Page 15 of Scorched

“Your secret’s safe with me.” Paul’s stomach rumbled at the mention of food. He hadn’t eaten since he’d grabbed a biscuit at the McDonald’s on his way to work that morning. “I’ll be there at nine. Thanks.” He clicked the end button and called Agent Melissa Bradley.

“Hey, Fletcher,” Melissa answered on the first ring. “How did Alice take the news?”

“Elise. She insists we call her Elise. I just left her house.” His grip tightened on the phone. “She’s pretty shaken. Wants to buy a gun.”

“I would be, too.” Mel snorted. “Does she even know how to use one?”

“Not a clue.”

“Almost as scary a thought as a serial killer returned from the dead.”

“I’m not buying that it’s Stan. That house was in flames. If the fire didn’t get him, the smoke would have.”

“Yeah, but we didn’t find the body.” Mel’s voice dropped to barely above a whisper. “We can’t rule it out.”

“If he’s alive, he had to have been in a hospital for burns or smoke inhalation.”

“I’ll check with all the hospitals in the Riverton area around that time frame.”

“Good. And also check the hospitals farther along the Red River. If Klaus did live, he could have ended up miles downriver.”

“Hey, boss, here’s a chance for you to get to know Cain’s abilities. Want me to get him to help make the calls?”

Paul hesitated. On the one hand, Cain had been itching for a case with more meat. Then again, he still didn’t know how much he could trust Cain to keep his mouth shut. Paul had only been on the job for two months, not long enough to get a good feel for the other man’s capabilities or loyalties. Not to mention, Cain hadn’t been overly pleased with an outsider moving into his territory. “I don’t know what to think about Cain, yet.”

“What? He hasn’t warmed up to the ol’ Fletcher charm yet?”

“No, the district coordinator warned me that some of the men had been up for the job I got. I wonder if he was one of them.”

“Sour grapes?”

“Could be. I don’t want him involved until I get a better feel for his work. Especially with Ali-Ms. Johnson’s need for confidentiality.”

“Gotcha. Mum’s the word around Cain.” Mel paused. “You want me to take lead on this one, boss?”

“No, I’ll take lead.”

“Not trying to overstep your authority to decide, but I just want to remind you that you’re the boss now. You’resupposedto delegate duties.”

“Point taken.” He grinned. “I’m still taking the lead.”

Melody chuckled. “You got it. Do we need to assign protection to her?”

A twinge of guilt pinched his nerves, but he quickly shrugged it aside. “I’ve got that covered.”

“Going to use the local police force?”

Here goes. Explanation time. “No, I’m going to stay with her.” He braced himself for the onslaught of questions.

A long pause stretched from the other end of the line.

Paul heaved a sigh. “Go ahead, I know you’re holding back.”

“You sure you can handle that?” Mel asked. “Last time you were around her, you were pretty taken with her, serial killer husband and all.”

Damn. Nothing escaped Mel’s notice. That’s what made her such a good agent. “I’m taken with all the ladies, you know that.”

“No, boss, this was different. You were really taken with her, not your usual love-’em-and-leave-’em style.”

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