Again he charged forward. He pushed his shoulder into the man and then spun around. Calvin saw it a second too late. The knife stuck into the side of his stomach. His pain and fear made him drop his gun. Henry kicked it to the side.
Calvin let out a wild sound that Henry couldn’t quite define. The man swung his famous knock-out hit, but this time Henry knew it was coming. He dodged the hit but kept close.
Using a move he’d been on the receiving end of the night before, Henry executed one of the top five favorite techniques of his career.
He head-butted Calvin so hard that he heard the man’s nose break.
It was the final blow.
Calvin fell backward again.
This time he didn’t get back up.
Henry wanted to take a moment to enjoy knowing that he had stopped a madman, but just as he thought about it, he remembered that Calvin had been trying to inspire loyalty.
At the sound of feet hitting pavement toward the front of the house, he hoped that loyalty hadn’t stuck.
He had no weapons.
His hands were cuffed behind his back.
His shirt was soaked from the blood pouring out of his multiple wounds.
But he had two women to save, another woman to find and a son he very much wanted to raise.
Henry spun around, ready to win every fight he had to, to see all those things come to pass.
“Henry!”
But it was Cassie who was running toward him, her sister and Maggie behind her. Michael was there, too. Gun out.
Cassie must have seen the look he was giving the man.
“He’s a good guy,” she told him, nearly closing the space between them.
Henry was about to question that when the red-haired man lifted his gun up and aimed it at them. Henry took a step forward, already imagining using his body as a shield to keep Cassie safe, when the world seemed to go into slow motion.
Green eyes, the color of a forest after a nice, cleansing rain, widened in fear. It wasn’t at Henry. It was behind him.
Without turning around he realized he’d fallen for Calvin’s deceit one last time.
The man who had pretended to die by gunshots in a barn in Tennessee had pretended once again that he had been beaten.
Henry turned, knowing that Calvin would wait until he saw Henry’s defeat before he pulled the trigger. Then, when he was done with Henry, he’d just as surely shoot Cassie before Michael could do anything about it.
And Henry refused to let anyone else suffer because of his past.
Cassie was already yelling by the time Henry turned. That yell turned into a scream by the time Henry had run at Calvin. He was sitting up but armed, as Henry had already guessed.
A gunshot filled the air around them as Henry took the bullet in the shoulder.
He didn’t let it slow him down.
With every ounce of anger, remorse and guilt left in him, Henry kicked the gun free of Calvin’s hand and then kicked the man.
Henry heard the crack and knew it was the one that would end his old partner.
Calvin fell back onto the remnants of the broken window, neck at an odd angle, eyes open and unblinking, looking up toward the sky.
Henry hoped that his best friend had finally found peace.
Even if it was more than he deserved.
“Henry!”
The bulge of a pregnant belly brushed up against Henry’s bound hands. Darkness might have tinted the edges of his vision, bullets and cuts and bruises might have been trying to work together to bring him down, but in that moment Henry finally felt his own version of peace.
Epilogue
Cassie looked down and sighed. The white fabric clung to a stomach that wasn’t flat but definitely didn’t have a curve to it anymore. She fanned her fingers across the beads Kristen had been so insistent about. The dress was gorgeous, but still she found her form was lacking.
Kristen laughed from the doorway. “You know, I’m sure if you asked nicely, that husband of yours might just put another baby in there.”
Cassie rolled her eyes but couldn’t deny the idea was appealing.
“I think it might be nice to wait until at least a day after the wedding,” she said. “Don’t you think?”
Kristen waved off her concern. “I mean, technically, the wedding is over.” She motioned to the window. Through the slats in the plantation shutter a party of people could be seen milling around outside. “The reception has already started.”
Cassie felt her lips curve into a smile. It was genuine and one of many that had taken place during the course of the afternoon.
Six months had passed since Calvin Fitzgerald had died on the grass in between two houses in Westbridge. Six months since a terrified Cassie had held a bleeding Henry in her arms until an ambulance had gotten to them. Six months since she had thought she might lose the love of her life forever.
That day the communications of the department might have been lacking, but it hadn’t mattered in the end. Whether following his instincts or his heart, Detective Matt Walker had decided to revisit Westbridge in pursuit of his fiancée. He’d showed up to find her, Kristen, Michael and the two lackeys they’d incapacitated in the street. He’d sent the cavalry in as soon as he’d spotted the group. Until they arrived, Henry had stayed conscious and, somehow, had found enough left in him to scold Cassie.
“I’d appreciate it if you’d stop trying to rescue me,” he’d said, a smile on his lips.
Cassie had shushed him. “I’m a Southern lady. We’re only polite until someone threatens what’s ours. You’re mine, Deputy Ward. If you’re in trouble, then know I’ll always be right there trying to get you out of it.”
He’d laughed. “I could get used to that.”
She’d ridden to the hospital with him, Kristen in tow, and spent every day at his side as he’d recovered from his wounds. Then, two months later, their places had reversed. However, that was all thanks to a blond-haired, green-eyed baby boy named Colby.
If you asked Henry if he had cried the first time he’d seen his son, he would shake his head, but Cassie knew differently.
He’d been putty in Colby’s tiny hands since minute one.
Cassie caught sight of her sister, Denise, homing in on the very man who had stolen her heart. She let out a sigh. “I suppose I should get back out there and save that poor man from being cornered by Denise.”
Kristen came up beside her and put an arm across her shoulders.
“You know, if you really wanted her to, I bet she’d move back here if you asked,” she said. “She is the responsible sister. I bet she’d make life a lot easier, since she has a bunch of kids, too.”
Cassie shook her head and nudged the woman next to her. “I love her, just like I know you do, too, but I think the only sibling I need already lives across the street.”
Kristen’s cheeks dimpled as a huge smile stretched over her face. She squeezed her shoulders and then, just as quickly, she turned to teasing. “All right, Mrs. Ward. Stop being all emotional and let’s go save your husband from the wonderful terror that is our Denise.”
The dance floor was filled to the brim with people, just as the many tables were. Cassie had opted for a smaller wedding, but Henry had refused. He’d known how much her family meant to her and since they were their own large crowd, half the place belonged to them. The other half had been split between Henry’s small family and the Riker County Sheriff’s Department. Almost everyone had found a way to come or to stop by. Others had to ask for time off, considering they were in the wedding.
Cassie smiled from her spot at a table near the dance floor where she’d needed to rest. From there she got an uninhibited view of Billy dancing with his daughter while Mara danced with their son. Matt, Maggie and their son were getting down next to them while Suzy, James and their large famil
y did their own version of getting down.
Cassie spotted Kristen near the outside, wondering if the woman was pining after the good-looking millionaire, but surprised to see all her attention on a different man.
“Oh, boy,” she muttered to herself. Kristen was using her flirty smile on none other than Garrett, Henry’s brother. That was going to be interesting. Especially since Garrett had just surprised Henry with the news that he was transferring to Darby.
“Listen, I need you to buy me a drink.”
Cassie’s smile doubled as the sound of her husband’s voice brushed against her ear.
“I need you to pretend to buy me a drink, that is,” he said, quoting what she’d said to Gary at the Eagle. It seemed like a lifetime ago.
“I don’t know if my husband would like that,” she said, watching him step around her and take the seat at her side. In his arms was the only other man who could ever look so good in a suit.
“I don’t think he would mind. Especially since he probably deserves one after dealing with the particularly dangerous diaper he just changed.” He gave her a smirk, the one that made every part of her stand at attention. If he’d been wearing his blue jeans, Cassie might just have melted completely.
Henry passed Colby over and then readjusted his chair so they both could look out over the dance floor.
Cassie ran her hand through her baby boy’s soft hair while Henry stroked the back of her shoulder with his thumb.
“I could get used to this,” she finally said, feeling the full force of contented happiness in being surrounded by her love, her heart and her family.
Henry smiled.
“Good,” he said. “Because I don’t intend to ever let you go. I might be an idiot sometimes, but I’m not that stupid.”
And then that smirk came right on back.
Maybe she didn’t need him to be wearing those blue jeans after all.
* * * * *
Look for the next book in Tyler Anne Snell’s
The Protectors of Riker County
miniseries, The Negotiation,
available next month.
And don’t miss the previous titles in
The Protectors of Riker County series:
Small-Town Face-Off
The Deputy’s Witness
Forgotten Pieces
Loving Baby
Available now from Harlequin Intrigue!
Keep reading for an excerpt from Cowboy Above the Law by Delores Fossen.
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Cowboy Above the Law
by Delores Fossen
Chapter One
Deputy Court McCall glanced down at the blood on his shirt. His father’s blood. Just the sight of it sliced away at him and made him feel as if someone had put a bullet in him, too.
Court hadn’t changed into clean clothes because he wanted Rayna Travers to see what she had done. He wanted to be right in her face when he told her that she’d failed.
Barely though.
His father, Warren, was still alive, hanging on by a thread, but Court refused to accept that he wouldn’t make it. No, his father would not only recover, but Warren would also help Court put Rayna behind bars. This time, she wasn’t going to get away with murder.
Court pulled to a stop in front of her house, a place not exactly on the beaten path. Of course, that applied to a lot of the homes in or near McCall Canyon. His ancestors had founded the town over a hundred years ago, and it had become exactly what they’d intended it to be—a ranching community.
What they almost certainly hadn’t counted on was having a would-be killer in their midst.
Court looked down at his hands. Steady. That was good. Because there was nothing steady inside him. The anger was bubbling up, and he had to make sure he reined in his temper enough to arrest Rayna. He wouldn’t resort to strong-arm tactics, but there was a high chance he would say something he shouldn’t.
Since Rayna’s car was in her driveway, it probably meant she was home. Good. He hadn’t wanted to go hunting for her. Still, it was somewhat of a surprise that she hadn’t gone on the run. Of course, she was probably going to say she was innocent, that she hadn’t had anything to do with the shot that’d slammed into his father’s chest. But simply put, she had a strong motive to kill a McCall.
And then there was the witness.
If Rayna tried to convince him she’d had no part in the shooting, then Court would let her know that someone had spotted her in the vicinity of the sheriff’s office just minutes before Warren had been gunned down. Then Court would follow through on her arrest.
He got out of his truck and started toward the porch of the small stone-front house, but Court made it only a few steps because his phone rang, and his brother’s name popped up on the screen.
Egan.
Egan wasn’t just his big brother though. He was also Court’s boss, since Egan was the sheriff of McCall Canyon. By now, Egan had probably figured out where Court was heading and wanted to make sure his deputy followed the book on this one.
He would.
Not cutting corners because he wanted Rayna behind bars.
Court ignored the call, and the ding of the voice mail that followed, and went up the steps to the front door. This wasn’t his first time here. Once, he’d made many trips to Rayna’s door—before she’d chosen another man over him. Once, he’d had feelings for her. He had feelings now, too, but they had nothing to do with the old attraction he’d once felt.
He steeled himself and put his hand over his firearm in case Rayna wasn’t finished with her shooting spree today.
“Open up,” Court said, knocking on the door. Of course, he knocked a lot louder than necessary, but he wanted to make sure she heard him.
If she did hear him, she darn sure didn’t answer. He knocked again, his anger rising even more, and Court finally tested the knob. Unlocked. So, he threw open the door.
And he found a gun pointed right in his face.
Rayna’s finger was on the trigger.
Court cursed and automatically drew his own weapon. Obviously, it was too late because she could have fired before he’d even had a chance to do that. She didn’t though. Maybe because Rayna felt she’d already fulfilled her quota of shooting McCalls today.
“Put down your gun,” he snarled.
“No.” Rayna shook her head, and that was when he noticed there was blood in her blond hair. Blood on the side of her face, too
. Added to that, he could see bruises and cuts on her knuckles and wrists. “I’m not going to let you try to kill me again.”
“Again?” Court was certain he looked very confused. Because he was. “What the devil are you talking about? I came here to arrest you for shooting my father.”
If that news surprised her in the least, she didn’t show it. She didn’t lower her gun, either. Rayna stood there, glaring at him.
What the hell had happened here?
Court looked behind her to see if the person who’d given her those injuries was still around. There was no sign of anyone else, but the furniture in the living room had been tossed around. There was a broken lamp on the floor. More blood, too. All indications of a struggle.
“Start talking,” Court demanded, making sure he sounded like the lawman that he was.
“I will. When Egan gets here.”
Court cursed again. Egan definitely wasn’t going to approve of Court storming out here to see her, but his brother also couldn’t ignore the evidence that Rayna had shot their father. There was definitely something else going on though.
“My father’s alive,” Court told her. “You didn’t manage to kill him after all.”
She looked down at his shirt. At the blood. And Rayna glanced away as if the sight of it sickened her. Court took advantage of her glance and knocked the gun from her hand.
At least that was what he tried to do, but Rayna held on. She pushed him, and in the same motion, she turned to run. That was when Court tackled her. Her gun went flying, skittering all the way into the living room, and both Court and she landed hard on the floor.
Rayna groaned in pain. It wasn’t a soft groan, and while holding her side, she scrambled away from him. Court was about to dive at her again, but he saw yet more blood. This time on the side that she was holding.
That stopped him.
“What’s wrong with you? What happened?” Court snapped.
She looked around as if considering another run for it, but then her shoulders sagged as if she was surrendering.
Rayna sat up, putting her weight, and the back of her head, against the wall. She opened her mouth as if to start with that explanation, but she had to pause when her breath shuddered. She waved that off as if embarrassed by it and then hiked up her chin. It seemed to him as if she was trying to look strong.
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