Free Upper Hand (Cedar Tree Book 5) by Freya Barker Page B

yet, I’ve been blowing it up with voicemails and text messages. So far no response.
    “It’s Dylan,” Clint says looking at the screen.
    “Can you answer it? I’m gonna pull off.”
    There’s an empty church parking lot coming up on my right and I pull into it as I hear Clint say, “Hello?”.
    “Think you’d better talk to your mom about that.” Clint hands the phone to me with an angry look.
    “Honey?”
    “Ma. I have to leave town for a while. I’ve got this job offer that I can’t refuse. Can Max stay with you?”
    “How long, Dylan? I’m just about to start working again. What’s going on with you? I’m worried.” I rattle off when a deep sigh interrupts me on the other side.
    “Ma, please... I’m fine, I gotta go. Take care of my baby for me? Love you.”
    And just like that he’s gone and when I frantically try to call back, fear creeping up on me at the despondent tone of his voice, the call goes immediately to voicemail.
    “Goddammit, Dylan,” I mutter to myself, trying three more times to get through, when Clint covers the phone in my hand with his.
    “Was going to do this on Wednesday already, and now I wish I had; we’re gonna talk to Gus, girl. See if he can find anything out.”
    “Something’s wrong, Clint. I can feel it.” I struggle to keep the impotent tears at bay when I feel his hand stroking my cheek, and my breath stills in my throat. He’s never touched me like this before. When I lift my eyes, I see compassion in his eyes, but also something else—something darker. It’s making me squirm in my seat.
    “I know. Fuck, I knew it when he dropped Max off Wednesday morning. We’ll figure it out, sugar.”
    With a variety of emotions constricting my throat, I simply nod before slipping the car in drive again and pulling out of the parking lot.
    _
    “Big gah!”
    We’ve barely stepped inside when Max comes barreling to the front door, passing right by me and latching himself onto Clint’s leg, nearly knocking him off kilter. Blue, Katie’s dog, walks up languidly behind and nudges me with his big head, making sure I’m not left out.
    “You guys the welcoming committee?” I smile over my shoulder at my grandson, but he’s still smiling up at Clint. Little traitor. It does melt my rusty heart a little when I watch Clint smiling back and ruffling Max’s hair.
    “Go say hi to your Gammy.” Clint nudges Max, who’s like a little trained Pavlov dog when Clint speaks and immediately swings around and treats me to a big smile and a leg-hug, pushing the big dog out of the way.
    “Gammy, see?”
    Max grabs my hand and pulls me to the kitchen, where Katie is working on her computer at the dining room table. Mattias is sitting on the floor, surrounded by those oversized Lego blocks. Duplos I think they call them.
    “Hey guys,” Katie says, “I wasn’t expecting you back so soon. Thought maybe you’d take the opportunity to grab some dinner?” She’s wiggling her eyebrows up and down with a fool grin on her face, looking back and forth between Clint and I.
    “Stuff it, pipsqueak. You’re about as subtle as an eighteen-wheeler on a bicycle path.”
    “Actually,” Clint pipes up, “maybe we should ask Katie? See what she can come up with on Dylan.”
    Katie whips her head back to me. “Why? What’s up with him?”
    I spend the next couple of minutes going over the tension in their house, Tammy leaving suddenly, and Dylan showing up at my house at the crack of dawn to drop Max off. I remember almost word for word our phone conversation from earlier. Not difficult, since he never said much to begin with. Katie’s fingers are already flying over the keyboard, while I’m telling her what little I know.
    “Where does he work?” She wants to know and I give her the name of the garage. She then proceeds to question me on his home address, Tammy’s family, where they’re from. Do I know if they’d had any specific problems in the marriage before, and if I know