Operation Alpha. Justine Davis
He saw Dylan for a couple of months after his mother was killed. Of course, we didn’t discuss the actual sessions, but he said he was doing well. But then they stopped.”
Emily looked at Ria. “He stopped going because his dad wouldn’t let him go anymore. And wouldn’t let his little brother Kevin go at all, said he didn’t need it.”
“Sounds like Dad could’ve used some counseling,” Liam said rather sourly. Ria nearly smiled at that.
“And four months later he’s like that,” Emily said, gesturing with her phone, which still showed that last, haggard photograph.
“Something’s eatin’ at that boy,” Liam said. “He looks like he’s carrying the world.”
“I don’t know what you can do,” Emily said to him. “But—”
“We’re Foxworth. We’ll think of something. Right, boss?”
Ria found herself smiling. She liked Liam’s easy, kind reassurance to the girl and the quiet but obvious respect for Quinn that she had a feeling was only partly because he was his boss. And she liked the hint of a drawl, as well. She wanted to ask where he was from, but this didn’t seem the time. Not to mention he unsettled her a bit too much.
“We will certainly try,” Quinn agreed. “That boy needs some help.”
“I just don’t know who he’ll take it from,” Ria said. “We’ve all tried. Almost everybody he knows has.”
“Maybe,” Hayley said slowly, “it needs to be someone he doesn’t know.”
Quinn looked at his wife. “Meaning?”
“People under stress sometimes resist someone pushing to ‘help.’ And it can be easier to open up to someone who doesn’t know about all your baggage.”
“That’s true,” Emily said and then looked at Quinn. “Remember how I poured my heart out to you when my poor parents couldn’t even get me to tell them what was wrong? I was afraid of hurting their feelings by wanting this—” she fingered the locket “—back so much.”
Quinn looked thoughtful. Ria thought she saw him flick a glance at Liam, but then he quickly got down to business. Details like Dylan’s address, his family situation—just his father, little brother and a distant uncle left now—and the names of his friends.
“I’ll get on those names,” Liam said. “See if anything pops.”
“Liam’s not just our best tracker in the physical world,” Quinn explained at her questioning look. “If it’s out there in cyberspace, he’ll find it.”
“Or Ty will, but it won’t come to that,” Liam said with a grin. That grin.
“Ty?” Emily asked.
“Our tech guy at headquarters,” Hayley said. She smiled. “They have a bit of a competition going on. But together, there’s never been anything they couldn’t find.”
“He won’t know, will he?” Emily asked anxiously. “If Dylan knew we were poking into his life...”
“Not a trace,” Liam assured her.
Quinn went on then, asking about any new friends Dylan might now be hanging around with that he hadn’t before.
“None at school at least,” Emily said with assurance. “Cove Academy is small, I’d have noticed.”
“We’ll have to see about elsewhere, then,” Quinn said briskly.
“Dylan’s good with tech stuff,” Ria said with a quick glance at Liam that felt oddly as if she were sneaking a peek at something tempting but forbidden. “And math. But he does—or did—well in English, too. He won a state prize last term for an essay he wrote.” Her mouth tightened. “His mother died the same day it was announced. He never even went to get it.”
“Does he drive?” Liam asked.
“He doesn’t have his license yet, just his permit,” Emily said.
“So no car?”
Emily frowned. “No. He thought he would get his mom’s car, after, but his dad got rid of it.” The frown deepened. “Practically gave it away, Dylan said. He was really upset.”
“His father was grieving, too,” Ria said. “Maybe he couldn’t bear to see it.”
“I get that, but he should have thought how Dylan would feel, too.”
“Clear thinking and grieving don’t always go together,” Liam said. “Sometimes they fight each other so hard neither wins, but you lose.”
Ria drew back slightly. That had been an almost lyrical way of putting it. And she saw by Emily’s expression that he had reached her. Slowly the girl nodded.
“So what do we do?” Liam asked, looking at his boss.
“Computers, martial arts, a stranger,” Quinn said, summing up the discussion as he looked at Liam. “I think you may need to go back to school.”
“What?” Liam looked so startled Ria almost laughed.
“We’ll think of a good cover. Ria will help, I’m sure.”
“Of course,” she said, barely masking her amusement at his reaction.
Then she realized that this meant she would now apparently have Liam Burnett in her world. Up close and personal.
And that was a lot more unsettling than funny.
Liam caught himself, realized he’d once more been staring at his laptop screen without seeing a thing. This was at least the third time since he’d come upstairs to begin this session that his mind had drifted off task and started wandering through the underbrush.
“How’s it coming?”
He managed not to jump when Hayley spoke from barely three feet behind him. He had no idea how long she’d been in the room. Talk about woolgathering, as his grandmother always used to say.
“It’s coming,” he said cautiously. “I have the basics. Dylan used to be semi-active on social media, even after a break when his mother died, but faded out over the summer.”
“That fits. Withdrawing.”
He nodded. “No real official, cop-type trouble that I could find.”
“Quinn called Brett, so he’s checking that for us,” she said.
He nodded and went on. “Friends are pretty typical. Lots of selfies and talking to each other. A couple of mentions of him but mostly asking where he is or if he’s coming somewhere. Then, later, a couple more mad because he didn’t show up somewhere he was supposed to.”
“Progression,” Hayley said.
Liam nodded. “Emily asked about him, as well, a couple of times, but she apparently isn’t much for yammering on social media.”
“I’m not surprised. Ria said she was focused more on her studies.”
She had? He didn’t remember that.
Probably because you were too busy trying not to stare at her. You’d better start thinking of her as Emily’s teacher, nothing more.
He made himself focus and continued. “When she does post something, it’s usually not fluff. Serious stuff. She’s big into animal welfare, supporting the local shelter, that kind of thing.”
“Speaking of which,” Hayley said, “Cutter’s stuff is ready.”
He blinked. “What?”
“His go bag. You