Reese had no intention of ghosting herthis time. Although he knew it was wrong that he was going to meet with her, he knew it was important.
If for nothing else than the future of his relationship with Brantley.
He needed to clear up the uncertainty, and until then, he wasn’t sure he was even capable of moving forward.
Chapter Sixteen
Thursday, September 16, 2021
For the first time in a longtime, Brantley didn’t lead the charge on the case. Rather, he allowed his personal thoughts and his mood to get in the way of progress, so he kept a safe distance and let the team work their magic. They’d spent the entire day yesterday outlining everything they knew and searching various places they determined might be a good hiding place for Nancy Wright, to no avail. After two full days on this case, nothing had turned up and he knew the team was growing more frustrated by the second.
Brantley didn’t blame them. He’d been keeping the governor apprised of the situation, so he was feeling the heat from all angles. Their case had gone from one missing person to two and though Brantley believed they were related—find one, you’d find the other—it pissed him off that they couldn’t catch a break.
While they hadn’t been able to pinpoint Nancy Wright’s location yet, they’d made some progress on tracking her recent activity, which just so happened to coincide with Annie Hawkins’s and Mallory Jacobs’s activity. Although there was still the chance they wouldn’t find Cedric Hawkins alive, they had compiled quite a bit of evidence that would help Detective Mathis with an arrest. Or three, as would be the case here.
When he woke up a couple of hours ago, he’d gone on a solo run, leaving Reese and Tesha behind, although he knew they would’ve both joined him if he’d asked. Ever since their encounter on Wednesday night, Brantley had felt off. That good mood from last Friday, the one he’d thought was a precursor to upcoming events, was nowhere to be found. In its place, a shitload of insecurity and doubt. Oh, sure, the intimacy they’d shared had been beyond anything Brantley’d experienced in his life, but there’d been something missing. Something he was sure had been there in the beginning.
Now as he ventured out after a quick shower in the guest bath, he found Reese in the kitchen, cutting up cantaloupe. Neither of them spoke although their eyes met briefly. Between them was a boatload of shit that needed to be discussed, but neither one of them was going to be the first to bring it up. Work was a much safer subject.
“Anything new on the case?” he asked in an effort to make small talk.
“Not that I’ve heard. Darius and Trey have been at it all night. No luck. JJ and Baz got in half an hour ago. They went home for a quick nap and showers sometime last night.”
“Anyone else here?”
“Luca was asleep on the couch in the loft when I looked in on them a little while ago. Elana, Slade, and Holly got in early. Evan and Jay weren’t far behind. Darius arrived with kolaches and donuts, so I’m sure JJ’s wired for sound.”
“Anything from Charlie or Becs?”
“Becs called, said she was on her way. I haven’t heard from Charlie yet.”
Brantley nodded. He was about to head over to the barn when his cell phone rang. He snatched it from his belt, glanced at the screen. He saw that it was Detective Mathis and prepared himself for an ass chewing when he answered with a barked, “Walker.”
“We’ve got a situation.”
“What’s that?” he asked, stepping out the back door.
“We found Nancy Wright.”
“Being that was our goal, I would’ve thought it was a good thing,” he said, taking the steps down the back porch.
“It would be, but she’s taken a couple of hostages.”
Brantley pulled up short. “Wait. What? Where is she?”
“At the Hawkins’s residence.”
“Why’re you callin’ me? Don’t you have a negotiator who can handle this sort of thing?”
“We do, but I figured you’d like to know since Charlotte Miller is your employee.”
Brantley glanced at the driveway to see if her car was there. It wasn’t.
“Charlie? What does she have to do with this?”
“She’s a hostage, Walker.”
“Are you sure about that?”
