Her Colorado Sheriff

by Patricia Thayer

  “Hold on,” Cullen said as he went to his computer and typed in the name William Briggs. After a few seconds the familiar picture came up, and with a long arrest record. “That’s him. He’s the one in the photo with Bryant.”

  “That still doesn’t prove anything against Bryant. Gil could explain it away by saying he was just questioning him.”

  The captain might not be able to prove anything, but Cullen had no doubt now that someone broke into the cottage last week. Still a mystery on what they’d been looking for.

  “Briggs is in our system,” the captain said. “Last week he was picked up on a drug possession charge. It could be serious considering the amount of contraband we found on him. Although he talks a big game, he’s still a small fish in a big cesspool of dealers.” There was a long pause. “I’d sure like to break the chain that leads to our town.”

  “Could you make a deal with him if he gave up Bryant?”

  “I need to talk to the DA first. Send me a copy of that picture and I’ll see what I can come up with.”

  After Cullen hung up the phone, he pulled the picture from the album to scan it so he could email it. He flipped it over and put it in the machine and saw the writing on the back. There were some numbers that didn’t mean anything to him. Had Georgia threatened Bryant, saying she had some kind of proof? Had she proof of his corruption?

  Maybe Cullen was grasping at nothing, but anything was better than waiting to see if the man would show up in Hidden Springs. He would do everything he could to protect Shelby and Ryan, but he couldn’t be with them all the time.

  Worse, what if fear drove Shelby from town? He might never see her again. No. He wouldn’t let that happen.

  * * *

  THAT EVENING, CULLEN got home about five. He’d spent most of the afternoon looking over arrest records. He liked using his investigating skills again. He’d discovered that Dawkins Meadow was not your picture-perfect small town. Now, how much of this information should he tell Shelby? He didn’t want to get her hopes up yet, or put her in any further danger. So for now, he needed to handle this and hope she would understand.

  When he climbed out of the truck, he saw his dad with Ryan and Shelby out at the corral. His dad was leading Ryan around the arena.

  With a quick wave to the threesome, he went into the house and changed into jeans and his boots, then hurried out to join them. He came across the compound to Shelby standing on the ramp. One look at her and he couldn’t prevent the flood of memories from last night.

  He pulled her into his arms and kissed her. He wanted to shut out the rest of the world and lose himself in this woman, but reality quickly invaded their world.

  Shelby smiled. “That’s quite a welcome, Sheriff.”

  “Yeah, you could say I missed you a little bit today.”

  “I missed you, too.”

  He had to glance away from her tempting mouth. “I’m glad Dad got Ryan out to ride.” He nodded toward the arena, but kept his arms around her shoulder. “They work well together, don’t they?”

  “Yes, Pops has been great.” She sighed. “You both have been so helpful with Ryan. And I appreciate it so much.”

  He hugged her close. “It’s been easy, especially since he has such a great-looking aunt who I happen to be crazy about.” He grew serious. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you today.”

  Her gaze met his shyly. “I guess I thought about you a few times, too.”

  He kissed her on her nose, realizing he’d hated being separated from her. “I’ve got a lot of ideas of what we could do together.”

  She sobered and pulled away. “I have no doubt you do, Cullen. But for now, we’ll need to slow down. We don’t know what the future holds.” She didn’t need to say anything about the man who’d threatened her. Gil Bryant prevented them from having a future.

  “It’s going to be okay, Shelby. Trust me.”

  Ryan called to him. “Cullen, you need to watch me.”

  Cullen turned toward the corral as his father led Cloud toward the ramp. “Okay, we’re watching.”

  With the horse next to the newly built ramp, Ryan swung his leg over the saddle and climbed off the horse. A big grin lit up the five-year-old’s face. “See, I did it.”

  “You sure did. High five.” He held up a hand, and the boy smacked it.

  “And I can get back on, too.”

  “Wow! You’ve been working hard.”

  The child nodded. “Pops helped me.”

  After a few missed attempts, and much encouragement, the boy managed to mount the small horse and showed off another toothy smile.

  Cullen had lost his heart not only to Shelby, but to Ryan, too. He wanted to continue to be there for them both, be a part of their lives. And the only way was to close the door to the threats against them.

  Once the boy rode back into the corral area, he leaned against the railing next to Shelby. “I need to go out of town for a day or two.”

  She looked at him. “Are you going back to Denver?”

  He couldn’t lie. “No, but I need to check out some other options.” Damn, he hated this, but if he told her she’d want to come along. “Trust me, I’m coming back. This is something I need to do for me, and for us.”

  Those big blue eyes locked on his. “For us?”

  He nodded. “Yes, this is for us, Shelby. And when I get back we need to talk.”

  She shook her head. “You don’t have to...”

  He leaned down, and his mouth caressed hers. “I want you to know that you and Ryan mean a lot to me. So don’t go thinking I don’t care because I do. And soon I’m going to tell you how much.”

  “I care about you, too. So don’t be gone too long.” She hugged him close. “You gonna miss me?”

  “Oh, sweetheart, you have no idea.”

  Chapter Seventeen

  Just before sunrise the following morning, Cullen came downstairs carrying his duffel bag. He needed to see his dad before he caught his flight out of Grand Junction. Although his father knew he was going out of town, he didn’t know the entire story.

  He hated being secretive about this trip, but he gave his word to Kershaw not to discuss the case. The man was going to meet his plane, and they were going to figure out this puzzle.

  He walked into the kitchen with his bag and found his father at the counter. “Morning, Dad.”

  “Hi, son. You ready to go?”

  “Pretty soon.” Cullen went to the coffeemaker and poured a cup. “Dad, can I ask you a favor?”

  His father leaned back against the tiled counter. Dressed in jeans and a chambray shirt, he looked the furthest thing from a cop as possible.

  “Sure, what do you need?”

  “Keep an eye on Shelby and Ryan while I’m gone. I mean a close watch.”

  Neal frowned. “Then why are you leaving? And don’t tell me some rubbish about a job offer.”

  “Okay, I’ve learned some information about Gil.” He raised a hand to stop any protest. “It’s all speculation right now, but I need to go to Kentucky. And I don’t want Shelby involved any more than she already is.”

  “Did you tell her about this new info?”

  Cullen shook his head. “I plan to tell her everything once I get back.”

  Neal sighed. “I know you don’t want my opinion, but I’m going to give it anyway. If you care about Shelby, be truthful. Believe me, women don’t like to be left in the dark.”

  “I’m doing this to protect them,” he stressed. “Because I care about her and Ryan a lot.”

  Neal Brannigan held up his hands in surrender. “Okay, I can see I’m not going to change your mind, so I’ll just say be careful. I know you’re an experienced cop, but this guy has already killed once, that we know of.”

  “I will.�
�� Choked with emotions, he could barely get the words out, but they needed to be said. “I’m glad you’re here, Dad, and not just to help out. It’s been nice to be able to spend time with you.”

  His father nodded. “I’m glad I’m here, too, son.” He paused, then said, “I know I can’t make up the past to you and your brother, but I’m hoping you give me another chance.”

  “I’d like that.” And he meant it. He wanted to rebuild their relationship.

  “I should head out to the barn.” His dad started toward the back door, but made a detour and pulled his son into a tight embrace. “Have a safe trip.” He held on a second longer, then said in a husky tone, “I love you, son.”

  The wall between them for years suddenly came tumbling down. “Love you, too, Dad.”

  After finishing his coffee, Cullen grabbed his bag and walked out to his truck. After tossing it into the backseat, he stared at the lights on in the cottage. He knew Shelby was up, getting ready for work.

  Damn, he needed to tell her.

  He slammed the truck door, walked up to the door and knocked softly. “Shelby, it’s me, Cullen.”

  Shelby opened the door with a smile. She was already dressed in black pants and a cook’s smock for work. He leaned in and kissed her.

  “Not that I don’t like seeing you again, but I thought you’d be on the way to the airport.”

  “I needed to talk to you first.” He walked inside, then blurted out, “I’m flying to Louisville to meet with Captain Kershaw.”

  She frowned. “Isn’t he in charge of Georgia’s case?”

  He nodded. “I found some information that might help the case.”

  Her smiled faded. “What kind of information?”

  He went on to explain about the picture in Ryan’s album and the numbers on the back. “I don’t know what they mean. That’s the reason I need to go to Dawkins Meadow.”

  “But if Gil knows you’re snooping around, he’s not going to like it. Cullen, those men he associates with mean business.”

  “Shelby, I have to do something. He’s a threat to you and Ryan. You can’t move forward because every day you wonder if you’re going to have to take off.”

  She didn’t say anything, and he went to her. “I’m not going to let the man hurt either one of you. I care too much. That’s why I have to go and check this out.”

  “Let Captain Kershaw handle it,” she said, her voice loud and agitated. “I don’t want you hurt in the mess.”

  Suddenly Ryan raced into the room, crying out, “No, Cullen, don’t go. The mean man will hurt you. I don’t want you to die, too.”

  Cullen knelt down and caught the boy in an embrace. “Ryan, I’m not going to get hurt. But it’s my job to find the bad man and arrest him. He needs to go to jail so he won’t hurt any more people.”

  The child wiped his tears off his cheeks. “’Cause you’re the sheriff?”

  Cullen exchanged a glance with Shelby. “Yes, because I’m the sheriff, and I need to protect people from bad men. I need your help, too.” He suddenly had an idea and took the photo out of his pocket. “I borrowed your picture because I need to find something.” He turned it over to the back. “Did you see your mother write down these numbers?”

  He hesitated, then nodded. “She had to hide something important.” His blue eyes were wide. “She said it was a special hiding place and to never, ever tell anybody.”

  Shelby sat down on the sofa, and had Ryan sit next to her. “I know you promised your mom, but if we want to help Sheriff Cullen to get the bad man, you need to tell us. Was there something hidden in your old house?”

  Ryan nodded. “In my bedroom. Where my clothes are.”

  Cullen crouched down in front of the boy. “In the closet?”

  He nodded. “There’s a hole in the floor and she put a sack inside. She said that the bad man wouldn’t bother us because we had the secret.”

  Cullen hugged the child to him. “I’m sorry, Ryan. Your mother was so brave, and so are you. I’m so proud of you.”

  “Are you going to get the bad guy so Aunt Shellie and I can live here forever?”

  Cullen liked the sound of that. Yet seeing Shelby’s face, he knew he still had a lot of convincing to do. “I’ll do my best to make that happen.”

  * * *

  HOURS LATER, AFTER Captain Bill Kershaw had picked Cullen up at the Louisville airport, the two drove to a coffee shop just out of Dawkins Meadow. They needed to keep the meeting low-key, not wanting anyone to speculate about the stranger who came to visit.

  Kershaw gave a quick overview of what had been going on in his town, from two cops taking bribes to the increase in drug sales. He’d been investigating Bryant on his own.

  “As you know being a cop undercover, the bad guys come in and before you know it, you’re caught up in it, and there’s no way out.” He raised a hand. “I’m not making any excuses, especially for an animal like Bryant. He’s the worst of the worst, not only because he entrapped some of his fellow officers to get them to work for him, but because he’s abused women. And not just Georgia Hughes.”

  Kershaw took a drink of coffee. “After your call last night with the boy’s information, I contacted a friend I know from the DEA. At this point, Sheriff, we don’t know the good guys from the bad guys.”

  Cullen was glad they weren’t handling this alone. He was just a civilian in this state, not even able to carry a gun. All he was doing was making sure whatever was hidden in the house was enough to put away Gil Bryant. Then Shelby and Ryan could move on with their lives. He prayed he could be a part of that.

  “When do we get to go to the house?”

  “I’m hoping soon.” Kershaw checked his watch, and his phone rang, and he answered it, saying only a few words. “We need to head over there. I got a search warrant, along with permission and keys from the landlord. The DEA agents are already in place just in case.”

  “What about Bryant?” Cullen didn’t want him showing up unexpectedly, or worse, to disappear. Then Shelby would never be free of his threats. “Is he on duty today?”

  “Yes, but I have him transporting a prisoner. So right now, he’s headed out of town. If we find anything today, we’ll bring him in.”

  Kershaw stood. “Are you ready?”

  “Oh, yeah. I’ll follow your lead.”

  His thoughts turned to Shelby. He sent up another prayer, hoping they could end this nightmare today.

  It took only thirty minutes to get to the house. With the instructions Ryan had given Cullen, they went into the child’s bedroom, empty now, except for a twin bed.

  Wearing gloves, the DEA agent took over and opened the closet door. As with the instructions on the back of the picture, they counted the number of hardwood boards and found a raised nail. Once the board was pried back, they found a plastic bag.

  Inside was a notebook with names and locations where drugs were to be dropped. The agent spoke about the findings. “Seems Bryant had kept his own insurance. Wow, this is like a gift from the grave.”

  They also found a note in Georgia Hughes’s handwriting, saying that she’d been stalked and abused by Gil Bryant. She had photos displaying her bruised face; each one was dated. She also stated that she was leaving town to start a new life, and if she ended up dead, her killer was Gil Bryant. In addition, there was an envelope addressed to Shelby. Of course, that was evidence, too.

  Cullen’s emotions were filled with anger, then sadness, but mostly respect for this brave woman. Georgia Hughes might not have been able to fight back physically, but she wasn’t going to let Bryant get away.

  Kershaw came over to him as he got off the phone, his expression grave. “The Feds sent a car to go pick up Bryant. Somehow, he must have heard about the investigation and was packing to leave town. When the officers got inside they fo
und him dead with a single gunshot to the head. We’re not sure if it was in retaliation or self-inflicted.”

  Cullen wished he could be sorry. All he could think about was Shelby. Her days of running were over.

  * * *

  SHELBY SAT ACROSS from Ryan at the kitchen table. He’d been quiet all day, didn’t even talk about his day in school. She was worried because she knew he could go back into his shell. That was the last thing she wanted to happen. He’d come so far since their move here, and she didn’t want him to close up again.

  It was obvious what he was worried about. “Ryan, are you worried about Cullen?”

  He gave a big nod. “I want him to come home.”

  She hoped for the same thing. “He will be, soon. He’s helping another policeman to look for what your mother hid in the closet.”

  “Then he’ll come home?”

  She prayed she was telling the truth. “Yes. He’ll be home.”

  That got a smile from her nephew. “I’m glad. I want him to take me riding again.”

  She’d forgotten all about the weekend planned with Luke and Noah.

  “Aunt Shellie, do you miss him?”

  She smiled. “Yes, I do.”

  “Are you going to marry Cullen? Then we can be a family.”

  Suddenly her nephew had become a chatterbox. “Oh, honey, I don’t know.”

  “You kissed him. Mommy said grown-ups do that when they like each other.”

  Shelby worked to hide her smile. “Well, that’s true, and I like Cullen well enough...” Suddenly her phone rang, saving her from having to answer. She glanced at the ID to see Cullen’s name.

  “It’s Cullen.” She answered the phone. “Hi...”

  “Hi to you, too.”

  “How are you?”

  “I’m fine now that I’m talking to you.”

  Excitement rushed through her. She wanted to turn away and have a private conversation, but Ryan needed some reassurance.

  “I think there’s someone here who would like to talk to you. He’s been worried, too.”