“I can’t believe someone sabotaged the bike and the explosion mechanism,” Dakota said the moment the detectives left Hamilton’s home. For the past hour, they’d asked her one question after another but hadn’t been able to answer any of her questions. Like who would do something like this? Did they have any suspects?
They had nothing. No fingerprints. No DNA. No idea who could’ve tampered with the oil drain plug. The worst part was, she couldn’t remember anything after entering the barn that day.
Hamilton returned to the living room after walking the detectives out, looking as frustrated as Dakota felt. He, Kenton, and Angelo had sat quietly during the questioning, but it was as if she could hear the wheels in their heads turning. Tossing thoughts around, but not sharing.
“Do you want me to get Egypt to get a safe house together?” Angelo asked Hamilton.
“No,” Dakota said before he could respond. “I’m not hiding. I want this over with. So, if I need to be the bait to—”
“Oh, hell no,” Hamilton growled, a scowl marring his handsome face. She was standing in the living room and he came over and stood in front of her. “You will not intentionally put yourself at risk, Dakota. We’ve already talked about this. Until further notice, you’ll have at least two of us with you always. I don’t want you going anywhere by yourself. Understand?”
She jammed her hands onto her hips and glared right back at him. “Oh, so you’re going to treat me like a prisoner? Make me stay inside or escort me to the bathroom whenever I have to use it?”
“If that’s what it takes to keep you safe, yeah.” He released a dramatic sigh and rubbed his hand over his head. He grasped the front of her shirt and pulled her toward him. “Listen, baby. I almost lost you a few weeks ago. I can’t go through that again. I need you safe and in one piece. Okay?”
Now she was the one sighing. “All right. I’ll follow your lead, and I’m sorry. I don’t mean to seem ungrateful that you guys are looking out for me. I just don’t want to be cooped up or have you hovering over me, but I’ll try to cooperate.”
She kissed him, hoping to lighten his mood some. He’d been uptight since the day before when Justin told him what was going on.
“Okay, this is all very touching, but this lovey-dovey crap is making me uncomfortable,” Kenton grumbled and strolled into the kitchen. He poured himself a cup of coffee.
“There you go being a wimp again,” Dakota teased, glad he was there. She often used him as her comic relief. “Can you pour me a cup, too?”
“I have to watch your six and cater to you? I’m starting to wonder if that cast on your arm is real, or if you’re using it to get me to do everything for you. Ham, you guys aren’t paying me enough.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Just keep her safe, and in the meantime, pour me a cup of coffee, too.”
“Make that three,” Angelo piped in.
“Coming right up.”
“I was thinking about something while the detectives were here. You mentioned that your father has been in LA for a while. Is that normal? Does he usually travel for weeks at a time?”
“The last couple of months, he has. At first, I didn’t think much of it, but now I wonder if he’s staying on the move because of the threats,” Dakota said and sat in one of the dining room chairs to drink her coffee.
“I think it’s odd that he keeps firing his security detail.” Kenton sat across from her, placing a pack of cookies that she bought earlier in the middle of the table.
“And I’m wondering if he knows who’s after him and just isn’t saying,” Hamilton added.
“These last couple of years, I feel like I don’t even know my father. He’s been hiding something, but I don’t know what, and I don’t know why.”
“I know we’re thinking that the accident might be connected to Wesley, but we can’t rule out that it might not be,” Hamilton said. Though he’d been more shaken by the news than she was when Jason told him, he had been her rock. She didn’t want them hovering over her all day and night, but she also didn’t want to cause him any undue stress.
“I know the detectives are following up with your father regarding the threats he’s been getting, but is it possible that you have an enemy?” Angelo asked.
“Anything’s possible, but I can’t think of anyone.”
“I saw you put Sebastian Jeter on the list of people you spoke to the day of the accident,” Hamilton said. “When did you see him?”
“He was waiting for me outside of the makeup trailer before I did the fight scene.” Dakota took a sip of her coffee and noticed the look he and Kenton exchanged. “What?”
“Why didn’t you tell me? I saw the way he was all over you at the party. Has he ever threatened you or made you feel uncomfortable?” Hamilton asked, that serious edge in his tone that he used with Lester the night at the club.
Dakota reflected on his question before responding. She told them about Sebastian’s relationship to Homer, the director, and how Sebastian didn’t like Wesley. She felt Hamilton stiffen when she mentioned being uncomfortable with the way Sebastian hugged her, but he didn’t say anything.
“What about Zondra?” Hamilton asked. “I didn’t see her name on your list.”
“She only had a couple of scenes with this production and I didn’t even think about her.”
“Even though she threatened you that night of the party? And didn’t you mention that you ran into her one day at your father’s office?”
Dakota frowned, recalling the encounter with Zondra at the party when she said something about not forgetting anything.
“And what about that food truck guy, Lester? Have you seen him since that night at the club?”
“I saw him a few days after that incident, but I haven’t been to the food truck. I was afraid he might spit in my food or something.”
Hamilton nodded. “That’s probably a good idea to stay away from him.”
“Well, it doesn’t matter now since I won’t be returning to the movie set. Also, with you guys acting as my shadows, people like Sebastian and Lester will probably stay clear of me anyway.”
“Good,” they all said in unison, and Dakota rolled her eyes. They had to find this person soon. Otherwise, she didn’t know how long she could tolerate having bodyguards.
“Well, I’ll get photos of these people and make sure anyone guarding you know who to look out for,” Angelo said. Dakota hadn’t noticed him typing into his phone.
For the next several minutes, they discussed logistics and schedules on who would guard her and when.
“One of us should try to sit in when the detectives interview some of these people. I know they already interviewed the director, some of the production crew and some of Justin’s guys. But maybe we can get in on the rest,” Hamilton suggested.
“I’ll give them a call tomorrow to find out,” Angelo offered.
“What about street cams?” Kenton asked, folding his thick arms across his chest. “The detectives didn’t mention them, but it sounded like the set covered several city blocks. We might check to see if they pulled something from them.”
“I put a call into Wiz right before the detectives showed up. He’s going to see what he can pull and get back to us,” Hamilton said, referring to Cameron “Wiz” Miller, one of the owners of Supreme Security who worked out of the Chicago office. Apparently, the guy was a tech guru and a computer genius.
“Will the city give him access to the cameras?” Dakota asked.
“If they don’t, he’ll hack into them,” Hamilton said as if that was a normal occurrence. Dakota knew then that she didn’t want to know how they got information to help with their work. She’d just trust that they all knew what they were doing.
She yawned, starting to feel the effects of the day. She’d cut back on some of the pain meds, despite still dealing with tender ribs and an achy hip. Each day she improved physically, but she found she still tired out faster than usual.
“Why don’t you go and get some rest. I’ll be up there shortly,” Hamilton said and helped her out of the seat.
“I think that’s a good idea. You guys have a good night.”
Dakota couldn’t wait to crawl into bed. She just hoped she slept better than she had the night before.
* * *
Stretched out on his king-sized bed, with his arm folded over his eyes, Hamilton debated on getting up. His body was exhausted, and frustration had been a constant companion in the last five days of knowing about the movie set problems.
Detectives were no closer in narrowing down suspects, and Dakota was starting to feel claustrophobic having security with her all the time. Hamilton didn’t know who would be happier when this was all over: him, Dakota, or Kenton, who complained daily that she was wearing him out.
He smiled thinking about her. Though still a little sore, her recovery was coming along, and their living arrangement was working out. Except Dakota was missing her time with Dominic. Considering the threat on her life, she couldn’t see him as often, which she hated. But today they would spend the day with him at Hamilton’s parents’ house, which added an extra layer of protection due to the land surrounding their place.
“Ham.”
He glanced at the door where Dakota stood staring down at the cell phone in her hand and wearing an oversized T-shirt and yoga pants. That was another reason why he couldn’t wait for the case to be solved. Before he had to get a security detail for her, she walked around the house in his shirts, looking way better in them than he did.
“Yeah, babe. What’s up?”
“I think something is wrong.” She glanced at him, worry marring her face.
Hamilton sat up. “What is it?”
She twisted her lower lip between her teeth and moved toward the bed and eased onto it, sitting next to him. “I got a text from my dad last night. Actually, it was at two o’clock this morning.”
“And?”
“And besides the odd time that it was sent, the message seems a little cryptic.”
Now she had Hamilton’s full attention. “What does it say?”
“It says — Just know I’ll always love you.”
Hamilton waited for her to say more, but when she didn’t he prompted her. “What part seems cryptic?”
“All of it. He’s never been the lovey-dovey type, to use Kenton’s phrase. I’ve always known he loved me, but this,” she held up the phone, “doesn’t sound like him.” She stood and groaned a little before rubbing her hip.
“Did you take anything for the pain today?”
“No. As long as I keep moving, it’s not that bad.”
Hamilton slipped into his boxer briefs and the jeans lying on the floor next to the bed. “You think someone has Wesley’s phone?”
“I don’t know, but…I think something is wrong. Well, I don’t really know, but I just have this feeling.”
Hamilton rarely ignored his gut or what most people considered intuition. So, he’d take hers seriously as well.
“Didn’t you talk to him yesterday when he got back to town? Did he sound strange?”
“It was the day before, and no, he sounded like his usual self, but we only talked for five minutes. I’m still keeping my conversations with him short.”
“Well, maybe you should call him.”
She rubbed her forehead and sighed.
“Come here.” Hamilton pulled her into his arms and placed a kiss on the side of her head. “If you’re staying away from your father because of me, don’t. I’d never try to come between you two, no matter how I feel about him. You’re the one I love. Nothing he can say or do will ever change that.”
“Aw, you say the sweetest things, and I love you, too.”
“Call your father. I’m gonna hop in the shower. When I’m done, we can head out. Dominic is already at my folks’ place, and I’m thinking we can eat breakfast there to kick off the day.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
After a quick kiss, Hamilton released her and headed to the bathroom. For Dakota’s sake, he hoped Wesley was all right.