Gage didn’t bother asking whether he meant the former or the latter.Knowing Brantley, it could be either.
“I know y’all prefer we steer clear, and we will,” Gage said before Travis could interrupt.“But if you need anything … anything at all, you just need to call.”
“Do you plan to talk to Meredith?”Reese asked.
Gage looked at Travis, who promptly answered with, “No.”
“That’s not necessarily true,” Gage told Reese.“We’re gonna talk to Braydon and Jessie when we get back.Let them know that she’s there.If Jessie wants to see her, we’ll figure out a plan.”
“Just do your best to keep it on the DL,” Brantley said firmly.“The fewer people who know about her, the better.We still don’t know if feds are lurkin’ about, waitin’ for her to appear.”
“We will,” he confirmed.“You have my word.”
“And if you get anything useful from her, I’d appreciate you lettin’ us know,” Brantley said, looking at Travis.
“Sure.”Travis lifted his coffee cup.“Provided you do the same.”
Gage noticed the way Brantley’s features softened when he said, “Of course.”
It was clear Brantley was on the defensive, but Gage didn’t think it was because he didn’t want them involved.If Gage were a betting man, he would’ve put big money on Brantley carrying around some misplaced guilt.Ever since Kylie’s death, Gage had noticed the tension between Brantley and Travis.And while Travis didn’t blame Brantley—none of them did—he got the feeling Brantley still saw himself as responsible.
He only hoped that one day that guilt would fade and they could get back to being friends.
That was all he could hope for because anything else … was simply more heartache waiting to happen.
