“Yeah.Thanks.I’m over it.Movin’ on.”
Archer nodded and turned back to his computer.Atticus did the same, wanting to keep busy so his thoughts wouldn’t stray to unimportant shit.
“You have a place to stay?”Archer asked after a few minutes.
“I was gonna find a motel nearby.”
“What about the B and B?They’ve got a few rooms right now.According to Bristol, there’s a lull until the end of the month.”
“Yeah.Maybe.”Atticus honestly didn’t care where he slept.A bed was a bed as far as he was concerned.Hell, the couch only a few feet away would suffice for a few nights.Provided Brantley and Reese didn’t get wind of his wandering ways.They had originally insisted that he put down roots rather than remain a nomad who spent his nights in motels.And, unlike his joking with JJ, his savings account was growing by leaps and bounds.Which meant he had no excuses.
Thankfully, Archer didn’t push the matter, which allowed Atticus to focus on putting together a final update for the day.He had read what Archer sent out last night and wanted to expand on that to keep the team apprised while they worked this case.
“Were you able to find out anything about Terry Berry?”Atticus asked Archer.“And seriously?Who names their kid that?”
“Would you believe it if I said Mary Berry?”
Atticus stared at him, stunned.“Nuh-uh.”
“His parents are Mary and Terry Berry, Senior.”
“No shit.”
Archer chuckled.“No shit.As for Junior, he’s an ex-sheriff’s deputy out of Blanco County.From what I can tell, he joined Censorious in the late nineties while he was still on the force.When he retired, he sought a higher role in the organization.”
“Or maybe that higher role was the reason he retired,” Atticus pondered.
“Good point.Possibly.Anyway, he’s now second in command under Calloway.He owns about two hundred acres in Blanco, which is roughly fifteen miles south of Johnson City.”
“And Johnson City is in Blanco County?”
“It is.Which may be why Calloway is out that way.”
“Berry would know the area, having worked for the sheriff’s department.”
“More than likely.”
Atticus pulled up a map to get a better feel for the area.He studied it for a few minutes, noting the route they’d taken to get to the house where Brantley believed Kylie had been kept.
“Do you think it’s a coincidence that Rocky Road goes from 290 in Johnson City down to 281 in Blanco?”Shaking his head, Atticus grinned.“Rocky Road.It just keeps gettin’ better.”
Archer rolled his chair over to look at his screen.Atticus dragged his finger along the route he was referring to.
“What if they moved her that direction?”Atticus asked.“They realized their hidey hole was compromised, so they packed her up and moved her.”
When Atticus looked up, he realized his face was inches from Archer’s.His breath caught in his lungs, but he blamed it on surprise.He hadn’t realized the guy was that close.
Or that he smelled that good.
Fuck.
“We should call Brantley,” Atticus suggested, pushing his chair back and launching to his feet.
Archer returned to his desk.“Why don’t we take a drive down there?Brantley and Reese were driving all day.We can head down, see what we can see—which likely won’t be much at night—then we can call them if it’s something worth looking into.”
“Okay,” he heard himself say, forcing his heart rate to slow.
“You good to drive?Or you want me to?”
