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“I’m okay for now.” And I was, more or less. But I knew my limits, and there was no way I’d jeopardize Carolyn or Austin by running myself too ragged. If it got to be too much, I’d let someone know. But we weren’t at that point yet.
“But while we’re on the topic,” I said, “I wanted to run some things by you guys, get your opinions.” I explained Carolyn’s suspicions to them. Different perspectives might give me some guidance, since I wasn’t sure what lead to follow next after the dead end at the rival jeweler’s.
“Could be nothing,” Alex said when I had rundown the incidents.
“Is that what you’d say if it was your girlfriend at risk?” I countered. It felt off to me, and I’d learned to trust my gut.
“What’s the IT company say?” Colin prompted.
“Still waiting to hear back on that one.” Information from the tech people might give us a direction.
“Guess you’re stuck waiting then,” Alex concluded.
“Not happy about that, since it puts me in the position of being reactive and not proactive.” Sometimes our missions in special forces were cleanups from someone else’s mess. Those were the nasty ones. Anticipating a problem and eliminating it in advance was much more effective. “I want to keep Carolyn and Austin safe.”
“I know that it can be tough,” Chance said sympathetically, “but sometimes in these situations, there’s really nothing you can do but wait. The trick is to stay sharp until then—keep your eyes open. And when trouble starts, you know where to find us.” I nodded at him, grateful for the support. A few more cars pulled up—the other guys coming for the game. We all headed inside together.
A couple hours later, I put my cards down and started making noises about wrapping things up for the night. I’d broken even on the night, and that was always a good time to quit. Besides, I needed to get back to Carolyn’s. I’d had one beer early in the night before switching to soda, so I’d be alert enough to keep my watch.
“It’s early,” one of the guys, a plumber named Nick, complained. “Not even midnight.”
“He’s got places to be,” Alex said.
“Something to do with your son?” Nick eyed me.
“In a way,” I answered. “I’ll see you guys next week.”
There was a little bit of grumbling, but by and large, the guys were understanding, shaking my hand and thanking me for hosting as I saw them all to the door. Alex and Colin volunteered to take care of cleaning up for me, so I was able to head straight over to Carolyn’s street, taking up my usual position. I’d only been there a few minutes when her front porch light flicked on and the door opened. Carolyn stood in the glow, looking straight toward me. I jumped from the car and jogged to her.
“Something wrong? Is Austin sick?” My imagination conjured up twenty possible problems.
“All’s well,” she assured me, “except you’ve been sleeping in your car for how many nights now?”
“This is six,” I admitted with a shrug. When had she become aware of my nighttime presence on her street?
“When you left earlier, I thought you were headed home for the night. Zach, you can’t keep this up.” She rubbed her hands down her arms in the cool air.
“I want to make sure you and Austin are all right.” It was the simple truth, but it was only part of the reason I wanted to be close to them.
She smiled at me then. “I told myself if you came back tonight, I’d invite you in. I know I can’t talk you out of watching over us. But you can do it more comfortably. I’ve got the spare room made up.”
“If you’re sure you don’t mind, I’d appreciate that.” At her nod, I clicked the button to lock my car before entering her house and dead-bolting the door. I pulled out my phone to send a quick text to my brothers. In case one of them swung by during the night, I didn’t want them to be worried when they didn’t see me in my car. Then I turned my attention back to Carolyn.
“You’re in the room next to Austin,” she said as I followed her up the stairs. We paused outside her room, across from Austin’s, and she surprised me by kissing my cheek. “Thanks for looking out for us. Good night.”
After she left me alone in the hall, I peeked in Austin’s room, watching the little boy’s chest rise and fall, before going to the guest room. Sleeping in a bed during the night was going to feel good, and being close to my son felt right. The only way my situation could improve was if I were holding Carolyn in her bed. Soon, I hoped.
10
CAROLYN
“Like nothing happened,” Charlotte said as I turned in a slow circle, taking in every detail of All That Sparkles.
“Amazing,” I agreed. After a week of cleanup and repair, the store was set to reopen. Every sign of the incident was gone, and all the surfaces sparkled in keeping with the store’s name. But the closure had taken its toll on my bottom line and my employees. Jenna and Michelle seemed calmer now, after an initially shaky return to work, but however they might appear, I was sure they were still processing what had happened. It wasn’t the kind of thing you could just get over in a week, no matter how much you might want to put it behind you.
I had made sure they got counseling right away. Jenna had responded quickly, but Michelle was slower to recover. But however long it took, the store would provide the counseling. It was the right thing to do.
“No ill effects for Austin?” Charlotte asked.
