Sabotaged (12 page)

Was that all? “I'm sure she'll figure it out. She seems quite determined.”

“I actually think she rivals Piper in that area.”

“Now, that's saying something.” She poked at her meat loaf, apprehension stealing her appetite.

“You know Piper.” He cleared his throat and glanced around
the mostly empty room. Only an hour until closing, few customers lingered.

She shifted uncomfortably. Why was he hedging? Had Darcy found something on Frank, or was he just working up the nerve to ask her about Tracey? “Anything else?”

“A couple things, actually. Jake said something about Frank having two distinct histories, but we got on to another subject and before we could get back to it, the line went dead. Any idea what that means?”

She sat back. “No clue.”

He shrugged a shoulder. “I guess we'll have to wait until they are able to get back in touch before we can find out.”

“I guess . . . And the other thing?” He'd said there were a couple.

He twirled his unused straw in hand, his gaze focused on his fingers. “Jake's just trying to be thorough and work every angle . . .”

“And?” Where was this going?

His hand stilled, and he finally looked at her. “Is there any chance with Meg's new devotion to the environment and Frank's ties to the oil rigs . . . that she's part of whatever's happening?”

Her eyes narrowed. “Part of as in . . . ?”

“Could she be in on it?”

Had he seriously just asked her that? “No way. How can you think that?” He'd dated her cousin, for goodness' sake.

“Jake is . . .
we're
just trying to view every angle, every option.”

“Well, Meg being involved isn't one of them.”

“Are you positive?”

She shook her head. “I thought you knew Meg.”

“I do.”

“Yet you still think her capable of staging her own kidnapping?”

He leaned forward, lowering his voice. “I'm not saying that . . . exactly.”

She scooted toward him, hunching over the table. “Then what are you saying
exactly
?”

He exhaled. “That maybe she got in over her head. Maybe her new friends saw an opportunity and . . .”

“And what? Meg just went along with it? Set up her father? I know Meg's not the most responsible person . . .”

“She can take off without notice.”

“What do you mean?” She knew exactly what he meant. Meg had once done it at the worst possible time.

“When we were seeing each other, she liked to just take off. A weekend skiing in British Columbia, another—”

“What a minute!” She cut him off, heat flaring in her cheeks. “Are you saying you were with her
that
weekend in B.C.?”

“That weekend? I don't know what
that
weekend is.”

“It would have been in March.”

“Yeah, we
‘dated
'
 ”—he used air quotes—“from January until the end of March a couple years back.”

“Two years back?”

“Yeah, like I said, Meg was in her freshman year at the community college in Anchorage.”

Her stomach dropped. Meg had ditched her
that
weekend for a getaway with Reef?

“What does a weekend in British Columbia have to do with any of this?” Reef asked.

She collected her thoughts, forcing herself to remain as focused as she could manage. “I'm just saying Meg's head
ing for Seward is similar to that weekend—a guy talked her into taking off for the weekend, even though she was already committed to something . . .”

“Trust me.” He sat back, lifting his hands. “I wasn't the one who suggested the getaway back then.”

“You're saying Meg did?” She gripped the edge of the table. Meg had initiated the getaway? Her cousin had made it sound as if she'd been swept away, that she hadn't really wanted to go but the guy she'd been dating had insisted. Kirra had tried not to blame Meg for ditching her, but now . . .

“Yeah. If you don't believe me, ask her.” His face softened. “When you can. I mean . . . when we get all this sorted out.”

She swallowed. If that was true, it meant . . . She shook off the thought.
Focus on the matter at
hand. Deep breaths
. “Taking off for a weekend is a lot different than staging a kidnapping. She would never do something like that to her dad.” She may push the line, may disappear for a weekend of fun, but she'd never lead him on to believe she was in danger if she wasn't. Reef and Meg hadn't dated long, but surely he knew at least that much about her cousin.

Reef reached across the table and clasped her hand. His touch felt warm, secure. She was tempted to pull back, but she didn't.

“I agree,” he said. “I don't believe she would do that, but I had to ask.”

“Did you?”

“If I didn't, Jake would have.”

“I would have preferred it coming from him.” Because he didn't know Meg.

“I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you.”

He hadn't upset her. He'd made her mad, but at least it'd
distracted her from the hurt Tracey had inflicted. And . . .
Frank's two distinct histories?
What was that all about?

He landed in Fairbanks, already sick of all this travel. All because he had to chase after some stupid girl. At least their man inside had tipped them off and he'd be able to arrange transportation again. He only hoped he wasn't too late this time. It'd taken a little research, but he'd tracked down Meg Weber's roommate and was approaching her now. He was one step closer to Reef and Kirra, and he was gaining ground.

T
AKOTNA
, A
LASKA
M
ARCH
12, 10:36
P
.
M
.

“Any luck?” Ethan asked Gage as Jake struggled to get reception.

Gage shook his head.

A massive blizzard raged outside, creating complete whiteout conditions. Every musher except Frank was either safely secured ahead at Ophir or bunked down with them at Takotna, waiting for it to pass before they could move on. It was suicide to move now.

Weather reports—the last they'd gotten in before all communication went down—said the storm would last well into the early morning hours but should subside by daybreak.

Frustration prompted Gage to his feet. He hated being stuck when there was work to be done, or in Darcy's nonstop mind, a case to be solved.

She flopped down on a cushy brown sofa as he paced.

“I hate this,” she said. “I feel completely useless.”

“Chill,” Xander said. “The storm will pass soon enough. What are
you
working on anyway?”

“Reporting on the race.” It was her job, and a great cover for her investigative work.

“Okay, but the race is stalled. No one is actually racing. There's no reporting to do, so chill.”

Darcy's mouth twitched but finally moved into a smile. “You're right.”

“Of course I am.” Xander winked. “I'm heading to the kitchen—anyone want some grub?”

Ethan joined him, but everyone else declined.

Gage took a seat beside Darcy and squeezed her knee. “I know you were dying to say something.”

“I know I can't.”

The thought that someone in the checkpoint building with them could be part of Meg's kidnapping made Gage's skin crawl. If there was a threat, you dealt with it, didn't tiptoe around it. But Jake said if they jumped the gun—if the men responsible for Meg's abduction knew they were on to them, knew they were trying to track them—Meg's life could be in jeopardy, so Gage played along.

He could see she was bursting to share something she'd found. He peered through the open door at the empty hallway. Now at least they could talk. He gave Darcy the go-ahead signal by lifting his chin.

“I discovered who Frank's current employer is before we lost connection with the outside world. NorthStar Oil.”

“What do we know about them?” Jake asked, resting a boot on his opposite knee.

“They own a series of off-shore oil rigs, right?” Kayden said.

“Right.” Darcy nodded. “And they're laying the new interior pipeline.”

Jake straightened. “They are?”

“Yeah.”

“I remember all the news coverage of the protests when they first broke ground.” Kayden took a seat on the arm of Jake's chair.

“Any chance Frank has worked on the pipeline?” Jake asked.

Darcy leaned into Gage, and he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “I'll check as soon as the Internet is back up. But I think his role in the breaking and entering is a far more intriguing angle.”

Reef stood awkwardly near the door to Kirra's room as she shuffled back and forth between her duffel bag and the nightstand—laying out her iPod, plugging in her phone charger. She hadn't made any indication she wanted him to leave, and he had no desire to go. Today had been crazy, and all the events and emotions of it pumped through his system in a rush.

“I think I'll order some dessert from room service,” Kirra said, picking up the menu. “You want something?”

“Sure. Milk and cookies.”

She arched a brow.

He smiled and pushed off the wall he'd been holding up. “I know it sounds childish, but it's a lodge specialty. Warm, gooey cookies and ice-cold milk.” It was the perfect combo of opposites, kind of like him and Kirra.

She lifted the phone with a smile and ordered milk and cookies for two.

“You can sit.” She gestured to the sofa area.

“Okay.” He looked to the cold hearth. “Would you like me to turn the fireplace on?”

She rubbed her arms. “Sure.”

He moved to the stone hearth and switched on the electric fireplace before taking a seat on the sofa.

Kirra sank into the armchair. She kicked off her boots, and he was surprised to find her wearing neon heart fuzzy socks. “You're right,” she said, stretching out.

“That's got to be a first.”
For those words to
be coming out of Kirra Jacobs' mouth
. His gaze fastened on her mouth, on the delicate curve of her full bottom lip.
Whoa!
He straightened. This was Kirra. She deserved the best, and he certainly wasn't it.

She smirked, drawing his attention back to her supple pink lips. “Don't get used to it.”

“Wouldn't dream of it. So . . .” He leaned forward with a wink. “What am I right about?”

She glanced around the room. “This lodge is wonderful, and stopping was a really good idea.”

An hour later she set her empty mug on the room service tray and turned to face him. “Those were the best milk and cookies I've ever had.”

He laughed.

“What?”

“You've got a milk mustache.”

“So do you.” She swiped at her lip. “Only I wasn't going to tell you about it.”

“Brat,” he said playfully and instantly regretted it. Even if he'd said it completely in jest, she'd been called enough names today. “Sorry. I shouldn't have . . .”

She frowned. “What?” Then it hit her. “I know you were just playing, Reef.” She strode back to her seat. “Don't worry about it.”

Reef took a deep breath and spoke what was pressing on his heart. “Look, I don't know what happened between you and that woman, or with that William guy, but I do know what she said, what she called you—she was wrong.”

She linked her arms tight against her chest, nearly hugging herself. “What makes you so sure?”

He leaned forward, bracing his hand on the edge of her chair. “Because I know you, and none of those words describe you.”

She nodded but remained silent.

He scooted closer. “Sometimes talking about it helps.”

She bit her lip. “And sometimes it makes it much worse.”

Kirra rolled over in bed, her heart aching so hard she struggled to draw a decent breath.

Tell him
.

I can't.

Tell him, child
.

But, Father, I—

God cut off the thought, filling her with the overwhelming need to share her burden and to share it with the most unlikely of people—Reef McKenna.

She pulled to her feet and yanked a sweatshirt over her pajama top. Sliding her feet into her slippers, she headed across the hall in her flannel duck bottoms.

Are
you sure, Lord?
she prayed, her hand poised to knock.

Yes, child.

Her hand landed on the door as she prayed he wouldn't answer.

The door swung open, and before Reef could utter a word or she lost her nerve, she blurted out, “Can I come in?”

“Of course.” He stepped inside, allowing her passage, and flipped the lights on.

She balled her hands into fists inside her sweatshirt sleeves—the fleece lining nubby from being so well worn.

He gestured for her to sit as he slipped on a shirt, and she sank onto the love seat in front of the fire.

He sat down beside her, angled to face her so their knees touched.

“While I was in vet school, Tracey was my roommate and best friend.”

“And William?” he asked, his voice tender—achingly so.

“William was finishing the last year of his PhD program and was a TA in the Biology department for both environmental health and advanced anatomy. Tracey and I had him for anatomy, and we were both interested in him—though we did our best to keep things civil. Fast-forward to a few months before our graduation and he chose Tracey.”

“I'm sorry.”

She pulled her knees to her chest. “Not as sorry as I was. I thought I'd lost the sun, as young and blinded as I was.”

“So he and Tracey started dating?”

“Yeah. It was difficult, but it was what it was. I tried to be supportive.” She spoke faster, needing to get to it, get past it and let the cards fall where they would with Reef—praying he'd . . .
What?
Wrap her in his strong arms? Now she was being foolish and naive all over again.

“Kir?” He jiggled her knee.

She took a deep breath, expelled it, and continued on. “A couple weeks later, Tracey had to head home for the night last minute. Something with her family. We were supposed to go to a party with William and some friends.”
And
Meg
. Meg
was supposed to be visiting from Anchorage that weekend, but she'd called that afternoon, said something else had come up—and now Kirra knew that something was a weekend getaway with Reef.

“And you still went?”

“When M— the girl who was supposed to go to the party with me also bailed at the last minute, I called and told William I wasn't going to go.”

“But . . .”

She clutched her hands around her legs. “But William showed up at my door, begging me to go, saying we needed to talk, and . . .” She looked down. “I foolishly went.” It was her greatest regret.

She got to her feet, needing to move . . . to keep moving so it couldn't catch her, couldn't strangle her the way it did in her dreams. “William told me he'd made a huge mistake. He didn't love Tracey. He loved me. He said he was going to tell her as soon as she got back, and I believed him. We talked at the party over drinks, and he started to get real friendly, so I said I needed to get back to my apartment. As much as I cared about William, I wasn't going to pursue those feelings until he broke things off with Tracey.”

Her stride increased, her voice pitchy to her own ears. “He acted like that was totally cool and offered to walk me home.” She glanced at Reef, at his soulful eyes brimming with compassion.

“You don't have to tell me,” he said at her pause.

“I know, but I need to.” She'd carried it for too long.

He gave her time, not pressing, just waiting while she gathered her courage.

“We cut through the park on the way back to my apartment, and that's when he started up again.”

“With the advances?”

She nodded. “Only this time, he was more forceful.” She couldn't look at Reef. She was too scared. She just continued, needing to get it all out. “He forced me behind a grove of trees and ra . . . ra . . . raped me. I screamed and cried, but he had pressed some sort of rag into my mouth.”

Reef was at her side, pulling her into his arms, comforting her as the tears fell.

She swiped at her tears with the back of her hand but didn't pull from Reef's embrace. This was what she'd longed for. Someone to understand. Someone to comfort her on an intimate level.
Intimate?
After William, she never thought she'd use that word again, and now with Reef . . .

Focus. Finish. Get it
all out
. “Afterward,” she sniffed, swiping at her tears with the back of her hand, “I was a basket case—I could hardly stand—but he acted like everything was normal. As if it'd been consensual. He even tried to kiss me good-night at the door.”

Reef cupped her face in his hand, his finger grazing her skin. “Did you report him?”

Tears rolled off her cheeks, cascading to her sweatshirt. “It was the middle of the night. Tracey was gone until morning, and I was
terrified
. I locked my door and showered his stench off of me. I hid under my covers, praying for Tracey to come back. I figured she could take me to the campus police in the morning and toss William to the curb.”

His jaw slackened, his heart breaking in his eyes. “She didn't believe you.”

Kirra shook her head, her tears salty as they tumbled past her lips.

“William was waiting for her outside our apartment when she came back the next morning. He told her I threw myself at him at the party, that we'd both drank a lot and he'd made a stupid mistake.”

Reef's brows arched. “He confessed?”

“No. He said letting me seduce him was a stupid mistake.”

“He told Tracey
you
tried to seduce
him
?”

“When I tried to tell her the truth, she called me a liar and a lot worse. I couldn't believe it. I was blindsided. She was my best friend. If she didn't believe me . . .” She rubbed her arms.

“Who would?” he said, finishing her thought.

“Right.”

He caressed her cheek with the pad of his thumb. “So you never went to the police?”

She looked down, the pain stabbing deeper still. “I went home.”

“Surely your parents believed you and encouraged you to go to the police.”