Page 43 of The Irish Rogue

“I saw a woman in a red dress running across the backyard. She made it about halfway across the yard when she just stopped. A man came up, I couldn’t see his face, and he tossed her over his shoulder and carried her back in the direction she’d come.”

“Was there anything about either of them that stood out to you?”

Sean thought about that for a moment, then shook his head. “I was exhausted, having just learned that I’m a father,” he hugged Declan’s tiny body gently, “And it was dark with only the moonlight to illuminate the area. So I can’t give you much more. I’m sure that it was a woman last night, but I don’t know about the other times. I’m sure that the person was always wearing red though.”

Mick nodded, adding more notes in his notebook. “This is good information.” He started to stand up, but Sean stopped him.

“What’s going on?” Sean demanded.

The sheriff opened his mouth, but hesitated to say anything. Finally, he sighed and rubbed his forehead. “I honestly don’t know what’s going on. I have my suspicions, but I can’t tell you anything for sure.”

“Human trafficking,” Sean filled in. “What can I do to help? I have a whole team of researchers that are standing by, waiting for me to return to work. But I’m not going to do that. Not for a while,” he said, smiling down at Declan. His big eyes stared up at him and Sean heard Mick chuckle. “I have other priorities for the moment.” He looked back at Mick. “However, if my family is in danger, then I want to help.”

Mick stood up and Sean stood as well. The two men squared off and Mick started to shake his head.

Sean interrupted him. “Let me put it this way. My team is getting bored. They are used to working ten or twelve hour days and are hungry to dig into whatever challenge I throw at them.”

Mick chuckled. “They’re going to dig into the problem anyway, aren’t they?”

“Yep,” Sean confirmed, lifting Declan to turn him around. “Better to give them a bit of guidance.” He smiled savagely. “But know that they have some of the best technology around and can hack into just about any system that might intrigue you. And if they’re the ones doing the hacking, then you have plausible deniability.”

“I don’t want them doing anything illegal,” Mick asserted firmly.

“Just give them guidance,” he said, pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket. “The lead researcher is a woman named Jordan, and she’s waiting for your call.”

With that, Sean lowered Declan back into his car seat. The little guy fought the restraints for a moment, until Sean spoke soothingly to him.

“Ella at the coffee shop would love to know how Kennedi is doing,” Mick commented. “Kennedi sort of…she pulled away from everything after her pregnancy started to show.”’

Sean looked up, curious. “From the gossip I heard at the coffee shop yesterday, people judged her pretty harshly,” he replied, his voice warning the sheriff that he wasn’t happy about the situation.

Mick sighed, his fingers looping onto his utility belt. “Some of her friends might have…given her the cold shoulder after they discovered that she was pregnant and not married.”

“Why the hell is that still an issue in this day and age?” he demanded, angry on Kennedi’s behalf.

“It normally isn’t,” he replied. “But with Kennedi’s mother, things were a bit…messy.”

Sean stared at the man, stunned. “Until this morning, I didn’t even know that Kennedi’s mother is still alive,” he finally grumbled.

“Oh, she’s alive. And she’s…well, just be careful with Loretta. She’s a pain in the ass for most people. Especially Kennedi.”

“Got it,” Sean replied, standing up with Declan secured. He swung his son back and forth in the heavy car seat, soothing the little man who was becoming a bit cranky. Apparently, it was time to eat. Again!

Thankfully, the swinging worked and Mick chuckled at Sean’s newfound knowledge of infant soothing techniques.

“You’re a natural,” he teased as they walked out of the sheriff’s office.

“He’s a good baby,” Sean replied.

Chapter 15

The man was in battle mode!

Every day, Kennedi came home to something new in her house. One night, she came home to find that Sean had new shelves built into the back wall of her garage. The next day, those shelves were stocked with diapers, baby formula, toys, and other baby supplies. Another night, she came home to a bubble bath already filled and a glass of non-alcoholic beer sitting on the edge of the tub. Every night, she came home to something that Sean had done to spoil her.

There was always a meal ready and set out. Each morning, he brought her hot, herbal tea from Ella’s shop. While she’d been at work one day, her car was washed and detailed, then parked right back in the same place when she came out after work. It was so clean, in fact, that she didn’t even recognize it. She had to use her keys to sound the beeps to confirm that it was hers.

Every day, he did something to help her.

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