Lakeside Peril

They hadn’t discussed this, but he wasn’t leaving her side now. This went beyond dealing with the Conrads. Someone was out to get her, no matter what. If her father had sent the now very dead Sonny Bolton to save her, he’d made a grave mistake. Why would a man who had millions send a grunt worker in a battered truck that had obviously come straight off some used-car dealer’s lot to save his daughter? And how had the inept Sonny found this out-of-the-way hideaway?

None of this was adding up.

Neither was what Hunter had just offered. At the same time, he’d started this. Now he had to finish it.

She looked surprised at his words to Blain, but since she was still in shock over what had happened an hour ago, she didn’t flinch.

“That’s right,” she said, her voice low but clear. “Obviously, someone is trying to stop me from investigating my sister’s death. But I don’t intend to stop. So I need...not only a bodyguard but a private investigator, too. Mr. Lawson seems to know what he’s doing. He’s kept me from possibly getting killed three times today.”

She gave Hunter a grateful, shell-shocked glance.

“Of course.” Blain’s dark gaze flickered with enlightenment and a touch of amazement. “Well, we’ve got both your statements and we’ve got people combing the woods and beach to look for the shooter. But I’m thinking he’s long gone by now.”

“Yeah, me, too,” Hunter said. “Someone will be back, though. I need to get Miss Conrad to a safe place.”

“I have a room at the Millbrook Inn,” Chloe said. “I left a briefcase and a laptop there that I should pick up.”

Blain gave Hunter another inquisitive glance. “Okay, then. Don’t leave town for a couple of days, in case we need to question you again.” Then he looked at Chloe. “We’ll impound the victim’s truck and go over it for any evidence. I can put a patrol car outside the inn, just in case.”

Chloe nodded, her gaze holding Hunter’s. He could almost read her thoughts. She needed to get back to Oklahoma.

They’d have to worry about that later. “I’ll escort you to the inn and check your room,” he said. Then he made another snap decision. “And I’ll get a room there, too, if I have to. Nearby.”

Blain didn’t move a muscle and Hunter chafed under that dark detective gaze. He wanted to shout “It’s not what you think.” But he wasn’t sure what to think himself. So he ignored Blain’s steady, all-knowing scrutiny and focused on what needed to be done.

Then he turned back to Chloe. “Will that work for now?”

“Yes,” she said, a hint of relief and surprise in her voice.

“Hunter, a word please.” Blain’s quizzical expression had changed to one of concern.

“Sure.” Hunter didn’t want to have this conversation because Blain would want too many answers. And right now, Hunter would rather have his teeth pulled out than explain all of this to anyone. But he walked a few feet away with Blain, his gaze on Chloe. She turned to stare out at the moonlight over the bay.

“Uh, what’s going on?” Blain asked, his pen tapping his notepad. “Off the record.”

Hunter shrugged. “It’s a long story.” Blain had said that same thing to him once, regarding getting involved with Rikki Alvanetti, so Hunter hoped his friend would cut him some slack.

“I might need to hear it. You could be in with some real dangerous people, bro.”

“Tell me something I don’t know,” Hunter replied. “She showed up at the Hog Wash and then someone took a shot at us and it’s been one big adventure since then.” Had that only been a few hours ago?

Blain leaned close. “This was an execution. Probably by a professional. Why didn’t you call in the attack at the Hog Wash?”

Hunter knew better. “I should have, but the owner didn’t want the attention and I had to act fast. You know how that place operates. The Hog Wash is like a haven for misfits and people of questionable repute.”

“So that’s why you always hang out there,” Blain said with a tight smile. “Makes perfect sense.”

“Funny,” Hunter said, glad for the levity. “It was a judgment call. One I’m regretting now.”

Blain nodded. “Yes, because we could have tried to trace the shooter.”

Hunter wasn’t one to argue about the rules. “I agree. But there were no witnesses. It was her and me out on the deck, and since they used a silencer, we only heard a ping and then the car sped away. I didn’t get a good look and I didn’t see the license plate on the vehicle.”

He described the car and Blain said he’d make a note in what would be a long report on this shooting.

“Look, Blain, let me do what I need to do to get her back to Oklahoma safe and sound. She’s scared and she doesn’t trust her own father right now.”

Blain glanced over at Chloe and then gave Hunter a steady gaze. “I trust you. So you be careful and let me know if you need my help.”

“I will,” Hunter said, meaning it. He’d never trusted anyone easily, but Blain was one person he knew he could depend on. “I’m taking her to the inn and we’ll decide what our next move is.”

“You can’t take off to Oklahoma in the middle of the night,” Blain reminded him. “Not just yet, okay?”

“Got it,” Hunter said. He wasn’t used to getting so involved with the locals, but he knew the law. He didn’t want to get on Blain’s bad side. “I’ll keep her here for a few days and try to piece things together.”

After Blain and his men finished up, Hunter walked over to Chloe. “Let’s go.”

“Your friend doesn’t like me,” she commented as they walked to his bike.

“He doesn’t know you,” Hunter said. “Big difference.”

“I’ve brought danger to his town.”

“Yeah, but don’t be so melodramatic. He’s good at his job. And he can be an asset to us if we need him.”

“He doesn’t want me to leave, so that means he suspects me of something.”

“It’s a detective’s nature to suspect people.”

They got on the motorcycle and zoomed toward the dark road. Hunter checked the landscape and hoped they wouldn’t be attacked anymore tonight.

Chloe held tightly to him, giving him that odd sensation again. Something about this woman’s touch got to him.

That led to another revelation.

He truly wanted to protect her.

Blain was right about one thing at least. This had become dangerous. In more ways than just being shot at.

* * *

An hour later, Chloe sat in a secluded corner where Hunter had deposited her away from the many doors and windows in the Millbrook Lake Inn. After he’d made sure no strange cars were in the tiny parking lot or out on the street and explained to the surprised desk clerk what he was doing, he came back to stand over Chloe.

“Patrol car’s out front,” he said in his stern, no-nonsense voice. “And the officer is guarding the front door and patrolling the parking lot. Don’t move. I’ll be back in a few.”

The woman everyone called Miss Ida smiled as he headed up the wide staircase just past the check-in desk. “Even though Hunter explained he needed to check your room before you go inside, I’m not sure what’s going on but if you’re with him, you’re in good hands. That’s one tall drink of water.”

Chloe couldn’t think about that tall drink of water right then. She swallowed back her fear and prayed Hunter wouldn’t find anything wrong upstairs. “He’s...uh...helping me with a problem.”