Page 35 of Bait and Switch
“That makes two of us, Deputy.”
Greery shot them both warning looks, and Gabe bit his lips together to stop himself from pointing out that Spurring had started it. Was he twelve at heart?
Was that ever in question?
The two ofthem interviewed Gabe first.
Gabe felt oddly guilty that he didn’t have anything worthwhile to tell them about the shadowy figure or figures he’d seen throwingsomethingand then running away. He’d beendreaming too deeply and hadn’t heard the motorboat arrive or anyone walking on the pier.
Greery was nodding and taking notes while Spurring scowled at him and, Gabe realized, noshed on a fat wad of tobacco.
“That stuff causes cancer, you know,” Gabe said, earning himself an extra toxic glare from the deputy. “Just saying.”
Under the red, white, and blue flashing lights, Spurring’s face looked odd, like something out of a cartoon, puffy and strangely shadowed. On the other hand, he sort of always looked that way, so maybe it wasn’t the lights.
In response, Spurring leaned over and spit onto the ground, leaving a gross brown mark on the already melting snow. Gabe wrinkled his nose. He wasn’t sure if he could like a person less without actively hating them. But he was tired, and the deputy wasn’t worth the effort hate took.
“You can go. Do you have somewhere to stay tonight?”
Gabe glanced at Elton’s truck, lurking on the edge of the scene. At that moment, Bowie popped up to look out of the windshield and Gabe figured Elton had said something to the dog.
“Yeah, I have a place.”
After they were done with Casey, Greery called Gabe back over and spoke to them together.
“Lucky for you that your cat was around,” he told Gabe, a serious expression on his face. “The explosive the perp threw onto your boat was most likely some kind of modified Molotov cocktail. It appears to have hit the far edge of the deck and engaged, but it rolled off into the water before it could really get a fire going. Likely, you surprised whoever it was.”
“He surprised me, too, I have to admit.”
“If we have any more questions?” Greery looked at Gabe. Because, yeah, Casey was not hard to track down.
“You can reach me through Casey or Elton.”
A month ago, he’d never heard of either of them, and now his life depended on their kindness. What the hell was up with that?
I wouldn’t get used to it, but you do you, Chance.
Gabe hadn’t accumulated many belongings in the two and a half weeks he’d been on Heartstone, but what hadn’t been burned to a crispy was drenched and would not be worth the effort of saving. Currently, he wore a parka Casey had loaned him, a pair of sweats that had seen better days, and the long-sleeved t-shirt he’d donned only a few hours ago. No undies or socks. And he smelled like smoke, ash, and fear. The coat was doing its job keeping him warm, but he also now knew just how broad Casey’s shoulders really were.
Fucking broad. Support-the-world broad.
Finally, around O-dark thirty, which was around four in the morning in winter months Pacific time, they were allowed to go home.
The last of the emergency vehicles pulled away, heading back the way they’d come. Gabe narrowed his gaze at his mom’s car.
“Goddamn fucking car keys are vaporized. And my fancy new notebook, dammit all to hell.” For a moment, Gabe felt a stab of true despair. A weird grief he hadn’t allowed himself, not even when Heidi died.
A surprisingly warm hand landed on his shoulder, startling him as well as anchoring him. How was it possible that he felt the heat of it through the fabric of the parka?
“It’ll be fine, Charming.”
Gabe wanted to believe Ranger Man, and it was a bit easier to when he called him Charming.
“Let’s go. Elton is waiting up for us.”
FOURTEEN
Casey
