He sent back a simple text. You think?
It was interesting that Badger didn’t have any expectation of him doing anything but getting safely back to his truck because that was what they did. Survive.
Chapter 16
Daniela couldn’t keep the smile off her face for the rest of the afternoon. Back home, she had a shower, washed her hair and couldn’t believe how excited she was at the thought of going out on a date. She went through half-a-dozen outfits in her closet before finally settling on a simple dress and heels. It was nice and summery, and she could wear it with a sweater or even a nice jacket to head off the evening’s chill. Satisfied with that, she hung it up on the outside of the closet, and, with her hair wrapped in a towel, and Sari at her feet, playing with her scarves, Daniela set about doing a quick facial mask. When her phone rang, her face was covered in gunk, but she laughed and picked up the phone anyway. “Hello?”
“I want my daughter back,” Angel said.
“She’s my daughter,” Daniela said calmly, though inside, her heart slammed against her ribs. “It’s all legal and aboveboard, Angel. You don’t get any callbacks on this one.”
“You say it’s all legal,” she said, “but I know my brother. He was a lousy lawyer. I’m sure he missed something.”
“I don’t think so. Did you kill your brother because he wouldn’t help you get Sari back?”
Nothing but silence came on the other end of the phone. Then Angel snapped, “You don’t have a clue what you’re talking about.”
“No, maybe not, but I’ll defend my daughter to the death,” she said. “Just remember. She’s my daughter, not yours. You gave up all rights to her.” She didn’t know where her bravado came from; she just knew how important it was that she maintain it.
“That’s not fair,” Angel said. “I didn’t know what I was doing.”
“No. You did know. That’s the thing. Back then you knew exactly what you were doing and couldn’t get it done fast enough. The sad part is, for whatever reason, you’ve come back to try to change it now. But, Angel, despite what you say, I don’t believe for one minute it has anything to do with your maternal instincts or your concern for Sari’s best interests.”
“I need her,” Angel said, and a certain amount of urgency was evident in her voice.
Frowning, Daniela said, “What for?”
“You wouldn’t understand,” she said, “but I have to have her.”
“No. She is not a pawn for whatever game you’re playing.” With that, Daniela hung up.
Shaking, her hands trembling badly, she dropped the phone on the bed and sank down beside Sari. Knowing she might scare her little girl, Daniela resisted the temptation to hug her and just curled around Sari and watched while she played with the scarves, rolling around and laughing. Daniela didn’t know what she’d do if anything happened to little Sari.
Daniela’s heart was completely overwhelmed with the idea of Angel being a threat. It never occurred to her at the time of the adoption that something like this would happen. Of course it should have. She must have had at least some inkling that Angel wasn’t completely stable. It was one of the reasons why they’d been happy to pay for Angel’s flight to Vegas, just to get her out of Alaska.
But now Angel was back.
Daniela had promised to let Weston know if she heard from Angel, so she picked up her phone and called him. When he answered, his voice was distracted.
“I just heard from Angel again,” she said. “She said she needs Sari. Not that she loves her or misses her or anything like that. Just that she needs her and that I wouldn’t understand.”
An odd silence came on the other end before he said, “Make sure you stay inside with the doors locked, okay?”
“Okay,” she said, “but now you’re scaring me. Why?”
“Listen. Don’t panic, but I’m pinned at Ginger’s accident site. Somebody is shooting at me,” he said. “I don’t know what the hell Angel is doing, but I’m not in a position to head that way just yet. But you call me if there’s even a hint of trouble. If somebody tries to steal my daughter, I will be there no matter what,” he said.
“Oh, my God, Weston,” she said. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” he said with a broken laugh. “I’m fine. Shambhala’s here too, and we’re both fine. I’m just waiting for him to disappear or to come after me.”
“Why would you say that?” she asked.
“Well, because it’s got to stop,” he said. “So this guy has to come to see if he’s taken me out, which is a dangerous move, or else he’ll retreat. But then he won’t know for sure.”
“You have no idea who it is?”
“No,” he said. “I’m at the accident site where Ginger and supposedly Grant died. I was just coming up the hill to get back to the truck when somebody started shooting.”
“And you think it’s Grant or his brother?”
“I have no clue,” he said, “but I don’t want to miss anything here, so I’ll get off the phone now. Go lock up the doors and windows, then stay put. I’ll check in soon.” With that, he hung up.
She went downstairs to lock the front door. As she checked the windows, she wondered if she should just cancel the date tonight. Safety was paramount, and she didn’t want to put her sister in a difficult situation either. She hesitated making the call, thinking she would give it some time, see what would happen.
Just twenty minutes later, her phone rang. She snatched her phone, hearing Weston’s voice as soon as she picked it up. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” he said in a cheerful voice. “The guy’s gone.”
“But that means you don’t know who it was, right?”
“No, but the detective is here. We’re taking fingerprints off my rented vehicle. I looked for but didn’t
