Bit had managed to recover the video footage from the vehicle's sentry mode. The clarity had been startling. The untrimmed beard couldn't disguise Jacob’s features, nor could the wool cap hide the ragged scar that now carved a jagged path from his right temple, fading into his facial hair toward his jaw. Mrs. Nevin had accurately described his limp, which had been very pronounced as he strolled in front of the vehicle.
In almost every other situation, Brook would have questioned whether Jacob had intentionally wanted to be caught on camera, but he’d been too distracted by a pastor escorting a bereaved woman across the grounds. He never noticed the electronic eye confirming his health status.
Jacob had set up the Illinois visit to mess with her head. He wanted her to spend weeks, if not months, driving herself crazy attempting to prove to the Bureau that he was still alive.
Somewhere in some random motel room, her brother was waiting, plotting. And while he thought himself the hunter, Brook had confirmed her sighting first. Bit was already searching through traffic cameras for any sign of Jacob's vehicle, attempting to trace his movements.
“I had a feeling that you would use that excuse, and I believe there's a solution,” Theo offered, breaking into her thoughts. “When this investigation closes, I can contact the vehicle owner and formally request permission to access the footage. Once granted, we turn the footage over to the Bureau. It legitimizes the evidence, creates a clear chain of custody. They'll reinstate the search.”
Brook slid her gaze to the dancing flames in the fireplace. The wood occasionally popped and hissed, sending tiny embers spiraling upward before they faded to ash. He continued to study her for several seconds.
“You don't want them to know.”
Brook took another deliberate sip of her latte. The embers in the fireplace popped again as she moved to sit on the edge of her bed, the mattress barely yielding beneath her weight.
Theo remained standing, his frustration evident in the rigid set of his shoulders. They'd had disagreements before, but she’d never witnessed such frustration. He crossed to the small table and set his coffee down. Before he could launch into some lecture she figured was forming, she spoke first.
“No one has been searching for a man with a long beard, unkempt mustache, and a ragged scar down the side of his face.” Brook held the disposable cup with both hands as she met his gaze. “He’s barely recognizable now, though that shouldn’t have hampered a federal search. I also don't know how he managed to get from Alaska to Illinois undetected, but we have the advantage.”
“The advantage.” Theo's voice was flat, disbelieving. He shook his head in disgust. “How many times have you said this isn't a game, Brook? You said yourself the other day that Jacob is coming for you. Not those you love. You.”
He gestured around the cabin with a sweeping motion.
“And yet here we are, in the middle of another investigation, while you're sitting there acting like this decision is just another piece on the board to move. Don’t you get it? This is it. Thisisthe endgame, no pun intended. And yet, you're just sitting there drinking a god damn Sugar Cookie Latte like it's a day off, which you never take anyway. Jesus Christ, Brook.”
Theo placed his hands on his hips, lowering his head for a moment as he collected his composure. She would have addressed his accusations, but it was obvious that he wasn’t done. She’d let him finish, to dispel his frustration…his concern.
“I'm going to say what no one else will,” Theo said almost despondently. “You've grown. You've changed for the better, and you sure as hell aren't the same person you were. You've let people in. You fell in love with a good man, and we're now your family.”
Not one word of what Theo had just stated was wrong, but he couldn’t seem to discern that she wasn’t arguing with him. Shehadchanged, and there was even a small part of her that was proud of such progress. But Theo was wrong in one aspect of his speech.
She wasn’t making any decisions regarding her brother lightly.
“Well, Brook, family doesn't allow one of their own to do stupid shit. And we won't stand by to…”
The words died in his throat as Brook slowly stood, set down her latte, and crossed the short distance between them. Before he could register her intentions, she wrapped her arms around his solid frame and hugged him.
The action was so unprecedented that Theo went completely rigid, his lecture forgotten in the shock of physical contact that Brook typically avoided at all costs. His arms remained at his sides, his breath held as if movement might shatter this impossible moment.
She said nothing, simply maintaining the embrace.
Gradually, the tension in his body receded, replaced by a cautious acceptance of what was happening. His arms lifted slowly, hesitantly, before settling around her with unexpected gentleness, as if she might dissolve beneath too firm a touch.
The embrace tightened, transforming from awkwardness to genuineness. His chest expanded with a deep breath and then contracted with a cautious sigh that seemed to carry years of worried vigilance.
That exhale was her cue.
She slowly pulled back, her hands moving to rest briefly against his chest before dropping away entirely. She’d made her point. She’d proven her point.
“Yes, I have changed, Theo.” Brook tilted her head and offered him a small smile. “And I can promise you that every decision I make from this moment forward is to hold onto this life I’ve managed to carve out for myself.”
She stepped back, reclaiming her personal space while maintaining eye contact. The vulnerability she'd just displayed had already been carefully repackaged, but not erased or denied. That was the difference, and it was a growth Theo seemed to finally recognize.
“I need you to trust me to know when I need help,” Brook continued, her tone gaining strength without losing its newfound warmth. “And when I do, you'll know.”
Theo continued to study her, most likely searching for signs of the deflection and dismissal she typically employed. Finding none, he nodded once, a subtle acknowledgment of the territory they'd just navigated, which was very unfamiliar ground for both of them.
“I'm still going to argue with you,” Theo warned, though the edge had disappeared from his voice.
