Christmas Haven (19 page)

“Pretty good, considering.”

“A lot of excitement last night.”

“More than I’m used to. Where’s Lana?”

“Up and gone already. Can you believe it? She was determined to open the snack shop.”

“Her ankle must be hurting.”

“She doesn’t show it.”

Julie admired her sister for not missing a beat, for her determination not to let anything throw her off track. It inspired her to refocus on her own situation to discover who was threatening her and how to stop it.

“Where’s Morgan?” Julie asked.

“Went to check in at work. He’ll be back. Wouldn’t miss cinnamon French toast.”

Mom and Julie sat down to breakfast. It amazed Julie how the taste of Mom’s cooking could make everything right. Home. Family. She realized how much she’d missed this feeling in the past ten years.

A few minutes later Morgan came into the kitchen.

“Ladies,” he greeted.

“Morgan, let me fix you a plate.” Mom stood.

“I’ll get it,” he said.

“Nonsense. Sit down and talk to us.”

Morgan sat down next to Julie and Mom slid a plate of French toast in front of him, along with a mug of hot coffee. “Busy morning already?”

“Just wrapping some things up.”

“Wrapping up?” Julie asked.

“Work stuff, boring.”

Julie sensed something was up.

“Well, I’d better change into my work clothes,” Mom said. “Caroline’s coming over and we’re starting on the kitchen. I hope you trust us, Morgan.”

“You’ve done great work on the living room so far.”

“I’m glad you like it. And after the kitchen we’re going to decorate for Christmas, so either you tell us where the decorations are or we’ll all pitch in and use our own.”

Morgan sighed. “You win. There are two boxes marked Christmas out in the garage by the workbench.”

“Perfect.” Mom left them alone and Julie turned to Morgan.

“What’s going on? You seemed, I don’t know, unusually quiet last night.”

Morgan put down his fork. “A few things concern me about the events of last night. Mostly the motorboat Scott and I heard speeding away from the island. It’s unusual for someone to be out there at night.”

“You think it’s related to my case?”

“Not sure. Scott and I went back early this morning to check things out. The hole your sister fell into had been camouflaged, which is why she didn’t see it.”

“Was there anything down there?”

“No, which is even more puzzling. I’ve contacted the Feds. My gut tells me this could be related to smuggling something in from Canada, storing it on the island temporarily, then distributing it.” His phone rang and Morgan picked up. “Hey, Scott. Yep…try the bottom drawer of the file cabinet. Don’t worry about that now. You need to focus on administrative tasks. Yep, anytime.”

“What was that about?” Julie said.

Morgan sighed and leaned back in his chair. Julie didn’t like this expression. She sensed he was preparing to give her bad news.

“Morgan?”

“The way the grapevine works in this town, you’re going to find out soon enough.” He shot her a serious look. “I’m taking a temporary leave of absence and Scott’s taking over.”

Julie leaned forward. “What? Why?”

“The mayor’s been on my case, and he’s right—I’m distracted. It’s best that I hand the reins over to someone else for a little while.”

“Morgan, you can’t—”

“It’s done.”

“Because of me. No, I won’t be responsible for you losing your job.” She stood and paced the kitchen.

Morgan got up and went to her, but she continued her pace to keep a safe distance between them.

“I’m not losing my job. I’m just stepping back for a few weeks. I’ve been considering a leave since Dad was hospitalized. It’s not a new concept for me.”

She pulled away from him. “See, this is exactly what I didn’t want to happen. I’ve messed up your life, your dream. It’s not right.”

“It’s what I need to do right now. You are my priority.”

“I’m just going to hurt you again, ruin your career and abandon you.”

Morgan took her hand and pulled her close. “Are you, Julie, really?”

He leaned forward and kissed her. A gentle, sweet kiss that made her want to cry. It felt so right to be held like this, to be kissed with such tenderness. She wanted to break away, to tell him he was making a huge mistake, but something stopped her. She was enjoying the kiss a little too much.

Suddenly her phone rang. He broke the kiss and looked into her eyes. “You’d better answer that. Your sister might need you.”

Gathering her thoughts, she went to her purse and pulled out the phone. “Hello?”

“Miss Burns! They’re gonna kill me!”

THIRTEEN

“W
ho is this?”

“Dane. I escaped but they got Andy and now they’re after me.”

“How did you get this number?”

“From Mr. Pratt.”

She gripped the phone tighter. “Where are you?”

“Seattle, north side.”

“It’s Dane,” she told Morgan.

“Have him call Ethan.”

“Dane, call Detective Ethan Beck. I’ll give you his—”

“No, no cops! They’ll kill Andy.”

“But—”

“Help me, you gotta help.”

“Can you get to the Edmonds Ferry?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

“Take the ferry over to Kingston and we’ll pick you up.”

Morgan waved her off, but she ignored him. Dane was calling for help. She wouldn’t turn him away.

“I’m so scared,” he croaked.

“Take a deep breath. Focus on catching a bus to the ferry terminal. You’ll get to Kingston before us, so just wait in the park.”

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to get you involved in this.”

“In what? What is this about?”

“I gotta go.”

“Dane? Dane!”

Silence echoed back at her. Julie sighed, beating back the worry in her chest.

“I wish you hadn’t told him to take the ferry,” Morgan said.

“You should have heard him. He was out of his mind, terrified. What was I supposed to do?”

“It could be a setup. Whoever is after you could have enlisted the boy’s help to find you.”

“Dane would never do that. He’s in trouble and has no one to turn to. It’s my responsibility to make sure he’s okay.”

“What did he say, exactly?”

“That he’d escaped, but he didn’t say from where.”

“But he wouldn’t speak with Ethan?”

“He’s doesn’t trust cops.”

“Because he’s into something illegal?”

“Enough with the twenty questions. We need to meet him at the ferry.”

“Go tell your mom what’s going on and I’ll call Ethan.”

She kissed his cheek. “Thanks.”

Three hours later Morgan found street parking near the ferry and Julie flung open her door. Morgan placed his hand on her shoulder.

“Hang on. We need to be ready in case it’s a setup.”

“Morgan, I told you—”

“Jules, I know you believe in this kid, but the reality is even if he isn’t a part of a trap, whoever is after him could have followed him onto the ferry. Can you just trust me?”

She nodded in agreement, but he could tell she was distracted, worried about the boy’s safety.

“There’s a coffee shop on the corner,” Morgan started. “I’ll set you up there while I check out the park. You can see everything from the coffee shop. I’ll search for Dane, and when I identify him, you give me the thumbs-up sign. But you stay
back. Do not expose yourself. I’ll try and convince him to come back to the car with me.”

“He won’t trust you, Morgan. You’re a stranger and he’s frightened.”

“Let me worry about that, okay?”

He got out of the car and came around to open her door. Motioning her out, he scanned the area for signs of danger. All clear. He led her to the coffee shop.

“There are plenty of people around. You’ll be safe in here.”

With a nod, she went into the shop and found a spot at the counter overlooking the park.

Morgan crossed the street, continuing to survey the surrounding area. This was the perfect opportunity to flush Julie out of her hiding spot. Using the kid as bait made sense, yet all Julie could focus on was helping Dane.

Morgan admired that about her, her dedication to her job and helping the kids. But Morgan had to teach her to draw the line when it came to sacrificing her safety for another’s.

He searched the park for both Dane and any sign of danger. It was a sunny, yet chilly December morning, so there weren’t many people wandering around. Probably a good thing, since Morgan didn’t want an audience. If Dane refused to go with him, Morgan might have to use gentle force.

More commuters were filing down the ferry ramp, yet Dane should have been here by now. Morgan scoped out the park, but didn’t see any teenage boys, so he walked up to the ticket booth and flashed his badge.

“Did you happen to see a young man, about seventeen, get off the ferry in the last few hours? Maybe he looked nervous or confused?”

“Actually, yeah, a kid like that wandered around for a while. When a police car cruised past, he took off.”

“Which direction?”

“Down, toward the water.”

“Thanks.”

Morgan walked through the park and motioned to Julie to
stay put. The kid was probably looking for a place to hide from authorities, which only confirmed Morgan’s suspicions that he’d broken the law.

Morgan flipped his jacket collar up against the chill and headed down to the rocky shore. As he got closer to the water, he glanced beneath the pylons and spotted a young man hugging his knees, his head buried in his arms, sitting on a large boulder.

“Dane?”

The kid jumped to his feet. “Who are you?”

“Julie sent me.”

“I don’t believe you.” Dane whipped a knife out of his pocket.

“Hey, kid, relax. I’m Julie’s friend and she sent me to get you.”

“Why didn’t she come?”

“She’s here, waiting for you in a coffee shop on the corner. I didn’t want to expose her and put her in danger in case you were followed.”

“I wasn’t, unless you’re with them.”

“I’m not. I live in Port Whisper and Julie and I used to be friends in high school.”

“Prove it, show me your license.”

Morgan pulled out his wallet to slip out his license.

“Wait.” The kid backed up. “That’s a badge. You’re a cop! Get away or I’ll cut you, I will.”

“Then I’d have to arrest you and none of us want that, especially not Julie.”

“I don’t believe you!” he shouted.

“Dane?” Julie said from behind Morgan.

“Jules, I told you to stay back,” Morgan said.

“Dane, put down the knife. Please? Morgan’s my friend.”

“He’s a cop. Why’d you bring a cop?”

“He’s my friend who happens to be a cop. Now put it away so we can take you someplace safe.”

“He’s gonna arrest me.”

“No, he’s not, are you, Morgan?”

He could. He could charge the kid with threatening a police officer, for starters.

“We just want to help you, Dane. I’m not going to arrest you,” Morgan assured.

Dane hesitated, as if debating if he should run, or take Julie and Morgan at their word.

“Come on, drop the knife so we can go home. We’ve got a great place for you to stay, a comfortable bed and awesome home-cooked meals. Please, Dane?” Julie pleaded.

Dane dropped the knife and took a few steps toward Morgan and Julie.

And collapsed.

“Dane!” Julie cried out. She and Morgan rushed to either side of him. Morgan felt for his pulse.

“It’s racing. We need to get him to a hospital,” Morgan said.

“What do you think’s wrong?”

“Could be any number of things.” Morgan stood and made the 9-1-1 call.

“Come on, Dane, wake up. It’s okay. I’m here. You’re safe,” Julie encouraged.

The desperation in her voice tangled Morgan’s gut into a knot as he gave their location to the dispatch operator. Morgan hated to think how disappointed she’d be if Dane was passed out from a drug overdose. She believed so strongly in the boy’s determination to kick drugs and live a productive life.

“They should be here soon,” Morgan said, kneeling beside Dane. “Jules?”

She glanced up. “I know, I know, I shouldn’t have come down here.”

“What I was going to say was, keep a positive attitude. The boy’s young and strong. If you’re right and he’s been off drugs for a while, it could be dehydration, or exhaustion from running.”

“Why are they after him?” she croaked. “Isn’t it hard enough
to battle an addiction on your own without someone chasing you around for…for what?”

Morgan placed his hand over hers, splayed across Dane’s back. “We’ll figure it out. I promise.”

“He’s a good boy, Morgan, and he deserves better.”

“Then have faith that he’ll be okay.”

Luckily it wasn’t too busy at Memorial Hospital when they brought Dane into the emergency room. Still, it seemed to be taking forever for someone to update Julie and Morgan on Dane’s condition. It had been five hours of waiting and worrying.

Julie got up and paced the waiting area, a bundle of nervous energy.

“Jules, relax,” Morgan said.

“Why is it taking so long?”

Morgan stood and took her hand. “They’ll talk to us when they know something. They probably don’t want to guess at this point.”

She realized she instantly felt better from the connection of their hands. Morgan grounded her, calmed her racing heart.

“I’m too wound up to sit,” she said, pulling away from him.

Depending on Morgan’s touch was a dangerous habit to embrace. He wouldn’t be around once this case was over and then what would she do?

The E.R. door burst open and a doctor approached them.

“How is he?” she asked before the doctor could speak.

“Dehydrated. We have him on fluids, but it would help to know what else is in his system. Do you know if he’s on any medications or if he’s been taking any drugs?”

“No, I don’t,” she said. “Did you ask him?”

“He’s in and out, not very lucid yet. In a few hours he’ll be up to answering some questions.”

“Questions?”

“About what he’s on.”

“You’re assuming he’s on drugs?” Even she couldn’t miss the accusation in her voice.