Asher nodded. “I’ll try getting in contact with the Feds, but it’s late. Gunner, were there any contact numbers on the files you requested from them?”
“I think so. I’ll check as soon as we finish here,” he said.
“Lock the basement door after you come up. The next people to go down there will be the Feds. We don’t tell anyone, and we ask them not to reveal the recovery until we’ve got the Brandt brothers for the shooting.”
“How are we going to do that?” Dylan asked.
“That’s something we still have to figure out,” Gunner said.
“I’m going to make a food run,” Asher said. “Are you picky, or do you want me to just bring it home?”
“Whatever you get, I’ll eat,” Dylan said.
“Same,” Gunner added.
“Be back soon,” Asher said, then headed up the stairs.
Minutes later, he was driving away in his dad’s truck. It was too late to dump a big order on Pearl, so the deli in Belker’s Grocery was the next choice.
He grabbed a shopping cart as he went in and headed straight for the deli counter, eyed the choices, and opted for an assortment of sliced deli meats and cheeses, potato salad, pasta salad, and put a small carrot cake in the basket before heading to the bread and condiment aisles. Instead of sliced bread, he got hoagie rolls, pickles, a jar of wholegrain mustard and a jar of mayo, a head of lettuce and a couple of tomatoes, and headed to checkout, fielding questions about Jacob, and laughing when he found out that Gunner was the most recent local hero for running down a longhorn, which put him on a pedestal with Sonny Bluejacket, who once caught three men robbing Belker’s pharmacy by putting a skunk in their car.
He was still grinning when he exited the store, but instead of going straight back, he made a quick detour to Nora. Got out on the run, took the steps up two at a time, and knocked.
He heard her footsteps as she came into the living room, and the moment she opened the door, he swept her off herfeet and into his arms, kicking the door shut behind him as he entered.
She saw the look on his face and started smiling.
“You found it. Don’t tell me. But I can see it in your eyes. My God, Ash… All those years.”
“I don’t have the words to say how much I love you. Thank you is not enough. I have a phone call to make, and we’ll be out of pocket until it’s out of our hands. We still have to connect the Brandts to the shooting, but when this mess is over, it’s you and me, darlin’. Together forever.”
Nora frowned. “Do you think the Brandts will try again?”
“We can’t be sure, but greed always changes the odds. We know they’re in Amarillo, but that changes nothing. We still need them to make another move.”
“You need bait. Who do you know connected with the Amarillo news affiliates? If they would interview the sheriff to air an update on the shooting and the victim, then have Reddick mention Kingston’s recovery time is unknown, and the bar has been closed indefinitely, that might give the Brandts the impetus to try again…but both parties would have to agree to do that.”
Asher’s eyes widened. “While we lay low and wait for them to show!”
“If the universe aligns, it might work,” she said.
“You are going to be the best secret weapon a special investigator would ever want, and I have to go. The guys are waiting on me to bring food. God, I love you,” he said, and kissed her one last time before walking out the door.
Nora turned the lock, but when she turned to look around at the room in which she was standing, still filled with all of the furniture and photos, instead of the angst and grief that had brought her here, she felt nothing but a sense of duty to see it through. It was the first signal of healing. Being able to see the future, without the need to hang on to the past.
* * *
Asher’s thoughts were a jumble of what-ifs and maybes as he drove back to the house. Dylan came out to help carry in bags. As soon as he was back inside, everything went on lockdown. Shades down. Curtains pulled.
Gunner had the information Asher wanted pulled up on his laptop and set it aside as they began opening packages and laying out the food.
“Awesome choices,” Dylan said. “Submarine sandwiches with all the fixings, and cake. I like the way you cook.”
“You like everything,” Asher said. “I can’t remember you ever turning down food.”
“Yes, he did,” Gunner said. “I know, because he gave what he wouldn’t eat to me. Told me it would make me a man, and not to tell Dad.”
Asher grinned. “What was that?”
