight hair was past due for a cut. The five o’clock shadow roughening his jaw and black polo shirt stretched over heavily muscled biceps gave him a dark and dangerous air.
Which, she supposed, was warranted, given what he did for a living, though it seemed out of place in this genteel little tourist town.
He moved to rise at her appearance, but she waved him down into his chair as she sat and tried for a nonchalant air. “Nora, Dev. Nice to see you both, but I’m not sure why I need to be here.”
Dev’s shadowed gaze swept over her, then turned back to Nora. “A formality?”
“More than that,” she murmured. She lifted a folder from the stack on her desk and opened it. “Vivian and Alan cared deeply about their church, their community, and their son—”
Theirson?Beth shot a sympathetic glance at Dev, then looked away. If they’d cared so much about him, they sure hadn’t shown it.
“They made positive changes in this community while they were alive,” Nora continued. “And wanted that to continue after their deaths.”
Clearly uncomfortable at her words, Dev hitched a shoulder. “If they left everything to the church, I’m cool with that. I’m not sticking around here at any rate.”
