for a few minutes before the sandy-haired one opened the driver’s door and slid behind the wheel. Declan jogged over to where she and Caleb were waiting.
“Good job, Deck,” Caleb said as he approached.
Declan brushed off the praise with a quick shrug and focused his intense gaze on her. “Tess, we need to talk.”
This must be the part where she was to give her statement. She nodded and Declan took her arm, guiding her over to another sheriff’s department vehicle parked in the shade of a tall maple tree that was just barely beginning to change colors in the warm autumn sun. She glanced over her shoulder, watching thankfully as the armored truck drove away with the bomb.
She slid into the backseat, feeling inexplicably nervous when Declan joined her. He turned sideways in the seat so he could face her.
“I need you to start at the beginning,” Declan said as he pulled out his notebook.
Tess explained how the events transpired in the classroom before she inadvertently triggered the bomb.
“How often do you sit at your desk during the day?” he asked.
“Hardly ever,” she admitted. “I tend to stand in front of the room and walk around as I’m teaching, but I do sit down for tests. And at noon, since I normally eat a bag lunch at my desk while grading papers.”
He nodded, jotting down a few notes. “Do you have anyone who might be holding a grudge against you? A boyfriend? Maybe an ex-husband?”
She blushed and glanced down at her hands entwined in her lap. “No, I’m not seeing anyone and I’ve never been married.”
“Tess, this is important,” Declan persisted, his gaze serious. “I need you to tell me anything in your personal life that might be remotely connected to this.”
She didn’t understand what he was getting at. “What? Why?”
Declan paused for a moment. “I believe your desk was chosen on purpose. And if you’re the target, we need to figure out what connection you have to the perp.”
Tess instinctively wanted to protest, but the somber expression on Declan’s face forced her to bite her tongue. She thought back over the past few months. Pathetic as it sounded, she led a boring, noneventful life. She volunteered at the church, playing piano for the choir, and couldn’t imagine anyone who’d want to hurt her.
She didn’t have any enemies that she was aware of. In fact, she couldn’t even think of one single thing that she’d done to make anyone angry.
The thought that someone might have purposefully planted a bomb under her desk made her feel sick. She glanced at Declan, grateful to know she wasn’t alone. Just like ten years ago, she felt safe with him sitting beside her.
“There isn’t anyone I can think of,” she said finally. “The last guy I dated was the vice principal of Greenland Middle School, but he moved last year to take a principal position down in Missouri. I’m sure Jeff would never do something like this.”
“What’s his full name?” Declan asked, a frown puckered in his brow.
She sighed. “Jeff Berg. And I’m telling you, he’s not involved.”
“How long were you two seeing each other?”
She grimaced, wondering if this interrogation was really necessary. “A little less than four months. We weren’t engaged or anything. When he told me about the job offer, I was happy for him.”
“You didn’t want to follow him to Missouri?”
She crossed her arms over her chest, feeling defensive. Maybe she once had a silly schoolgirl crush on the younger version of Declan, especially after he’d saved her from that disastrous prom date with Steve Gains, but at the moment, she didn’t much like the man he’d become. Declan was all business, determined to get to the bottom of whatever connection he thought she had to the person who’d planted the bomb under her desk. There wasn’t a speck of personalization in his tone.
In that moment, he reminded her too much of her father. The thought was enough to get her ridiculous schoolgirl emotions back under control.
“No, I didn’t. Are we finished now? I need to get back to my colleagues.”
“We sent everyone home...there won’t be any school for the rest of the week,” Declan said bluntly. “But I’d be happy to take you home.”
“I don’t need a ride, I have my car here.” She pushed open her door and slid out of the seat, determined to get away from Declan’s overwhelming presence and clear her mind.
She didn’t get very far, because within seconds he’d caught up with her, lightly grasping her arm. “Tess, wait.”
She stopped and glared at him over her shoulder. “For what?”
“Just give me a few minutes, okay? Which car is yours?” he asked.
“The grayish blue Honda Civic parked beneath the large maple tree,” she retorted. “Why? Don’t tell me you think there’s a bomb planted there, too?”
“I’m going to make sure there isn’t,” Declan answered grimly.
What? Tess gaped at him in shock. She hadn’t been serious when she made that remark, but it was clear that Declan really believed she was in danger. As upset as she was with him, when he let go of her arm, she missed his warmth.
Tess folded her arms over her chest, feeling vulnerable and alone as Declan crossed over to talk to Caleb. The two of them jogged across the parking lot to where she’d left her car and dropped to the ground to search underneath it.
She didn’t want to think that she was the target of some crazy bomber, but it was difficult not to be afraid when Declan so clearly believed she was.
Maybe Declan was just being overly cautious. She simply couldn’t imagine what she’d done to cause someone to hate her enough to plant a bomb under her desk, risking not only her life but those of her students.
There had to be some mistake.
* * *
“I can’t see much,” Deck muttered, flashing his light across the undercarriage of Tess’s car.
“The car is too close to the ground,” Caleb agreed. “I can’t even get my head under there, can you?”
He shook his head. “Nope. I can’t see anything obvious, but we’ll need to get it up on a ramp to be sure.”
“Yeah, good plan,” Caleb agreed.
Declan took one last look before he reluctantly rose to his feet. No way was he going to let Tess drive the vehicle until he was certain it was safe. He caught Caleb’s gaze across the hood of her car. “Maybe we should send a team to check out her house, too.”
His friend
