An uneasy feeling drew Bella’s eyes back to Evan.
Amy squealed. “I’ve got one!”
Distracted by Amy, Bella glanced back at her, despite her mind still being on Evan.
Tony came up behind her, dwarfing her small frame with his large body, as he reached around her and helped her bring in the line.
“Hang on tight,” he guided her. “Good. Now reel it in slowly. That’s it.”
“Okay. Okay.” Amy smiled brightly. “I got a fish!”
“Way to go, Amy,” Jenna cheered from the other side of the rail, where her own line hung in the water. “I knew you’d snag one before me.” She threw her head back and laughed. “Get it?” She elbowed Leanna.
“You’re so silly.” Leanna bumped her with her hip.
In the excitement, Bella slipped away and went to Evan. He turned away as she neared, a move that screamed trouble in Bella’s experienced mind.
“Evan, you sure you don’t want to fish?”
He nodded.
“Well, you’re missing out on a good time.” She leaned on the railing and looked out over the water. It was a warm, sunny day, and she only wished Evan could enjoy it.
His eyes were hidden by his hair, but she had a clear view of his clenching jaw. He was throwing off the same troublesome vibe she’d felt when they left the beach.
“Evan, if there’s something—”
“Nothing’s going on, okay?” He breathed heavily through flaring nostrils.
Holy crap, what are you dealing with?
“Okay. Okay. Sorry.” She took a step away.
“Wait.” The tremor in his voice stopped her cold. He crossed and uncrossed his arms. “I don’t know if something’s wrong. Everything’s messed up.”
“Evan, what’s messed up?”
He clammed up again, and she wanted to shake him into talking.
“Hey, guys.” Caden’s voice cut through the silence. He ran his eyes between the two of them. His smile faded, replaced with a piercing, worried stare. “What’s going on?”
Evan shot a look at Bella. She tilted her head and softened her gaze, as if to say, This is all you, buddy.
Evan shifted his eyes to his father again. He crossed his arms over his chest, but he couldn’t hide the fearful vibe that radiated from him.
“It’s Vera.”
Two words that hit like a bullet to Bella’s chest.
Caden closed in on him. “What’s Vera?”
“I don’t know.” Evan drew in a jagged breath. His voice was shaky and angry, and his eyes welled with tears. “I don’t know, okay? Those guys sent me a text, and I think it might mean that they’re doing something to her cottage. I don’t know, Dad, and I swear I have nothing to do with it.”
Without a word, Caden stalked inside and grabbed his duffel bag. He pulled out some sort of radio and called in a report to the station for someone to get over to Vera’s cottage.
“Evan?” Bella placed her hands on his shaking shoulders and stared into his damp eyes. “Tell me what you know.”
“They sent a text telling me off and that she could kiss her violin goodbye. I think they thought she was with us.” Evan pulled out of her grasp. “If they hurt her, I swear I’ll kill them.”
Adrenaline and worry surged through Bella’s veins. She heard Caden talking to Joe; then he went to the front of the boat and pulled Jamie aside. A minute later Jamie was hulking over Evan and there was a flurry of pulling in fishing lines and worried voices.
“What on earth is going on?” Jamie demanded. His face was red, the veins in his neck plumped, snaking over tight muscles.
“I…I don’t know. I swear I didn’t know anything, Jamie. I swear it. I would never hurt Vera.” Tears streamed down Evan’s cheeks.
Bella had never seen Jamie as angry as he was now, pacing the deck with fisted hands. The boat roared to life and sped toward shore. The others gathered together, trying to figure out what was going on. Words of worry and confusion darted from their conversations. Caden dragged Evan to the opposite end of the boat with his back to Bella and the others. He paced a few steps, stopped and said something to Evan, then paced again. Evan shriveled beneath Caden’s anger. Bella couldn’t think past hoping that whatever was going on, Vera was okay.
Chapter Twenty
CADEN DRAGGED EVAN off the boat and drove like a madman toward Seaside. Anger, worry, and guilt swelled in his chest.
“What the heck were you thinking, Evan? You should have said something to me the minute you got that text.” He didn’t mean to yell, but he had no chance of quelling his anger. “Jamie trusted you. I trusted you. Damn it, Evan.”
“I’m sorry. I texted them and told them not to go near her. You can check my phone. I thought they were just messing around with me.” Evan pressed his body against the passenger door. “Dad, I swear, I would never do anything to hurt her.”
“How did they know about her violin?”
“They asked me to meet them one day when I was with Jamie, and I said no. That night we were joking around, and I said something about her playing the violin. I didn’t think anything of it, Dad. I was just talking. I never thought they’d do anything.”
Caden shook his head. “If anything happened to Vera…” What? There were no words to express how he felt. This was as much his fault as it was Evan’s. He’d been so wrapped up in Bella that he hadn’t spent enough time with Evan. He’d noticed all sorts of clues, but he hadn’t spent enough time investigating them. What had he been thinking?
“I want to know who is involved with this, Evan. Even if it includes you. And I want to know every last detail that you know.” It had better not include you. As he sped into Seaside and the police cars came into view, another reality slap slammed into his chest. If it came down to it, could he turn in his own son?
“Do not get out of this truck, and you’d better pray she’s okay.” Caden cut the engine and went into Vera’s cottage. The smell of freshly baked cookies shot another piercing pain through him. A quick scan of the surroundings told him there hadn’t been a struggle. Nothing was overturned. The officer, who he knew from the station, filled him in, and he headed back out to the truck as the others arrived.
Jamie grabbed his arm. “How is she?”
“She’s okay, but they took her to the urgent care to get checked out.”
Pain etched Jamie’s face.
Caden quickly added, “It was precautionary. She was frightened, but no one touched her. Jamie, I’m sor—”
Jamie was already climbing into his car.
Kurt and the others were talking to another officer. Bella ran to Caden.
“What happened? Is she okay?” Fear riddled her words and filled her eyes.
He spoke fast as he hurried back toward the truck. “She was frightened. They took her to the urgent care center. I’m taking Evan there now.”
Bella kept pace with him. “I’ll go with you.”