Never Giving Up (Never #3) (13 page)

Megan gave him a dreamy smile. “You’re so perfect for me.”

The two of them floated away on their newlywed cloud and I returned my attention to my wife. “Are you still ok with not knowing if it’s a boy or girl?”

She shrugged. “I like not knowing.” That was enough for me. If Ella was happy, I was happy.

The reception continued and we watched Robert give a heartfelt speech, singing Megan’s praises and warning Patrick about what would happen to him if he ever hurt her. The cake was cut, the garter removed, and Megan tossed her bouquet. Kalli caught Megan’s bouquet, but for some reason didn’t look too happy about it. When I gave Ella a questioning look, worried about her friend, Ella waved it away and had her own sad look on her face. Something was going on there and later I would try to remember to ask her about it. For now, though, I wanted to spend some more time with my wife’s belly pressed up against me as we danced.

“Honey,” Ella said softly, her cheek resting gently against my shoulder. “Your pocket’s vibrating.”

“Huh?”

“Your phone in your pocket is vibrating,” she laughed. I stepped away from her and reached into my pocket and pulled out my phone. I didn’t recognize the number, but that wasn’t really out of the ordinary—a lot of people called me for quotes on work and to make consultation appointments. I went to put it away but Ella stopped me. “Just answer it. You’ll be thinking about it all night if you don’t.”

“Nope,” I said, dropping the phone in my pocket. “They’ll leave a message. It’s a Saturday. I’ll call them back on Monday.” She rolled her eyes at me sweetly, trying to look annoyed but really not pulling it off.

We danced for a little while longer, but eventually I could tell Ella was losing steam.

“I think it’s time we head home. These shoes were a big mistake.” We both looked down at her feet and I couldn’t believe how swollen they were.

“It’s a good thing I have power tools. We’ll need something heavy duty to cut you out of those shoes. Come on,” I said as I placed a kiss on her forehead. “Let’s tell everyone goodbye and head home.”

After what seemed like an hour of goodbyes, we finally made it out to Ella’s Toyota. She handed me the keys and I was glad we were in agreement over who should drive. Her feet were in no condition to be operating a vehicle.

“That was a really great wedding. Megan did a fantastic job,” Ella said as she dug through her purse, pulling out her phone. “Huh. That’s weird.”

“What?”

“I got a phone call from a number I don’t recognize.” She stared at her phone, as if it would announce who had called her, answering all her questions. I pulled out my phone and pulled up my missed call log. I turned the screen towards her.

“Is this the same number as the one that called you?” She looked at my screen and then back to hers.

“Yeah. Weird. I wonder who it is.”

“One way to find out.” I pushed a button activating the Bluetooth and dialed the number from my phone. When the phone on the other end of the line picked up, it was a man’s rough voice they heard.

“Dillard here,” the voice said in the way of a greeting.

“Uh, hello. I missed a call from this number earlier this evening.”

“And who am I speaking with?” The man asked, almost as if I were wasting his time.

“Porter Masters. Who am
I
speaking with?”

“My name is Detective Henry Dillard. I am investigating a crime and looking for a Ms. Ella Sinclair. This number was listed as a contact for her. Are you able to get ahold of her?”

“It’s Ella Masters now, and yes, I can get ahold of her. She’s my wife.”

“Great. Is she available?”

“I’m here, Detective,” Ella said, placing her hand on my thigh as we drove down the highway.

“Good evening, Mrs. Masters. Sorry for bothering you on a Saturday evening, but I was wondering if you could come down to the Portland police station. It’s a matter involving your open case.” My stomach tightened at the detective’s words. The shooting. Ella’s wide and worried eyes found mine and I knew I had to keep it together for her. She would feed off any panic I showed, so I took steady and calm breaths.

“Well, Detective Dillard, my husband and I were headed back to Salem for the evening. Can we make arrangements to meet tomorrow or even Monday perhaps?”

“I don’t want to alarm you, Ma’am, but it’s a matter of urgency for you to make it to the station as soon as possible.” Ella looked at me, waiting for me to make the decision.

“We’ll be there in fifteen minutes,” I stated flatly.

“See you then.” I heard his line go dead over our speakers and gave Ella’s hand a squeeze. Neither one of us said a word as we made our way to the station.

Twenty minutes later, Ella and I were seated in a stale room that looked like it came straight out of a cop drama: large mirror (one way, I was sure), aluminum table, three chairs. Nothing else. It was cold and I felt goose bumps as I rubbed my hand up and down Ella’s arm. The door opened and a tall, imposing man stepped in, looking us both over. Once the door was closed behind him, he reached his hand out to both Ella and me. We shook his hand and all three of us sat down.

“Thank you for meeting me on such short notice. As I alluded to over the phone, there have been some developments in your case.”

“What does that mean?” Ella’s voice shook as she asked the detective her question.

“Yesterday the Portland Swat Team took down a drug ring in the inner city. We took in a young man who is facing drug and weapon charges that are scaring him shitless. Pardon the language,” he said quickly, looking at Ella. She didn’t even blink at him so he continued on. “He’s young and it’s his first offense. Luckily for everyone involved, he’s scared and looking for a way out. He offered up some information that could possibly lead us to an arrest in your case.”

“What?” Ella said, disbelief and excitement evident in her voice.

“Yes. In exchange for information on a few cases we’re working on, he will be getting a lesser charge and stay out of jail. He claims to know of a man who was involved in a shooting about a year ago, in the area of your store, and the suspect matches the description of the man who shot you.”

“Oh my God,” she whispered.

“So you have the bastard in custody?” My blood boiled at the thought of the person who shot Ella being in the same building as I was. I would rip him apart.

“Well, it’s not that simple. We have a name and a general area he was last seen. But he could be anywhere. We’ve put out an APB, and we’ve got our eyes out for him, but it might be a while before we find him.”

“So, what? You brought us here to tell us you kind of, sort of, have news about our case, maybe?” I was beginning to feel my rage take over. What were they playing at?

“Mr. Masters, listen, I’m trying to solve this case too. I want nothing more than to lock this guy up, but it’s going to take some time. I brought you in here to bring you up to speed and give you information. It’s very possible that this kid, and he is just a kid—nineteen-year-old boy—who shot you is long gone. He could be on the other side of the country by now. Or he could have gotten word of the arrests made today, that our suspect ratted him out, and he could be waiting outside to finish the job he messed up last year.”

I stood up and the chair I sat in scratched across the floor behind me with force. I leaned over the table and pointed my finger in the detective’s face. “You don’t bring my wife in here to tell her some half-assed news about the man who shot her and then try to scare the daylights out of her. Cop or not, I will kick your ass if you talk to her like that again.” Ella pulled on my arm, urging me to sit back down.

“Listen,” Dillard said, raising his hands in the air, “we’re all on the same page here. I want to catch this asshole just as much as you do. But if you threaten me again, you’ll be locked up faster than you can blink and you won’t do your wife any good behind bars.” He kept his hands up and looked at me until I finally exhaled loudly and righted my chair, sitting again. Dillard turned to Ella. “Again, I’m not trying to scare you, I’m trying to help you.”

“What’s going to happen now?” She asked quietly.

“Well, like I said, we have no real idea of where this kid is. He could be in town or he could be in another state. But I wanted to give you a heads up and offer what help we could.”

“What kind of help are you talking about?” I was still pissed and even I heard it in my voice.

“Well, we can put more patrols past the sight of the crime.”

“It’s a store. It’s called Poppy,” Ella said quietly.

“Right, we could have more cars making passes by the store, if you live inside the city limits we can have cars patrol by your house.”

“You think he knows where we live?” Ella asked, sounding scared all over again.

“Chances are, no. Most likely, this kid doesn’t even know your name. He was probably hired to show up at a spot and shoot a gun. He doesn’t know who you are, but he does know where you were. So, the store really is a place of interest.”

“We’ll hire private security again,” I said immediately. Ella looked at me with relief, no doubt worried about her sister and the girls who work there. “We live in Salem right now.”

Dillard nodded. “We’ll partner with the Salem PD and ask them to watch your house, just leave me your address.”

“Will that start immediately? We’re headed there tonight.”

“Shouldn’t be a problem. I’ll call their captain myself.”

“So, we’re just supposed to sit here like ducks, waiting to be picked off?” I could hear the panic coming over her and it tore my heart open. I wasn’t going to let anything happen to her. I took her hand in mine and held on tight, trying to remind her that I was here to protect her.

“No. You’ve got the police looking out for you, but you need to be careful. Don’t go anywhere alone, report anything suspicious, and be smart. Trust your instincts. And call me whenever you think you have something to offer, anything at all. No piece of information is too small. And I’ll be doing my best to catch this kid before anything can happen. Expect the best, prepare for the worst.”

Ella’s hand floated her belly and I saw the moment she really fell into the abyss of irrational thought. I turned to her, not a care in the world that the detective was with us, or who might be watching through the mirror, and pulled her forehead to meet mine.

“Breathe with me Ella, in and out, slowly.” I took a few over-exaggerated breaths to get her to sync up with me. She shook, trembled, and I knew she was slipping away from me. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you or the baby. Do not give up on me now, Ella. Stay with me here, breathe.” We sat there, breathing in each other’s breaths for a few minutes until I felt like she wasn’t going to hyperventilate or go into some sort of shock. When I finally looked over at Dillard, I saw sympathy in his eyes and that went a long way to make up for some of the shitty things he’d said since we got there. He was a hard ass, that was clear, but in that moment, when he looked at my wife like he wanted to help fix her, I felt confident that he would keep his word and protect her as best he could.

“Let’s get your address to the Salem PD and get you home,” Dillard said, handing me a pad of paper and a pen. He left to make the phone call and Ella’s head found my shoulder. She was calm and quiet, both hands resting on her belly. Her silence was equally comforting as it was alarming. In the quiet, she found the terror. I put my hand over hers and tried to remind her that I was there.

“I don’t want you to worry about this, Ella. I’m going to take care of everything.” She didn’t say anything in response. I would have preferred to hear her crying or yelling. The silence was killing me. “Babe, talk to me. Please.”

“This is a hopeless situation.” Her voice is calm, cold, and still—like stone.

“No it isn’t.”

“You can’t protect me from a man with a gun, Porter.”

“Yes, I can.” I knew what she was saying. If he found her and got anywhere near her, it would be hard to stop a bullet from hurting her. But I wasn’t going to let her out of my sight, wasn’t going to let anyone near her, not until we knew for sure the police had him in custody. “Look at me, Ella.” My hands found her face and I pulled her to look at me. “You’ve got to think positively. We will make it through this.” My eyes searched hers, looking for a key to alleviating some of her anxiety. “What’s going through your head?”

“I want to run.”

Her words were like boulders settling in my stomach. Her flight instinct had kicked in. The danger was here so her mind told her to leave. I rubbed my thumbs across her cheeks.

“I know you do,” I whispered. “I want so badly to make this go away for you, but we’ve got to stay. We’ve got to fight. I won’t let him near you.”

A new wave of panic flooded her eyes. “What if he gets to you first? Oh God. Porter, I can’t lose you. Please . . .”

“Shh . . .” I pulled her back into my shoulder and smoothed down her hair. “It’ll all be ok.” I knew I couldn’t promise her that, but it was all I could say in the moment. Dillard came back in the room and his eyes flickered to my wife crying into my neck. “You better find this guy, and fast. If I find him first I can guarantee you never will.”

Dillard nodded. “I’d be thinking the same thing if it were my wife.”

“Good. Then we’re on the same page.”

“The Salem PD are going to be making rounds past your house and for the next few nights a cruiser will be positioned on your block just until the dust settles.”

“Thank you,” I said, sincerely.

“Do you have a license to carry a concealed weapon?”

“Yes. We got one last year after her abduction.”

“Good. Remember, if someone comes into your home, you have every legal right to shoot them. No questions asked. Take them out.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice, Detective.”

“Ok. Well, I will keep you updated on our progress. This case is my first priority. If he’s in the state, I will find him.”

I believed him. I gently stood, trying not to jostle Ella too much. I shook his hand. “I appreciate it.” I led Ella out to our car, flanked by two uniformed officers. They made sure we got into the car safely and I watched them disappear in the rear-view mirror as I drove away. Merging onto the freeway, my hand found Ella’s knee.