Page 36 of The Unknown Colton
The old man must have been watching her and waiting for another chance to catch her alone. Troy cursed himself that Lakin had been alone. But he’d had another physical therapy session. And he’d thought her brother and cousin would be here with her.
Troy turned around and headed toward the door, but before he reached it, Lakin caught up with him.
She stepped in front of him. “Let him go.”
He shook his head. “We need to find out who the hell he really is and what he wants.” And if he was the one who’d been following her and who ran Troy off the road.
But Lakin remained planted in front of the door. “I don’t want you going after him,” she said.
Troy wondered if she was trying to protect that man or him. “What happened, Lakin? Why was he here?”
Her face flushed.
“Money,” he surmised.
She closed her eyes.
Troy touched her face, running his fingertips along her jaw. “I’m sorry.”
She opened her eyes, and tears glistened in them. “You were right.”
“I wish I was wrong.” About that, and about not committing to her. But he’d spent the past few days in physical therapy and was no closer to getting back to work on the oil rigs. If he even had a job to go back to…
And Jasper Whitlaw, or whoever he really was, wasn’t the only one who needed money. Lakin needed it, too; her business loan hadn’t come through yet. The last thing she needed was someone else wanting something from her instead of giving it. While Troy couldn’t help her financially, he could keep her safe.
“We need to call the police,” he said.
“Over a relative asking me for money?”
“You don’t even know if he’s a relative,” he reminded her. “Someone needs to check him out.” Troy would do that, or at least talk to the man, if she’d get out of his way. But Whitlaw was probably long gone by now. He would be back, though; Troy had no doubt about that.
“I’ll call Eli,” she said.
“You were supposed to call him days ago,” he reminded her.
“I…” Clearly, she dreaded making the call. Maybe she’d hoped that Whitlaw would go away, that he’d abandon her again like when she was three.
But the man wasn’t going anywhere until he got what he wanted. Money… Or more?
“Call Eli now,” Troy told her. Even though he wished he could help her with Whitlaw, he didn’t have the resources that Eli had. All that really mattered was that someone investigated the guy. “Call him now.” He stepped back and gestured for her to return to her desk.
But when she did, she didn’t reach for her phone. She glanced instead toward the back office where Spence had gone. “I will call him. I promise I will,” she said, “but after I leave work.” Evidently, she didn’t want Parker and Spence to overhear her conversation with the ABI lieutenant.
But Troy believed the more people who knew about Whitlaw, the more they could keep an eye outfor the opportunist or whatever else he might be. “Lakin, the man could be dangerous,” he warned, especially if he was the person who ran Troy off the road.
“He’s not going to get any more money out of me if he hurts me,” she pointed out. “He’s not going to hurt me.”
That was really Troy’s biggest concern: her safety. But he also hated seeing her as upset as this man made her.
“Just promise me you’ll call Eli as soon as possible,” Troy urged.
“I will, once I’m done working…” She peered around him as the outside door opened again.
Troy tensed. Had the man returned already?
But the guy who walked into the office was younger than Whitlaw. He wore the name brand adventure gear of someone with a lot of disposable income. The watch on his wrist advertised his wealth as well.
“Mr. Seller,” Lakin greeted the man.
