She wasn’t. Her lips were too thin for the smile to be real, and there were strain lines beside her eyes.
While his mother and Ben spoke, he squeezed her thigh and leaned over to place a small kiss on her cheek before whispering, “Are you okay?”
“Of course.”
Too quick, and not even close to true. “I need you to tell me the truth.”
“Let’s just finish the meal. I’m really okay.”
He stared into her eyes, searching. For what exactly, he wasn’t sure. He only looked up when Ben’s chair scraped back against the hardwood floor.
“I should go clean the grill. Colt, will you join me?”
And leave Indie alone with his mother when he had no fucking clue what was going on? That was the last thing he wanted to do.
But he needed to talk to Ben about his father. And maybe Ben had information for him.
He looked back at Indie. “Are you okay if I go outside for a few minutes?”
“Take all the time you need.”
He still didn’t want to go.
He leaned in and kissed her again, this time enjoying the softness of her lips against his before reluctantly lifting his head. As he rose, he glanced at his mother to see an emotion on her face that he couldn’t place. Maybe concern. Maybe unease.
What the hell was going on? Whatever it was, he was sure as hell going to find out tonight.
He cleared the plates from the table and set them by the sink before following Ben outside.
“We need to make this quick,” he said, the second they were outside.
Ben stopped at the grill. “Everything okay?”
“I’m not sure. Did you notice anything off in the way my mom interacted with Indie tonight?”
“Off how?”
Colt shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. That’s my job, not yours. Any update on Gordon?”
“I’ve checked everywhere. Every motel. The RV park. I contacted Airbnb owners. As far as I can tell, Gordon’s not renting any accommodation in Amber Ridge.”
“What does that mean? That’s he’s living in his car?”
“Maybe. Although he doesn’t have a car registered in his name, which means he’s either not driving, is using a fake ID, or is driving a stolen vehicle.”
Jesus. “I’ll let Jesse know. Maybe he can look out for stolen cars, or even get his deputies to check the streets for someone sleeping in a vehicle. I’ll get him to check abandoned houses too.”
“Good idea.” Ben looked around before glancing back at Colt. “Sylvia didn’t want me to tell you but…he was here the other night.”
“What?”
“The silent alarm gave him away. Because you weren’t home, I stayed the night. I took off after him but lost him around Fourth Street. He’s also been calling your mom, but she hasn’t answered any of his calls. He even left a message on her phone.” Ben took out his cell and hit a few keys before playing a voice message on speaker.
“Sylvia. It’s me, Gordon.” Gordon’s voice was gruff, and it made fury pulse between Colt’s ears. “I need to see you so we can talk. I know I’ve made a lot of mistakes. I’m trying to do better. Let me make amends.”
“Bullshit.” The word was out of Colt’s mouth before the message had ended. “He expects us to believe that?”
“He expects your mother to believe it.”
