So what do we do next? We know what wewantto do, obviously.
“Confront the bastards,” Dalton says as we near town. “Tell them we know what they are, and we know they poisonedtheir own employee. They could argue about Blake, insist they didn’t do it, but that doesn’t matter. We have enough.”
“Enough to send them packing?” I say. “Or enough to have them decide we need to be handled the same way they handled Blake?”
Dalton mutters under his breath.
“That’s the problem, isn’t it,” I say. “This only confirms how dangerous they are. We can’t just confront them and tell them to leave.” I take his hand and squeeze it. “But it’s a start. We send Gretchen home and then we have a long talk with Émilie.”
Dalton opens his mouth, but we’re on the outskirts of town, and it’s still daytime, with people milling about.
“We’ll get Rory and keep talking,” I murmur.
“Casey,” a voice says behind us.
We turn as Phil strides from the direction of the town hall. “May I speak to you?”
Dalton says, “I’ll grab Rory and check on Storm. Meet you at the clinic.”
I agree, and he leaves.
“May we speak in private?” Phil says, nodding toward the town hall.
I follow him in and shut the door. He locks it, making me raise my brows, but he only heads to his desk and begins tidying papers.
“I have something to confess,” he says.
“You’renotleaving Haven’s Rock? Yes, we know.”
He only gives a faint eye roll and pops the cap onto a pen. “It’s about the break-in. Something I failed to mention because I didn’t want to cause friction with Isabel.”
I settle into a chair. “Is something missing? Something you don’t want her to know you had?”
He frowns, as if he can’t fathom what such a thing mightbe. “Of course not. The problem…” He sighs. “Isabel and I disagree about locking our cabin door. I am uncomfortable leaving it unsecured. She teases me about being a city boy who hasn’t adjusted to small-town life. About a week ago, I thought someone had entered our home. I didn’t mention it to Isabel because we’d only recently had another point of friction about the door—I locked it, and she didn’t take the key, so she was locked out.”
“All right…”
He stacks papers. “If I said I believe someone entered our home, she might think I was…” He shrugs.
“Lying to bolster your argument? I can’t imagine that.”
“Perhaps, but since nothing was missing and I wasn’t sure someonehadentered, I decided not to mention it. I forgot it until yesterday, when I said I believe the intruder at the Roc tried to access my desk. Afterwards, I remember the potential break-in at our home. The reason I believe someone entered there was that several things on my desk were out of place.”
“Your desk at home? How many desks do you need?”
“I don’t know, Casey. How many pairs of hiking boots doyouneed?” He looks pointedly down at my latest pair. “You like having a choice of footwear. I like having a workstation in each place where I work.”
“Okay, okay. So you think someone entered your home and checked your desk there. Then they did the same at the Roc.”
“I believe it is a possibility. Now, while I was here working, I checked for signs that anyone tampered withthisdesk or filing cabinet, but given that it’s a communal workspace and not everyone keeps it tidy, it’s impossible to tell.”
There’s clear condemnation in his voice, but I ignore it. His idea of a messy workstation means a crooked stack of papers and one uncapped pen. Instead, I say, “Also, the town hall is oneof the few buildings we do lock. Even when it’s open, anyone can see you enter. Unlike the Roc, where there’s a back door.”
“That was my thought as well.”
“Someone checked two of your desks. Looking for more than a stapler. You mentioned your files.”
“Yes, as I said, I keep them secured and hidden. There is no sign that anyone has tampered with that storage unit. I wouldn’t expect that anyway, as only you and Isabel know I keep them in a separate place and neither of you knows where.”
