His voice was tinged with such utter disbelief, she felt small and petty. Like she’d been fishing for compliments. She shook her head dismissively and went back to her task, unable to look directly at him. “Never mind. Sorry. Bad joke.”
But it hadn’t been a joke. She wanted to know if he thought she was pretty. She wanted to know how he’d walked away from her so easily when they were kids. The yearning to ask him for reasons and explanations was nearly as strong as it had been all those years ago. But, thankfully, so was her pride.
“Where are you checking next?”
“I, uh…” His voice broke, and he stopped to clear his throat. When he spoke again, his voice was deep and cool, totally in control. “I was thinking of checking the other livestock buildings and show ring.”
When he didn’t elaborate, she knew he was waiting for her input on his plan. Forcing herself to look up, she did her best to keep her tone casual. “Yeah?”
Jake nodded. “I think…” He stopped and turned to stare unseeingly at the maze of trailers and cables cluttering the rear of the carnival setup. “If they wanted to hurt people, they could have done it by now. We know, or we are pretty sure, they’re watching, right?”
She nodded, liking his line of reasoning.
“It might be they can only see this area, but who’s to say they haven’t been watching all the locations. The two detonations went off in unoccupied spaces.”
Her lips thinned into a grim line as a vision of Trooper Rhodes laid out on the asphalt appeared in her mind’s eye. “Except for the corn dog stand.”
“Which I think was an impulse,” he countered. “A warning shot to keep us in line.”
She bobbed her head slowly as she took in his theory. “But you think they wouldn’t have any trouble harming animals,” she concluded flatly.
Jake pulled a face, then shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe not.” He exhaled loudly, his shoulders slumping. “I mean I’d hate to think so, but the reality is most of the cattle will be sold for stud or steak.”
She winced at the colloquialism but could not find fault with his reasoning. The animals shown at the fair were not pets. Oh, sure, some of the younger kids and teens showing may have formed attachments with the specimens they raised, but almost all farm kids were well acquainted with the harsh outcomes most livestock would face.
Taking a deep breath, she inclined her head in acquiescence. “Okay. Sounds like a plan.” She pasted the last of the messages into her collection, then extended the device to him. “Here, text this to yourself and anyone else you think might be good at reading between the lines.”
Jake took the phone and began typing as he talked. “I’ll send it to myself and forward it to Aronson. He can decide who needs to see it. I don’t want to clutter your inbox any more than we have to.”
She heard the faint ping of a notification, but he kept tapping on the screen rather than relinquishing her phone. Cocking her head, she raised a challenging brow. “Forget your own number?”
“I’m putting all my contact information in, so you know when it’s me calling.” He frowned at the screen then, apparently satisfied, saved the information. “I know it’s not the cool thing to do, but if you need me or I need you, let’s call. It’s faster than typing.”
She took her phone back and saw he’d saved his information as a “favorite” in her address book. “Fairly sure of yourself,” she said as he and his partner got to their feet.
“What do you mean?”
“You made yourself a favorite,” she explained.
His smile flashed as quick and lethal as a bolt of lightning. “Well, a guy can hope.”
She gaped at his back as he and Max moved to the edge of the platform, preparing to jump. Jake’s boots slapped the ground, but Max’s landing was as graceful as a dancer’s. “Hope for what?”
“Better days,” Jake answered without looking back.
She stared after him for a moment, then quickly gathered her scattered senses. “Hey!” When Jake turned, she pointed to the east. “Start with the poultry and work your way west. Let me know where you’re at.”
He fired off a smirk and a salute, then turned on his heel with a brusque, “Ma’am, yes, ma’am!”
Cassidy sank back on the bench, trying to ignore the hollow feeling in her chest as she watched him go.
Chapter Six
He stole one last peek at Cass then spoke into his radio. Every time he had to walk away, his footsteps felt heavier. He hated leaving her alone there with that bag strapped to her back. But he had a job to do, and if he did it well, maybe he could get her out of this mess sooner rather than later. “I’m heading to the Poultry Barn. Anyone have a chance to check Cattle 1 and 2 yet?”
Aronson replied after a moment’s pause. “I sent Stephens and his team in. Winter’s crew is heading in to disarm building four.”
“Thank you, sir. Swinging by to see if the fire guys found anything interesting at the Arkansas Building on the way, then Max and I will work our way west through the other livestock buildings.”
