“I can’t believe this.”
“We can’t all write for the Style section.”
“Funny.”
Tanner looked down at his plate. Christ, Arthur could get anyone’s goat up.
“Seems like it’s time for you to get your hands dirty, Mermaid. Tanner will need a lookout. I think you should go with him.”
His head shot up. “Absolutely not.”
“You said they won’t expect it,” Arthur reasoned. “Besides, there’s an even better reason for you to go there tonight.”
Tanner stilled. “What?”
Arthur chewed his steak and held up a finger. The man had a flair for the dramatic. “They took Ray’s car there around closing time—or so a source told me. Seems strange since it’s totaled, don’t you think? Usually cars in that condition go straight to the junkyard once the police release them.”
Tanner wouldn’t even ask for his source. “Who released it?”
“Our deputy sheriff. That confirms your thinking about Barlow, but it doesn’t prove anything. It’s another thread to pull as we build our case. When does your sister arrive?”
“Wednesday night.”
They’d argued about her and Keith’s plans to visit for Thanksgiving. Peggy didn’t care about his concerns for their safety. She assured him they would be fine. Besides, she needed to pick the drugs up for testing. No one knew she was a cop, so there was no need to worry. They’d be careful. Like the Hales, Peggy was stubborn.
Arthur made a humming noise when he tasted the mashed potatoes. “I found out something else. Kenny and Barlow went to college together. University of Colorado.”
“How’d you find that out?” Meredith broke her bread roll in half.
“I have my ways. They’ve held jobs in two places over the past seven years. Started in Boulder after school. Met up again in Loveland three years later. And now they’re here in Dare. Oh, and Kenny received a dishonorable discharge in Afghanistan. I’m waiting on the file.”
“Why would they keep going to smaller towns?” Meredith asked.
Tanner gave up eating. “Perhaps they wanted to keep a low profile. A small town is a good place to operate, especially if you have a corrupt cop in the mix.”
“Or maybe their operations fell apart in the other towns.” Meredith pushed her food around her plate. “Do I even want to know where you got your listening devices?”
Tanner shook his head. “I don’t like the idea of you coming.”
“You don’t have a choice,” she said in a flat voice. “I’ll only follow you.”
He cursed under his breath.
Arthur chuckled. “Good to see your spirit back, girl. You always were a firecracker, but I was afraid your time in New York might have sucked it out of you. Does anyone want coffee with dessert?”
Tanner declined. He would be jittery enough doing a B&E with Meredith along for the ride.
“Trying to think of a way out, son?” Arthur pushed back from his chair.
In response, Tanner just folded his hands and glared.
“You’re stuck with us. Bring your plate to the kitchen. Everyone works in this house.”
Tanner picked up the gold-edged china. “Aren’t you worried something could happen to your granddaughter?”
“You’ll protect her.”
“Don’t talk about me like I’m not here,” Meredith said. “I can take care of myself.”
“Glad you remembered that.” Arthur bent to kiss her cheek.
“She’s not wearing black,” Tanner observed even though he knew it was a lame excuse. “You need to wear black for recon.”
“You can swing by my place. Let me change.”
“Do you have an answer for everything?”
“Yes. Isn’t it maddening?”
Arthur put his arm around Meredith. “Come slice the pastry, dear.”
Tanner followed them into the kitchen. He’d never had a partner before, he realized.
It was overrated.
Chapter 33
Nerves and excitement had Meredith’s feet bouncing in Tanner’s SUV as they drove to Dare Auto Care. And, well, a healthy dose of fear, if she were being completely honest. She and Tanner kept glancing over their shoulders to make sure they weren’t being followed. He’d been driving around for a while. So far they were in the clear.
Now she really felt like she was in a Nora suspense book. She needed to channel Jack Burdett, the security expert adept at breaking and entering in The Three Fates. What did it matter if he was the hero and not the heroine?
“You should go home,” Tanner snarled. “I don’t need you here.”