Storm's Cage by Mary Stone (uplifting novels .TXT) 📕

To her relief, he didn’t use the opportunity to casually touch her. Twisting off the top, she nodded her appreciation. “Thanks. I think I’d prefer something cold right now, anyway.”

Plastic rustled as Joseph pulled open a pack of gummy worms and slumped back in his seat. “I don’t know about you, but I’m starving. The last thing I ate was a pop-tart on my drive to work this morning.”

Amelia gulped down her soda, desperate for the empty calories, hoping they might sustain her for a little longer. The truth was, she knew it wouldn’t. What she needed was a big, fat and juicy burger topped with grilled onions and cheese. Salt, fat, and beef.

Dammit.

She was bordering on hangry, and the incessant grumbling of her stomach wasn’t helping. Nor was the sound of Joseph smacking his lips as he munched on candy. “I don’t know that gummy worms are the best choice if you’re hungry. Doesn’t that gas station have sandwiches or something?”

As he popped another neon-colored candy into his mouth, Joseph shook his head. “Not that I saw. Even if they did, I think I’d rather just be hungry and wait until we leave.”

On cue, Amelia’s stomach grumbled. She’d asked Joseph to grab her anything with a lot of caffeine, but now she wondered if she should have asked for chips too. Gesturing to the green bag in Joseph’s hand, Amelia set her drink in the cupholder. “I had no idea you liked gummy worms. Would have figured you for more of a Snickers person.”

Joseph chuckled. “I don’t like peanuts, and I don’t care for chocolate. I’ve always preferred the fruity stuff.” He turned the bag around and pointed to the brand logo on the front. “When I was a kid, my brother and I would put our money together and buy one of the giant five-pound bags of these things. They’d last us for a while, but we’d always pig out when we first got them.”

In the past fifteen minutes, Amelia had learned more about Joseph Larson than she had in the previous month.

On any other day, the thought of four hours alone in a car with Joseph Larson would have made her stomach turn, but thankfully, so far, their conversations had been…normal. Almost pleasant. If the memory of Joseph’s unsolicited mention of Alton Dalessio hadn’t been burned into the back of Amelia’s head, she could have tricked herself into thinking she was in the company of a real friend.

She silenced the inner dialogue and reached for her soda. “I didn’t even know you had a brother. Does he live near here, or is he in the same place where you guys grew up?”

Joseph’s gaze drifted to the windshield, and in the silence that followed, Amelia spotted a glimpse of the same weariness and defeat she’d noticed that morning. The spell of quiet was all the answer she needed. Whenever friends or coworkers asked about Trevor, she responded in much the same way.

“Oh.” She patted the air with her free hand. “Sorry. I didn’t know.”

Shaking his head, he glanced back to her. “No, you don’t need to apologize. Like you said, you didn’t know. He’s been gone for a while. Since I was thirteen.”

“Still.” Amelia let her head fall back against the seat. “I’m sorry. I know how much it sucks.”

“Yeah, I know you do. And it still sucks, even after twenty-three years.” As his pale blue eyes locked on to hers, an icy surge of panic rushed through her veins. She’d come up with a half-assed speech to let Joseph know she wasn’t interested in dating him, but if he tried to make a move on her now, she had no way to put distance between them unless she climbed out of the car altogether.

When he held out the bag of gummy worms and lifted an eyebrow, she bit the inside of her cheek to keep the expression of obvious relief off her face.

“You want one? I know you’re hungry too. Your stomach grumbling could scare the birds.” He raised his shoulders. “Not the most filling thing in the world, but it beats nothing.”

She hesitated a moment, debating whether she should accept his offer. “Yeah. I guess you’re right. Sure, I’ll take a couple.”

He dumped the gummies in her waiting palm and then stretched both arms out in front of himself. “You know, we’ve been sitting here for over four hours and haven’t seen anything. It’s already seven-thirty, and it’ll be completely dark soon.” He drummed his fingers against the steering wheel thoughtfully. “Us being here is more of a formality than a necessity, right?”

As she chewed her first gummy worm, Amelia nodded. “Yeah. The Chicago PD said they could set up a couple uniformed officers to watch the place once we left.” She blew out a breath so hard that her lips fluttered. “I’m starting to think that if he’s even coming back from wherever he is, it won’t be until late.”

“And we aren’t exactly outfitted for a stakeout.” For emphasis, he lifted the plastic bag. “We’ve usually got more to sustain ourselves than soda and candy.”

Amelia twisted a piece of hair around her finger and looked to the dark windows of apartment sixteen. She wanted to personally walk Russel Ulmer into a holding cell, but the likelihood of achieving that goal grew slimmer by the minute. Her legs were cramped, her eyes were tired, and hunger pangs stabbed at her stomach.

Besides, her gut told her that Russel wouldn’t be coming back to this place. He’d either spotted a cop car and turned around, or he’d been given a heads-up by one of his CPD friends. Either way, they wouldn’t find him here.

Joseph shifted in his seat as he retrieved his phone. “They’ll find him, Storm. We’ve got every cop in the city on the lookout for him, plus the cops in Peoria. And if we don’t find him within the next day or two, we’ll get ahold of the Marshals.”

“Yeah.” Amelia let her shoulders sag with