Burning Truth (Lost and Found Columbus #3)

Chapter 7

7

A ddie went to bed that night dreaming of Severn’s kiss, and the feel of him against her. This was not ideal timing for any kind of relationship, but it was where her mind went.

Maybe, if they survived all this, they could get together for real. Or maybe it would be nice to have a distraction from all the stress. It had been a while since she’d had decent sex.

She had a feeling Severn would be more than decent. She had a feeling he would be phenomenal. He seemed to have an awareness of his body, and she wondered if he’d ever been a dancer, or had taken martial arts.

When she got up the next morning, Severn was already sipping coffee at the counter. “Do you ever sleep,” she groused, moving to the coffeemaker and slamming in a pod. She stared at the dark brew flowing into her cup and her mouth watered.

“Sometimes,” he said, moving toward the table. He was moving a little stiffly today, and she wondered if his shoulder was hurting.

“Are you okay?” she asked, pouring an unhealthy amount of creamer into her cup. She crossed the kitchen to sit down across from him.

“I’m fine. I didn’t see any fires or bombings in the news overnight.”

Addie huffed out a breath. “I hate this feeling, like we have to tease him out to hurt people. Maybe he’s not really that into me.”

Severn’s dark eyes narrowed on her. “I think you’re being na?ve. He’s very into you. He’s just planning his next move.”

Yeah, he was probably right. “As an investigator, have you seen anything like this before? Stalker slash arsonist?”

Sighing, he leaned back in the chair, then suddenly leaned forward again, like he was in pain.

“Okay, let me see it,” Addie said, pushing up from the chair and moving around behind him. She tugged at the shoulder of his dark gray t-shirt, but he waved her away.

“It’s fine,” he said, voice low. “Leave me alone.”

“Quit being stoic and show me your damn shoulder.”

He didn’t say anything as she lifted the hem of cotton up around his neck. He’d removed the bandage, and the cut up high had scabbed over pretty well.

“It’s fine,” he said again. “It’s just tight, and I pulled on the scab when I sat back.”

“Want me to add more cream?”

“No.”

Addie frowned, knowing that pulling on a healing wound couldn’t be a good thing, but she could see his resolve. “You’re impossible,” she said, shaking her head as she stepped back, deciding not to press. “Just promise me you’ll take it easy today?”

“Sure,” he replied with a hint of a smirk, but the glint in his eyes suggested he had no intention of actually listening.

“No,” he said, returning to their earlier conversation. “I haven’t seen a combination like this before. Doesn’t mean it can’t happen, though.”

She huffed out a breath.

As they finished their coffee, a buzz interrupted the moment. Severn reached for his phone on the table. He glanced at the screen, his brow furrowing slightly as he read the incoming message.

“What’s up?” Addie asked, unable to suppress her curiosity.

“Gabbie found something she’d like to show us,” he replied, his voice steady but laced with urgency. “We need to run over to my office.”

“What did she find?” Addie’s heart raced at the prospect of new information that could lead them closer to uncovering BrickBrak’s identity.

Severn stood, folding his phone away with a tight expression. “She tracked an IP address linked to some unusual activity on your social media. Looks like our friend might be a little closer than we thought.”

A chill rushed through Addie. “Closer how?”

“Let’s not waste time,” he said, already grabbing an overshirt off the chair. He was wearing a gun on his hip again today, and she assumed the shirt was to conceal it. “Go get dressed. I’ll pour your coffee in a to-go cup. She thinks he might be tracking your posts live. We need to figure out how that’s even possible before he makes a move.”

Addie felt the panic rise inside her, but she squashed it down. She couldn’t let fear dictate her actions. “All right, back in a minute,” she said.

Addie raced up the stairs, stripping off her sleep-clothes as she went. She dressed as quickly as she could in casual jean capris, a shirt and tennis shoes. It was mid-summer, and she wasn’t sure how Severn was going to comfortably wear two shirts. It was too hot for that. Scraping her hair back into a poofy ponytail, she fluffed her bangs, but she wasn’t wild about the look. Some of the makeup was still there from last night, she just cleaned it up a little. She wasn’t runway ready, but she wasn’t a total slob, either.

Jogging down the stairs, she dropped her phone, wallet and chapstick into a black Coach cross-body bag and grabbed a bedazzled ball cap from the rack near the front door. “I’m ready.”

As they hurried out the door, Severn paused for a moment, looking back at her with a fierce intensity. “Addie, I want you to remember something no matter what happens today or however long I’m here—I will protect you. I need you to trust me.”

“Always,” she said with conviction, struck by the sincerity in his eyes. They were more greenish today, and she marveled at the length of his lashes. “Has anyone ever told you what great lashes you have?”

He snorted and held out a hand to her as he shook his head. Was his face a little pink? “Yeah, I’ve heard it before. And no, I don’t use eye makeup.”

Grinning, she keyed in the code on the alarm and locked the door behind them, then let him guide her down the walk. They made their way to his black truck quickly, but as Severn turned the key in the ignition, Addie couldn’t shake the feeling brewing in her gut. “You think he knows we’re onto him?” she couldn’t help but ask.

“Possibly,” he admitted as he backed out of the driveway, keeping an eye on the rearview. “But we need to act like we’re unaware. If we spook him, he might retreat into the shadows, and we’ll never catch him.”

As they sped toward wherever he was taking them, the streets whizzed by, indistinct blurs of color. Severn’s silent intensity was contagious, fueling her resolve while also heightening her anxiety. She flexed her fingers, feeling both the weight of what lay ahead and the warmth of Severn’s reassuring presence. She was very aware of him, and it was more than a little distracting.

When they pulled up outside a long, low office building just off the interstate, Addie inhaled deeply. “Is this Lost and Found?”

He nodded. “Ready?” he asked, his expression serious.

“Yes,” she said, forcing a smile. She wasn’t sure, but she wouldn’t tell him that.

The office was trendy, with black metal hardware and bright wood accents. It was a very modern space, interspersed with green plants that looked real. There was a pretty young woman sitting at the front desk. She smiled when Severn walked in.

“Hello, Sir. I have a bunch of messages for you.” She dug into a space behind the counter and pulled out a stack of brightly colored post-it notes.

“Thank you, Morgan. This is Addie Kingston. If she ever calls or shows up here, I need to be notified immediately.”

Morgan blinked her big blue eyes and nodded. “Yes, sir. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Ms. Kingston.”

“Call me Addie, Morgan.”

Morgan smiled even brighter and nodded. “Love your segments, by the way. You always do such a good job.”

“Thank you,” Addie said, following Severn up a set of metal stairs. “Are you, like, in charge here?” she whisper-hissed as they headed up the stairs.

“No, he’s not, though he likes to think he is sometimes,” a deep voice broke in.

Severn snorted. “Addie, this is Parker Quinn, the head of Lost and Found Columbus.”

There was no doubting that the man at the top of the stairs was the boss. Big and beefy, he had deep set grey eyes and dirty blond hair. Something was off with his face, but Addie didn’t want to stare too long. She shoved a hand out and smiled. “Nice to meet you.”

He shook strongly and let her go. “Nice to meet you as well, Ms. Kingston. I’m sorry we had to meet like this, but I’m sure Sev will get to the bottom of your stalker.”

“Gabbie says she has something for us,” Severn said, taking Addie’s elbow to guide her around his boss.

“Let’s go see, then,” Parker said, following along.

They headed down the hallway, almost to the end. Gabbie was in a darkened office, her face illuminated only by the screen of her computer. “You guys made it,” she said, looking up as they entered. “I’ve got a lead that could point to your arsonist. Oh, nice to meet you Addie,” she said, flashing a wave.

“Nice to meet you, too. Thank you for doing this,” she said rather lamely. Gabbie was a beauty, with dark eyes and dark hair with a deep purple streak in a knot on top of her head.

Gabbie scrunched up her face. “Sorry I’m all up in your business.”

Addie snorted and shrugged. “Everybody is right now,” she laughed.

Gabbie gestured for them to take a seat while she navigated through her applications. “So, I traced the IP back to a local internet service provider and found some suspicious activity linked to an account using that profile pic. The interesting part is, it traces back to a local government server.”

Addie’s stomach clenched, dread flooding her. “Wait, my stalker is somebody in government?”

“Exactly. And it gets worse,” Gabbie continued. “The guy is good, because he swept up most of his crumbs. Looks like he’s probably using a burner phone, but he still gets on the government Wi-Fi. Stupid shit. Last post linked to this account was made under a new profile of someone who claims to be a fan but followed it up with messages that seem—well, threatening. The profile name is TikTak696.”

Addie felt the color drain from her face, her thoughts spiraling as anxiety clawed at her insides. Her gaze met Severn’s, and his mouth tightened. That was the name they’d called him when they responded last night. “What do you mean, threatening?”

Severn leaned forward, his expression razor-sharp. “Can you show us?”

Gabbie’s fingers danced over the keyboard, and suddenly a screen to the left lit up, as well as a series of comments that glared back at them in a painful white and blue. Each one was a twisted reflection of admiration soaked in menace. “Here,” she said, presenting the screen like it was evidence in a courtroom.

Addie read through the lines with mounting horror. What had initially felt like harmless fan commentary morphed into grotesque fantasies and chilling insinuations about her off-air life. “It doesn’t stop,” she choked out, her voice barely holding steady. “It’s just... deranged.”

Severn’s jaw tightened as he scanned through the comments. “Can we trace it back to the source?”

Gabbie nodded. “Somebody reported the account, but I still have a bead on him. It’s going to take some digging, but if I can access the IT logs from the provider, we might get at least a general area tied to this account.”

“Let’s do it,” Severn urged, determination hardening in his tone. “Every second counts.”

As Gabbie typed with intense focus, Addie felt the gravity of their situation weighing heavily on her. There was a threat to her life, one that could culminate in violence. It already had culminated in violence. “I didn’t think he’d reacted to seeing us together, but he had. He just created a new account to vent and we didn’t see it.”

Severn nodded, his mouth grim. “And used the name we gave him. It’s not just about the act of following; it’s about the obsession. This isn’t a fan reaching out; it’s a predator.”

Addie’s heart raced, the weight of those words settling heavily in her chest. She felt like she’d been thrown onto this crazy rollercoaster, and it was battering her mind and body. Suddenly, all the past interactions on social media took on a darker undertone. The playful engagement, the likes, the tags—it was all part of a twisted game she had unknowingly entered. “I was just trying to connect, to do my job,” she said, her voice trembling slightly. “Does that make me a target?”

“No,” Severn corrected softly, his brows knitting together in concern. “This isn’t your fault, Addie. You did nothing wrong.”

“Severn’s right,” Gabbie chimed in, fingers still flying across the keyboard. “You can’t control how people react. But we can control how we respond.”

“And we’re responding with force,” Parker said.

Addie took a deep breath, trying to steady the trembling in her fingers. “Okay, let’s find this guy. What’s our next step?”

Gabbie paused to exchange glances with Severn before answering, “We’ll need to contact the ISP and stake our claim. If we can get their cooperation, we can track this user back to an address or at least a vicinity.”

Severn nodded, and the intensity in his gaze focused entirely on Addie. “You have to promise to stay close to me. I don’t want you alone at any point while we’re tracing this. We’ll be in and out at the station only as needed. Understand?”

Her heart swelled at his insistence; even amidst the chaos, he was making sure she understood that she would be protected. “I promise.”

With that resolve set, Gabbie’s fingers resumed their frenzied pace. Within moments, she was on the phone with someone at the internet service provider, talking in low, urgent tones that faded into background noise for Addie. It was really sinking in that someone, somewhere, was watching; that in the shadows lurked a threat that had already crossed the line into her life.

“Okay, they’re willing to help,” Gabbie stated suddenly, pulling attention back to her. “They gave me a contact for someone within their security department who can expedite our request. But it goes through proper channels, and it might take some time.”

Time. That dreadful word weighed heavy in the space between them. “We don’t have time,” Severn said, his voice assertive. “We need to move faster. We need to anticipate his next move.”

“So, let’s guide his next move,” Parker said said, stepping toward Gabbie’s desk. “How do we plant a trail for him?”

Addie felt a tinge of adrenaline surging through her; there was urgency to this entire situation, and she could feel her heart hammering. “What if we went after him ourselves? I mean, if we know he’s tracking my posts, we could bait him. We already kind of talked about this.”

Gabbie shook her head. “It’s risky, Addie. He’s already killed three people. We don’t know how he’ll react if he feels cornered. Your safety comes first.”

“Sometimes it takes risks to catch a predator,” Severn countered, contemplating the idea. “But it has to be done carefully. Play things off as normal.”

“Not just normal, what we posted yesterday. Invite him to think that everything is fine. There’s a food truck festival this weekend. Another team is covering it, but I say we go to the festival and ham it up,” Addie said, her pulse quickening at the prospect. “I’ll technically be off duty, so we’ll make it a point to hang on each other. Put on a show.”

Severn and Gabbie exchanged glances. “If we pull this off, it could give us a route to flush him out,” Gabbie conceded, a semblance of eager enthusiasm creeping into her tone. “There are a lot of cameras in that area.”

“Well let’s plan it out, then,” Parker said.

Severn leaned closer to Addie, looking her in the eye. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

Taking a deep breath, she nodded. “I feel like he’s getting pissed. If Gabbie can track him or his phone, I feel like we can do something to draw him out.”

Together, they began to outline a strategy. They would post on her socials that she would be at the food truck festival on the Scioto Mile and Bicentennial Park. That would give him notice of where she would be. And they would start posting her having fun. Them having fun. Plenty of PDA.

Severn shifted at that, and she gave him a look. “Are you okay being on display like that?”

He gave her a slightly rakish smile. “I’ll survive.”

The fun in that look made her heart thump in her chest. Yes, they were doing this for a reason, but she had to admit, she was looking forward to being close to him again.

Gabbie logged into some kind of program that had CCTV of the entire downtown.

“I don’t think I want to know how you’re doing this, Gab,” Parker said. “I’m heading back to my office for plausible deniability.”

Gabbie laughed. “That’s probably best,” she murmured.

They concocted a virtual mouse trap, and as Addie suggested ideas alongside theirs, she felt a new sense of surety that they were doing the right thing.

Severn called Detective Johnson on speaker phone and let her know what they were planning. She promised to send several undercover detectives, as well as keep two teams on standby if they needed backup.

It nagged at her, though, that they were running the risk of someone being hurt. Possibly many someones. They needed to catch this asshole.