Judson hoped both things were possible. Finding Yvette was key, and then the healing could start. Still, it was going to be a long, long time before Addie would be able to stop looking over her shoulder for a possible threat.
He hated that. Hated that someone had shattered the peace and calm that Addie had worked so hard to find after Mellie’s murder. She’d get that peace and calm back. And she’d find her new routine. But at the moment, it probably didn’t feel like that.
Addie gave the girls yet another kiss, and she finally stepped away from the bassinets, turning toward him. Their gazes locked for a couple of moments. He didn’t voice any reassurances or make any promises about the babies’ safety. No need. Addie knew him through and through, and she was already aware that he had every possible precaution in place.
Including the cruiser parked out front.
Rory and Bennie had arrived in it just minutes earlier, and Addie and he would be using it to drive the short distance to the police station. The cruiser was bullet resistant, and even though Yvette hadn’t fired any shots during the abduction, Judson had wanted the extra protection in place for Addie in case the woman came back for round two.
Judson’s phone sounded with a text from Livvy, and he relayed the message to Addie. “Jennifer has just arrived at the station, and Shane is on his way.”
Addie nodded, giving the babies one last look before she went to Judson. She added a thanks to both Rory and Bennie, who were already standing by to take up protection duty. Since both deputies had kids of their own and were experienced lawmen, Judson was hoping there wouldn’t be any problems.
He didn’t give Addie or Etta Jean an estimated time for their return. Too many unknowns there. It would depend on what Jennifer and Shane had to say in their respective interviews.
Or didn’t say.
But if either of them were trying to hold on to their secrets, then maybe Grace and Livvy would get them to confess.
When they reached the front door, Judson used the keypad to unlock the cruiser, and moving fast, he got Addie outside and into the front seat. Best not to be in the open or on the roads any longer than necessary, so he pushed past the speed limit when they reached the highway.
Addie’s phone rang, and he heard her sharp intake of breath. Probably because she thought it might be Rowena, but her shoulders relaxed when she saw the caller’s ID. What she didn’t do was take the call. She let it go to voicemail.
“It’s my attorney who’s handling the adoption,” she let him know. “I’ll need to talk to her, but not now. I’ll call her back once the interviews are over and I’m home.”
That made sense to him. Hard to focus on a phone conversation when watching to make sure someone wasn’t about to shoot you.
“I didn’t realize you’d already gotten a lawyer,” Judson commented.
She made a sound of agreement and looked at him. “Does that bother you, that I want to do this?”
“No,” he couldn’t say fast enough. “Like I told you earlier, you’ll make a great mom.”
“Do I hear abutin there?” she came out and asked.
“No.” Again, he said it fast. “You’ve got a lot on your plate right now, and I’m guessing the twins are like the bright lights waiting for you at the end of this ordeal.”
She smiled, and it was good to see. Too bad it didn’t last, because as Judson pulled in front of the police station, the smile went south.
“Move fast,” Judson reminded her.
As he’d done back at the ranch, he hurried her inside to the chaos that went along with such a high-profile case. There werethree different phone conversations going on from deputies in the bullpen. Another was going on in the sheriff’s office. And another still at the receptionist’s desk. A printer was chugging out something and making plenty of noise while doing it.
Despite all the noise and activity, Judson had no problem tuning it out and tuning in to the conversation taking place between Livvy and Shane.
“I didn’t go to that damn ranch,” Shane spat out, and he must have been alerted to Judson and Addie’s arrival, because he shifted in their direction and repeated what he’d just said. This time, though, he added some more profanity.
“Deputy Walsh here is accusing me of lying and God knows what else,” Shane went on, clearly in rant mode. “She thinks I kidnapped those kids. Well, I didn’t.”
Livvy looked as if ready to roll her eyes, but instead she motioned for Shane to follow her toward the interview rooms. She added a nod for Judson and Addie to come as well.
The change of location didn’t cause Shane to hush. He just continued with his anger-filled tirade. “I was looking for my mother. That’s why I was near that place. I turned in to the road, and when I didn’t see her car, I made a U-turn and went looking for her elsewhere.”
“I’ve already Mirandized him,” Livvy said over her shoulder to Addie and Judson. “So he knows he has a right to have a lawyer and the right to stay silent. He’s definitely not staying silent and has said he’ll call in an attorney if and when he damn well pleases.”
Livvy sounded more than a little satisfied about that not staying silent part despite the tongue-lashing Shane was giving her. And Judson understood why: Chatty suspects often spilled a lot more than they planned.
But the question was—did Shane have something illegal to spill?
