Page 86 of Mountain Freedom
“I know.” I went back to pacing before letting out a growl of frustration. “She’s not ready for Danny and Beverly to know we’re together, and she doesn’t want anyone to know she’s being stalked, either.” I wasn’t sure which one annoyed me worse.
“I’ve got Parker and Sanderson stationed outside the clinic,” Greg reminded me—for the third time that morning. “If he shows up, he’ll have to go through them. And God help him if he has to go through Parker.”
I grinned, despite my worry. Parker was one of our female deputies. She was only five-two and couldn’t have weighed more than a hundred pounds. But she was a third-degree black belt who could lay out a man twice her size without breaking a sweat. Training with Cole had made her even deadlier. If I couldn’t be the one to take this guy down, Parker would be my first choice to do it. I just hoped I’d get a chance to watch.
Greg’s phone rang. I immediately stopped pacing and took my seat across from him. He answered, then put it on speaker, his face dark. “Can you repeat that?” he asked. “I have Ford here and I’d like him to hear it too.”
“Yep. Like I was saying, we got a hit on your BOLO. Found the vehicle at a vacation rental outside Chattanooga.”
I frowned.Chattanooga?What the hell was he doing there?
“Have you made contact?” Greg asked.
“Not yet. I’ll update you if and when we do.”
“Thanks.” He clicked off and looked at me, mirroring the expression on my face. “Thoughts?”
“Odd place for him to be,” I said. “Too far from here, but not really on the way back to Memphis.”
“It’s a detour for sure,” Greg agreed. “Could be on vacation. Could be visiting family. Who knows?”
I nodded. “More importantly though, it means he’s probably not here.”
“Probably not,” Greg agreed. “The question is, what’s your gut saying? Relief or… ”
I crossed my arms. “Honestly?”
“Always.”
I shook my head, flattening my lips. “My gut says this isn’t over.”
“Same.” His phone rang again. He picked it up and listened, then closed his eyes and hung up.
“What is it?”
“I know this is the last thing you want to hear right now, but I need you on a case.”
“Now?”
“Now. There’s a missing kid.”
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Allison
I had puton a brave face before heading to work, kissing Jackson and telling him that everything would be fine. And really, I believed it would be. Mike had proven to be a terrible person, but that didn’t make him violent. Plus, I knew the sheriff had stationed two deputies outside the clinic—an honor that made me feel guilty, honestly, since he was understaffed as it was. But guilt or no guilt, I couldn’t just hide out and leave my patients hanging.
My relationship with Jackson had made me fully invested in staying in Rosemary Mountain, and I knew if I couldn’t get this clinic in the black, I wouldn’t have a job here for long. Funding the clinic meant billing for appointments. Every day mattered.
“Good morning, Beverly!” I called out when I walked through the clinic doors.
“Good morning, Dr. Bell,” she said, her tone guarded.
“How does our schedule look today?”
This time, she smiled. “You’ve got a full patient load. Eighteen on the schedule.”
“Eighteen?” My eyes widened. “That’s more than double my usual here.”
