The chief wetted his lips. “Brad would be stupid to try anything, but he wasn’t too smart to abuse her and steal drugs from the elderly.”
“Do you need me here the rest of the day?” His heart raced, and he prayed for Tiffany’s safety, even as he spoke.
Chief winked. “I do believe I could use you for surveillance duty. Would you mind too much keeping an eye on Hope House?”
“It would be my honor.” A glimmer of a smile appeared. He’d feel better about the situation if he were near Tiffany.
“I’ll send someone to patrol near her home as well.” Chief stood up and clasped Connor’s shoulder. “One wrong move, and we’ll get him for violating a protective order. We won’t let anything happen to your girl.”
“Thank you.” He rose to his feet. “May I be dismissed?”
“Go ahead. I’ll call over to Hope House and let the director know what’s going on. Rachel’s her name, right?”
Connor nodded. “Tell her not to say anything to Tiffany, please. I want to be the one to tell her.”
“Get going. Keep your radio on.”
“Will do.” Connor ran out of the office, barely noticing his coworkers crowded around hoping for a nugget of gossip.
He didn’t have time to tell them. Chief would fill them in on the details. His priority was finding Tiffany and ensuring her safety. An unsettled feeling poured over him. He’d seen it before in similar situations with men like Brad.
Though it would surely send him back to jail, the criminal would be intent on finding his victim, exacting some form of revenge. To his mind, his victim was to blame for his jailtime. Accepting responsibility for his own actions? Rarely.
He broke the speed limit driving to the shelter. He could have put his lights on but didn’t want to draw attention. If Brad was creeping around, he didn’t want to alert him and scare him off. The sooner they caught him, the better. He knew, in the depths of his soul, that Brad would show up eventually. Call it experience, intuition, or divine intervention, but he knew.
When Brad showed up, Connor would be there. He’d protect Tiffany at all costs.
Upon arriving at Hope House, he parked in the regular spots, rather than pulling on the curb. He scanned the area for signs of unusual activity. In all likelihood, it would take some time for Brad to track down Tiffany. Connor was glad she kept her social media locked down, and she’d removed her information from online databases.
But criminals always found a source for information.
He went directly to Rachel’s office, where she waited for him. Carl, the head of security was there as well.
“The chief filled you in?”
She nodded. “I haven’t told Tiffany yet, as requested, but I’ve briefed Carl on the situation.”
“What’s your plan?” Carl asked.
Connor had met the former-Marine several times, and he liked the man, respected his background and keen insight. “First, I need to talk to Tiffany. She should be included in the conversation.”
“I’ll go to the daycare and get her. We have enough employees in today, that she won’t need someone to fill in her spot.” Rachel began to stand.
“May I?” He could imagine Tiffany’s reaction. Telling her in private might be best.
Understanding showed in Rachel’s eyes, and she nodded. “Carl, do you mind if they use your office? I don’t want to risk any of the children overhearing. They’ve been through too much already this summer. No sense frightening them.”
“Why don’t you and I go to my office, and they use yours,” Carl suggested. “My office is set up for surveillance of the property, and we can make sure no one shows up who shouldn’t be here.”
“Great idea.” Connor admired Carl’s foresight. “Is that okay with you, Rachel?”
“Of course. I should have thought of that.” She grabbed her tumbler and tablet. “After you talk to her, you know where to find us.”
“Thanks.” He rushed out of the office, walking briskly toward the daycare. The shelter was eerily quiet, or maybe that was his suspicion playing games with him.
He found Tiffany in her office, bent over her desk filling out a form. Knocking softly, he caught her attention.
She glanced up, her eyes voicing her surprise to see him. “Hi. What are you doing here?”
