Free Runs Deep by R.D. Brady Page A

call ring out. Come on, someone pick up. But he knew that even if someone did pick up, it might already be too late.

CHAPTER 14
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    T he smell of lasagna greeted Steve as he walked in his front door. His grandmother’s cooking was so far the one thing that had thoroughly lived up to, if not surpassed, his memories. He tossed his jacket over the banister, then backtracked and hung it in the closet.
    Walking into the kitchen, he took a deep breath. “Now that smells delicious.”
    His grandmother placed the silverware on the table. “Wash your hands. It’ll be ready any minute.”
    “Yes, ma’am,” he replied, turning around.
    As he headed toward the bathroom, the phone rang. Spying it on the table next to the stairs, he called out, “I’ll get it.”
    “No, Steve. I—”
    Steve picked up the phone. “Hello?”
    “Murderer,” a voice hissed. “They should have put you to death. If they won’t do it, I will.” Click . The call was disconnected.
    Steve pulled the phone from his ear and stared at it. Slowly he turned to his grandmother, who was wringing a potholder in her hands. “Now, Steve—”
    He cut her off. “How often have you been getting these?”
    She wouldn’t meet his eyes. “Not very often.”
    He knew she was lying. She lied so badly even a child could tell. “Grandma, have you been threatened?”
    “Steven James Kane, you listen to me. I don’t care about a bunch of redneck idiots. I care about you. I can handle a few phone calls. You’ve had much more to—” The rest of her words were choked off, and there was a tremble in her chin. Taking a steadying breath, she continued, “You’ve had to endure more. And I would endure tenfold these calls to have you home. So you just go wash your hands and get ready for dinner and forget about that.”
    Steve looked at his grandmother, the strongest woman he knew. A feeling of tenderness washed over him. “I love you, Gran.”
    She smiled back at him. “I love you more.”
    He grinned at the familiar exchange, but then his smile faded. “But I don’t like you having to put up with these calls.”
    “The Lord doesn’t give us any more than we can handle,” she declared before heading back into the kitchen.
    Steve watched her go, noticing her shoulders were a little more bent—her gait a little slower than he remembered. I’m not so sure about that , he thought .
    The idea of someone threatening his grandmother… Steve took a deep breath. No. He wouldn’t let anyone hurt her. He’d talk to Jack and Declan. Make sure they knew what was going on.

CHAPTER 15
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    A n hour later, the phone call was still on Steve’s mind, but he thought he had put on a good show in front of his grandmother. He leaned back in his chair and patted his stomach. “That was delicious.”
    Declan grinned at him. “Which serving? One or two?”
    Steve pretended to ponder the question for a moment. “I’m going to go with two. It seemed to have a little more time to settle.”
    Declan laughed, pushing his chair away from the table and looking across the table. “Bess, it’s a good thing I don’t come into town more often. Eating like this, they’d have to roll me into my car.”
    Bess smiled. “You could do with a little fattening up. And any time you want a home-cooked meal, you just stop by.”
    Steve stood up and started collecting the plates, but Bess shooed the two men toward the living room. “You two go chat. I’ll get the dishes.”
    “Gran…” Steve said.
    She fixed both of them with the look. “Out—both of you. Shoo.”
    Declan grinned at Steve before heading for the living room. “ I know better than to argue with her.”
    Shaking his head, Steve followed.
    Declan took a seat on the couch. Steve sat on his grandfather’s old recliner. Through the window, he could see the wind whipping through the trees. The rain had begun about an hour ago.
    “It’s started,” he