“Why won’t she go?” The woman had seemed like a pistol to him.
Noni smiled, her expression so full of love it hurt something in his chest. “She’s terrified to fly, and Verna wants to go somewhere warm. Like on an island.”
“They make drugs for people who are afraid to fly,” Denver said dryly. He admired the women for taking Noni in and giving her a home. That secured his loyalty, for sure.
“That’s what I told her,” Noni exclaimed. “It’ll happen. Verna is tough when she needs to be.” She cleared her throat. “There’s a chance we might meet up with them, right?”
He chewed thoughtfully. Not if he could help it. “Maybe.”
“I should warn you. They call you ‘dickhead.’”
He barked out a laugh. Two senior citizens called him ‘dickhead.’ “They’re not wrong.” He’d been called a helluva lot worse in his life. They loved Noni, and that’s what mattered. “I won’t get mad at them. I promise.”
She sipped her wine. “I didn’t think you would. Just didn’t want your feelings hurt if they show up.”
The statement hit him in the solar plexus. She was worried about his feelings? After what he’d done? Who he was? He swallowed and looked into his second empty bowl. He’d dreamed of meals like this with a woman like her years ago. It was too good to last. “Thank you for dinner. It was excellent.”
“Not a problem.” She waited until he looked up at her before speaking again. “It’s your turn, Denver. You promised to tell me everything.”
He hated to leave the comfort of talking about her family. But he’d promised. His chest hurt for a moment. What would she think if he told her everything? It was bizarre, and he was a wanted criminal. Kind of. “I know.” He’d never break a promise to her.
She breathed out. “Would you like me to sit on your lap while you talk?”
His head jerked up, and his dick throbbed. “What?”
She flushed. “Before, when we dated. If I sat on your lap, you relaxed.”
He hadn’t known she’d figured that out. But of course she had. The woman was highly intelligent and paid attention to him. “You’re right.” He leaned back from the table. He was about to respond when his phone dinged. “Excuse me.” He looked down to see Ryker’s ID, and he answered the call. “I’m a little busy, Ryker.”
“Open your e-mail and click on a link I just sent to you,” Ryker said without preamble.
Denver jumped up, hustled into the living room, and sat at one of the computers, following instructions. A website came up with Sheriff Elton Cobb giving a press conference. Denver’s heart slammed against his ribs.
Cobb stood before a bunch of reporters on the county courthouse steps of his North Carolina jurisdiction, his shoulders wide and his white-blond hair cut short. “I’ve finally solved the mystery of the murders at the Lost Springs Home for Boys,” Cobb said. “Three boys, now men, killed my brother and another boy. We have no idea what names they might be using, but as kids they were called Ryker, Heath, and Denver . . . and here are their pictures.”
Denver stiffened.
Noni hovered at his elbow. “Denver?”
Pictures of Denver and his brothers flashed across the screen from when they were youths.
Okay. That wasn’t so bad.
The cameras returned to Cobb. He smiled, his blue eyes colder than the Arctic. “I’ve traced these men to the Pacific Northwest. They’ve been operating a detective agency called Lost Bastards, and they’ve systematically increased their criminal activities throughout the years. I warn you. They are armed, they are trained, and they are exceptionally dangerous. Here are their current pictures.”
Three more pictures moved across the screen. These were current, taken by hidden cameras when they’d rescued Zara, Ryker’s fiancée, from Cobb and Madison.
Denver lifted his phone to his ear. “Looks like Sheriff Cobb finally decided to go public,” he said to Ryker.
Noni gasped at his side and took a step away from him.
“We thought he might,” Ryker said grimly. “His fantasy of catching us and torturing us to death seems to have come to an end. He just wants us caught.”
For years Cobb had remained silent as he hunted them, no doubt looking forward to killing them without any trace. But now that he’d gone public, there would be eyes on them.
Denver shook his head. “I bet Dr. Madison has other plans, and she has the trained soldiers. Even if Cobb or one of his cop buddies gets us, she’ll figure out a way to take us in. At least I think that’s her plan.”
She’d never let them go to prison when she could force them to work for her. She no doubt still had many an experiment to conduct as well.
