She hadn’t found God and faith until she’d met Willa. And the idea of sharing her faith with a man was even more foreign. Her life before, with Tim, hadn’t revolved around God.
But the knowledge that Ryker actually believed in the power of prayer reassured her in a way nothing else did.
God must have a plan for him. For them.
She just needed to be patient until she understood what that plan entailed.
Ryker hated leaving Olivia behind, even though he knew in his heart it was the right thing to do. There was no doubt in his mind that Duncan would protect Olivia, the baby and Aaron with his life.
He prayed such a sacrifice wouldn’t be necessary.
Keeping his attention focused on the road, he followed the directions to Seth’s home. He’d memorized the location by looking at the map he’d pulled up on the computer in the motel, while Olivia had been in the bathroom.
Thinking of Olivia brought a new surge of guilt. She was becoming far too dependent on him, and that wasn’t good.
The fact that he was just as emotionally involved with her didn’t help. This brief time apart would be good for both of them.
He made sure there were no signs of the mercenaries as he drove toward Madison. The closer he got to the capital city of Wisconsin, the harder it was to figure out if anyone was on his tail.
Seth’s address was in Sun Prairie, which was on the other side of the city. The traffic was crazy busy, often bumper-to-bumper, as he made his way around the city, bypassing the congested downtown area, toward the suburbs.
Finally, he found Bakerville Street and drove past without stopping, taking a quick survey of the neighborhood. It was quiet, without a lot of people around, indicating many of the homeowners might be at work.
After making a large loop around the subdivision, he parked on the street that ran behind Bakerville. On foot, he went through a yard that was overgrown with weeds, then crouched behind a bush to watch the rear of Seth’s house.
There wasn’t any hint of activity within the house or in the surrounding area. Had he come too early? It was the middle of the afternoon, and for all he knew, Seth was one of the mercenaries that had been sent after Olivia.
The thought was depressing. Still, he didn’t move for a full five minutes. Finally, he retreated, after deciding he’d need to return after dark. If Willis wasn’t home then, he’d search the place for any potential clues.
After he was back in the SUV and driving away, Ryker realized he’d jumped on the chance to leave the motel, without considering the possibility that Seth wasn’t home.
Idiot. That was what happened when you let a woman mess with your concentration.
Ten minutes outside of Sun Prairie, he pulled into a parking lot and called Duncan.
“Find him?”
“Not yet. Place looks deserted.” He wondered if Duncan thought he was an idiot, too. “Looks like I’ll need to stick around until later tonight, to go in under the cover of darkness.”
Duncan remained silent, no doubt questioning Ryker’s judgment. “Well, you should come back here, then. Better to work together to come up with a plan.”
Because he liked the idea of returning far too much, he rejected it. “No, traffic through the city was ridiculous. Besides, I want to keep an eye on the place. If Willis shows, I’ll go in and talk to him. I just wanted you to know this will take longer than planned.”
“And you want me to tell Olivia you’ll be delayed indefinitely.”
“Yes.” He inwardly winced. “I’m sorry, Dunc. I know she won’t be happy.”
“We’ll be fine. I’ll pick them up something for dinner.”
His gut clenched. “Don’t leave them alone. Take them with you.”
“Telling me how to do my job, Tillman?” Thankfully, there was a note of wry humor in his tone. “I think I can handle it.”
“Yeah. Sure. I’ll be in touch.” Ryker disconnected before he could make a bigger mess of things.
It had been a long time since he’d done any stakeout work. After leaving the army, he’d done private bodyguard work for a while, then opened his own security business. Different from what the Blake-Moore Group did, Ryker’s job was to enhance the safety measures for private companies.
Not take out anyone perceived to be a threat.
After doing a little more recon, Ryker decided to buy a pair of binoculars and hide out in the tree house located catty-corner from Seth’s house.
An hour later, he was safely settled in the tree house, savoring the partially obstructed view of Seth’s driveway and front door. The garage was out of sight, but if a car pulled into the drive, he’d see it.
Ignoring the discomfort, he watched and waited. Being here like this reminded him of his tour in Afghanistan. The temperature was unseasonably cool for June, which was better than the heat and dust he’d experienced overseas.
Activity in the neighborhood picked up around dinnertime as residents returned home after a long day of work. He was about to give up on Seth ever returning home, when he finally caught a glimpse of a dark blue car pulling into the driveway.
He sharpened the scopes on the binocs and felt a surge of satisfaction when he recognized Seth’s face behind the wheel. The guy glanced nervously over his shoulder, as if sensing Ryker’s gaze, before the car rolled out of sight, presumably into the garage.
Ryker watched for several minutes, hoping to catch a glimpse of Seth through the living room window. But the windows were all covered with blinds in a way that indicated Seth was taking precautions to remain hidden.
Because he was in trouble with the Blake-Moore Group? Or because it was second nature to him, the way it was to any soldier who’d seen combat?
There was no way of knowing for sure, but he hoped there was a way to
