Page 44 of Dark ’N’ Deadly

Someone like Eric.

Grimacing, she squinted then held up her hand to shield her face from the blaring sunlight peeking through the blinds. Tiger nudged her hand with his wet nose.

“Hey, wait a minute.” The bedroom door was wide open. She’d closed it before going to sleep last night. Okay, so she hadn’t locked it, but she’d definitely closed it and remembered the latch clicking into place. Eric wouldn’t have opened the door, so… No. No way. Then again… “Did you open the door?” When she pointed a finger at Tiger’s brown and black muzzle, he woofed, then spun and trotted proudly from the room.

Tess threw back the covers then got up to inspect the door. Scratch marks were visible on the paint adjacent to the outer handle. She stepped into the hallway to find subtle indentations in the paint on the doorframe’s trim. “That’s something you don’t see every day. A dog that can open closed doors.”

As a K-9, Tiger had to be smart, but clearly, he possessed additional, over-the-top skills. Whoever coined the phrase “cat-burglar” had never met Eric’s dog. Hairy Houdini.

Tiger was nowhere in sight. Eric’s door was also cracked, so she assumed he’d also done his Houdini trick on Eric’s door to let himself out.

Sunlight glinted off the row of framed photos on the wall. She’d walked past them before but hadn’t had the opportunity to take a really good look until now. One photo was of Eric and a woman with the same Nordic features. Golden blond hair, clear light blue eyes, and high cheekbones. Judging from the resemblance, this had to be Eric’s sister, or at least a first-cousin.

Another photo was of Eric and three other men, all wearing the same navy blue slacks and light blue collared shirts with embroidered gold patches. Behind them was a large white sign that said FLETC. With their wide grins and arms draped over their shoulders, their camaraderie was obvious.

“That was taken thirteen years ago,” Eric said, and she nearly jumped. She’d been so focused on the photo that she hadn’t heard him come down the hall. “Right before graduation.”

He wore what must be his day-to-day garb—black cargo pants, a black polo shirt, and the Glock holstered on his belt. Normally, there was so much inherent strength and power intrinsically tied to his aura, but in that moment, there was something unexpectedly vulnerable about his bearing. His eyes were sad, the look in them far, far away.

“Graduation from what?” She wrapped her arms around her shoulders, conscious that all she wore was a thigh-length pink cotton nightie with thin spaghetti straps.

“The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center.”

“What’s that?”

“Where most federal agents take their basic training. It’s in Georgia.”

“Are you still in touch with them?”

He didn’t answer right away, then his jaw clenched so tightly she thought it would crack. “They’re dead.”

She gasped, reaching out to touch his shoulder. Veiled anger radiated from his entire body. “Oh, Eric. I’m sorry.” Then it hit her. “The explosion that hurt you… Is that how they died?”

He gave a tight nod. “Yes, but they didn’t just die. They were murdered.”

The rock-hard muscles in his shoulders tensed. His hand nearest the Glock balled into a tight fist.

“Who did this?” she whispered, her heart going out to him in sudden understanding. He’d lived, but his friends hadn’t.

“The man I asked you and Jesse about.” He took a deep inhale then let it out on a growl. “Harley Gant.”

She jerked her hand from his shoulder, automatically taking a step back. No. Her heart began pounding so loudly she was afraid he would hear it. It isn’t possible. In the time it took for one name to be spoken out loud, her circle of life had shrunk to the size of a pea.

Every muscle in her body went numb. Fate was playing a horrible, horrible trick on her.

“H-how do you know who it was?” Please, please tell me he’s wrong or that he’s just grasping at straws. But a man like Eric didn’t grasp at anything. He attacked it with everything he had.

“Two weeks before the explosion,” he began, “the four of us were team leaders on simultaneous search warrants executed at the homes of several of Gant’s followers. We had probable cause to believe they were in possession of old military hand grenades stolen from a storage bunker. We found the grenades and arrested four men. They refused to implicate Gant. They were scared to death of him.”

I can understand exactly what that feels like.

To this day, she still felt his reach, grabbing at her ankles, threatening to kill her and Jesse’s future.

Tears pricked the backs of her eyes.

Like he killed Eric’s friends.

“While we were inside a restaurant, Gant had a device planted under our vehicle. When we came out, they went to the truck, but I stopped about ten feet away to take a call. As soon as Keith turned the key, the truck exploded. When I woke up in the hospital, my boss told me Keith, Jimmy, and Frank were dead.”