There was a long pause, before she said, “You’re not joking.”
“Nope.”Dina Milbrath was one of two female soldiers who’d survived the exfil that fateful day.She grew up on the streets of Brooklyn and had run with a rough crowd prior to joining the army.“Tommy’s little sister, Bryn Sinclair, is being framed for murder.If we can’t find the evidence we need to clear her name, we may have no choice but to disappear.”
“I should be insulted that you called me for something illegal,” Di said with a hint of humor in her tone.“But as it happens, I do know of a guy who used to do fake IDs.If he’s not in jail, he may be able to help.”
“Great.”Everything was quiet around the cabin, so he returned to the kitchen table.“I appreciate it.”
“Do you need more backup?”Di asked.
He wouldn’t have minded but knew it would take too long for her to get here.“No thanks.But I’ll let you know if that changes.”
“Okay.I can hop on a plane if needed.Stay safe, Mick.”
“You too.”He ended the call and then turned to his computer.For the next couple of hours, he searched for every morsel of information he could get from the web.When the screen went blurry, he closed the laptop and stretched out on the sofa to get some sleep.When he jolted awake at the sound of water running, he lifted his head and realized it was morning.
He felt bad for sleeping deeper than he’d intended, but it was nice to feel human.The sound of water was coming from the bathroom, so he swung up into a sitting position on the edge of the sofa.He desperately wanted coffee but knew they’d have to wait to grab something along the way back toward Madison.
He splashed water on his face in the kitchen, then waited for Bryn to emerge from the bathroom.She looked beautiful, even with her red hair still damp from the shower.
“I feel much better.”She glanced at the empty coffee maker.“Although I wouldn’t mind a jolt of caffeine.”
“Give me a few minutes to wash up and I’ll be ready to roll.We’ll pick something up on the way into Madison.”He was glad she’d gotten some sleep.
Fifteen minutes later, he found her at the computer.When he came to look over her shoulder, he noticed she had a map of Madison up on the screen.
“I was thinking we should stop and see Gwen first, she lives here.”Bryn tapped the screen.“From there, we can head to Sam’s, then to Deon’s, and finally to see Tabitha.”
“Fine with me.”The hour was still early, not even seven in the morning, but they were an hour away from Madison.“We’ll grab breakfast on the way.”
“I hope they’ll talk to us.”Bryn looked at the map for a moment longer before closing the laptop screen with a click.“If this doesn’t work, we should go to the Madison South Police Station.That should be safe enough.There’s no way the gunmen can cover all four police stations in town.”
He had no intention of allowing her to turn herself in to the police, but he decided against arguing about it now.After they visited her four colleagues, he wanted to check the data center construction site.
If none of their trips revealed anything to go on, he’d call Di back to request the fake IDs.He could take Bryn to New York if necessary.
Leaving the cabin filled him with a sense of unease.They’d been safe there, and heading into Madison was risky.Yet he knew Bryn wouldn’t agree to fly across the country to disappear without at least trying to find some answers.
Even then, he’d have to find a way to convince her this was for the best.Despite his promise to keep searching for a way to clear her name, he refused to visit her behind bars.
They picked up coffee and a breakfast sandwich from a fast-food restaurant.The coffee helped clear his mind, and he brought the map of Madison up on the car’s center console screen.
“I hope Gwen is home.”Bryn glanced at him, then back at the map.“And that she agrees to talk to me.”
“We’ll find out soon enough.”There wasn’t much traffic on Sunday mornings, which worked in their favor.He didn’t notice a steel-gray SUV following them, which was reassuring.
Then again, he’d damaged the last one, so for all he knew, the gunmen were behind the wheel of a different-colored vehicle.
And if so, he wouldn’t know about the possible threat until it was too late.
It wouldn’t help to dwell on that now.He’d be on high alert for any car that appeared to be following them regardless of make and model.
The hour was half-past eight by the time they reached Madison.He drove past Gwen’s house without stopping, just to check the place out.He took it as a good sign that nobody tried to shoot at them.
“Looks like Gwen is home,” Bryn said.“Her car is in the driveway.”
He nodded.“We’ll park a block away and go through the backyards, the same way we did at Lori Eastman’s.”
She grimaced but nodded.“Okay.”
