It was 4:00 a.m. and no sign of Bran. She pressed the phone against her ear with a shaking hand. “Who’s calling?”
“Jessie, this is Chase Garrett.”
“Oh, God, what’s happened? Is Brandon...is he okay?”
“He’s all right. He’s in a holding cell at the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office. He only got one call so he used it to phone me. He knew you’d be worried. He gave me this number, asked me to call and tell you what’s going on.”
Her heart was beating a thousand miles an hour. “Why is he in jail? What happened?”
“He picked up Wayne Coffman and turned him over to the sheriff’s detective in charge, but the cops need proof Coffman murdered Petrov. Bran thinks the guy has used the murder weapon before. He thinks Tank’s arrogant enough not to toss his piece after a hit. If he’s right, he’ll probably be okay.”
“And if it isn’t the same gun?”
“Then we got a problem. So far no charges have been filed, but they can still hold him for forty-eight hours, and unless something turns up, it looks like that’s what they’ll do. I talked to Reese. He’s lining up an attorney, but we can’t get him bailed until they formally arrest him. Just stay where you are, and I’ll keep you up-to-date on what’s going on.”
“Thank you, Chase. I really appreciate the call.” The line went dead but Jessie was already out of bed and moving around the room, getting dressed and packing her things.
She needed to help Bran, and to do that, she had to get to Fort Carson. She hurried out of the room and down the hall into Brandon’s bedroom. His gear bag was gone, the room empty except for his shaving kit and his carry-on. She tossed the kit into his bag, zipped it up and towed it and her own bag down the hall. Then she went into the kitchen to call an Uber and leave a note for Ty.
He must have heard her moving around because he appeared in the doorway in a pair of sweatpants and a white cotton T-shirt. His hair was mussed, and he needed a shave.
“What’s going on?”
“Bran’s been arrested. I’ve got to get to Fort Carson. I know someone there who can help. My car is parked at the Denver Airport. It’s been there since I flew to Dallas. I’ve already called an Uber.” There was a chance her Honda Accord had been bugged along with her purse. But most of the time, the car was locked in the garage she rented under her building, so there was a chance it wasn’t. Either way, it was a risk she had to take.
Ty shook his head. “No way I’m letting you go by yourself.”
“Bran needs help. I don’t have any choice.” She reached over and touched his arm. “No one knows I’m in Denver and once I get to the base, I’ll be all right. You have two darling kids who need you. That’s what you have to think about.”
“I’ll drive you to the airport. My mother-in-law can watch the kids. I’ll tell Vera it’s an emergency. She thrives on excitement. She’ll be right over.”
Clearly, he wasn’t going to back down. She sighed. “All right, if you’re sure it’s okay.”
“Vera’s great. It’ll be fine.”
Thirty minutes later the kids had a sitter, and she and Ty were on their way to the long-term parking lot at the Denver Airport where her Honda Accord was parked.
“So...are you going to call Hallie?” she asked as Ty’s Subaru pulled into the lot.
He smiled. “She gave me her number, so yeah. I liked her. I’d really like to see her again.”
Jessie grinned. “That’s great.”
Her white car was covered with a fine layer of dust, dimpled by rain. Ty loaded the bags into the trunk and closed the lid.
“I need to look for a bug,” she said.
“Seriously?”
But she was already searching beneath the bumper and along the side of the car. Ty started checking the other side, feeling along underneath. “Didn’t find anything,” he said. “But they can be hard to locate.”
She felt a little better. “We did our best, now I have to go.”
“Fine, but there’s been a change of plans.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’m following you down. It’s only ninety minutes. I’ll be back before the kids leave for school. I’ll be armed, and if someone gives you trouble, I’ll be right behind you.”
She smiled broadly. “I’d be stupid to turn down an offer like that, and I’m