“Douglas MacArthur Dawson,” Charlotte said, hands on her hips, “what the hell is going on?”
“Well, Charlotte,” he drawled, “that’s what I’m here to find out.”
She wagged a finger at him. “Don’t you dare ‘Well, Charlotte’ me. It’s the Monroes, and you damn well know it. I want that crazy son of a bitch arrested and behind bars where he can’t hurt anyone else.”
Mac heaved a patient sigh. “Charlotte, we have no proof it was Monroe or any of his kin. I can’t arrest him or anyone one else without cause.”
She shook her head. “There was a time when you weren’t so by the book,” she admonished. “You used to be more concerned about protecting victims than offending the criminals.”
Mac ran a hand over his close-cropped gray hair and sent a glance toward Gabe and Tom, then Elle. “I’ll bring him in for questioning,” he relented. “But that’s the best I can do, Charlie.”
Elle’s eyes widened slightly. Charlie? She’d never heard anyone but her mother call Charlotte by that name. She’d long suspected there was more between Mac and her aunt than just friendship, but there was something in the way Mac looked at Charlotte at that moment that spoke volumes. Instead of looking offended by being cornered by Charlotte, he looked like he enjoyed her fiery tirade. And Elle could’ve sworn she saw the formidable sheriff grin as he turned away.
Charlotte was positively triumphant as she came back to Elle, head held high. “Don’t worry, honey. Mac will handle it. Now, let’s get you back to my house. I think it’s best if you stay another night or two.”
Elle started to argue, but she realized she didn’t really want to be alone that night. She felt a heaviness in the center of her chest and looked over her aunt’s shoulder to see Gabe staring at her, his expression difficult to interpret. He looked as if he wanted to come to her, hold her. Or maybe that was just her projecting the desires weighing on her own heart.
*
“Gabe? Did you hear what I said?”
Gabe dragged his gaze away from Charlotte’s car as it drove away, wishing he’d had the chance to talk to Elle for a few minutes before they’d left. But she hadn’t made an effort to talk to him at all either, so maybe it was just as well.
He turned back to Tom, trying to focus on what he was saying. “Sorry, what?”
“I said, you need to bring Dad up to speed on what’s been going on,” he said. “We’re going to bring Jeb Monroe in for questioning. And I’m going to send extra patrols around to keep an eye on your house.”
This got Gabe’s attention. “Good. Let’s go pick up the bastard right now.”
“You’re not going anywhere,” Tom informed him. “Unless it’s to Joe and Sadie’s while the team finishes processing the scene.”
“Bullshit,” Gabe spat. “I’m not just going to sit around on my ass while you guys talk to Monroe.”
“You are on medical leave, Gabriel,” Mac interjected. “And there’s a reason for that. If you want to be fit for service later, you need to take care of yourself now. Is that clear?”
Gabe clenched his jaw, fighting back the urge to argue with his father. He knew arguing wouldn’t do any good. Once the Old Man dug his heels in, it was over, and no amount of ranting, raving, or whining would make a damned bit of difference. All that would do was piss him off even more. That was a lesson he’d learned when they were all kids and was probably why he and Mac had the best relationship. His brothers saw it as kissing their dad’s ass. Gabe saw it as picking his battles.
But he was having a hard time swallowing his protests this time around. “I think I can handle asking a few questions.”
“So can your brother,” Mac informed him.
Gabe’s jaw tightened, and he suddenly felt like a ten-year-old kid again. “Dad—”
Mac gave him a stern look. “This is not up for discussion, Gabriel.”
“Why?” he pressed. “I was shot in the leg, for Christ’s sake!”
“Gabe,” Tom warned. “Let it go, man. I’ll handle it.”
Let it go? Like hell.
“I’m not going to do nothing when I’m the one whose life is being threatened!”
Mac took a step forward, now nose to nose with Gabe. “It is exactly because your life is being threatened that I am keeping you out of this. I’m also not letting Tom question Jeb alone. I won’t have the legitimacy of an investigation of this son of a bitch compromised or questioned.”
“I’ll give you a call after we talk to him,” Tom assured him. “We’re not gonna leave you in the dark, Gabe. You know that.”
Yeah, he knew it. But being sidelined still pissed him off. Without another word, he went back into his house and slammed the door. He wasn’t going to Joe and Sadie’s just because some asshole had tagged his house. As soon as the vandalism was documented, he’d grab leftover paint from when he’d painted his garage a few months earlier and take care of it.