Page 93 of Holding Grace

Chapter 33

Michael

I’d planned to talk to Grace the next morning.

We’d gotten past our fight in the best possible way and shared some things, but I still hadn’t been completely honest about my feelings for her.

My plan was to make the promised pumpkin pancakes and talk to Grace over breakfast. We were about halfway done, and I was working my way up to it when Grace’s phone rang.

It was Detective Chase.

Grace froze for a second looking at the screen, then cleared her throat and tapped to answer on speaker.

“Detective Chase?”

“Is this Grace Baron?”

It was the first time since the wedding that I’d heard her addressed that way and I loved it.

“Yes, this is Grace,” she replied, seemingly unfazed. “Michael is here with me.”

“Good morning to both of you. I hope this isn’t too early to call.”

“It’s fine,” Grace reassured him. “Is there something we can do for you?”

“I’m calling with an update. Last time I talked with you I told you that we knew your brother was keeping tabs on you, but we weren’t sure how. We think we know.”

Grace and I locked eyes over the phone. Were we finally getting somewhere?

“I mentioned a man, Jim Stokes, who didn’t ring any bells for you.”

“I remember,” Grace murmured.

“When we talked with him, he claimed he was ministering to your brother and knew nothing about the attack on you. He’s an ordained minister in some online church, so even if it’s a cover story, it holds some water. Since then, we’ve connected him with a man named Junior Peters.”

Grace’s reaction to the name was immediate. She straightened in her seat and gripped the edge of the table.

“That’s...Ellis knows him from racing. I can’t remember how, but I remember Ellis talking about him.”

“Would you recognize him if you saw him?”

“No.” Grace chewed on her bottom lip. “I’ve never met him or seen him that I can recall. I just remember Ellis and Seth saying his name.”

“So, your ex knows him, too?”

“I think so, but I can’t say for sure. Probably, since Seth was involved in the racing stuff almost as much as Ellis.”

“Okay, we’ll check that out. We think Mr. Peters may be feeding information about your location and activities to Mr. Stokes. Mr. Stokes just happens to be Mr. Peters’ cousin and has been in regular communication with your brother.”

“How did the Peters guy know where Grace is or what she’s doing?” I asked.

“We haven’t answered the question of how he found her, if he’s the one who did, but as far as how he knows what she’s doing, his probation officer has a home address for him that’s about fifteen miles from you. It looks like he has an efficiency unit in a low-budget rental.”