Free Teresa Watson by Death Stalks the Law

reveals his sources.”
    “Hm.”
    “What?”
    “I have a feeling you called your dad, who called in a favor someone owed him.”
    “Not true. I did it on my own.”
    “Sounds kind of shady to me, Jake.”
    “That’s because you have a very suspicious mind right now, Lizzie.”
    “Gee, I wonder why? It couldn’t have anything to do with the fact that my boyfriend has been lying to me for months, and an ex-boyfriend has arrived in town, acting like he is some knight in shining armor coming to rescue the damsel in distress? Nah, that can’t be it.”
    “You’ve gotten rather sarcastic over the years.”
    “No more than usual.”
    “I wouldn’t know about that. I haven’t been around, by your choice.”
    “We aren’t going there. Not now. I’m liable to say something I am going to regret, and ruin a perfectly good friendship.”
    “Wow, I didn’t even know we were friends.”
    “We’ll work on it.”
    The doorbell rang. “Oh my gosh, can’t people give me a break?” I groaned.
    “Stay there. I’ll get it.”
    He came back a minute later, with Owen right behind him. “Go away, Owen. Whenever you show up, it’s never anything good. I can’t handle any more bad news. I don’t even want to talk to you right now.”
    “Well, I’m sorry, but this can’t wait.”
    “What is it?”
    “T.J.’s missing.”
     

 
    Chapter Seventeen
    “What do you mean he’s missing? I just saw him about three, four hours ago.”
    “Where?”
    “In my driveway. He wanted to talk.”
    “That must have been an interesting conversation.”
    I ignored the comment. “We talked for a few minutes, and he left.”
    “Did he say where he was going?”
    I shook my head. “I didn’t ask, and he didn’t volunteer any information. Have you tried contacting his superiors?”
    “They were the ones who called me,” Owen replied. “He had a meeting in Dallas at four, but he never showed up.”
    “Maybe he’s sulking,” I said. “We didn’t exactly part on the best of terms.”
    “I’ll bet,” Jake said.
    “He’s not at his house, and his car is nowhere to be found.”
    “Don’t they have a tracking device on his car?”
    “Apparently it’s been deactivated.”
    A sense of dread came over me. I had a feeling I knew what had happened to T.J., but I didn’t want to jump to conclusions. “Just how close are they to catching my aunt?”
    Jake looked at me. “You mean crazy serial killer aunt?”
    “Half-aunt on my mother’s side.”
    “I don’t know for sure,” Owen said. “They know she’s in the area somewhere, but they haven’t been able to pinpoint her exact location.”
    “She knows T.J. is a federal agent,” I told him.
    “Are you sure?”
    I nodded. “Pretty sure. She mentioned it two months ago, and when I saw her yesterday…”
    “You saw her?”
    “Are you going to let me finish or not? When I saw her yesterday, she specifically told me not to trust either one of you. She didn’t tell me why.”
    “How does she know?”
    “How should I know? All this mysterious mumbo jumbo crap falls under your job description, not mine.”
    “This doesn’t make sense,” Jake said. “If she knew months ago who T.J. was, why didn’t she do something about it then?”
    “Two months ago, she said she was taking care of some business, but that she would be here as soon as she finished.”
    “I guess she’s done,” Owen said.
    “You should know that Hopkins and I weren’t her intended target of that explosion. She told me it was you and T.J., but I have a feeling it was just him.”
    “Why?”
    I shrugged. “Again, asking those questions falls under your job description, not mine.”
    “Well, technically, Lizzie,” Jake said, “since you’re a reporter, you are supposed to ask her those kinds of questions.”
    “Not helping, Jake.”
    “Sorry.”
    “Look, I don’t know what her plans are, and I don’t care. I told T.J., I’m telling you. Keep me out of it. If you want to find her,