Page 156 of Secrets Hidden In The Glass

Chapter Twenty-Six

Nate closed his office door with a testy snap and swore as he rested his pounding head against the wooden frame. It was barely ten thirty a.m. and he’d already had it with the day. Callie had warned him that things would get crazy, but the last four days had gone way past insane. Ever since the media’s Monday afternoon invasion, he and his three-man crew had been rotating two-person, twelve-hour shifts; nuisance calls were at an all-time high while members of the press hunted up their stories and disrupted everyone’s daily lives in the process; and he feared Kay was going to quit on him if one more person lit up the phone lines with a ridiculous prank tip on where they could find Callie’s mother.

All in all, he’d been handling things—taking them in stride—until his terrified pregnant sister had called in to report someone lurking around on the Carter Mansion grounds at two o’clock this morning. He’d happily chased down and tackled his perp in the beach sand, eventually locking up Kenneth Pentingsworth, a reporter from Daily Truth. When Buzz Deacon, the island’s pilot who also served as the local magistrate, issued the pain-in-the-ass journalist the maximum possible fine for criminal trespassing and disturbing the peace, Nate had sent up a silent cheer. But regardless of his small victory, enough was enough.

Taking a deep breath, then two more, Nate sat at his desk and rolled his tense shoulders. He glanced at his watch, then closed his eyes, well aware that this couldn’t go on much longer. He and his deputies were going to have to rein in the press even more, but keeping the peace on the island wasn’t his only concern. Callie was putting up her walls again as she struggled to cope with being stuck in the house and the endless headlines—some of them ridiculous and others cruel. More than once she’d assured him that she was doing okay, but he knew that wasn’t true, especially after yesterday’s incident in Chicago, Illinois, where a woman resembling an older Callie Davis was chased down and physically attacked by some lunatic who’d been certain the victim was Callie’s neglectful biological mother. That had been tough to take and was the last thing anyone needed—vigilantes “helping” Callie’s cause.

“Nate,” Kay called, giving a gentle knock on the door.

“Yeah?”

The door squeaked as she opened it slowly. “This just came for you—from the Hartford Police Department.”

Nate opened one eye, looking at the FedEx overnight envelope—the disk Sanchez had let him know was on the way.

“And I thought you could use these.” She walked over and put two Extra-Strength Tylenols in his palm.

He steamed out a long breath as he sat up. “Thanks.”

She set the package on the growing stack of papers he hadn’t had the time to get to. “The mayor called just after you came down to your office. He wanted me to remind you about the meeting before the press conference.”

Nate knocked back the pills with the bottled water on his desk. “I’m not sure how I could forget.”

“I know, but I wanted to be able to say I relayed the message. He’s been calling a lot the past couple of days—concerned and looking for updates.”

Nate hated that it crossed his mind to wonder how much Sanderson’s mayor was loving this—famous Callie Davis taking refuge on Thomas’s pretty little island. That was bound to go a long way in the town’s PR department. “I appreciate it.”

Kay leaned her butt against the edge of his desk and crossed her arms. “How’s Callie doing?”

He massaged his temples. “She’s hanging in there.”

“That poor girl. Those fools out there should be ashamed of themselves.” She sniffed her disapproval and tightened her arms across her chest. “As if it weren’t bad enough that she was left alone as a child—now some of them are calling her selfish and greedy in their headlines? I’d like to find the smug SOBs who are writing that stuff and box their ears.”

Nate smiled. “I’d turn my head and let you go at it.”

She sniffed again. “When is this going to end? When are they going to leave and let us get back to our lives?”

“I don’t know, but we’re hoping Callie’s statement today will go a long way toward moving us in that direction.” He looked at his watch again. “I should probably head over to Town Hall and see what I can do about soothing ruffled feathers.”

“I’ll hold down the fort here.”

“I don’t know what I would do without you,” he reminded her as he grabbed his jacket and walked down the hall, preparing himself for the onslaught of microphones and questions he would refuse to acknowledge until he had no choice in an hour from now.

“Nate, we’re on our way,” Shawn’s voice carried over the radio on Nate’s hip as he reached the door. “Should be there in about five minutes.”

“Good to hear,” he responded. “Denny’s waiting by the back door to give you guys a hand. I’m heading in through the front to buy you some time. I’ll meet you inside.”

“Sure thing, Nate.”

“See you in a few.” He pushed open the door and started walking the short distance to Sanderson’s Town Hall, ignoring the reporters as they tossed their million damn questions his way despite the fact that the clouds were threatening rain and it was cold. “I’ll make my statement later,” he finally said when he spotted Mac and Shawn driving down Main Street, then turning toward the back entrance of the building. He hurried up the front steps, eager to get to Callie. By the time he made it down the hall, Callie was walking through the back door. He smiled, studying her pink sweater set, tailored gray slacks, and black heels—professional yet sexy-sleek. “Hey you.”

“Hey.” She kissed him and cupped his cheeks, her eyes radiating concern as she stared into his. “You look tired.”

So did she, despite her makeup and the curls she’d added to her hair, but he kept his thoughts to himself. “I’m all right.” He took her hand. “Come on. Thomas is waiting for us.” They walked to the building’s largest room—where the council held their monthly meetings—and stood toward the back of the packed space. People started turning and looking at them.

Callie sent a small smile to Mini and Leah when they waved to her.

“Since everyone is quieting down, I’ll take this as my opportunity to start our meeting,” Thomas said, decked out in one of his typical suits, standing behind the podium in the front of the room. “As you all know, we’ve had a difficult few days.”