Page 64 of Defending Love
“Last night when I spoke to Stephen,” Dani began, “he said he looked in Dad’s desk.” She pursed her lips. “I didn’t give it much thought at the time, but he said the desk was where he found Dad’s will and insurance papers. But Mom said Dad didn’t keep important things in his desk, but rather in his safe.”
“Maybe Stephen meant the safe.”
“Maybe. I’ll ask Damien.”
I remembered our sandwiches that I’d put in the small refrigerator. “It’s late for lunch or early for dinner. Do you want your chicken salad?”
Dani unclasped her seat belt and met my gaze. “Shoot, I forgot to tell you, I can’t eat nuts.”
“I’m a step ahead. I read your bio the first time I was assigned to you. I made sure there were no nuts in the chicken salad.”
Her cheeks rose. “All about protecting me.” She winked. “I’ll get the sandwiches and a water. What do you want to drink?”
“Water is good. I don’t drink alcohol on the job.”
Her smile curled. “Now that you mention it, I’ve never seen you with alcohol.”
“You like wine.”
“I do.”
“Once we have you completely safe, we’ll celebrate with a bottle of the best wine I can buy.”
“Sounds like a date.”
It was barely five o’clock when we landed in Indianapolis. As I took my phone out of airplane mode, it buzzed with missed messages. I hit the icon for voicemail. Ben’s name appeared.
“Eli, we have the preliminary forensics on the letter you sent. Call me as soon as you have time to talk.”
Chapter
Twenty-Five
Dani
* * *
Back in my condominium, I sat in my office at my desktop computer, going through the hundreds of emails I’d managed to avoid until now. Preston Ayers’s CV was among the masses. Eli was in his new office, formally my guest room. He was right; the setup wasn’t as big as the one in the villa. Yet, he assured me that he had much of the same capability. If there was anything he couldn’t do with the new setup, he could ask the people in Philadelphia to do it for him.
The sky beyond the windows was dark, the lights of downtown twinkling below. On a Saturday night, the sidewalks were bustling with people. While football season was in full swing, the large venue was constantly booked with other forms of entertainment. Basketball was just beginning. The city was a beehive of activity.
Leaning back against my chair and staring out the window, my thoughts went to my mother. She said she’d been alone since Dad’s death. I understood that feeling. If it weren’t for Eli down the hallway, I would feel alone.
Honestly, while I wasn’t alone, without the ease and freedom of those walking the sidewalks, I had the sensation of being trapped. I also feared that I’d never feel truly safe again.
The stack of journals I’d brought from Florida caught my eye.
Untying the twine, I pulled a journal from the middle of the pile. The first few pages were similar to the journal I’d opened last night: equations and compounds.
On the third page, the writing was different. I didn’t recognize it as my father’s or grandfather’s.
03/26/2015 – E.O.
* * *
Too recent to be my grandfather’s.
* * *
