Page 97 of SEAL's Promise

“It’s for your own safety, Mrs. Grady,” Eli said. “Sometimes, less knowledge is safer.”

“I understand. Store your bags in your rooms. Lunch is ready.”

When they arrived in the kitchen for their meal, Cal’s mouth watered at the feast of chicken pot pies with banana pudding for dessert. He’d have to run extra miles when his team resumed training.

“Mrs. Grady, this is fabulous,” Rachelle said after eating a bite. “I hope you’ll share your recipe.”

“Of course, dear.”

After lunch, Eli checked in with Maddox. When he ended the call, he told the others, “Shadow’s been diverted with Zane providing tech support. Rafe, Jackson and I will guard the perimeter of the house. Jon, are you making progress?”

“Should have something soon.”

Wolf Pack’s leader rolled his eyes. “Cryptic much?” He glanced at Cal. “Stay with Rachelle. Check in with Amy and Eric. I’ll touch base with Brody.”

“Copy that.” He also had a friend who was a tattoo artist and well known in that community. Artie might know who created the falcon tattoo.

After the rest of Wolf Pack scattered, Cal and Rachelle helped Mrs. Grady clear the table. When they finished, Cal led Rachelle to the library. “Check on Amy and Eric. I want to call a friend who’s a tattoo artist.”

After Rachelle curled up on the couch and called Amy, Cal moved to the far end of the library to talk to Artie.

“Artistic Ink,” a bass voice growled into the phone.

“It’s Cal.”

“Been a while, buddy. Where you been?”

“Here and there.”

A chuckle. “Still as talkative as always.”

“Got a minute?”

“Hold.” Artie’s voice became muffled, then the background noise disappeared. “What do you need?”

“Email address still the same?”

“Yep.”

Cal sent a cropped picture of the tattoo. “Check your email. Have you seen this tattoo?”

“I’ve seen it. In fact, I created the design.”

He stilled. “Did you give the design to another artist to use?”

“No way, man. You know how proprietary I am. This business is competitive. I’m not about to hand over one of my specialty designs.”

“Do you know who chose that design?”

“I used it twice. Hang on a sec.” Artie set the phone down with a thunk. A minute later, he said, “Got it. A woman and a man chose the design.”

“Are they Americans?”

“Yep. Why?”

“Might be important.” He already knew what Artie would say to his next question. “What are their names?”

“You know I can’t tell you that. They’re clients, Cal. If I revealed names, I wouldn’t have a business for long.”