Isla saw it too. So did Cal, his gaze steady on Trudy. After a beat, Cal leaned forward with a grin.
“How about I kick these two out so you can get some beauty sleep?” Cal asked Trudy. “Can’t have you tired of their faces already.”
Trudy’s lips curved, weak but genuine, and she nodded.
Garrett felt the tension in his chest ease a little. He leaned down, brushing a kiss against her temple. “Get some rest. We’ll be back in a few hours.”
Isla did the same, her voice soft. “And you won’t be alone. Cal or someone else from Crossfire Ops will be here the whole time.”
Trudy gave their hands one last squeeze before closing her eyes. Garrett straightened, caught Isla’s gaze, and together they followed Cal toward the door.
They stepped out into the hall, the door closing softly behind them. Cal shifted in his chair by the threshold, giving them a steady look. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure she’s safe.” His easy grin surfaced again. “But seriously, you two need showers. You’re making the place smell like a locker room.”
Garrett snorted under his breath. Hard to argue. He and Isla probably looked as bad as they felt.
Still, there was something else he needed to handle. With Isla standing right beside him, watching, he pulled out his phone and tapped a message to Sheriff Raines.
We want to speak to Leah. Any objections?
The reply came quick.No. But don’t bring up the safe deposit box and what she might have taken from it. I want to ask her about that in the interview and get her reaction on record. Also, I’ll be talking with Paula today, and I’ll schedule interviews with Leah and Randall soon. I’ll give you any updates I get from Paula.
Garrett typed back,Appreciate it,then slipped the phone into his pocket.
He and Isla exchanged a nod, said goodbye to Cal, and headed out of the hospital together.
The cold hit as soon as they stepped outside, the kind that slipped through his jacket and stung his lungs. The horizon glowed with the first streaks of dawn, the sun burning up over the hills, sharp against the winter sky.
They climbed into his SUV, the heater still trying to shake off the night chill. Garrett started the engine and glanced at Isla. “We’ll stop at my place for showers. It’s closer. Ten miles instead of the thirty that it’d take to get to your house.”
She nodded. “Works for me. I’ve got extra clothes in my locker at headquarters anyway.”
He shifted the SUV into gear, ready to pull out of the lot, when his phone buzzed against the console. The screen lit up with the ID. Crossfire Ops dispatch.
Garrett picked it up. “McCall.”
The dispatcher’s voice came through the line. “Garrett, I’ve got a call here. No name given, just said it was important. I’ll patch it through.”
Garrett frowned, hit the speaker, and waited as the transfer clicked over.
A woman’s voice came on the line, steady but urgent. “This is Anais Hayes. Randall and Leah’s daughter.”
Garrett’s grip tightened on the wheel. Isla’s eyes snapped to his, wide.
“I need to see you,” Anais said. “We have to talk about my missing brother, Harris.”
Chapter Six
Garrett’s cabin sat tucked into the compound, neat lines of dark wood and stone, every edge sharp, every color muted. No clutter, no softness. Just like him. Black and white. Serious.
Isla had swung by headquarters to grab her bag before they came here. Now he carried it inside for her, setting it just inside the guestroom. The space was clean, spare, and practical, but it had its own bath, and right now that was heaven.
“You can take this one,” Garrett said, his voice low, even. “After we’re ready, we’ll drive into San Antonio and meet with Anais.”
Leah and Randall’s daughter had wanted to meet them after eight, and she’d given them an address on the north side of the city. Anais hadn’t elaborated on what she wanted to talk about, but Isla and Garrett both very much wanted to hear what she had to say. After that, they’d arrange for a chat with Leah.
Isla nodded, her pulse ticking faster at the thought. Answers felt closer now, like the haze around Harris’s disappearance might finally start to clear.
She stepped past him into the room, brushing his arm by accident. Or maybe not an accident. Heat rippled through her, the reminder of how close they’d been on that hospital floor too fresh.
