Say Goodbye (Romantic Suspense #25) by Karen Rose

            Daisy and Gideon shared an uncomfortable glance. “I’m not supposed to be here right now,” Gideon said. “I’m recused.”

            “I’ll tell him,” Liza said. Having an appointment for a tattoo would make a good reason to cut her conversation short. “Are you going to stay here? Or go get some food or something?”

            “We’re staying,” Gideon said firmly. “No way are we leaving you alone. Go ahead and call Tom. We’ll have your back if he gets angry with you like Irina said he did this morning on the telephone.”

            “Let him even try,” Daisy added. “He’ll be sorry he decided to tangle with me.”

            The thought of five-foot-nothing Daisy facing off against six-foot-six Tom was enough to make her grin. “That is exactly the image I needed today, Daisy. You, fists on your hips, glaring up at Tom. I think he’d be quaking in his boots, quite honestly.”

            Daisy grinned back. “As he should. But I hadn’t planned to personally confront him. I just took a page from his book and got one of these.” From a pocket in her jacket she produced a flip phone. “It’s a burner. Got it at Walmart. The FBI won’t be able to track us back to Sergio.”

            “Seriously, Daisy?” Gideon asked. “What have you used it for?”

            “Nothing. This is its inaugural call. I like carrying it. Makes me feel all clandestine.”

            Gideon’s smile was fond. “You’re impossible.”

            Liza took the phone, completely impressed. “I’m just glad you’re on my side.”

            “Many people say this,” Daisy said loftily.

            Liza laughed softly. “Thanks, guys. I appreciate it.”

            Daisy winked at her. “That’s what family’s for. Make your call.”




BENICIA, CALIFORNIA

            THURSDAY, MAY 25, 4:00 P.M.

            “It’s empty,” Croft said, peering into a window of the Belmonts’ rental home.

            Tom joined her after taking a walk around the perimeter of the house. “Basement too.”

            They’d come up empty on their search for members of the Chicos gang. The local PDs knew of them, but no one knew any names or locations where they might hide out. The gang, which seemed to have ceased recruiting new members, stayed under the radar through both skill and intimidation. Every cop they’d asked requested they share any information they dug up.

            A call to Raeburn yielded his agreement that they should at least check DJ’s surviving family off their list of suspects, so they’d made the hour drive to Benicia, a quiet community northeast of Oakland. But if DJ was here, he was hiding his presence well.

            Tom wanted to sigh. It was more likely that DJ hadn’t been hiding here and didn’t intend to.

            Croft patted his shoulder as they returned to the SUV. “Don’t look so glum.”

            “I wasted our time,” Tom said when they’d closed the SUV’s doors. “You were right.”

            “Nah.” Croft clicked her seat belt into place. “It wasn’t a bad guess and we needed to check it out, especially since this was the address listed on his missing-person report.” Tom had sent his Eden file to her phone and she’d refreshed her memory by reading it aloud as they’d made the drive. “This was the last place he lived before Eden. He might have remembered it. Look, kid, most of the job is paperwork, checking off things that aren’t relevant, chasing dead ends, and waiting for new leads. Didn’t they teach you that at the Academy?”

            “I thought they were exaggerating,” he muttered.

            Croft chuckled. “Nope. Let’s check off another box by talking to DJ’s aunt and uncle.”

            “Waylon’s brother and sister-in-law,” Tom agreed. “They seemed to be telling the truth when I met them a month ago, but I’m interested in your take.”

            “Merle Belmont is Waylon’s younger brother,” Croft said, referring to the Eden file on her phone. “Unlike Waylon, who spent time in the federal pen, Merle’s kept his nose clean. He’s had a few traffic tickets, but nothing more than that. He might think he’s doing a good deed, giving his nephew a place to hide. The missing-person report says that DJ’s mother disappeared at the same time as DJ. Only a few months after Waylon went to Eden. Did Amos tell you anything about how DJ got to Eden?”