Chapter Ten
Overton paced in front of them. “I remember driving into the park and expecting someone from the research facility to contact me. At first, I thought maybe Pat and Clay were going to take me on the tour, but they left without a word, and I wasn’t about to bring it up to any of the other locals.”
“Do you know the name of the facility?” Sky asked. Maybe she’d visited it.
Overton swiped a hand over his head. “I’m afraid not. That’s one of the reasons for the trip. The government actually expected the Armed Services Committee to fund this secret project without any information. That’s bullshit. I made such a stink over full disclosure that the government set up this clandestine meeting.” He faced Kane. “I’m not even sure how your general friend found out about it.”
“He has his contacts. Are you saying you know nothing about the nature of the project?” Kane asked.
“All I know is it involves national security. Quite top secret.”
Sky had to interject. “You sure this facility is in Savory?”
Overton shrugged. “All I know is that it’s near here.” He staggered and practically fell onto the chair facing them. “Wow. I just had this image rush.”
Kane shot a glance at her. “Image rush?”
Overton waved a hand. “A memory where I was driving my RV, and there were six beautiful women in a van stranded on the side of the road. I pulled over to help them.”
Kane leaned his elbows on his knees in a very masculine pose. The man oozed sex. “What did these women say when you stopped?”
“I can’t remember. Only bits and pieces appear. Nothing solid.”
She had to ask. “Do you think you were abducted?”
“Abducted? That’s ridiculous.” This came out close to a shout.
The man was clearly in denial. “So how would you explain this time loss?”
He rubbed his head. “At first, I thought I’d been in an accident and had amnesia, but nothing hurts. I’ve checked out my body. I have no bruises and don’t have a headache, which means I don’t have a concussion.”
This was different from Dan Joe’s case. He’d had a severe headache.
Kane leaned forward. “You do realize your RV hasn’t left this lot since you arrived?” He held up a finger. “The manager keeps track of everything.”
“That’s impossible.” While his voice was loud, the anger had disappeared.
“Senator, you keep rubbing your leg. You sure you weren’t hurt? Kane asked.
“No. I’m fine.” The Senator dropped his head in his hands. “I’m sorry to have dragged you both out here for nothing.”
Her curiosity won. “Senator, would you mind pulling down your collar?” He lowered his chin, acting affronted, though it wasn’t as if she’d asked him to strip. “I’d like to see if there’s a mark on your neck.”
He lowered the material, and sure as hell, there it was. She shot a satisfied look at Kane.
Kane moved closer and checked out the raised welt. “Looks like a bee sting to me.”
That had been her logic with Dan Joe. “I’m betting it’s an injection site.”
“From?” Kane asked.
She was no doctor. “Whatever they give people to knock them out, and drag them to their vehicle.” That would be consistent with the marks behind the RV.
Kane laid a hand on the Senator’s shoulder. “Given what’s happened, I’m going to stay here with you until we figure out what’s going on.”
He shook his head. “That won’t be necessary.” Overton scratched his neck. “Damn. I don’t remember the bite.”
Sky held up a hand. “Is it possible you were abducted by—?”
Kane swiveled toward her, his dark eyes indicating trouble. “May I speak with you for a moment outside?”
“Sure.” She was tired and not in the mood for a yell fest, but she followed him down the steps. The wind had picked up, and the air was downright cold. “I’m sorry if I stepped out of bounds, but even you have to admit—”
“No. Your conclusions have merit—albeit out there.” He ran a hand down her arm, spreading warmth. “Would you consider working the case with me, as in a full commitment?”
That was totally not what she expected him to say on several levels. “I can’t.”
She jammed her hands in her pockets again. Yes, she wanted to work on a big case, but Kane was dangerous for her.
“Why? This case is big, and the citizens of Savory could be in danger. It needs the highest level of professional expertise, and while I can provide the security and safety, we need your help.”
That sounded like a line of bull to her. “I’m already keeping the citizens of Savory safe. If I work with you full time, who’s going to stop the bar fights, catch the teenage kids doing stupid stunts, or break up the domestic violence?” Look for other alien abductions or monitor the hog races? “Remember, I have to find out who murdered our Air Force man.”
“You can still do that. I’m not asking you to quit your job altogether.”
“I would like to help, but Carl, our detective, is still in the hospital, Elmer hasn’t been feeling well, and Harvey, well, if he had his way, he’d stay at the station doing nothing all day.”
“I need to find out what happened to Overton.”
“I can’t help you.”
“You’re already involved. You’re the one who found the drag marks and the business card behind the RV.”
She shook her head. “Picking up a piece of trash hardly counts as helping with this crime. I was in the right place at the right time.”
He lifted her chin, and her heart tripled in speed. Stop reacting. He’ll leave as soon as this case is solved. “Do you really want to let down the Senator and the US government?”
What could she say that would not make her come off as a traitor to her country? “I’d like to help, but I can’t.”
Kane stepped back and blew into his cupped hands. “The case needs you.”
The case? Not you? “I can’t let down the family of that decapitated man.” Even to her, it sounded lame.
He moved closer and dropped his gaze. “What are you afraid of? I won’t let anything happen to you.”
She withdrew her hands from her pockets and stuffed them under her arms. “Nothing.” She looked up at the stars.
He couldn’t guess how her history affected her behavior. First, her parents died then her adoptive dad emotionally left after her adoptive mother passed away. Next, the man she thought was the love of her life headed off to New York. She knew working closely with Kane would cause her emotions to grow stronger and she wasn’t ready to put herself out there only to be left again.
Kane leaned back and gently placed his hands on her shoulders. “We won’t tell anyone that you’re helping, if that’s what is worrying you.” His voice came low and warm, like a rich cognac.
She stepped out of his grasp. “I’m sorry.”
Before she let him convince her to help, she trotted off toward her car. She half expected him to run after her, but instead his boots sounded on the metal steps leading back inside the RV. Damn. Now she’d messed up everything, but it couldn’t be helped. Everyone would be safer if she stayed away from him.
* * *
Sky’s red taillights flashed, sending a shaft of colored lights across the lot, reflecting off the eyes of a raccoon. Rocks scattered as the forager disappeared behind a trailer.
Kane hated to ask for anyone’s help, especially a woman’s, but he needed Sky’s cooperation if he was going to figure out what happened to the Senator. It wasn’t as if he would ever put her in danger. God help him if that happened.
He wished he understood why Sky had been so reluctant to be part of the team, especially if she thought this case had something to do with aliens. There’d been bags under her eyes, so perhaps with a good night’s sleep, he could convince her to sign on. If not, he’d go to her boss. Surely, he’d want to see one of his officers succeed and get some experience under her belt. Hell, her boss might be willing to do some legwork to find out who the dead man was, especially if it meant Sky might learn something.
Oh, crap. Perhaps Sky was mad at him because he’d interrupted her time with that no good boyfriend. He wasn’t usually one to judge, but Harriet told him Chris didn’t give one hoot about Sky as a person, and that gnawed at his gut something fierce.
For the first time since his wife died, he was attracted to someone—not just physically, but for the woman he knew she could be. It was a shame he lived so far from Savory. With his investigation company in Phoenix to run, a relationship wouldn’t work. He should be happy she liked someone else, but not if that someone was a dick—Harriet’s name for the boyfriend, not his.
“Kane?”
Shit. He’d been daydreaming, something he could ill afford. “Sorry, Senator.” Kane stepped inside.
The Senator faced him. “You don’t have to stay. I’m going to be fine.”
“We’ve been over this before. The General told me you might be in trouble. I don’t know what kind of mess he was referring to, since he couldn’t know that someone would kidnap and then return you, but I’m here to make sure your trip doesn’t have any more hiccups.”
His eyes sparkled as if he was glad Kane wouldn’t take no for an answer. “If you’re going to insist, you might as well call me Paul. I’m having a beer. Care to join me?”
“Sure, but I stop at one.” With Sky gone, he could relax somewhat. Thinking of her, he pulled out his phone and texted her to call him once she arrived home. That might be over-the-top, but that was who he was.
The Senator retrieved two beers from the fridge and handed him one. “I didn’t want to mention this in front of the young lady, but I remembered something else.”
Kane swigged his beer, and the cool liquid soothed his throat. “Tell me.”
“I had sex with four of the six women I met. It’s like I was on some kind of super Viagra pill.”
The beer nearly flew out of Kane’s mouth. “You do realize this was probably a dream?”
Overton chugged over half his drink. “I’m not so sure. If what you say is true, I might not have been in my RV, but the euphoria I experienced couldn’t have been my imagination. Having several pairs of large boobs pressed into my face for hours is something I’m not likely to forget. I can still feel their soft, wonderful pressure on my lips and cheeks.”
He’d be happy with one particular set. “Must be nice.”
“I’ll swear in court they were real.”
“Let’s hope your wife doesn’t find out.” Sore subject, he imagined, but he wanted to understand Paul’s level of faithfulness.
If the Senator could have turned any whiter, he’d be a snow cone. “You can’t tell her. I was out of my mind.”
“So you were drugged?”
“I must have been. My moral compass didn’t even engage. All I could think of was sex. I swear if a group of terrorists had been shooting at me, I wouldn’t have moved away from those women.”
“Not that I believe in it, but maybe the government is conducting experiments in mind control.” Sky and he had talked about that topic. She claimed the government engaged in such practices, and it looked like she might be right—again. Damn it. Why did she have to change her mind about helping now when he needed her the most? She’d been so cooperative, and then bam. He must have done something to make her skittish.
“You’d be surprised what the public doesn’t know,” the Senator said, bringing Kane back to the present. “However, I’m not at liberty to discuss any of it.” Paul waved the bottle. “So are you and Sky a couple?”
Kane spotted the question as an evasive tactic, mostly because he doubted the Senator cared about the answer. However, Kane didn’t want to piss him off by ignoring him. “No.”
“Why not? She’s a real peach.”
“I lost my wife two years ago, and I’m not ready to move on.” And because Sky doesn’t seem interested.
Paul laughed. “Son, I’ve never waited two years between my women.”
Too much information. “My wife was my soul mate, and you only find one of those in a lifetime.” Unless that was a myth.
“That’s total bullshit. I was married twice before I found my Julie. Each of my wives was wonderful in her own way. Unfortunately, my job forced me to be away too much of the time, so they left me. I’ll run for re-election once more then quit. I want to make sure I don’t lose wife number three. She’s the best.”
“I appreciate the advice.”
“Do more than appreciate it. Go after Sky. From the way she looks at you, she likes you.”
“She has a boyfriend.”
Paul chuckled. “She’s not married yet.”
“True, and the guy lives in New York, not in Savory. When I’m ready, I’ll find out from her where she stands.” Or maybe not. He didn’t need the distraction right now.
The Senator shook his head and finished his beer. He stood, winced, and then rubbed his thigh. “I’ll bring you some pillows and blankets. You can bunk out here.” He set the bottle on the counter.
“You sure you’re okay?”
“Yes.” He walked down the hall with a slight limp and returned with the bedding. “See you in the morning, assuming I don’t get taken again,” he said with a laugh.
For a moment, a wistful glimmer filled Paul’s eyes, almost as if he wanted to have sex with those women every day for the rest of his life.
“I’ll make sure nothing happens to you.” Kane turned on the tube and watched the news before shutting off the lights. He glanced at his cell, but there was no return text from Sky. He thought about calling her to make sure she’d gotten home safely, but at this late hour, he didn’t want to wake her. He had no real reason to believe something bad had happened.
Unfortunately, sleep eluded him. He kept thinking of Sky and how she’d actually looked afraid to work with him, but he couldn’t figure out why. Sure, she had to find the name of the dead man, but she had little to go on. No. There was definitely something else going on, and he was damned if he knew.
He draped an arm over his eyes and sighed, giving up on trying to figure out the answers tonight.
* * *
At the sound of a loud motorcycle, Kane jerked awake. Sunlight streamed in the RV and his cell told him it was 7:00 a.m. He’d overslept for the first time in a long time, probably because he’d only fallen asleep a few hours ago. After checking that Paul was still in bed, Kane decided to go for a short run before breakfast. Not only would he have the chance to exercise, he could check out the other trailers for anything suspicious.
After a thirty minute hard run, he slipped back into the motor home just as the Senator stepped from his room.
“You’re back. Good. I think something’s wrong with my leg.” He rolled up his pajama leg enough to expose the bottom half of his thigh. “I was getting dressed when I noticed this lump.”
It was about half an inch in diameter. “Looks more like scar tissue.” Kane wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his sleeve.
“I never had a scar on my leg before. I’d remember.”
“The mark looks old. Perhaps you forgot.”
“It’s new and rather tender. Put your finger here.” Kane did so. “See? It feels like there’s metal under there.”
“It is hard.” A sense of unease crept up his body. “What do you think it is?”
“What I’m about to tell you is classified.”
“My lips are sealed, sir.”
The Senator nodded. “Back in 2009, there was a lawsuit against the CIA claiming they had implanted devices into the noses of unsuspecting people in order to control their behavior.” He dragged a hand through his hair. “Jesus. Maybe my behavior was affected by this… this thing.”
Even though the Senator was parroting Sky’s fears, Kane wasn’t buying it. “Your leg is a little far from your nose.”
“To fool us, the government might have put it elsewhere. I want to get this out.” The Senator paced. “Now, and you’re going to help me.”