after graduation.
She knew a lot about Denver and Colorado Springs, but very little about the town of Alamo and the area around the army Depot. Jessie went back over the crime links she had Googled, hoping something would click in regard to the theft, but nothing seemed remotely connected to stealing chemical weapons.
Yawning, she packed up the computer so she would be ready to travel in the morning. Stripping off the long-sleeved pink T-shirt and soft brown leggings she had changed into, she headed for the bathroom to brush her teeth, then went to bed.
After the drama of the day—being followed from the airport, being shot at, meeting Brandon Garrett and his friends, and escaping a possible tail, she should have been exhausted, and she was. Still, she couldn’t seem to fall asleep.
Every time she started to drift away, she saw Bran’s perceptive blue eyes and wondered what he thought of her. Wondered if he found her attractive. It had been months since she had been interested in a man. After Jordy, none of her attempts at a normal relationship had worked out, and eventually she had just given up.
But Bran intrigued her. She knew what it took to become a Special Forces soldier. Knew Danny and Bran had both been Delta operators, the most elite soldiers in the world. You had to be way beyond smart, had to speak several languages and pass a battery of physical and mental tests. Their missions were so top secret it was as if Delta soldiers didn’t actually exist.
She also knew that getting involved with Bran on a personal level was a terrible idea. He was exactly the heartbreaker Danny had warned her about. He was also ex-military, an adrenaline junkie who loved to be in the middle of the action. Guys like that never changed. Just as before, her judgment sucked.
As she plumped her pillow and tried to get comfortable, Jessie vowed that for once she would take her brother’s very sound advice and keep her distance from Bran.
Unfortunately, now that they were working together, it would be nearly impossible to do.
Two hours later Jessie still lay awake. The sound of wind racing past the windows was usually comforting, but tonight it seemed ominous instead of relaxing, sending her thoughts back to the shooting and what she and Bran might face ahead.
Since she badly needed some sleep, she pulled on her short white terry cloth robe and padded down the hall toward the kitchen, hoping to find some chamomile tea or warm a cup of milk. The door to Bran’s study stood open, and she spotted him still sitting behind his computer.
He glanced up as she paused in the doorway. “Couldn’t sleep?” he asked. His hair was mussed, and the shadow of a beard darkened his jaw.
Jessie shook her head. “You either, I guess.”
“No. Come on in.”
She walked over to the desk. “What are you working on?”
“I’ve been going over the file you gave me.” He tapped the thin manila folder. “I was hoping to find more in it.”
“I wish I had more. The truth is, I waited too long to start digging. My dad’s death hit me hard, especially after losing Mom and Danny. I couldn’t seem to pull myself together. Once I did, I got angry. I knew in my heart Dad wasn’t guilty. That’s when I went to work.”
Bran rose from his chair, file in hand. “Since we’re both still awake, we might as well get started.”
Jessie followed him over to a sleek dark walnut meeting table in the corner surrounded by four matching chairs. A fire flickered in the gas fireplace built into one wall. They each pulled out a chair and sat down.
Bran opened the file. “I read the initial report of the investigation—brief as it is.”
“It’s brief because the CID asked for an extension to delve more deeply into the charges.” CID stood for Criminal Investigation Division Command, like the FBI of the military. “Because of the seriousness of the crime and the threat it posed to national security, my dad was confined to the military stockade while the balance of the investigation was completed.”
“It says here, a civilian employee who works for Weidner, guy named Charles Frazier, discovered the missing munitions. The details have been redacted in the copy of the report you received.”
“It’s classified. As I said, being an outsider, it’s hard to get information. They don’t want anyone to know the quantity of chemical weapons that were stolen.”
“According to this, Frazier was a