Love Inspired Suspense April 2021--Box Set 2 of 2 Laura Scott (speed reading book .txt) đ
- Author: Laura Scott
Book online «Love Inspired Suspense April 2021--Box Set 2 of 2 Laura Scott (speed reading book .txt) đ». Author Laura Scott
âDid you contact the parents?â Colt asked.
Mae sighed. âJohn Rellsâs father has dementia and his mom has passed on. Carter Wagonerâs parents had no comment.â Mae rolled her eyes. âWeâve contacted six more players and families who used that address over the past ten years. âI have no commentâ is the running theme. Itâs not like we can bring any heat on them to talk. Theyâre not facing any major charges, and I imagine Reggie Leeway is their lawyer and heâs let them know not to comment.â
âWho did the elusive James Kreger purchase the land from?â Colt asked.
Mae wiped her mouth. âWillard Blake. Owned it for over thirty years. Probably used it as hunting land. But when he got sick, he sold it. Talked to his niece, but she canât say much about the sale other than it happened. He passed not long after.â
âLoyalty goes a long way,â Colt said. âCoaches are kings, and these players and families will feel as though they owe them. Who knows how big this thing truly is?â
Georgia wondered the same thing. Big enough that people were dying for it. Families may have been threatened to keep their mouths shut, and if they had gotten wind of Dandyâs death and Georgiaâs attacks, theyâd believe whoever threatened them would make good on it.
âAny word from the NCAA on Coach Jackson?â
âTheyâre investigating but havenât made a ruling.â Rhett finished his sweet tea and tapped his fingers on the table. âIâm going to follow up again. Donât want them getting lax.â
Halfway through their meal, Colt leaned in. âIâm going to go rattle a few cages.â
What was one more rattle when Georgia had already shaken the cage and gotten it rocking? âWait.â She was scared, intimidated and terrified, but these guys were not going to know it. Even if she was bluffing, they needed to know she wasnât backing down. Jared and Dandy would receive justice. Time to fake being brave. âIâll go with you.â
United front.
Colt frowned. âI donât know. If one of them is your attacker, fueling the fire probably isnât wise.â
âOne of them shot you, and youâre not backing down.â
âItâs my job.â
âWell, I donât want them to think theyâve succeeded in scaring meâeven if they have.â
Colt held her stare, then conceded. âUnderstood. Put on a brave face, but leave the rattling of cages to me.â
âFine.â
âI mean it, Georgia. No ruffling feathers. Youâve already got someone molting.â He smirked, but his eyes meant business.
Whatâs the worst that could happen? She could make them even madder and they could attack her again. Can I live with that? She was living with it now and she trusted Colt to do his job, though she feared heâd get hurt again. God is my source of strength and my shield. Heâs my strong tower, and Heâs my safe place. She repeated the good thoughts to replace the negative ones all the way to the menâs table.
As they approached, the laughter and conversation died down and a mixture of contempt, confusion and annoyance crossed their expressions.
âHello again,â Colt said. âEnjoying lunch?â
âWe are,â Coach Flanigan said. âYâall?â
âDefinitely. Hey, curious. Which one of yâall owns 4214 Pine Road?â
Coachâs eyebrows lifted, Sunny stared at his plate and Terry Helms laughed. âProperty ownership is public record, Colt. Not very good investigator skills going for you there.â
Coltâs jaw ticked. âSee, the thing is one of you are hiding behind James Kreger. Just wondering which one of you it is.â
âFinancials are a little more difficult to crack into,â Terry said over the rim of his sweet tea.
âAnd youâd know,â Georgia blurted. His verbal swing at Colt fired her up. âYou are the bank president. I imagine if we dug hard enough, weâd see that the land was purchased with a loan at your bank. Youâre a booster. You have everything to lose, Terry, if we find out youâve been committing fraud and funneling money and false loans through dummy names. Youâd be out a job and that nice big house, speed boatsâpluralâgreat cars and all the time you spend at the country club are going to fade away.â
Well, she hadnât meant to go that far. She dared a peek at Colt. The big vein in his neck was protruding.
Terryâs smug smile faded, and a heavy dose of fear filmed his gray eyes. Good. It was high time someone other than Georgia felt afraid. âAnd if we find out you killed Jared and Dandy and attempted to murder meâyouâll spend the rest of your life in a prison cell. Not a country club.â
âWhoa, now.â He raised his palms in surrender. âI didnât kill or try to kill anyone.â
âBut you are involved in illegal recruiting.â
Colt pinched the bridge of his nose. She was stopping. Right now.
âIâm not,â he insisted. âSo I suggest you lower your voice and stop making accusations, Miss Maxwell. Or the only one whoâs going to regret it is you, when I sue you for defamation of character.â
Colt stepped in front of Georgia. âI suggest you watch your threat, Mr. Helms. And weâll be seeinâ you. All of you.â He placed his hand firmly on Georgiaâs lower back and all but shoved her out the front door.
Outside, he threw his hands in the air. âGeorgia. Did we not just talk about how to approach those men?â
âHe hit you below the belt, Colt. All the fear...it turned to anger and I lost it. Iâm sorry.â
âAre you?â
âMostly.â She tried a smile, but it didnât hit its mark.
Colt scowled and massaged the back of his neck. âQuit worrying about me. I can take care of myself. If you canât follow my lead, Iâm taking you off the case as a consultant. This isnât an episode of Castle.â
âI kicked a beehive. Again. I really am sorry.â
Colt glanced toward the restaurant. âI hate how it went down, but sometimes you have to be willing to feel
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