The next morning Eric’s cell phone rang just as he was about to leave the cabin. Answering it as he stepped outside, he saw his daddy walking out to get the paper they both shared.
“Butler,” he said into the phone.
The call was from his contact in San Antonio, and after Eric listened to the man’s short, concise report, he had no doubt that someone from that city was definitely after Julia Daniels. Turning as Harlan strolled over, he shook his head. “It’s like we thought, Pop.”
Harlan unfurled the paper, then asked, “How’s that?”
“Tolar. He once worked for the De La Noche company.”
“You don’t say?” Harlan nodded toward his house. “You got a minute or do you need to go?”
“I can take time for another cup of coffee, I reckon.”
He followed Harlan back to the tiny porch overlooking the lake. A pot of fresh brewed coffee sat in an old percolator on the table. Harlan poured two cups, used to this morning ritual before Eric headed off to work.
“So…Tolar was connected with the Gardonez family, after all?”
“It looks that way. My source said he worked for them about two years ago. That means he was there right before Alfonso Endicott got killed.”
“Think Tolar did the deed?”
Eric ran a hand down his face. “It sure looks that way, but the authorities didn’t make the connection during the initial investigation. There’s no proof. But why would a low-life like Mingo Tolar kill a high-up executive? I mean, you’d think robbery, but nothing was taken that night. At least, nothing obvious.”
Harlan swigged his coffee then set his favorite fishing mug down on the cedar table. “Then you need to look for the not so obvious.”
“That’s what I told Julia the other night. The family is too obvious and too exposed to pull off something like this. I’ve even tried to pin it on the son-in-law Luke Roderick, but so far the main man comes up clear as a whistle.” He looked out over the dark, calm waters of the lake. “So let’s say it was Tolar. Maybe he hoped to rob Endicott and it went wrong.”
“Could be. If he was an underling and he needed drug money, I wouldn’t put it past him to try something real stupid, same way he tried to take Julia hostage right in front of everyone in that diner.”
“The man didn’t seem very rational, but not even an idiot like Mingo Tolar would have the nerve to walk into a highly secure, wired building to rob one of its top executives. Unless, like you say, he wasn’t there specifically for money.”
Harlan lifted his bushy eyebrows. “Bingo. There must have been something else in that accountant’s office. Something someone didn’t want the world to see.” He took another drink of coffee. “Or…maybe somebody sent Tolar to do the job and things went wrong somehow.”
Eric thought about that. “That fits with our theory that someone else sent him here. And if that same someone sent him that night, but Tolar failed to get what he went after, then that also fits our theory that they now think Julia has the information—maybe an incriminating file or some sort of bank statement that would expose the company as corrupt?”
“That would make sense,” Harlan replied. “But I don’t think Tolar would have the sense to know something like that if he saw it.”
Eric finished his coffee. “Which means we’re right and that someone who is smart is behind all of this.”
“There’s your connection,” Harlan said. “Now all you need to figure out is, what he was after that night and who sent him.”
Eric nodded. “And where is that information now?”
He had a bad feeling that these thugs thought Julia had that information. Or worse, that her little girl had something they needed to find.
“I’d better get into town and pass this on to the sheriff,” he said. “Thanks for the coffee, Daddy.”
Harlan lifted his cup in salute. “Hey, Eric?”
Eric turned on the steps. “Yessir?”
“How are things between you and the waitress?”
“She has a name, remember. It’s Julia.”
“I know the woman’s name. Just tell me what was going on last night at the church.”
His daddy never missed a thing, which had made it hard for Eric to ever lie to his parents growing up. “We had a fight.”
“That much was clear.”
Wishing this town wasn’t so nosy and busy-bodied, Eric shrugged. “We talked it out. This case has all of us nervous. Julia is feeling the brunt of this. She’s been held at gunpoint, lost her house to an arsonist, and she’s trying to stay sane. It’s enough stress to cause anyone to lash out.”
“And she lashed out at you?”
“Yes, but only because she’s afraid to trust me. The police gave her a hard time after her husband’s death.”
“Because they went after her?”
“Yeah, they immediately looked toward the surviving spouse. There was trouble in the marriage.”
Harlan nodded. “Just be careful, son.”
“I’m a big boy, Daddy. I can handle this case.”
“I’m not talking about the case. I’m talking about you.”
“I know what you’re talking about. I’ll be just fine.”
Harlan looked skeptical. “Then get on with it.”
Eric waved a hand. “Try not to catch too many fish.”
“Try to catch at least one criminal,” Harlan hollered back, used to the teasing.
It was an unspoken rule between him and his father. They didn’t talk about the one woman Eric hadn’t been able to save. The one woman he’d loved a lot and still grieved.
But that had happened a very long time ago, and just as Julia was reluctant to discuss her past and her marriage, Eric didn’t like to talk about the college sweetheart who’d died in his arms one spring night so long ago. Not even Cat or Adam knew that particular story.
But he’d told Julia last night. Not the awful details, but enough to help her see that he couldn’t let that happen again. Not to someone he cared about.
Cranking his truck, he sat for a minute with the motor idling, thinking about what had driven him to follow in his father’s footsteps. He’d failed at his job once when he was young and inexperienced, but this time things would be different. This time he was older and wiser and he was an officer of the law, not just a kid hoping to become one.
This time he was determined to help Julia and her daughter stay alive. Because he wanted them both in his life for a very long time.
“So we’ve determined that Tolar was indeed connected to the Gardonez family,” Eric told Julia later that day at Cat’s house.
Now that he was back at work, he couldn’t use the excuse of bringing her out to the lake each day to protect her. And next week, Moria would have to go back to school. Which meant their time was running out, since the sheriff wasn’t too keen on sending an extra man to the school to watch over the little girl.
“I can’t believe it,” Julia said as she sank down on the back steps of Cat’s house. “This means he was sent here for a reason, just as we thought. And that reason had to be that he wanted to take me, to kidnap me. But why? I don’t know anything.”
Eric took her hand, rubbing his fingers over her knuckles. They were here alone since Adam and Cat had taken Moria to the café with them earlier. The kid was never alone, and that at least was a blessing.
“We think maybe your husband knew something, though. Since whoever killed him didn’t take anything, we believe they must have been sent to find one specific thing—a file, or a computer disc of some sort. Something that would contain evidence or incriminating information, maybe. Can you think of anything like that—something your husband would feel the need to protect with his life?”
She blinked, shook her head. “I can’t imagine. Alfonso handled a lot of things for the company. Even though he was listed as head of the accounting department, he did more than just watch over the books. The family trusted him with their most-guarded secrets, everything from food distribution and production to new product placement.”
Eric zoomed in on that. “Could there have been some sort of product that the Gardonez family didn’t want made public?”
“How would I know?” she snapped, waving her hand in the air. “My husband never talked to me about his work.”
Eric let her stew while his mind whirled. “Maybe because he didn’t want to put you in harm’s way?”
“Oh, so that explains why he insisted our daughter go with him to the office the night he died? None of this makes sense. He wouldn’t have put either of us in danger.”
“Are you sure?”
She got up, stomped a few feet away to pace in the yard. “I don’t know. Alfonso was cold and distant in the months before he died, so, yes, I believe he was hiding something. And I also believe he didn’t do it to protect me, more like because he didn’t have any choice.” She let out a sigh, chased a buzzing mosquito away from her ear. “He was very loyal to the company.”
“Maybe too loyal,” Eric said. “He took his secrets to the grave.” He got up to stop her, putting his hands on her arms. “Someone is trying to silence you, too, Julia.”
“Tell me something I don’t know,” she said, her tone full of anger and irritation. “It’s just that I don’t have any more secrets. I’ve told you everything I can remember.”
Eric steadied her, watching as her expression changed from angry to frightened. “But, Eric…Moria can’t remember. Moria might know exactly what they’re trying to find, only she can’t remember. Or…she’s afraid to tell anyone, even me.” She gasped, putting her hands to her mouth. “It’s my worst nightmare, what I was so afraid of all along. They aren’t targeting me—they want my daughter.”
When he didn’t try to deny it, she fell into his arms. “They want Moria. And that day, when Tolar kept saying he had to take me—”
“He was probably going to use you to get to Moria,” Eric finished, a burning sensation tearing through his gut. “They think she knows something. They don’t know either way whether she can remember anything or not. But they’re trying to find out. And if she’s hiding something…they’ll try to look for it or destroy it.”
“The fire,” she said, her skin going pale. “Oh, Eric.”
“The fire and the way they ransacked your house. They won’t give up.” He held her closer. “We have to prove the connection between Tolar and De La Noche.”
“Oh, I think I’m going to be sick—” She pulled away from him and rushed into the house.
Eric heard the slamming of a door as he followed her inside the cool, spacious house. He heard her in the downstairs powder room, sobbing and retching. When she came out, he was ready with a clean wash towel and a glass of water.
He motioned toward a kitchen chair. “Sit here.” Then he handed her the water. After she took a sip, he wiped her face then handed her the cloth.
She took another drink, her face pale, her eyes swollen from crying. “I want my child here with me.” She grabbed his hand. “Eric, call Cat to bring Moria home, please.”
“I will,” he said, trying to reassure her. “I will.”
Holding her one hand, he punched numbers in his cell to reach Adam. “Bring Moria to Cat’s house right now. Her mother is worried.” Then he turned away and whispered, “And so am I.”
The little group sitting in the comfortable den at the back of the big house was quiet. The mood was somber. Julia couldn’t speak, couldn’t think past the fact that someone would want to harm an innocent child. But why?
“Do you want some soup?” Cat asked, her voice low and grainy. She’d been just as shocked as Julia after Eric had explained his theory to her and Adam. Even though they’d all suspected this, hearing it with all the circumstantial evidence to back it up made it jarringly real.
“I’m not hungry,” Julia replied, her hands together in her lap. She felt so cold, so tired. “It was always there, this fear that they might be after Moria, but now that we’re getting closer to the truth, it’s so real.”
“Why don’t you go on to bed?” Eric said, giving her a steady look.
“I can’t sleep.”
He gave Adam a knowing nod. “I think we should take a little trip to San Antonio, maybe shake up the boys down there.”
“Do you think they’ll cooperate?” Adam asked, glancing from Cat to Julia.
“Only one way to find out,” Adam replied. “I’ll talk to Sheriff Whitston first thing in the morning. At least we can go over the files there—see if anything sticks out. Maybe talk to someone in the De La Noche building.”
Julia rubbed her hands down her arms. “They won’t talk. They didn’t want any publicity when Alfonso was murdered. Why would they want to drag it all back out now?”
“They will if we get a warrant to search their records,” Adam said.
“Well, now we’re at least taking action,” Cat said, getting up to stalk around the big, airy room. “I can’t stand this sitting around doing nothing. When do we leave?”
“You two aren’t going anywhere,” Eric said, his eyes on Julia. “Especially not to San Antonio.”
Cat made a face. “I probably shouldn’t leave the café anyway. Not with all of this going on.”
Julia pinned Eric with a pleading look. “Will you assign someone else to watch out for Moria?”
Adam shook his head. “Let me go to San Antonio. I’ll take another deputy with me. We’ll find out what we need to know. That way, you can stay here and watch out for Moria.”
Eric looked torn. Julia prayed he’d stay without her having to beg. For Moria. Julia might not trust the man with her heart yet, but she did trust him to protect her daughter. Him and no one else right now.
His gaze held hers much in the same way he’d looked at her the day of the robbery. Finally he nodded. “Okay. I’ll clear it with the sheriff. You go and I’ll stay.”
Julia let out the breath she’d been holding. “Thank you, Eric.”
Cat motioned to Adam. “Let’s go check on Moria. Then I’m turning in. I’m so tired I can’t see straight.”
Adam followed her. “I guess I get to spend the night out on the sleeping porch again, right?”
“Right,” Cat replied. “You’re not scared of mosquitoes, are you now?”
“Only the really big ones,” he retorted. “I just hope the neighbors don’t get the wrong idea about all of this.”
“That’s why I have the big fence,” Cat retorted as they headed up to Moria’s room. “Besides, thanks to that nosy Mickey Jameson, everybody in town knows y’all are guarding my house. And since he gave out some of the details, the neighbors know Julia and Moria are in some kind of danger.”
“They’re speculating about me being in trouble,” Julia said after the others have left the room. “I still think the best thing I can do is get out of here, go somewhere no one knows me.”
Eric dropped his hands on his knees, then frowned. “They’d still find you. These kinds of people don’t give up.”
“Exactly what kind of people do you think we’re dealing with?”
“The worst kind,” he replied. “The kind who have something to hide.”
In about two minutes Adam came back down the stairs. “Moria is out like a light. Sleeping away in that big frilly bed.” He waved his own good-night, then headed to the back of the big house to the screened-in porch where Cat had a sleeper sofa made up for him and Eric to take turns resting. “Eric, wake me up around two and I’ll relieve you.” Then he whirled at the door. “Oh, and we’ve got a cruiser patrolling the street every thirty minutes.”
“Got it,” Eric said, waiting until Adam had closed the door off the side of the kitchen. Then he moved to sit on the couch with Julia. “Want to watch a movie?”
She wanted to fall into his arms and let him make her feel safe again. “No.”
He tugged her hand into his. “We have a lead now and a plan, at least. We’ll figure this out. We’ll keep pounding away at it until we crack this thing. Somebody will remember something, or somebody will slip up. And then we’ll nail ’em.”
“I hope so.”
As if he’d read her thoughts, he tugged her close, cradling her in his arms. “How ’bout we just sit here in the dark?”
“That would be nice.”
He didn’t speak again. He just held her there until her head was resting on his broad shoulder. Julia closed her eyes and pretended this was a typical springtime night, with mosquitoes buzzing and night birds rustling, a night where the world was sweet with fragrant flowers and with the hope of a love so strong, nothing could break it.
That’s the kind of love I can give you.
Julia thought she heard those words coming straight from the Lord to her. And for some reason, they gave her a tiny bit of peace and strength. As worried as she was about Moria’s safety, knowing she had Eric and God both on her side gave her a measure of confidence. She couldn’t run away; she had to stay and fight for her daughter.
She must have sighed or dozed, she didn’t know which. But soon she was curled up against Eric’s warm chest. She opened her eyes to find him looking down at her with eyes as dark and dangerous as the night. But she trusted those eyes. It seemed so natural to reach her hand up to touch his face. It seemed so natural to pull his head down to hers and kiss him.
And within that soft, gentle kiss, the world seemed far away and she felt safe and normal and…loved.
Until her daughter’s screams coming from upstairs jarred Julia straight up out of Eric’s arms and back into the cruel reality of her nightmares.