“What?” Mia cried out. “Why in the world would they do that?”
“And how did they keep it secret?” Ryan asked. “We never even knew it was for sale, much less that someone bought it.”
“The real estate transactions were recorded, but the owner is a company they formed together called DT Holdings. They own several properties in the area so I think it’s just a real estate investment, but it could be more.”
“Like what?” Mia asked.
Colin leaned forward. “Like a location where they could keep an eye on what was happening at Evergreen.”
“You could be right.” Russ’s rapt attention was pinned to Colin. “I don’t have just cause to get a warrant, but we need to get eyes on the place. See what’s going on.”
Ryan planted his hands on his waist and looked at Colin. “Get the team together. We need to scout the lot. Look for cameras and any other activity that might point to Dr. Blackburn and David’s involvement in these crimes.”
Mia swallowed hard. Here she’d been looking for things that actually suggested her father or David’s guilt, and now she finally had something that could be actionable. And did it make her feel good? Not at all. The pain in her stomach cut her like a sharp knife, feeling almost as agonizing as the day her mother had died.
* * *
Mia stepped onto the lodge’s porch where the six-man Shadow Lake Survival team were goofing off and talking. Included were the three Maddox brothers, Colin, and two other men she hadn’t met before. Jessie sat on the floor and played with an overly excited Bandit. Mia could be upset with Ryan stepping in and taking over the conversation with Colin, but she wasn’t a former law enforcement officer. He was, and he knew how to move forward. Or maybe she was feeling better about relinquishing some control.
Maybe.
Reid cleared his throat, and the men instantly stopped joking around. “Mia, you haven’t met our other team members. I’ll start with Devon standing next his brother Colin.”
The intense-looking young male had dark hair like Colin, but he had a close-cut beard where Colin was clean shaven. Both were around six feet tall with broad shoulders and both obviously worked out.
Colin swung an arm around Devon. “Dev’s my baby brother.”
Devon fired an irritated look at his brother. “You know I hate it when you say baby.”
“Yeah.” Colin grinned. “Why do you think I say it?”
“You always skip the fact that I’m your only brother.” Devon rolled his eyes and held his hand out to Mia.
She took Devon’s punishing grip in stride and tried not to wince. “Nice to meet you, Devon.”
“Call me Dev like everyone else does.” He released her hand.
“Dev’s a former Clackamas County deputy and expert in water rescue,” Reid said. “He teaches all of our water skills.”
“You want to learn how to survive in a water accident or how to safely maneuver most any watercraft, I’m your guy.” He smiled a most pleasant smile that had to make women’s hearts flutter.
“That could come in handy living on a lake and with a river on the property too,” she said.
“So far I haven’t had to save any of these bozos, but I know the day is coming.” He chuckled.
Colin groaned. “Full of yourself much?”
“I could say never hire siblings,” Ryan said. “But then look at the three of us.”
“Yeah, a barrel of monkeys,” Russ said.
Reid rolled his eyes. “Then we have Micha Nichols. He’s an expert in weapons.”
Russ cast a look at Micha that conveyed secret knowledge. “We served together in the Marines. Weapons maintenance techs.”
“Basically, meant we got to play with guns all day.” Micha laughed.
“Yeah, except it was way more than that, and Micha excelled at it.” Russ frowned, and Mia sensed some unease about that job that Russ wasn’t sharing. “I don’t eat, breathe, and sleep weapons like Micha does.”
