Expired Cache - Lisa Phillips Page 0,66

a job. I’m a licensed counselor, not a security specialist.” He gave his brother a squeeze.

“So you’re just doing it because of Ellie.”

“Honestly?” Dean didn’t know why he was asking. They’d made a pact long ago to only tell each other the truth. “Yeah. She’s a special woman, and I wanted to get to know her better while she’s here.”

“Why, if she’ll only leave again?” Deep hurt flashed in Ted’s eyes.

Dean said, “Sometimes people don’t leave. Like me…the last few years.”

“She does seem nice.”

“I know she’s not your type. You don’t have to pretend you like her.”

“She cares about Jess. Why wouldn’t I, just because she’s probably smarter than me?”

“You think so?”

Ted shrugged. “Jess told me about her, so I looked up some of the papers she’s written about World War 1. She is really smart. I’m surprised she doesn’t have a Ph.D. yet.”

“Huh.” A woman who appreciated military history? He should look them up himself. Get to know her professional side as well as her personal side. Before Ellie and Jessica showed back up, he had to ask his brother a question. “Is everything okay with you and Jess?”

Ted started to roll his eyes.

“You need to talk to me.”

“Sure, counselor.”

“I’m not a prosecutor. And I don’t want to be your therapist, Ted.” Dean sighed. “I just want you to open up to someone.”

He needed to be Ted’s brother, not his shrink. Dean wanted their relationship to be normal and not fraught with minefields he was trying to work around.

How’s that working for you?

Ted pushed out a breath. “She and I… I thought it was going somewhere, but maybe I was wrong. We have to work together, so there’s no point making things harder for both of us by complicating it. Now isn’t the time to get personal.”

It seemed like the whole police department was working on the case to take down a local bad guy who went by the name, “West.” He’d only put those two things together recently, from what Stuart had told him. The dead biker had been working for West. Maybe even trying to get out from under his thumb.

A bad guy.

One who had connections with whoever was targeting Ellie.

Dean said, “Conroy and Mia seem to have managed to find a balance between work and their personal lives.”

“Sure, because everything is going fine for their relationship.”

“Ah. So you do want a relationship with Jess.” Dean grinned like he wasn’t taking any of this seriously.

“I’m not Conroy. And Jess is definitely not Mia.” Ted shrugged.

“It’ll work out.” He didn’t want to ask this question. “Anything on Dad?”

The skin around his brother’s eyes flexed. An involuntary wince. “I found an arrest warrant in Nevada. If we see him, we need to tell Conroy.”

He almost seemed relieved. And scared of their father—which Dean had known. He figured Ted had been strong armed into working one of the old man’s schemes. Or many. Who knew how young he’d recruited Ted?

Yet, every email Dean had sent home to check in with him, Ted had replied that it was all fine. Everything was good. Nothing to worry about. As though that was all supposed to convince him not to worry.

Their father didn’t have the first clue about email. So why had Ted lied to him? Unless he was ashamed. Or he thought Dean didn’t know what their father was. Was it worse than I even knew?

Ted’s attention snagged on something else. They watched Jess walk over, hanging up the phone. She said, “The arson inspector is on his way.”

Dean nodded. “The blaze got seriously hot very quickly.” Not to mention the broken window, and the smell. “I’m thinking it’d been deliberate. Where’s Ellie?” He turned and scanned. There were so many people all over the front yard. Cops, spectators. First responders who’d wanted to see to him.

Dean was fine.

Or he would be if he knew where she was.

“Ellie didn’t come back around the house?” Jess twisted to look around as he’d done. “I didn’t see her. I assumed she ditched me while I was on the phone and came back over—”

Dean took a deep breath and yelled, “Sergeant Basuto!”

Ted and Jessica both flinched. The sergeant trotted over. “What is it?”

“I need everyone to look for Eleanor Ridgeman.” Dean didn’t waste any time heading for the side of the house.

Until someone grabbed his elbow. Dean swung around to find the doctor.

“What is it?”

“We just need to find Ellie. That’s all.”

The doctor gasped. “She’s missing?” Not the first time Dean had seen him overact.