“What? I’m not going to hide. But I’m not going to stay.”
“We could go back to Hawk’s place.”
“As if I won’t be found? No, I’ll just go somewhere. I’ll let you know where.”
“I’ll go with you,” Remi said.
Jo grabbed Remi’s hands. “You’re needed here. Mrs. Crawford is the one who needs attention. I’m going back to Spruce Hollow to check on Cole. I’ll be okay.”
Remi frowned and then glanced at Cedar Trails—thehundred-year-old lodge perched on the cliff overlooking the ocean. Jo took advantage of her distraction and climbed into the Yukon. She was already backing out when Remi turned back.
“I’ll text you!” Jo shouted over the wind, then closed the window and sped away into the night.
Filled with outrage now, she gunned the Yukon, putting as much distance as possible between her and Cedar Trails Lodge, a quiet and private rustic resort. Her privacy had been invaded.
A reporter ...a reporter!... had shown up trying to get the inside scoop into Jo’s life. How had that happened so fast? And why? Then again, someone might think a ferry losing a car with a woman and a murder victim inside made for a sensational headline.
She wanted no part of it. Needing a few moments of peace, she pulled over to the side of the road to calm her racing pulse. And send Pop a text. She hadn’t heard a word from him since his cryptic last message—and then bam, he texted her about a bomb?
I’m alive. Thanks. What is going on?
She stared at the bright screen on her cell. She shouldn’t expect her father to respond. Miracle of miracles, a response appeared. Her pulse jumped. Seriously?
Meet me. Tell no one. Keep it our secret. You’ll see my truck. The old Chevy Silverado.
Then he sent an address. She knew the truck. He’d purchased it two months ago from a salvage yard and had it running in no time. She took the time to connect her cell on the head unit and put in the address. It was asmall airport just over an hour away, out in the middle of nowhere.
She got back onto the road out of Cedar Trails Lodge and Resort and got on 101. Would this be the last time she would see him? Was this for one last goodbye? Whatever his reason for wanting to meet her now—after a bomb—she would not miss this chance to ask him the hard questions. If she got the opportunity, she needed answers from her father.
Face-to-face.
Heart pounding, she took the curve in the road too fast and swerved into the opposite lane. A car coming toward her honked, and she jerked the wheel back.
Her heart jackhammered.
“You’d better have a good explanation for this, Pop.” Should she even be meeting him? Maybe she should call the county sheriff, law enforcement, police, FBI, but Pop wouldn’t be there long enough for anyone in law enforcement to show up.
And Joneededthis moment with him. She needed to understand. She hadn’t gotten the chance with Dale or ... or with Mom. A big, wide crack remained in her heart at the way her last moments with Mom had unfolded.
If only she’d known they were her last. But no one ever knew the last time they’d see a loved one.
Now that she thought about it, she hadn’t gotten a last goodbye with Cole before he’d left because she hadn’t even considered she wouldn’t hear from him again for months. Though he was temporarily back in her life. Emphasis on temporary. She wasn’t entirely sure of the real reason. Yes, he was working on a case involving her mother, and yes, he claimed he wanted her to be free. But why did he care so much if he was able to walk away from their budding romance so easily?
Those thoughts were only a distraction. She didn’t havethe answers, but one thing she did know was that the Green Beret turned private investigator–bodyguard would not be happy that she’d traveled to meet her father without running it by him or bringing him along. She suspected he assumed she was with Remi at the lodge, and she’d driven in peace for almost an hour before her phone started going crazy with text messages that she ignored.
Jo didn’t care. She was doing this. Maybe connecting her cell to the head unit had been a mistake. Because the guilt was getting to her. But Pop said not to tell anyone. Instead of asking Siri to read Cole’s messages, she let him know that she was all right. She needed space. Cole understood that about her. But he responded immediately. She wasn’t getting rid of him so easily, especially since she had stolen his ride.
Siri read the text from Cole.
Why are you going to the airport?
Of course he would know exactly where the vehicle was heading. The rental vehicle had GPS tracking, and he’d tapped into that information. Technology had its pros and cons.
She steered into the small county airport as her cell rang, and this time, she answered.
“What are you doing?” he asked. “Why did you just take off in my vehicle? Why didn’t you answer my texts?”
The fury in his voice was edged with deep concern. As if he cared about her more than anything or anyone. Or maybe she was imagining it.
