Blue Ridge Hideaway

by Cynthia Thomason

  “I don’t know,” he said. “Maybe your cell phone wasn’t working.”

  “It often doesn’t up here,” she admitted.

  Bret kept his features still. Maintaining the typical cop stance that let all perps know he wasn’t kidding around, he said, “Jack, if you want to say anything, now’s your chance, but make it quick.”

  “Okay,” Jack said. “I’ll start at the beginning which was about twenty-four hours ago.”

  Dorie’s eyes were wide on Bret as if she couldn’t believe he had assumed the role of law-enforcement officer. “Wait a minute, Jack,” she said. “There’s something you should know before you speak.”

  Bret snapped his sternest gaze on her, surprised she would caution her brother about anything. “What should he know, Dorie?” he asked.

  She kept her attention on her brother. “Jack, this man is an ex-cop. You should keep that in mind when you tell the story about how you got out of Broad Creek. And anything else you might feel inclined to reveal.”

  Bret leaned toward her. “What’s this, Dorie? You’re drawing lines between us? After everything that’s happened?”

  “He should know who he’s talking to,” she said. “He has a right to the truth.”

  “Don’t we all,” Bret said. “Start explaining, little brother, and despite what your sister said, I suggest you don’t leave anything out.”

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  JACK TOLD HIS story again. The details were the same as when he told them to Dorie. He ended with, “I could have been killed, but instead I got a break.”

  “You got a break all right,” Bret said. “Bottom line, you broke out of prison. There’s no other way to look at it.”

  “Yes, there is,” Jack said. “You can look at it the way I see it. I got this work detail for being a model prisoner. It’s like I was meant to be in the yard yesterday when that truck came by.” He paused before adding, “And there’s no other way I’m ever going to get out of that place.”

  Dorie didn’t buy the whole fate, right-place, right-time theory. She knew Jack shouldn’t have run. But she didn’t blame him. She might have done the same thing knowing she probably wouldn’t have a future outside of Broad Creek. An innocent boy in prison is driven to do foolhardy things. At this point she could only hope that Bret would see Jack’s side of the story and give them a little time to figure out what to do.

  Bret’s tone was harsh as he summed up the situation. “You are in jail on a murder charge, kid. And you broke out. That’s a criminal action and you can’t talk your way around the truth.”

  Jack started to argue, but Dorie raised her hand. “I think we all need to take a step back. Jack’s cuts need attention. He’s hardly eaten. I’ve got to get him some food. After we’ve all calmed down, we can discuss this further.”

  Bret’s eyes narrowed. He rubbed his nape. Was he debating his response to her? How could he? Jack was practically a boy, only six years older than Bret’s own son. And Bret was having a problem with Dorie tending his cuts and feeding him? She was beginning to question whether this ex-cop had a heart. She’d believed he did. But now...

  Finally, Bret said, “Okay, you can go up to the house and get what you need. Jack and I will stay right here. But then we’re settling this according to what’s the right thing to do.”

  The right thing to do? What did that mean? Dorie took Jack’s arm and tried to be encouraging. “Everything’s okay, Jack. I’ll get food and bandages and come right back.”

  When she returned, Bret remained vigilant while Dorie put ointment on Jack’s scratches. She brought him a meal which he wolfed down in just a few minutes. Bret seemed to be studying Jack from every angle. Dorie only hoped he was seeing her brother as a human being and not a convict. A boy who needed help. Since Bret had discovered Jack in the cabin, all she’d seen was that there was still too much cop left in the owner of The Crooked Spruce.

  After Jack was finished eating, Bret said, “I’d like to talk to your sister now, Jack. You stay right here with my father.” After a pause, he added, “He’ll have the rifle, so...”

  “He’s not going to run,” Dorie said. “He’s injured.”

  Bret called for Clancy, and as soon as he appeared, Dorie nodded at Jack, letting him know he should do what Bret said. Clancy stood guard while Dorie followed Bret to the next cabin. She knew Jack would be okay, and she understood Bret’s behavior. Still she was hurt. Couldn’t Bret at least consider her feelings?

  “Sit down,” Bret said when they were alone. He pointed to one of the cots, and he took another one.

  She immediately took the offensive. “You don’t have to worry. I know Jack better than anyone. He wouldn’t hurt you or Clancy or Luke. And he won’t run. I’m all he has.”

  “Your loyalty is fine,” Bret said. “But I’ve had a lot more experience with these kinds of...” He paused, not finishing his sentence.

  “You were going to say these kinds of kids, weren’t you?”

  Bret remained silent.

  “He’s my brother. I think I have more experience with him than you do.”

  He placed his hands on his knees. “I’m sorry, Dorie, but the fact that he’s your brother is exactly why I have to make the right decisions here. I can’t let emotions influence what has to be done.”

  She began to tremble with fear and disappointment. This was going to turn out badly for everyone. The maternal instincts she’d nourished for years kicked into overdrive. “Why do you have to make all the decisions?” she challenged. “He’s my brother. My responsibility.”

  “In case you’ve forgotten, this is my home. I used to be a cop. I think that entitles me to weigh in on an escaped murder suspect showing up here.”

  “That’s all you see when you look at Jack, isn’t it? A murder suspect. Even after I’ve told you he’s innocent, you refuse to see him as a boy who’s been railroaded by the system.”

  “I don’t know that!” Bret said. “And I happen to believe in the system. Is it possible it didn’t work this time? Sure, anything’s possible, but nothing so far has convinced me of that.”

  “You don’t have to act like a cop all the time, Bret,” she said. “Can’t you find some sense of humanity somewhere in that playbook of rules you follow?”

  “What exactly are you asking me to do, Dorie? Look the other way?”

  She took a deep breath to calm her nerves. “You would never do that, would you?” she said after a few moments. She already knew the answer.

  The muscles worked in his jaw. The creases around his eyes deepened. “Besides everything else, I have a son to think about,” he said.

  She wasn’t going to change his mind. Ultimately he would do what a cop had to do, and that meant if they stayed, even for a little while, he would turn Jack in. She leaned forward on the cot.

  “Look, Bret, let me make this easy for you. Just give me the money you owe me for working the past few days, and Jack and I will leave. Once we’re gone you won’t have to make any decision at all. You can build a moat around your outpost and keep all the evil Jack Howes away from your precious camp.”

  His lips formed a thin line. His chest expanded and held until he blew out a long breath. “Fine,” he said. “You’re owed the money. When I get back to the house I’ll leave a check for the full amount on the counter.”

  “Thank you.” She stood and walked to the door.

  “Dorie, wait.”

  His words stopped her. She turned. Hope flared in her heart. “What?”

  His face sober, his voice hoarse, he said, “I can’t let you leave with Jack.”

  For seconds she could only stare at him. She’d been afraid it would come to this all along. But she was going to make him say it even if he choked on the words. After the kisses on the porch, the sharing of their pasts, the closeness,
she was going to make him utter his total betrayal. “Why not?”

  “He’s an escaped convict, Dorie. I can’t let him walk out of here.”

  The words cut straight to her heart. “Don’t do this, Bret. Let me take care of this. Don’t let the man you used to be rob my brother of his future.”

  “The man I used to be was a law enforcement officer, plain and simple. I upheld the law. And I exist today, here, in this place, because that former job still pays me a monthly stipend. I can’t just forget everything I believed in before I was shot. There is still right and wrong.”

  “I happen to believe there are many other options in between right and wrong,” she said. “Jack is innocent. What about that? That should count for something, Bret. It matters.”

  “Jack will be tried in a court,” Bret said. “If he’s innocent, the system will work, and he’ll be acquitted.”

  Her eyes burned. Through the blur of unshed tears she saw the hard planes of his face. “Now who’s being naive?” she said. “If you send him back, especially after what happened yesterday, he won’t stand a chance.”

  The muscles in his jaw clenched. “It’s the right thing....” He paused as if knowing that phrase would only inflame the situation more. “I’m sorry, Dorie. Really, I am, but the law can’t work any differently for Jack just because he’s your brother.”

  “I’m not talking about the law here, Bret. I’m talking about you and me, and the past two weeks. Stop being a cop for one minute and think about what is the decent, humane thing to do. Be the man who talked to me on the porch for hours, the man who held me, who told me his regrets, his hopes.” She came toward him, her hand outstretched, but he didn’t take it. Dorie refused to let his cold demeanor stop her. She knew what she was asking him was hard. She knew he’d have to compromise his principles for her. But what else could she do? Jack’s future, maybe his life, was on the line.

  “Be the man I knew on that porch,” she said. “The man who, underneath all his unwavering ethics and sense of morality, is a caring person.”

  The small cabin room was eerily quiet for several agonizing seconds until Bret slowly shook his head. “I can’t, Dorie. I’m going to call the sheriff and tell him Jack is here. I have to. It’s who I am as much as I’m that man who sat on the porch with you.”

  Panic flooded her body. She felt the blood rush from her head and didn’t trust herself to stand. Her hands shook. Deep down she knew what she was asking of Bret was unethical and beyond his capacity to give, but she had to fight for Jack. She’d always fought for Jack. She was his only chance. She couldn’t let him down.

  Bret stood and walked to the door.

  “Don’t! Not yet,” she said. “Hear me out. I have an offer to make.”

  He stopped, faced her.

  “I’ll take Jack back myself,” she said. “Let me at least do that. It will go easier for him if he returns on his own.”

  He rubbed his forehead, slowly shook his head. He didn’t believe she would keep her word.

  “I mean it, Bret. I swear. I’ll take him back. We’ll leave now.” She was telling the truth, but didn’t know how to make him believe her. He should trust her. After all this time together, he had to know she wouldn’t lie to him.

  “Don’t test me, Dorie. Yes, I have ethics. And I struggle with them every day. But I have to...”

  “Trust me,” she said. “You can trust me.” Both hands reached toward him, but he was too far away to touch. “Please, Bret.”

  He couldn’t look at her so he stared at the floor. He was going to deny her even this.

  Desperation made her attempt one last plea. “Get Clancy. Go back to the house. Leave Jack to me. We’ll be gone in ten minutes. Then give us an hour. After that, call anyone you want, the police, the highway patrol. I don’t care. Tell them whatever you want. We’ll be partway across the state. I’ll take Jack directly to Broad Creek. You have my word.” She waited. He didn’t speak. “Please Bret. I swear I’m telling you the truth.”

  He kept staring at the floor as if looking at her were unbearable. Then he said, “You have ten minutes to pack your stuff. Jack stays here.” He turned and strode from the cabin.

  * * *

  A FEW MINUTES LATER, after Dorie had tossed her belongings into her duffel, she and Jack stood in front of the lodge with Clancy nearby. “Are you crazy?” Jack said. “This place is perfect. No one would ever find me here.”

  “No. We can’t stay.” She slung her pack over her shoulder and headed to the truck. She intended to keep her word. Bret was upstairs with Luke and probably watching the clock.

  “Why not? Can’t you convince Bret to give us at least a few days?”

  She paused to glare at him. “You saw how he reacted to you, Jack! And besides, do you think this is what I want? Do you think this is easy for me?” She huffed a deep breath. “For that matter, have you thought at all about how this is affecting me?”

  “No offense, Dorie, but you’re not the one going back to Broad Creek.”

  She threw her bag into the truck. “I’m not talking about this anymore. We don’t have time.”

  “I can’t go back there! They’ll add years onto my eventual sentence for escaping. I’ll never see daylight.”

  Her nerves were frayed to a breaking point. If Jack said one more word, she was afraid she would start yelling at him and wouldn’t stop. She’d given up everything for him. She was still giving up everything, especially that man upstairs who was cutting them a break they probably didn’t deserve. “Get in the truck, Jack.”

  “I’ll go, but we’re not going to Broad Creek,” he said. “I can’t do it, Dorie. I can’t believe you’re even suggesting it. Do you realize what I went through to get out of that place? I wasn’t kidding! I was almost killed.”

  “I know that, and I’m sorry, Jack. I’m sorry for everything you’ve been through, but you have to know that running for the rest of your life is no life at all. We’ll call Eric Henderson on the way and ask him to meet us at Broad Creek. We need his advice on this. We’re out of time. Go.”

  “I’m not letting up on this, Dor. I’m getting in the truck because it’s apparently the only option we have, but I’m not through trying to talk sense into you.”

  “You know what, Jack? I’m frankly sick of everyone thinking they’re going to talk sense into me. You, Bret. I’m done. We are going to do what I believe is right from now on. But at least we’ll do it on our own terms. You don’t know how lucky you are that Bret didn’t call the police immediately and turn you in.”

  “Lucky? You call that lucky? I was starting to think you and this guy had something going, but apparently I was wrong. He wouldn’t do anything for you if he won’t at least give us some time to sort this out. He’s done nothing but threaten since he saw me!”

  “Don’t you see, Jack? You are a threat. To Bret’s life here, to his son, his dad. To Bret you’re a criminal who presents danger to the people he loves.”

  “But I’m innocent! I wouldn’t hurt his kid.”

  “He doesn’t know that. And you don’t know him. He’s lost a lot in his life, and so far as he knows for sure, you’re an accused murderer who’s escaped from jail. I said it before, but you’re lucky he didn’t take you to the police himself.”

  She paused, took a deep breath. Where had all that come from? She was actually defending Bret to her brother. Well maybe he deserved it. Letting them go had to be one tough step for him. She’d seen how protective he’d been when Dabney was a threat. Letting a convict stay around his son was impossible. She consulted her watch. “It’s time. I don’t want to test him. Let’s drive.”

  Dorie assumed Bret had told his family something about her sudden departure. She hoped he hadn’t given Luke a bad impression of her. No, he wouldn’t have. He believed as she did that there was no reason to infl
ict hard truths on kids when they couldn’t do anything about them, so she was sure he’d come up with a convincing story.

  She whistled for King and the dog bounded after her. She and Jack got in the truck. She did a three-point turn and headed down the drive. Before going under the archway, she looked in the rearview mirror at the lodge. She saw Luke upstairs in his bedroom window. His face was pressed to the pane. He waved at her. She stopped the truck, got out and blew him a kiss. And then she choked back tears when she drove away. She needed to put in a lot of miles in one hour.

  * * *

  “YOU DID THIS,” Luke said. “You made them go away.”

  Bret sat next to his son on the porch swing and set it rocking in a slow, easy motion. He knew exactly why that swing provided a sense of calm. He’d spent the happiest moments of his recent life in that swing, a piece of furniture he hadn’t even thought he needed, but one that had made such a difference in his life. But he wouldn’t be sharing that swing with Dorie tonight, or maybe ever again, and now he had to convince his son that he wasn’t a coldhearted monster. Maybe he even had to convince himself.

  “No, I didn’t make them go,” he said. “Dorie just had an emergency and she had to leave. You know how it is. Sometimes things just come up.” Luke sniffed, and Bret put his arm around him. “But her decision had nothing to do with you, son.”

  “She didn’t even say goodbye.”

  “I know. She thought it would be easier this way.”

  “And her brother. I just met him. We didn’t even get to play a video game.”

  Being reminded that Jack probably still enjoyed video games didn’t make this any easier for Bret. Six years. That was all that separated Jack from Luke. Six years and a very different upbringing.

  “I don’t know that he would have played any with you,” Bret said. “It’s hard for you to understand this, Luke, but Jack is in trouble. He’s had a tough life.”