Seals Don't Lie (Book 2)

The Beginning

The guys and I had just got back to Ace’s house when her brother Jake came in looking for his parents. We were joking around in the kitchen when his phone rang. “Hello.”

            “Jake, Henry here. I need you to come to the Thatcher’s Cabin. There’s been a break in…It’s Ella, Jake.”

            “What about my sister?!”

            “She’s…she’s been shot.”

            “I’m on the way. Do not touch anything!”  We stare at each other and then at Jake. “What the heck? Is Ace alright?” We all asked. Ella always had our backs through thick and thin. Lord, please let her be safe. I send a quick prayer upwards as Jake rubs his neck. “That was Henry. He said…He said that Ella’s been shot. I have to go up to the cabin.”

            He heads towards the front door and the three of us follow right behind him. Once he reaches his truck, we climb in. For the entire ride, silence filled the air. I knew that each of us was thinking of Ace and the years we had with her. At the thought of her being hurt, I grit my teeth. Pulling out my phone, I hit Diageo’s number. “Hey boss.”

            “Diageo I need some help. Ace was just shot. I need you to do some digging around to see if you can find any reason why someone would want to shoot her.”

            “Sure thing boss, if I find anything I’ll call you.”

            “Thanks.” I hang up and stare out the window. Even with the sirens on, it still took us almost an hour to reach the cabin. As we got out, I get the un-nerving feeling in my gut and I look at the guys. Something wasn’t right and we all knew it. The front door was wide open and there was just something about the air that felt like death.

            We walk through the door to find Henry kneeling beside Ace’s body. In just one glance I knew that there was too much blood around her for her to be alive, but in the back of my mind I was hoping that she was still breathing. The look of hurt and grief on Spade’s face told me what I didn’t want to know. She was gone.

            “What happened here Spade?” Powder asks as we all stop around her body. “I’m not sure man. I went to go get a few things for breakfast because she was running low on food. When I got back, I was greeted with a wide open door. I ran inside and found this.” He says softly, his eyes still locked onto Ace’s body. Jake kneels down beside her to examine the wound.

            We all knew what he was thinking. She shouldn’t have bled out from one gunshot, but she had been on so many pain meds that he blood would have been thin. “She shouldn’t have bled out from just one wound.”

            “Ace was taking meds for her arm and the shot she took about two months ago Jake, or have you forgotten? The pain meds thinned her blood down to where that type of wound could kill her.” 

            “I haven’t forgotten Henry. She’s my sister. Mom, Dad, the guys here and I were planning a surprise party for her. Her birthday is next week. She is…she would be thirty. Thank the Lord that Mom and Dad weren’t home when you called me Henry. This is going to kill them.” I felt like punching something but couldn’t bring myself to move.

            I look over at Henry and notice that he hadn’t moved at all. “Spade, are you alright?”

            “No Spark Plug, I’m not.” He says as he runs his hands through his hair. “Do you know that she thought that we were shutting her out; that she was losing us?”