Page 56 of Fatal Thrill
Colton followed his gaze and nodded, the rifle he’d brought dangling next to his leg. “If the stairs hold, I should be ableto.”
Each of them had a comm unit. “Report in every ten minutes, gotit?”
Shelby’s phone rang. She withdrew it from a pocket and grimaced slightly. “It’s Percy. I better takethis.”
Colton snorted. “What’s that fuckerwant?”
“Probably to help.” Shelby took two steps away from her husband. “But until I answer his call, I won’t know for sure, willI?”
“Meet us inside,” Jon said, “and keep your common.”
She nodded and continued to walk away, seeking some quiet to answer hercall.
“Percy's the Garda detective?” Jon askedColton.
The man made a face. “Former Army Ranger Wing. I don’t likehim.”
Imagine that. The ARW was Irish Special Forces, and if the guy was retired from that, Colton had a natural inclination to respect the hell out of him, but would never admit it. Jon didn’t particularly want the intrusion of any of the local law enforcement agencies, but in this case, they had little choice. “Orders stand. We work with the locals and don’t step ontoes.”
Colton made a disgusted noise and headed off to thetower.
“He’s such a douchebag,” Jaya said, once again snapping pictures. “I honestly don’t know what Shelby sees in him. He should have his own syndrome named after him orsomething.”
“I heard that!” Colton called. “Love you too,buttercup!”
Jaya rolled her eyes and Jon hid a grin. It was like having the brother and sister he’d never had. Except Jaya was definitely not his sister. “How’s thestomach?”
The brisk air had created a tinge of pink in her high cheekbones. “Fine. The ride seemed to calm my stomach rather than aggravate it. Probably because Miles drove instead ofColton.”
Charlotte walked beside them, all of their boots crunching in the crusty snow. “He is talented in manythings.”
Jon squished his eyes closed for a moment, not liking the images that conjured. “Comm check,” he said, touching his earbud. “Miles?”
“Here,” he replied. “Watch your step five meters inside the main entrance to the left. Flooring isunstable.”
“Roger that. Colton? Progress update on the tower?Over.”
Colton filled him in on the condition of the stone stairs and then checked in again once he was in place. By that time, Shelby had joined them inside the main entryway. Jaya was shooting more pictures and Charlotte was talking about the structure of stone castles and the various types oflayouts.
“Percy Maitland will be here within the hour,” Shelby told Jon. “I tried to put him off, but he wants us to work with him to find Sean and thecross.”
“I’m not helping him arrest my father,” Jaya said, lowering her phone. “I realize my dad may be guilty of a bunch of petty crimes, but I can’t go there,Shel.”
“No one’s asking you to.” Shelby rubbed Jaya’s arm. “You don’t have to talk to Percy, but he’s in charge of the local investigation and can pull the plug on us at any time, so it’s better if we appear to be helpful rather than pissing him off. I’ll do my best to handle any questions he has and steer him away from you,okay?”
“Hey, Jon?” Colton’s voice came over theearbud.
“Talk to me,” Jonsaid.
“I couldn’t see it initially, but now that I have a better vantage point, there’s definitely been activity here prior to our arrival. There are tire tracks and footprints on the east side, mostly hidden by the snow, but I can see a few. Looks like they’re grouped around that old church andgraveyard.”
Miles jogged down a set of stone steps off to the right, joining them. “I did a quick scan of the upper floors, and there’s nothing but burnt out timbers and more decaying stones. Not one sign of Sean, Finn, or anyone else but bats andrats.”
Charlotte shudderedvisibly.
“Let’s work our way around the place down here,” Jon said. Most of this part of the castle was still intact, although definitely showing the effects ofaging.
He took Jaya with him, sweeping to the right. Miles and Charlotte went left. Shelby took another phonecall.
