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SEVEN
That night after work, Chandler sat in his office at Ruthven Security and ran a standard background check on the perp from the gas station shooting. The guy’s name was Jeff Ross, and he’d been charged with both robbery and murder. Chandler already knew Ross had a criminal record—his police contact had mentioned it when passing over the file—but now was the time to start digging into details. There was no telling what clue might be useful when it came to triggering Eden’s memory.
While he waited for the search to run on his computer, he looked out into the rest of the office through the open door. The place was quiet and dark with nearly everyone having left for the day. Well, except for Adam, who was still working away at his desk, per usual. The guy really went above and beyond, not just here at his job, but in his life overall. Chandler had to admire his friend’s commitment.
Seemed to be a Dawson family trait since he admired the same tenacity in Eden too.
Well, he admired it when it wasn’t driving him nuts and making his life harder. He had no intention of going back on his promise to protect her, no matter how difficult she might make it for him. Nope. Truth was, Chandler felt personally responsible for this one. His family and the Dawson family had been friends for longer than Chandler could remember and that meant something to him. So did the woman overseas from that SEAL mission—the one he hadn’t been able to save. He wasn’t going to let anything happen to Eden. And sure, his old attraction to Eden still burned as bright as ever, but he wouldn’t give in. There were more important things going on here than romance.
His computer dinged and onscreen popped up all the information on Jeff Ross. Huh. There was a lot more here than had been in the case file Chandler had seen. A lot more.
Turns out the guy’s criminal history went all the way back to his juvenile days. Although a lot of specifics were redacted, what remained still painted a picture of a troubled foster kid who kept getting on the wrong side of the law. He’d bounced from one living situation to another, along with being in and out of juvie. None of it sounded like the kind of background that would put anyone on a good path in life. Little wonder the crimes had escalated over the years from petty offenses like shoplifting and vandalism to more serious crimes. The guy was only in his twenties, but this wasn’t his first violent crime—even if it was the first time someone had gotten killed.
Chandler printed off the background check results, then pulled up the attached photos of Ross and printed those off as well. Maybe looking at images of the man would jog something in Eden’s memory, helping her unlock what she had seen that night.
Once he’d gotten all of it together, he stuck the papers in a file folder and checked the time before calling Eden. It was still early, only about seven thirty. Chandler hit her number and waited for the call to connect.
“Hello?” Eden said, after a yawn.
“Sorry. Did I wake you?” His chest tightened. He hadn’t thought about the fact that she was still recovering and might need more rest than usual. Of course, his traitorous brain began to toss up images of Eden tousled and adorable in pj’s, and he quickly tamped those down. Not going there. Chandler cleared his constricted throat and frowned, getting back to business. All business, all the time. Yep. “Anyway, I just wanted to call and let you know I ran a background check on Jeff Ross, like we discussed earlier.”
“Good,” she said. Her voice sounded a tad rougher than normal, and he felt it all the way to his toes, despite his wishes. “Did it show anything interesting?”
“Yes,” he said, gruffer than intended, flipping open the file to concentrate on the facts. He told her all about Ross’s record over the years, including multiple arrests for increasingly violent criminal behavior. “He’s served time before, but never for very long. This could be the conviction that finally gets him off the streets for good. I printed off some pictures of him too, thinking they might help you remember details. You haven’t had any memories return since we talked, have you?”
It was a long shot, he knew, but worth a try.
“No. Seriously, Chandler, I hate this. It’s like staring at a blank wall, knowing other people can see a whole landscape that you can’t.”
“I know. And I’m sorry.” He sighed and sat back, trying a different angle. “Maybe trying to picture it isn’t the best approach to take. I’ve heard different senses can work to trigger memories in different ways. You hear about it sometimes with people who have PTSD. Out of nowhere, a certain sound or smell can trigger a flashback. Is there anything you can recall from that night? How about the sound of the guy’s voice? Or if there were any scents? Gasoline? Floor wax? Coffee brewing?”
A beat or two passed as Eden thought about it, but nope. “Nothing. Sorry. And thinking hard about it gives me a headache, so now I need to take more ibuprofen.”
“Ouch.” He winced on her behalf. “Well, don’t worry about it. We can talk more later.”
“No. I don’t have much time as it is. Can you come over now and show me what you’ve got?”
“Oh, uh…you want me to come over? Now?” Chandler hadn’t expected that. He glanced up from his desk to find Adam leaning in his office doorway. Crap. How long had the guy been standing there? How much had he heard? Chandler had to assume the worst and react accordingly. Which really fucked up his plans. They were siblings, yeah. And Adam had asked for his help, but he’d promised Eden at the coffee shop he’d keep things between them confidential, so… “Yep, that’s fine. Be there in half an hour.”
Chandler ended the call as Adam came in and sat down in the one of the chairs in front of his desk. Even though it was his own office and Chandler was the one sitting behind the desk, supposedly in the seat of power, he still kind of felt like he’d been called in to see the principal. Give him an enemy to take down, and Chandler would get the job done, no sweat—but facing down his longtime friend and lying to him? That was a trickier prospect. Especially since he wasn’t sure how much Adam had heard. Would he realize Chandler and Eden were looking into the murder investigation? Would this be the trigger to the whole family interrogation Eden was trying to avoid?
“So,” Adam said, clasping his hands atop his stomach and narrowing his gaze on Chandler. Same blue eyes as Eden. Same stubborn refusal to let things go. Had he really just admired her family’s tenacity five minutes earlier? Because Chandler had a very different opinion of it at the moment. “Was that my sister you were talking to?”
“Uh, yeah.” Chandler sat back, mirroring his friend’s position while he thought up a cover story. Telling Adam he’d talked to Eden wasn’t really a violation of their agreement, since Adam had been the one to ask him to get involved in the first place. Telling him more, though, wasn’t an option.
“And you’re going to her house,” Adam said. It wasn’t a question. Shit.
Think, dammit. Think.
“I am.”
“Why?”
“Uh…” Heat crept up from beneath the collar of Chandler’s button-down shirt. “We…uh… We’ve been…uh…” Meeting at coffee shops? Investigating a case we have no business looking into? He coughed and fiddled with the closed file on his desk. “We’ve been seeing each other for the past couple of months, actually.”
Adam just blinked at him for a long moment. “You what?”
Fuck. That had been the total wrong answer to give, but dammit. Now he was stuck with it.
