“We will all appreciate that.” Kiley chuckled.
Mack wanted to share her lighthearted spirit, but with Addy in danger, he just couldn’t. “Okay, that’s it. Other than use any spare time to read up on a Bruno Razo. Cam’s doing a deep dive on the guy. He’ll have a preliminary report for us by the time you get here, but it wouldn’t hurt to do some extra reading. He’s the guy we suspect is behind her accident.”
“On it,” Kiley said.
“Oh, and FYI, Bear will be joining Addy at the safe house.”
“Ooh, good.” Kiley smiled. “I love that dog.”
“And he loves you too, so be prepared for slobbery wet kisses.” Bear was extremely affectionate for a former police dog. He didn’t know his own size and thought he was a lapdog.
Mack got out of the SUV and headed up the walkway. His eagerness to see Bear grew with each step, but the excitement vanished the minute he entered the house and spotted black fingerprint powder clinging to Addy’s home and possessions.
He glanced into the family room on the way to the office where he heard Bear howling and was glad to see that someone had removed the white sheet from the video. His gut tightened at the mere thought of it.
Bear’s cries grew more frantic, and Mack hurried to the room. The dog was whining and clawing at the door of his crate.
“It’s okay, boy.” Mack raced to the crate and pulled the door open. Bear pounced on him, taking him down. He licked Mack’s face and danced on his chest. Mack ruffled his neck. “I’m glad to see you too, but let’s take this outside before you have an accident in here.” Mack squirmed out from under the dog and got up. “Sit.”
Bear immediately complied.
Mack tapped his leg. “Come.”
Bear walked alongside Mack to the back door. Mack pushed it open, and Bear bolted into the grassy backyard to do his business. Mack watched the dog sniff around for the perfectspot. He really was a majestic-looking dog—tan with a black saddle, long square-cut muzzle, and black nose.
The dog’s next need would be water and food, so Mack looked around the kitchen until he found Bear’s food and filled his dish along with his water bowl. Bear came racing inside and started lapping up the water. Poor guy was thirsty. Mack wished he’d asked about Bear sooner instead of assuming he was being taken care of.
Addy said he’d been sleeping off the drugs for most of the night at least, but he’d had a long thirsty day. He shifted to the right and buried his snout in the food, gobbling it as if he didn’t think he’d be fed again. Mack wanted to hug him and ruffle his fur again, but he would never try to touch Bear while he was eating. He would defend his food, and Mack didn’t need to be nipped with those sharp teeth.
Mack slid down on the floor to wait and just enjoyed watching the dog.
Memories of living with Addy and Bear came flooding back. Mack had lost so much. Addy. Bear. A life outside of work other than counseling. He didn’t want things to continue that way, but what choice did he have? None that he could see.
Bear finished his meal and came to sit on Mack, then gave him slobbery kisses, his rough tongue cold and wet.
“What do you think, boy?” Mack said as he rested his forehead on the dog’s head. “I know you’d like it if we were all together again. So would I. But how do I fix things? Just how?”
Addy closed her internet research on Razo, dragged in a gulp of oxygen, and tried not to hyperventilate. The guy was a killer. A ruthless killer who’d never been convicted of any of the murders. Arrested many times, but there was never enough evidence to prosecute. And she’d been investigating this guy. Would continue to investigate him. With Mack of all people.He was staying in Portland. Was working the investigation. Would be at her side. And yet, she didn’t know him.
Was that what was making her so uncomfortable? That she didn’t know him, or that she was afraid she might fall in love with him all over again?
She couldn’t stop thinking about him. Maybe it was best if she didn’t ever remember. Her life without him would be so much easier. She wouldn’t have to deal with their baggage. Wouldn’t have to think about how she’d failed at being married. She would be free to fall in love with someone else. Just not Mack. Not again. Not when it had ended so badly.
But after spending the rest of the day researching Razo so she could hit the ground running the moment she was released from the hospital, she was glad for the help of the RED team in locating the dangerous weapons Razo was smuggling into the U.S. Though it might be awkward with her not knowing them, she would welcome their assistance all the same.
Her phone dinged. Thankful for the interruption, she glanced at the text from Harris:Network was indeed hacked. Taking it down for protection. Your files were deleted.
Addy’s heart sank, and she thumbed in her response:Could they be in a network backup?
Will check and get back to you.
Addy thanked her and set down her phone. So Razo was either skilled in computers or had someone on his payroll who was. Her gut said she really had discovered something that would help her locate him. Otherwise, why would her files have been deleted? She had to come up with what she’d found. If not, he was going to move the weapons across the border, and countless lives were at stake. All because she couldn’t remember.
Father, please ... please help me stop this guy. Help me remember.
Mack poked his head in the doorway and held out a largeto-go coffee cup. “I thought you might want a mocha. I got decaf since it’s so late.”
Yeah, he knew her all right. “Thank you. I would very much like that.”
