Final Strike, page 5
Loraine’s voice came over the line. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. Where’s Cody?”
“He’s watching TV. Ben told me to call the cops. They’re on their way. What happened?”
“There was a break-in.”
Loraine gasped. “I’ll be right there.”
“No. Please. Stay with Cody. I’ll come by you as soon as I can.”
“I’ll wait, but you call me if you need anything.”
“I will.” Julie clicked end and stared at the screen, long after it went from wallpaper to black. Where was Ben? She wanted Ben.
As if he heard her, Ben jogged back into the room, shutting the sliding glass door behind him and locking it tight. He was covered in sweat and leaves. And none of that mattered as he kneeled down and wrapped his arms around her. “Are you okay?”
“I’m okay now,” she said into his chest, muffling the wobble. At least she hoped it did. Even if it didn’t she was moving her head. Ben’s chest was firm and warm. His hand on her back kept her from spinning into oblivion.
“Do you know who that was?” he asked.
“No.” The house was quiet. Everything was quiet. The calm after the storm. Sirens blared in the distance. The cops were on their way. Maybe it was more the calm before the storm. Because somehow a storm was brewing, and she was smack dab in the middle of the eye.
Chapter Five
A few hours later, Julie sat on one of the padded couches on Loraine’s back porch and watched the police walk through the yard toward her little house. Cody was asleep in his bedroom upstairs with Dale watching over him. Julie originally fought Loraine over remodeling one of the rooms for Cody, but Loraine insisted. Now Julie was pretty glad she’d let it go. Cody was able to sleep through all the drama.
Julie wanted to sleep through it, too.
“Are you okay?” Loraine sat down next to Julie on the bench, laying her hand on Julie’s knee.
“As okay as I can be.”
“Maybe you should sleep in the house tonight.”
This was like having a mother there for comfort. It was what Julie imagined her mother would do, if she was still alive. “I’m not letting someone scare me out of my house.”
“And I understand.” Loraine’s fingers wrapped around Julie’s. “But I don’t want you or Cody to be in danger. One of Adam’s friends is going to set up security. And we’ll have guards for the next few days while they set up the system.”
“Then I’ll be fine.”
“You may be fine.” Detective Shay Washington walked onto the porch, cop uniform of slacks and dress shirt nowhere in sight. She almost looked relaxed in her jeans and T-shirt. Almost.
“Aren’t you outside your jurisdiction?” Julie asked her. They’d gotten to know each other over the past few years—first when Shay questioned her during the murder investigation that led to Julie’s father’s incarceration, then when they went on a trip to Las Vegas for Allison’s bachelorette party. Now, they were friends who hung out whenever Julie could get away from school and work and mommying.
Shay ran a hand through her short black hair. “I’m off tonight, so when Adam called Garret to set up security around the house, I thought I’d come by and see how you’re doing.” Shay’s brown eyes lit at the mention of her boyfriend, Garret. It was too cute seeing no-nonsense Shay with googly eyes for the man she loved.
“I’m fine.” Julie’s hand instinctively went to the bandage on her head.
Shay sat on the couch across from Julie and leaned her elbows on her knees. The woman was always ready to jump up, never leaning back to relax. Although it could be that she didn’t want to lean back on the gun strapped to her hip.
“Shay, would you like a drink?” Loraine patted Julie’s hand and stood. “Let me get you girls something to drink. Lemonade?”
“I’m okay, Loraine.” Julie wasn’t exactly in the mood to drink, even something as simple as lemonade.
“Nonsense. I’m going to grab a glass for myself. Would you like some?”
Julie nodded. “Sure.”
Loraine drifted to the back door and walked inside. Her husband died a few years ago and life had moved on for her family, but not so much for Loraine. It was sad. She was way too young to seem so frail.
“You and Cody could spend the night at my place if you don’t want to worry about all the noise around here.” Shay nodded to the police officers yelling across the yard.
“I’m not backing down. More than likely it was just a random robbery gone wrong.”
“Why do you say that?”
Julie shrugged. “I’m normally at school on Tuesday nights. I wasn’t supposed to be home. Someone probably knew that and thought they had an easy target.” She laughed. “Not that I have anything worth stealing.”
“Was anything stolen?”
“I think we came home before they could get anything.” Julie couldn’t help the relief that flooded her. Now that everyone was safe, she could honestly be glad that nothing was taken. She didn’t have a lot of money to replace the necessities. And there were some things she could never replace. Her mother’s wedding ring. Her grandma’s china.
“Maybe.” Shay watched the cops walk back and forth on the path that led to the cottage.
“You think it’s something else.”
“I’m not sure.” Shay got up when Garret appeared from between the trees.
“Hey Julie, how you holding up?” Garret smoothed back his blond hair before leaning in to kiss Shay.
Julie would like to think that if one more person asked how she was doing, she’d scream. But she probably wouldn’t. Her friends just cared. Cared enough to be outside stalking her house this late at night. Yeah. She couldn’t complain. “I’m okay.”
She brushed her temple. The medication she’d taken was wearing off. The cut hurt, but the EMTs had ruled out concussion—the only reason she wasn’t on her way to the hospital. So that was positive.
Today had been pretty crappy. She’d take any positives she could get.
Loraine came out carrying a tray. “I brought enough for everyone.” And she had. Somehow, she’d poured more than three glasses. It was like she knew what people needed before she even knew they were there.
“Where are you staying tonight?” Garret looped his arm around Shay’s shoulder just as Ben walked up.
“She’s staying with me,” Ben said.
Since when? Julie wanted to tell Ben not to be so presumptuous, but the guy looked exhausted. He’d been running around since he’d knocked on Julie’s door earlier, and hadn’t had a chance to breathe.
“I’m staying at my house,” Julie said.
Ben sighed. “There’s glass all over your bedroom. You’ll still need to clean that up before you can go back in.”
Picking up glass and vacuuming. Not fun. She was just as tired as Ben.
“I can start on that,” Ben offered. God bless him. But there was no way she was going to keep him here any longer than he had to be.
“No. Don’t bother.” Julie leaned back, defeated. She didn’t want to let the bad guys chase her out, yet here she was. Wondering where to go.
“You can stay here.” Loraine picked up one of the remaining glasses of lemonade and handed it to Julie. “I have extra rooms, and then you can be here if Cody wakes up.”
“What about Dale?”
Loraine laughed. “I think he fell asleep in the chair next to Cody’s bed. But a boy always wants his mommy.”
“Thank you so much.” It was the right choice. The logical choice. “I’d love to stay tonight.”
“We still have some work to do in the house,” Garret said, “and then I’ll have security on the grounds. Ben is going to take the first shift while I brief the guys.”
“If you or your men need a place to stay, I have plenty of room.” Loraine sipped her drink, sadness coating her gaze. “Or Shay, if you want to stay here, we’d love to have you. I’m just so sorry this happened.”
“This isn’t your fault.” Julie leaned into Loraine, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “You’ve been so amazing through all of this. Thank you for letting me stay.”
Loraine attempted a smile, but something was keeping the sparkle from her eyes. “You’re always welcome here. I should get to bed, though, if you don’t need me any longer.”
“Get some sleep.” Garret finished his lemonade and slid the glass onto the tray. “Julie, the police are just wrapping up. If you want to head in to bed, I’ll make sure the house is locked up.”
“Is there anything in the house you need right now?” Ben emptied his glass and put it on the tray next to Garret’s.
Her whole world had been violated. Shoved off its axis. Slowly tilting with no stopping. She wanted familiar. She wanted her stuff.
But she was an adult, and saying she wanted to cuddle her stuff wasn’t high on the adulting list. She’d been half naked when the cops arrived, and managed to grab some clothes. Enough to get through tonight and tomorrow. She could get through a day of work and school… School. “Can you grab my school bag? It should have my laptop inside.”
Thankfully she’d made sure her homework was done so she could go out on her date—the date that didn’t happen.
Ben nodded. “I’ll text you when I have it.”
“Well, that’s settled. Let me show you to your room, dear.” Loraine went to pick up the tray.
“Let me get that for you.” Julie got to it before Loraine. It was the least she could do. “Thank you, everyone.”
“Good night. We’ll be here if you need us.” Shay grabbed Garret’s hand and headed toward the path to Julie’s house.
Ben nodded and followed them.
Loraine’s smile was tired. “Don’t you worry. Between Garret’s security team and Adam’s cop friends, this will be the safest yard in town.”
“I’m sure.” Julie knew deep in her heart this house was safe. Adam, Shay and Garret would make sure of that. But that didn’t stop the unease gripping her throat. It didn’t stop the fear.
Julie left the tray on the counter in the kitchen and followed Loraine upstairs. Knowing where her room was—knowing her friends were outside keeping guard—knowing Cody was in the next room—none of that made a difference. She’d never sleep tonight.
Verdict was out on whether she’d sleep again for a while.
An hour later, Ben watched the last of their friends recede from Julie’s house. Having their friends around helped, but having all the cops around made him nervous. The last time he’d been involved in this much police activity in Illinois, he’d been a murder suspect. He hadn’t liked it then and he still didn’t like it now.
He’d let the cops lock the door with the promise to stay out. But Julie needed her laptop. Ben was going to get it.
Inside the front door, he flipped on the light. Everything looked the same. The living room was untouched. The kitchen quiet. The only difference was the police tape hanging from Julie’s bedroom door.
Failure gripped his chest. He was in this room when Julie was attacked. What if she’d been hurt? What if he hadn’t gotten to her in time? Scenarios flashed before his eyes in an involuntary horror show.
His heart sped as fear crept up his spine, giving that beat a straight shot to his head, echoing in his skull. He could have lost her. He would have lost everything. The realization about knocked him on his ass.
Julie’s schoolbag wasn’t visible in the main part of the house. Dammit. That meant her bedroom. Or Cody’s. But why would she keep her bag in there?
He made his way down the hall and turned on the light in Cody’s room. No bag. But there was something Ben recognized. Stuffy Puppy. The stuffed dog with floppy ears lay in the middle of the floor.
That dog went everywhere with Cody. In all the excitement, he must have forgotten it. Ben picked up the dog, turned off the light, and slipped across the hall to Julie’s door.
It was closed, and covered in police tape. Maybe the bag wasn’t in here. Maybe he wouldn’t have to do the limbo to get inside. He pushed the door open and reached around into the room to turn on the light.
The room was a mess. Everything that had once probably sat on the dresser was now splattered across the floor. Glass shards sparkled on the floor. The room smelled like a brothel. Jewelry sat in puddles of perfume and lotion. This cleanup was going to take work. Thank goodness Garret said he knew people.
Julie’s school bag sat in the center of the bed. He’d seen her walk around the office with it all the time. Which meant now he was going to have to get under the yellow police tape. Or over.
Either would be a challenge. The cops had gone a bit nuts. Six times across the door. Six times. Like one or two strips wouldn’t get the point across.
Ben stuck Cody’s stuffed puppy in his shirt and dropped to his knees, sliding underneath the lowest strip into the bedroom. There went that theory. He apparently hadn’t gotten the point with six strips of tape, so the point was obviously not made. Not that any amount of tape could keep him out. Getting to his feet, Ben avoided the worst of the mess on the floor and grabbed the bag.
Just as he turned around, someone said, “Ben?”
He hadn’t heard anyone come in. He hadn’t heard a sound. But the gun pointed at him and the voice in the doorway told him someone was here.
Ben didn’t move as his eyes refocused on the man behind the barrel of the gun. “Garret. You scared the shit out of me.”
Garret’s lowered the gun. “What are you doing in here?”
Ben raised the bag. “Schoolwork.”
“You’re not supposed to be in here.”
“Neither are you.”
“I came in when I saw the light.”
Garret had him there. Ben had been the one to turn on the light. He hadn’t thought about the security roaming the grounds. He should have. Because there was a chance Garret wouldn’t let Ben out of the house with this bag.
“Julie needs her school bag for class tomorrow. It’s not like it has anything to do with the intruder.”
Garret looked at him, and everything in Ben said he was going to give him a hard time. Garret might be a friend, but this was a police investigation, and while he might not be a cop, he had that police mentality. Hell, he was practically married to one.
“Don’t tell anyone you came in here.” Garret eased the police tape out of the way to let Ben through. When they were both in the hallway, Garret put the tape back up again. When he turned to Ben, he frowned. “What?”
“I’m just surprised you’re helping me.”
“Why?” Garret thumped Ben on the back. “We’ve been through a lot. And I never really did get a chance to pay you back for making sure Shay wasn’t hurt in Vegas.”
Vegas. It had been fun—except for the part where some guy tried to knock out Shay and Julie for their jewelry. Ben had been there and had chased the bad guy away. “You would have done the same thing.”
Garret nodded. “I would have. But I wasn’t there. You were. I appreciate that, man. Anyway, after all Julie’s been through with her dad dying and now the break-in, she doesn’t need any more setbacks.”
“Thanks.” Ben reached in the bedroom and turned off the light.
“Is that all she’s going to need?”
Ben checked inside the bag. Notebook. Laptop. All the things she’d pull out in the lunchroom when she’d take time to study. “Yeah, this should be it.”
“Good. I’m sure they meant to take this down before they left, but I’m not touching it just in case.”
“Nope.” Ben hiked the bag onto his shoulder and started toward the front door.
“How about Cody?” Garret called out.
“What about Cody?”
Garret smirked as he pointed to Ben’s chest, where Stuffy Puppy’s nose stuck out from the collar of his shirt.
Ah. Yeah. Didn’t everyone carry stuffed animals in their clothing like a kangaroo? “Stuffy Puppy.”
“I have yet to see that kid without that, so it’s a good thing you grabbed it.”
Ben nodded, relieved Garret wasn’t going to make a big deal out of it. “Let’s get out of here before someone else notices the light on and we have to start creatively explaining.” He followed Garret out of the house, hitting the living room light before shutting and locking the front door. “Thanks for everything, Garret.”
“You too, Ben.” He disappeared between the trees.
Darkness enveloped Ben as he headed along the winding path to the main house. Crickets chirped. Wind rustled the trees and brought with it a cold nip. That cold slid up his neck and gave him a jolt. Not enough to keep his eyes open, but enough to remind him that he needed to go.
All of the events of the evening pushed down on his eyelids. It had only been about five hours since he’d shown up to pick up Julie, but somehow it felt like fifteen. He needed to get this stuff to Julie and make his way home. He had over an hour’s drive and less than that in his reserves.
Chapter Six
The bedroom was quiet. Dark. But nothing Julie did would shut off the noise in her mind. Between the excitement of her almost-date, the fear of the break-in, the annoyance at the disruption in her life, she’d managed to feel all the feels in one night. Which sounded exciting, but really it just made her want to hurl.
She got out of the ridiculously large bed. It had to be a king. The room was bigger than her living room. Large Victorian furniture—dresser, armoire, night tables—all matching the four-poster bed.
If she was at home and couldn’t sleep, she’d pull out her homework. But she didn’t have her homework here. Ben said he’d grab it, but who knew how long that would take and she was bored now.
He hadn’t come back. And since he lived over an hour away, that probably meant he’d headed home. And why wouldn’t he? If she could head home, she’d be all over that. There was nothing keeping him here. Not one reason for him to stay.
