LITMIR.BIZ

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“Michelle is in the entry hall.”

      “How was she packing?”

      “She didn’t say one word even when Detective Alexander took her fingerprint to rule out hers from the ones that he lifted.”

      “Does he need mine?” Tory asked.

      “I told him I would take care of it and give it to him tomorrow. Michelle needs to get out of here.” He studied her for a long moment. “You do too.”

      “I agree. Let’s go.” This house had been her home ever since she married Derek over fifteen years ago. She’d always thought of it as her safe haven from her work. Now she didn’t know if she could live here again.

      When Tory turned the corner in the L-shaped hallway, Michelle stood in the entrance into the bathroom as if she were frozen in place. Her duffle bag lay at her feet. “Michelle.” She rushed to her daughter and wrapped her arms around her. “You shouldn’t have opened the door.”

      The white cast to Michelle’s face and her stare fixed on the counter covered in blood underscored how grave the invasion of her home was. Whoever did this set out to frighten her.

      “Mom, who would do this?” Michelle threw her arms around Tory.

      Shudder after shudder rippled through her daughter’s body. “Honey, I don’t know, but the police will find the person. I don’t want you worrying about it. You’ll be safe.”

      Cade approached them. “I won’t let anything happen to either one of you. Let’s get out of here.”

      Tory began walking Michelle toward the entry hall. “Ranger Morgan has offered to drive us to get something to eat. How about Juicy Burger Hut? You love their hamburgers and fries.”

      “First, please call me Cade. My uncle and I don’t stand on formality at the ranch.” He opened the front door and allowed them to leave first. “Do they still have the best fries in town?”

      Michelle remained quiet, but Tory said, “According to my daughter they do. I avoid fried food if possible.”

      As her daughter slid into the black SUV backseat, shutting the car door, Cade caught Tory before she rounded the hood of the Jeep. “Are you all right? This is a lot to take in.”

      “I’m not concerned about myself. I didn’t want Michelle seeing that bathroom. Did Detective Alexander test it to see if it was blood for sure?”

      “Yes, it was, but not human blood. That’s all he can tell. The lab will narrow it down.”

      “I was hoping it was all a prank. Seeing the damage again only makes it crystal clear that it isn’t.”

      Tory paused, rounding the hood of the SUV. “We’ll never be safe unless we can find the culprits.” She finally said what she was trying to deny since she opened Michelle’s door and saw the trashed room. “Look how hard it has been even getting Mederos to trial.”

      “I promise you I’ll find the people responsible for all this.”

      “That’s a promise you might not be able to keep, Cade. We talked about a lot of things when we were young, and they didn’t come true.”

      “That was then. This is now. I’m good at my job.” He moved closer and lowered his voice even more. “And that’s my daughter in harm’s way.”

      Tension vibrated between them. She had a right to be angry. He hadn’t ever wanted to be a father. He’d had his chance and didn’t even get in touch with her to tell her it didn’t make any difference if she was pregnant, that he wasn’t going to marry her or be part of his child’s life. The only thing she’d heard from him was through Derek, who had contacted him. Cade had sent his congratulations. When her husband told her that, something inside her died that day. She at least thought he would want to be a part of his daughter’s life even if he hadn’t wanted to marry her. That was when she decided Derek would be Michelle’s father in every sense of the word.

      She climbed into the passenger side of the front seat. Too much was happening at once. Mederos had sent a terrifying message today. Michelle met Cade for the first time. They were going to his ranch to stay. Even she felt shell-shocked so she could only imagine how her daughter was doing.

      Cade started the engine and backed out of the driveway.

      “When can we go back home? I still don’t understand why I can’t stay at my grandparents’.”

      At a stop sign, Cade fixed his gaze on her daughter through the rearview mirror. “When this is all settled.”

      The lights from the street lamps lit the interior of Cade’s Jeep enough so that Tory could see Michelle’s confusion in her knitted forehead and her teeth digging into her bottom lip.

      Seeing Cade and Michelle together highlighted their similarities—height, both taller than most, the shape and color of their eyes, a crystalline blue that drew a person in, and a birthmark on their lower back. Thankfully that was where the resemblances ended, especially his black hair and angular jawline. Her daughter took after her with her long curly blond hair.

      Tory started to say something, but Cade cut her off. “Y’all are staying at my ranch. I grew up there and know the lay of the land. Not a lot has changed since I was a boy.” He drove through the intersection. “I’ll be able to protect you both better there.”

      “Will I be able to go to school?” Michelle asked, her voice quavering.

      “We have two days to figure that out. Maybe one of the fingerprints will lead the detective to who’s responsible for breaking into our house.”

      “What am I supposed to do about meeting Emma and Jodie tomorrow afternoon at the church to decorate for the fall festival? I’m running the ring-tossing booth.”

      “I’m not sure if that’s a possibility anymore,” Cade said.

      “So, I can’t go anywhere? I’m going to a strange house, and I have to stay there? What am I gonna do?”

      “Honey, I don’t know what’s going to happen. But whatever we do will be in the best interest of keeping us safe.” Being in a house with Cade wasn’t what she really wanted either. But maybe it was a good thing they would be on a ranch outside of town. Michelle could be headstrong and could do something to put herself in danger.

      * * *

      Cade pulled into the drive-through lane at Juicy Burger Hut. Within five minutes he left the fast-food restaurant and continued toward his ranch. A thick silence filled the Jeep. As he drove, he kept scanning the vehicles around him. He noted each one that was behind him, making sure he wasn’t being followed.

      When he left the lights of El Rio behind, a dark two-lane highway stretched out before him, the only light coming from his SUV headlights and the stars. A sliver of the moon hung in the sky. The hairs on his nape tingled. Just ten more minutes and they would be home. All his senses on alert, he riveted his attention on his surroundings.

      “We’re gonna be stuck out in the middle of nowhere.” Michelle broke the silence, her voice a shaky whisper. “What else are you not telling me, Mom?”

      “You know everything that I know.”

      “My ranch is only ten miles out of town.” Cade slowed his speed as he took the S curve not far from his place.

      Rounding the last part of the turn in the dark, Cade barely spotted the outline of a black truck in the middle of the road. He swerved to avoid the vehicle, his Jeep heading toward the drop-off on the side of the road. As his SUV bounced down the incline, a tree loomed before them. Cade cut the wheel hard to the right to avoid it. One of his front wheels hit something. The Jeep flipped over and began rolling down the hill.

THREE

      At the bottom of the hill, the Jeep ended up on its roof.

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