Page 15 of Hack
He headed out of the room, finding Bryon, Matt, and Kasey all sitting around the kitchen table. He went to the fridge and pulled out a beer. As he leaned against the counter, listening to the guys talk, he pulled out his personal cell phone. He usually kept it silenced during a sting, and wasn't shocked to see he'd missed a text. What did shock him was who it was from. Seeing Archer's name, he quickly swiped open the message, seeing it was from several hours earlier.
Plane lands at one this morning. I'll get a rental car and head to the motel. Give me a call in the morning if you want to meet up.
Carter glanced at the time. It was ten minutes after one. Sure that Archer was still up since he'd probably just landed, he quickly sent a text back.
Just finished a job, sorry I missed your earlier text. If you want to bypass the motel, I have an extra room. You're welcome to it.
He quickly hit send. Even just meeting Archer, he was comfortable allowing the man to stay at his home. If Howard trusted him, Carter did too. He believed in following his gut, and it told him Archer was a good guy. Besides, there was nothing at his house to show what Carter really did for a living. It might be good to let someone enjoy the house for a few days and to let the neighbors see activity there for a change.
A few seconds later, his phone rang. Carter pushed away from the kitchen counter and headed into the living room for some privacy as he answered Archer's call. "Hey."
"You have good timing. I just got off the plane and switched my phone on," Archer told him.
"I'm glad I caught you. I had my phone off while I was working on something. Just turned it on and saw your text. No pressure to stay at my place, but I figured it might be more comfortable than a motel." Carter sat down on the couch, relaxing back into the cushions.
"I've seen so many motels the last few weeks that a home sounds like a luxury I can't pass up. If you're serious, I'll take you up on it." The sounds of the airport echoed through the phone as Archer spoke.
"Great, do you want me to come pick you up from the airport?" Carter offered.
"I'll just grab a rental. No offense, but I don't like being trapped on my own. I like to get out if I want to and don't want to bother you for rides if I need them. I might only be here for a few days, but I'd rather have a car," Archer explained.
"Fair enough." Carter glanced up as Xander walked through the door. He gave him a thumbs up. "So, do you want me to text you the address or do you remember it? I'm not home now, but I should be by the time you get your rental car and make the drive."
"I remember. Cute neighborhood, perfectly trimmed bushes." Archer laughed.
"That's it." Carter grinned. "Okay, I'll see you when you get there."
"Thanks again." Archer ended the call.
Carter shoved his phone in his pocket and headed into the kitchen with the others. "Everything good?" He gripped Xander's shoulder.
"Yeah, no problems, but you might want to look into the guy's brother. There was a photo on the nightstand of him and his twin with a young girl standing between them. Nothing improper about the pic, but knowing what we do about Jared, the photo made me wonder if his brother enjoys the same activities. Just give him a quick glance to be sure."
"It'll be first on my list in the morning," Carter assured him. "I'm glad you're home safe. I need to get out of here for a bit, but I'll talk to you soon." He turned to Bryon. "Give me a call if you need me. I'll be back in the morning."
Bryon narrowed his eyes, but just nodded. "Be safe out there."
"I will." Carter hurried for the door before anyone could question him. The problem with always being on the job was when he did want time away, everyone was suspicious. As he got in his car, he thought about how much time he'd spent doing STK work over the last few years. It had consumed his life.
While he loved what he did, he also realized that by diving so deeply into the dark web, hunting pedophiles, he'd used it as a wall to keep his mind off Angel's death. He also hoped that at some point he'd come across her killer through the work they did, but that had been an unrealistic hope. None of the girls killed had ever been found on the dark web. If there were videos or pictures, they weren't being shared. Also, the fact he worked basically with only cases in California, and Angel's killer obviously moved around the United States, made the likelihood that Carter would cross paths with him even more unlikely.
For so long, he'd tried to move forward, forget his pain, and focus on living, but the moment Archer showed up, he was thrust right back into the pain, the memories, the longing for justice, or maybe revenge. He'd managed to hide his grief by focusing on saving others, but the truth was, he was still a mess. He wasn't any better today than he had been the day that they'd come to his door to tell him Angel's body had been found.
He didn't blame Archer. It wasn't his fault. Carter was glad someone cared enough to follow the case, keep it active, and pursue every lead. It was more than the FBI was doing. It wasn't Archer's fault that this was opening wounds he'd only covered and forcing him to face thoughts and memories that he'd tried to lock away. It was all on him, because hadn't dealt with it before. The thing was, how was he supposed to deal? How did you move on after losing a child in such a way? How was he supposed to pretend he didn't know what had been done to Angel? How could he ever close his eyes again and not see her being abused and tortured?
He was her father, and it was his job to protect her, and he'd failed.
Carter pulled into his garage and hurried into the house, forcing his thoughts to the back of his mind. Once inside, he turned on the lights, then rushed down the hall. He hadn't bothered to look in the guest rooms in months, maybe longer. Glad to see the dust build-up wasn't too bad, he made sure the guest bathroom was stocked with clean towels and whatever else Archer might need, then headed into the kitchen to wait.
He glanced at the clock, wishing it wasn't so late. Archer would be tired after his flight, but all Carter wanted to do was dig into the files and information that Archer was bringing with him. He'd emailed a few files, but they weren't anything that Carter hadn't seen before. He hoped Archer really had something new he hadn't seen or thought about yet, but he was going to have to wait until morning to find out.
When he saw the headlights pull into his driveway, he headed out front. "Need a hand?" Carter asked as Archer got out of the car.
"I've got it. I pack light, usually, but I brought a suitcase filled with files this time." Archer hefted a suitcase out of the trunk, then slung a duffle bag over his shoulder. "I think this is the first time in years I've had to check a bag."
"Sorry you had to do that, but I'm excited to see what you brought." Carter gestured Archer inside.
"Then I'll leave this here." He set the suitcase near the couch.
