Chapter 3

3

Kinsley lifted a charm bracelet from the memories box and set it on the table near her other mementos she'd unpacked so far. She'd imagined this trip down memory lane with Jada for months now, and she hoped it lived up to her anticipation. She put too much stock on her memories. Sure she did. She got that. But she was unable to change it. Each item was precious to her. They spoke to a particular time, telling her how much this family loved her. How they'd practically adopted her when her own parents were missing in action most of the time.

So the minute she and Jada hit the cabin, Kinsley started thinking about paging through the many diaries with colorful markers they'd used to document their summers together. Holding the fun shaped rocks they'd found by the lake. Looking at dry flowers. Reading the many notes they'd written to each other, and on and on.

But it wasn't turning out like she expected, and she couldn't say she was especially comfortable. Not with the way Dev kept watching her every move from his perch on a barstool near the kitchen peninsula. She and Jada had been choosing items from her memory box, and if he wasn't questioning the memory, he was just watching with tremendous interest.

She turned away to ignore him and lifted the sixties-inspired lamp from the box to place on the table.

"Oh no you didn't!" Jada's eyes flashed wide. "I had no idea you took one of the lamps when Mom redecorated."

"Well…she said we could have anything we wanted." Kinsley smiled. "I wanted something to remember the cabin the way it was when we were little."

"But a lamp?" Dev blinked his long, long lashes at her. "Isn't that a little extreme?"

"Extreme?" Kinsley met his gaze. "Not to me. I wanted the sofa, but it wouldn't fit in a box this small."

Kinsley changed her focus to Jada, and they fell into a laughing fit. When Kinsley could talk again, she looked at Dev. "If you insist on interfering in our trip down memory lane, remember the ages we were at the time this happened. That can help explain each item I kept."

He tapped a finger on his knee. "Yeah, you were pretty young."

Jada swiveled to face her brother. "I was only a year younger than you, and you never let me forget it."

"You're still a year younger than me." He grinned at his baby sister.

"But I'm three years younger than you." Kinsley continued to look at him. "And I don't recall you ever harassing me about that."

"Guess it's a blood relative thing." He rested his hands on the scarred Formica countertop. "You were the closest thing to a blood relative though. I'm sure you spent more time at our house than at yours."

Kinsley couldn't tell how he felt about that so she rushed on. "No question about it."

"I still think it's pretty sad your mom didn't want kids and took it out on you," Jada said.

Kinsley had long ago let go of the pain from that part of her past. "Trust me. It was no hardship for me. Your mom is the best, and I was the one who really benefited from my mom's disinterest."

She would've loved to have gotten to meet their father too. He died far too young.

"Why so serious all of a sudden?" Jada's eyes narrowed with concern.

"I was just thinking about your dad. From everything you all said about him, I wish I'd gotten to meet him. I know you all miss him a lot."

Jada slid down the couch and drew Kinsley into a hug. "He was great. If he lived, he would've been a second father to you."

Kinsley leaned back and glanced at Dev, his expression sullen.

Was it because she brought up his father, or was he still thinking about them staying at the campground?

She was glad Jada had agreed with her about staying here. She appreciated the support. But had she been too hasty declining Dev's offer to stay at his compound all because she didn't want him telling her what to do?

Whenever she made decisions, decisions that she'd prayed about and then had peace afterward, she knew it was the right decision. But without peace, she continued to look for the right thing to do.

She didn't have peace tonight and couldn't help thinking that God could be trying to tell her something. That it was time to devote herself to prayer, and time for her to listen and look for that peace with her decision.

Listen or she could die.

Dev sat at the table next to Kinsley and stared at her Facebook post on his laptop. Thankfully, he'd had his computer in his SUV, so he could prove his point.

Kinsley was right about one thing. The last image she posted was simply a picture of the box she'd brought along with her, sitting on a bed in an open room. Or at least it looked like a simple picture, but he knew looks could be deceiving. Once a photo was enlarged from the size you might see on a phone or iPad, it could display damaging information.

He peered at her. "I'll start with the least telling items and move to the most dangerous."

"Seriously?" she asked. "You really see something that could be a problem in this post?"

"Several things. The first is the desk in the background. Your mail is lying on it." He enlarged the photo on his screen.

She leaned forward and stared at the screen. "So? You can't read my address on it."

"I might only be able to make the photo this big while still in Facebook, but I can always save it to my hard drive and enlarge it even more."

"And your point is?"

"Before posting a photo, look at it in the largest size possible while still in focus to see if it reveals any information. For example, I can't make out the complete address on the envelope, but I can see a portion of it. With the way auto-complete works on our computers, I'd venture to say if I enter the portion I can read into an address form online, the app will complete the rest for me, and I'll know exactly where you live."

"Wow," Jada said from across the table. "I use auto-complete all the time and never really thought about how it could be used for something bad."

He switched his focus to his sister. "Most people don't. But once you've been in law enforcement, you have a tendency to look for those kinds of things. Even if you don't want to."

Kinsley shook her head. "So anyone who saw this post could enlarge my picture and see enough of my address to find me."

"Yes, if they thought of it. But as Jada said, most people don't think of it."

"So it's not as big of a deal as you're making it."

"Oh, it is." He locked gazes, because he didn't like her discounting this information. "Problem is, the people who have thought of it are the ones who are up to no good and will use it to their advantage. So when you post any pictures on your social media, you need to make sure you blur out anything that might lead to your location."

Kinsley tipped her head, like she wasn't fully convinced. "I don't hate the fact that my friends on Facebook might see something and figure out where I live. Not that I want them popping by unexpectedly, but it wouldn't be horrible. It's just the general public that I'd like to keep it from. I don't accept them as friends, and my friends are the only ones who can see my posts."

"Or so you think."

She jerked back.

Dev didn't like seeing her response, and he wished he had better news for her. "People can hack your friends' accounts. Happens all the time. If the friend isn't a close friend but more of an acquaintance, you probably won't notice anything odd about their posts, and you may not know they've been hacked until it's too late."

Kinsley frowned. "So what other red flags does the picture hold?"

"You received a package from Kohl's." He tapped the store's logo on the side of the box.

"How does that help you?"

"It tells me this box was likely shipped to you and to look for an address label." He shifted the photo on his screen until a prominent address label was displayed on the side. "I don't have to explain this one."

"I usually don't look at the pictures larger than my phone displays them. I guess that means I miss some things." She clutched her hands together. "But that changes now. I need to go back through my social media to delete any posts with items like this on it."

"You can and should do that so anyone who goes to your profile now doesn't see it. But once the photo is on the internet and other sites pick it up, it's pretty much there for life and remains discoverable." He rushed on to try to encourage her. "It's still worth the work, though. Once removed from your profile, it's less likely that anyone will see it."

"You've made your point." Kinsley set her jaw. "I'll take care of that tonight, and I promise in the future, I'll be more careful."

"And, you'll keep your promise that until our shooter is behind bars, you won't post anything at all." He kept his focus on her.

"Yes, I promise." She looked at Jada. "I'll need your help to hold me to that."

"Of course, sweetie. I'm always glad to stop you from doing things that are bad for you." Jada got a twinkle in her eye, and Kinsley laughed.

Dev appreciated his sister lightening things up. "We should also check your security settings. I know you said you have your posts set to just your friends, but do you have your friend list set to private?"

Kinsley's eyes narrowed. "I'm not sure on that one, but really what difference does that make?"

"Cybercriminals could open a fake account with your name and profile. Impersonating you, they then send messages to your friends list. They can ask for sensitive information or money, often claiming an emergency." He took a long breath. "And they could troll through your friends' pages until they find an unsecured account and hack it. Then use it to target you in the same way."

Kinsley blinked at him. "I didn't know."

"Now you do, so check out the setting and fix it if you need to." His phone rang, and he unearthed it from his pocket. "Got to take this. It's Colin, and he wouldn't be calling if there wasn't a problem."

"He's calling, but he's just outside the door," Kinsley said. "Can't you just go see him?"

"If he wanted me to step out there right now, he would have knocked. I'm guessing he's calling on a security issue." Dev knew it had to be bad news, so he moved to the corner of the small room to try to keep them from overhearing his conversation.

"What's up, bro?" He made sure to take on a laid-back approach to keep from alerting the women by his posture and tone of voice.

"We have a situation down at the lake," Colin said. "Guy in a boat near our dock. We need to check it out."

Dev forgot about the social media and came alert to their immediate threat. Colin must not have wanted the door open in case the man at the lake was their shooter and had a rifle. Dev wanted to go after this man, but his first priority was to make sure Kinsley stayed safe.

Their teammate, Micha Nichols, was manning the gate to be sure no one tried to breach it, but having an armed guard close to Jada and Kinsley was far more important right now.

"Get Micha down here," Dev said. "Then we'll investigate."

"Roger that." It wasn't often that Dev's older brother easily took direction from him, which told him Colin was worried, and this situation could be a serious threat to Kinsley's safety if they didn't subdue the man in the boat.

He shoved his phone in his pocket and moved to the nearest window to close the narrow gap someone had left when closing the curtains. "Colin and I need to go check something out. Micha is coming down from the gate and will be standing watch outside your door. Stay inside. Door locked. Curtains closed. Until I get back."

Kinsley rushed up to him. "What is the something you're not telling us about?"

"I'll tell you everything when I get back. Just do as I say, and you'll be fine."

Jada crossed the room to put her arm around Kinsley's waist. "Don't worry. We'll do what you say."

"Lock the door right after me." Dev took a long look at the women and stepped outside. He waited to hear the lock click into place and then bounded down the steps to Colin.

His brother stood at the ready, his sidearm drawn. Dev drew his gun from the holster, but spun when movement to his right caught his attention. Micha pounded down the road, his booted footfalls hitting hard and kicking up dust until he planted his feet in front of Dev.

Dev looked at Micha. "Call us if anything—and I mean anything—out of the ordinary happens here."

"You got it." Micha handed him a pair of night vision goggles. "These might come in handy."

"Thanks, man." Dev strapped the goggles on his head but didn't put them over his eyes yet as the streetlights could damage the goggles.

"Let's go," Colin said.

"Lead the way."

They started down the narrow blacktop road and reached the lake within minutes. Dev moved behind blueberry bushes, fiery red with fall color, and strapped on the goggles in the darker area. Colin joined him, stowed his gun, and lifted his night vision binoculars to his eyes. Dev peered over the lake and spotted movement. A small aluminum fishing boat had dropped anchor in the water near the end of the campground's dock. The boat held one man wearing a baseball cap and standing in the middle of the boat. His hand was clasped around a fishing pole, and his focus remained on the lake.

"Could be a false alarm," Dev whispered to his brother.

"Or not."

"Be prepared to fire. I'll call out to him to get his ID."

Colin pulled his weapon and aimed it at the man.

"Ahoy there," Dev shouted. "Identify yourself."

"It's me." He lifted his cap. "Chief Gibson."

"What in the world is he doing out here at this time of night?" Dev asked Colin.

"Got me." He stowed his gun.

Dev lifted his NVG's and led the way to the end of the dock. "Mind if I ask what you're doing out here so late, Chief?"

"Oh, hi, Dev," he said cheerfully, unaware of their anxiety. "Or is it Colin?"

Colin stepped up next to him. "You got us both. We didn't expect to find anyone out here fishing."

"I figure with the fires growing bigger, I won't have much time in the next week, so I'm getting in some night fishing." He cranked his rod. "I suppose you don't like it when people fish this close to your property, but I can't help myself. Since your dad put those cribs in near your dock, it's the best fishing on the lake. Pretty much always guaranteed to catch something."

The open wooden structures filled with brush were magnets for fish to take shelter in, and they were always teaming with fish, so the area made for good-sized catches.

"No worries," Colin said. "It's a public lake and belongs to everyone. Even this little patch at the end of our dock."

"That's mighty neighborly of you. Fishing is my stress reliever."

"Kind of dangerous navigating all the boulders at the lake at this time of night, though, isn't it?" Dev asked.

"You guys haven't been hanging out around here much, so you wouldn't know that I come here often and have gotten to know the lake like the back of my hand. Your manager and I have gotten to know each other pretty well too. Standup guy."

"My mom was fortunate when she found Warren," Colin said.

"You haven't seen anyone else around here tonight, have you?" Dev looked around the lake, taking in the cabins, docks, and beachy shoreline. Such an idyllic setting that it would be hard to imagine a shooter in the area.

The chief shifted the rod in his hands. "Was one guy at the boat ramp when I put in."

"He fishing too?" Colin asked.

"Not exactly sure what he was up to, but he was pulling a boat out of the water. Not a simple one for fishing like mine, but a thirty-foot cruiser." He paused and shifted his weight, rocking the boat and sending ripples across the surface. "Probably just let the day get away from him and couldn't get to the ramp until after sundown."

"Anyone you recognize?" Dev asked.

The chief shook his head. "I didn't get close enough to see him, but he's not a local, that's for sure. No one around here has a boat like that."

"You get a look at his vehicle?" Dev asked.

"'Course I did. I'm a lawman, aren't I?" He chuckled but peered directly at Dev. "This isn't just some idle conversation, is it? You're concerned about something. Maybe as the chief, I need to know what that something is."

Did he need to know? Dev wasn't so sure about that. He glanced at Colin to get his reaction. His brother gave a brief nod. Okay. Dev trusted his opinion, so he shared their situation with the chief. "We'd appreciate it if you could keep your eyes out for anyone who seems out of the ordinary. And maybe give us the details on that vehicle towing the boat."

"I'll do you one better." The chief pushed his hat back and scratched his head. "I got the plates on the truck, and I'll go back to the office to run them. I'll let you know what I find."

Dev recognized this as the chief's way of inserting himself into the investigation, but Dev didn't have access to vehicle registrations. Even if the chief gave him a plate number, he would have to call in favors from one of his deputy buddies to get it run. And Dev couldn't be certain that he could get it done as the department was cracking down on such things. They couldn't ask Russ either. It was doubtful he would consider it even if they were in his jurisdiction. But out of it, like here? Nah, he wouldn't do that.

"We'd appreciate your help," Dev said. "And I'd appreciate it if you didn't mention to your officers that Kinsley is staying at the campground."

"You got it." He started cranking his fishing line into the reel, the whir of the reel taking Dev back to his fishing days. "I'll call you with the vehicle details."

Dev nodded and turned to march down the dock. The wooden structure held up by old barrel pontoons jarred beneath his feet and left him off balance, but didn't distract him from searching the area for any threat.

On shore, Colin caught up to him. "It'll be good to have him and his officers on the lookout too."

"Yeah," Dev said. "I just don't like the idea of this getting around town. Especially not Kinsley's location. We might be talking about sworn lawmen, but they like to gossip."

"The chief is pretty good at keeping his mouth closed."

"But I can't be sure of that, and I need to keep a lid on this." Dev shoved his hands into his pockets. If he didn't, he would punch shoreline pillars put in place to keep any wayward boats away from the play area. "I can't afford to screw up here."

Colin grabbed Dev's shirt sleeve and stopped him. "We all know how you feel about her, you know?"

Dev stared at his brother, his gaze unyielding. "What do you mean by ‘we all'?"

"Jada, Mom, me. Actually anyone who's around the two of you for any amount of time can't miss it." Colin planted his hands on his hips. "And in case you don't know this, brother, she returns the feelings. So I don't know what you're waiting for. Make your moves."

Dev told him about the promise to Jada.

"Sounds to me like you need to have a heart-to-heart with Jada."

Dev resisted snapping at his brother when his frustration was directed at his sister. "I talked to her today. She hasn't changed her mind."

"Then change her mind for her. Loving someone the way you care for Kinsley doesn't come around very often, and you'd be a fool to miss out on it. Trust me. I almost did until I realized Brooklyn and I were meant to be together."

Dev knew his brother was right, and if it were just the promise to Jada, maybe he could overcome this and approach Kinsley. But what about Hailey leaving him at the altar? He'd jumped the gun with her. Sure, he'd known Kinsley for forever, but was the timing right, or was it just convenient right now? Could he ever trust his judgment in women again?

He didn't know.

He could be holding on to some schoolboy crush, or he could still have feelings for her. But were they strong enough to overcome his lack of confidence in a future with any woman?

He didn't know. God did, but He wasn't sharing the answer. Dev not only didn't trust his instincts when it came to his relationships, he had to admit his trust in God had fallen ever since Hailey walked out on him. What was it going to take for him to regain that trust?

Only time, and maybe an answer to his prayers, would tell.