LITMIR.BIZ

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didn’t kill him, and that means if he’s not out there, then his killer is. That’s why I lock the doors. That’s why I have a security system.”

      He made a sound that could have meant anything. “Why did you stay if you think Bobby Joe or his killer will come back?”

      She heard more of those doubts, and while Rayna didn’t think she could make him understand, she tried anyway. “I wasn’t born into money. And, no, that’s not a dig about you and your family. It’s my clumsy way of saying that I can’t just pick up and leave even if that’s what I wanted to do.”

      Which she didn’t. That house was her home where she’d been raised. Where once she’d been happy. She was hoping to reach that happy status again.

      “Besides,” Rayna added a moment later, “training horses is something I love doing, and I’m fortunate enough that it pays the bills.” That along with the money she got from boarding horses from some folks who lived in town. The occasional riding lessons, too.

      Court stared at her, and he obviously had something on his mind. “You never collected Bobby Joe’s life insurance money. It was for fifty grand, and he left it all to you.”

      Yes, he had. Considering the big blowup Bobby Joe and she’d had just weeks before his disappearance, it surprised her that he hadn’t changed his beneficiary. But then if he’d truly wanted to set her up for his murder, he would have left her name on the policy.

      “I have no intentions of touching that money,” she said.

      Court stared at her, cursed under his breath, and he paused a long time. “I’m sorry about what happened yesterday when I tackled you like that. I was half crazy when I went out to your place.”

      That was true, but it was a craziness she could understand. She didn’t get a chance to tell him that though because his phone rang, the sound shooting through the room. Her nerves were so frayed and raw that it caused her to gasp.

      “It’s Thea,” he said when he glanced at the screen.

      He knew the call could be important, and that was why Court answered it right away. He also put it on speaker.

      “Your dad’s awake,” Thea stated, and with just those three words, Rayna could hear the relief in the deputy’s voice. “He’s still pretty groggy, but I thought you’d want to come and see him.”

      “I do.” Court reached for his keys and his Stetson. He was already wearing his holster and weapon. But he stopped and looked at Rayna.

      She could see the debate he was having. He didn’t want to leave her there alone, but Court probably didn’t want her near Warren, either. The debate didn’t last long though.

      “Rayna will be with me,” he said to Thea. “What kind of security is in place at the hospital?”

      “There’s a guard posted outside Warren’s door. Egan is there, too. And so is Griff.”

      Two lawmen and a security guard might not sound like a lot, but in this case, Warren was well protected.

      “Good. We’ll be there in fifteen minutes,” Court assured Thea, and he ended the call.

      Since it was normally about a twenty-minute drive from the McCall Ranch to town, Rayna guessed that they’d be hurrying. And they did. Court didn’t waste any time getting her into the truck parked directly in front of the cabin, and they drove on the ranch road and then got onto the highway that led to McCall Canyon.

      “It won’t be a good idea for you to go into my father’s room,” Court said several minutes later, and he didn’t give her a chance to disagree with that. “You can wait with Griff while I talk to him.”

      Court was right. She wanted to know if Warren had hired the dead PI, but he was far less likely to own up to anything with her in the room. Still, it wouldn’t be a pleasant experiencing waiting with Griff. Yes, he would keep her safe, but he was firmly on the side of Warren when it came to anything, since Warren had practically raised Griff and his sister after their parents had been sent to jail for selling drugs.

      “Keep watch,” Court reminded her.

      Even though she was already doing that, it caused her pulse to jump. The attack from the previous day was still way too fresh in her mind. Plus, she was having some pain, especially where the idiot had injected her with that drug. The seat belt was pulling right across the tender bruise.

      “Are you okay?” Court asked.

      He was frowning and glancing at her midsection. That was when Rayna realized she was holding her side. She was probably wincing, too. She nearly lied and told him everything was fine, but Rayna knew he wouldn’t believe her.

      “I’m hurting. I’m scared. And I’m mad. Yes, I messed up when I got involved with Bobby Joe. I should have never been with him in the first place, and I should have never stayed after the first time he hit me.”

      She wasn’t sure how Court would react to that and expected him to dismiss it. He didn’t. Even though he only glanced at her, she saw something in his eyes. Sympathy, maybe. If that was it, she didn’t want it.

      “I was a fool,” she added. That not only applied to her relationship with Bobby Joe. She’d also been a fool to choose him over Court.

      “Why exactly were you with him?” Court asked.

      The burst of anger had come and gone, and now Rayna got a dose of something else that was familiar. Shame. There were plenty of emotions that came with the baggage of being in a relationship with someone like Bobby Joe.

      “Because I didn’t think I deserved anything better,” she said. She certainly hadn’t deserved Court.

      He frowned. “What the heck does that mean?”

      She hadn’t expected him to understand. “You’re a McCall from the right side of the tracks. You have a father and mother who love you.” Rayna didn’t have a clue who her father was, and her mother had dumped her at her grandmother’s when Rayna had been in first grade.

      Court’s frown continued, and he added some profanity to go along with it. “You’re telling you think you deserved to be with a jerk because you had some bad breaks in life?”

      “I know it doesn’t make sense to you.” She looked at him. “It doesn’t make sense to me now, either. I finally had, uh, well, an epiphany after Bobby Joe hit me the second time, and I knew if I stayed with him, the violence would only continue. Probably even get worse. That’s when I ended our engagement.” She paused. “And you know the rest.”

      Whether he believed the rest was anyone’s guess, and there wasn’t time to ask him. That was because he pulled to a stop in front of the hospital. He didn’t use the parking lot. He left his truck by the curb, directly behind a cop car, and he hurried her inside.

      Egan was right there to greet them.

      One look at the sheriff’s face, and Rayna knew something was wrong. She prayed that Warren hadn’t had complications from the surgery. Or worse, that he’d died. She wasn’t a fan of his, but she didn’t want him dead. And that was partly because she knew how much Egan, Court and their sister, Rachel, loved him.

      “What happened?” Court asked.

      But Egan didn’t respond. He made an uneasy glance around the waiting room, where there were several patients as well as some medical staff, and he motioned for Court and her to follow him. They did, and Egan went in the direction of the patients’ ward, but he stopped in the hall. However, Rayna could see Rachel, Griff and Court’s mother, Helen, just outside the door. It was no doubt Warren’s room.

      Egan looked at her as if trying to decide what to do with her. Clearly, he wanted to have a private conversation with his brother, but there was no way they could leave her alone.

      “Dad didn’t stay awake for long before he lapsed back into unconsciousness. But he did manage to say

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