Page 27 of Secrets Among Us

“You doing okay?” I asked Sadie.

It was the first time we had been alone since we saw the coffee shop in shambles.

She squeezed herself and turned at her waist, looking up at me. “Not really.”

“I feel like I brought this on her. She didn’t deserve this.”

“We don’t know that you were the target. Maybe it was a random burglary,” I told her, realizing I sounded just like my brother trying to placate me.

Her brow arched slightly, and her glorious eyes lit up. “You don’t believe that for a second.”

I shook my head with a low growl of a chuckle. “No, I don’t.”

Sadie picked up the broom that Melanie had left propped on the table and began sweeping all the shattered glass.

“Here, let me do that.” I pulled the broom away and took over as she walked over to Melanie, giving her another hug.

My brother watched me from the entrance and smiled. “Melanie’s holding up pretty well.”

I glanced at Melanie holding her head while Sadie comforted her.

“If you say so.”

A van pulled up out front with a glass and mirror logo, and the passenger got out of the van.

He saw me through the open door and waved. “Hey, we’ll take care of all that. We have an industrial vacuum.”

I nodded, taking the broom to the back room, and glanced around the storage space. Nothing looked disturbed or out of the ordinary on a shelf where some bags of beans had been tipped over. I spotted the small open safe behind the metal shelving rack, which struck me oddly. Whoever came in search of that safe would have needed to know where it was located.

I set the broom and dustpan against the wall and looked around the space.

Something didn’t feel right.

There was a small mirror behind me on the wall, a sketch of a coffee bean next to it, and a few scuffs on the paint from being in a storage room.

“Hey, Zack.” Ian walked in and glanced around. “This room fared a lot better than out there.”

I nodded and pointed to the safe. “Odd that someone knew where the safe was.”

Ian walked over to the bags of coffee beans that would have blocked the view of the safe. “Maybe it’s an old employee from the previous owner.”

“Maybe.” I shrugged, hearing fresh voices out front.

Ian and I walked out to see Elena and her husband surveying the damage.

Elena’s gaze caught mine, and I pressed my lips together in a fine line and nodded.

She obviously thought the same thing I did.

“Hey, Jaxson.” I walked over to Elena’s husband. “Good to see you.”

“It would be nice if our family get-togethers didn’t always involve some element of nefarious activity.” Jaxson’s dark brows rose as he laughed.

I shook my head as Sadie walked over to her sister. “Beggars can’t be choosers.”

“We’re headed over to the police station. The officer had something he wanted to share with us,” I explained quietly. “Did you want to come?”

Jaxson nodded. “Absolutely.”

---