* * * *
Brody sat at his desk filling out a report on a car accident. His mind was not on his work. It was on Madilyn. God, he loved her. She’d always been in the back of his mind in the years he was gone. Getting involved with other women did nothing to make her fade away. He put the pen down, took his glasses off, and rubbed his eyes. There was one woman in particular he never should have been involved with. If she’d been honest from the beginning things would have turned out differently. What a mess that turned out to be. His office phone rang.
“Deputy Morgan.”
“Come to my office,” Sam said in a clipped voice and hung up.
Damn it! Brody knew time had just run out. Sam wanted the details of his leaving the Marshals. Brody stood and headed for Sam’s office. Brody knocked on the doorjamb of Sam’s office. When Sam glanced up and waved him in, he knew it couldn’t be good.
“Come in and close the door,” Sam told him.
No. It wasn’t going to be good. Brody took a seat across from Sam and waited. It didn’t take long.
“It’s time you told me why you left the Marshals.” Sam sat back and folded his arms.
Shit! Brody hated telling Sam about this, but he also knew Sam could make a phone call and talk to Michael Holt, Brody’s superior, and find out. He’d rather be the one to tell him. Taking a deep breath, he began to tell Sam what happened.
“I was involved with a woman for six months before I found out she was married.” He stopped when Sam swore. “I should’ve known, but she hid it well.”
“Were you in love with her?” Sam asked.
“No. There’s only one woman I’ll ever love and that’s Madilyn. Thing is, I never thought I’d see Maddie again and I wanted to get on with my life. I wanted to get married and have kids.” He shrugged. “If I couldn’t have it with Maddie, I needed to find someone I could have it with. I met Abby Bishop at a bar and we immediately hit it off. She didn’t tell me she was married or I wouldn’t have messed with her.” He shifted in his chair. “One night her husband, Wilson Delgado, came to see me and told me to stay the hell away from her. I told him I never knew she was married. Of course, he didn’t believe me and told me if I didn’t stay away I’d regret it. I told him I was a U.S. Marshal. Hell, he laughed and said it didn’t matter. Needless to say, I called her and broke it off.” Brody ran his hand down his face. Sam didn’t say anything, just stared at him until he continued. “She took it bad and swore she’d leave her husband. I didn’t want to hear any of it. I knew she was lying. Christ, all she did was lie to me.” Brody swallowed hard and glanced away. “I have better instincts, Sam. I don’t know how I missed it. She never wanted to meet anywhere but at my apartment and we went to dinner out of town and she used her maiden name.” He glanced back to Sam. “I should have seen it.”
“Go on,” Sam told him.
Brody took a deep breath. “A month later she was dead.”
Sam leaned forward. “Why the hell didn’t you tell me all of this when you called me?”
“I wanted to get past it. I accused her husband. I still think he killed her but we couldn’t find any evidence. None, Sam. They found her body in Wyoming. Animals had gotten to her…” Brody cleared his throat. “I couldn’t let him get away with it. I followed him. Everywhere the son of a bitch would go, I followed. He reported me to Holt. You know how Holt is. He exploded.”
“I’m sure he did.” Sam shook his head. “You’re not telling me everything. Holt had to tell you to back off before he went off. How long did you keep following Delgado after you were told not to?”
“Another week. I know, Sam.” Brody said before Sam could interrupt. “I kept telling Holt, Delgado was guilty and of course without evidence I had no proof.” Brody shook his head. “Holt told me I either stop harassing Delgado or I leave the Marshals.” He gave a humorless laugh. “You see how that turned out. I couldn’t let it go.”
“Why are you so sure Delgado killed her?”
“Abby didn’t have any enemies and Delgado knew she was having an affair. I know he did it. I know it with every fiber of my being. He’s like a crime boss but no one can get him on anything.”
“I trust your intuition on this, but you should have been thinking with the head on your shoulders instead of the one between your legs when you met her.” Sam sighed. “All right. I’m going to let it go. But I better not hear of you going back to Butte to confront Delgado or you’ll be out of another job. Is that understood?”
“Yes. I’m done with it. He’ll rot in hell, that’s good enough for me.”
“It sure as hell better be, Brody.”
Brody stood and stuck his hand out. “You have my word, Sam.”
After a slight hesitation, Sam shook his hand. Brody left the office and headed home. Talking about it with Sam brought up all the bad memories. He couldn’t get it out of his head again. Abby hadn’t deserved to die. Brody knew Delgado killed her but he couldn’t prove it. She’d been shot execution style, in the back of the head. Delgado may not have pulled the trigger but Brody knew he’d ordered the hit. The man was a pig and deserved to go to prison for killing her. He shook his head. He had to let it go. He lost a job he loved because of his obsession over it. The thing was he needed to tell Madilyn about it. He wanted no secrets between them. He pulled off the road and turned around to head for her apartment.
Brody knocked and waited. She didn’t answer and his heart hit his stomach. He pounded harder. A door behind him opened.
“She ain’t home. Quit pounding on the damn door,” an old man yelled from across the hall.
Brody sighed. “I didn’t mean to disturb you. I…need to talk to her.”
“Can’t talk to her if she ain’t home. It’s Monday. She works late on Mondays.” The old man slammed the door.
“Yeah, thanks,” Brody muttered. He walked to his truck and drove to the flower shop. When he walked in, customers were everywhere. Kaitlyn waved her hand toward the greenhouse so he strolled out there to find Madilyn. She was talking with a customer. When she saw him, she smiled but continued to talk with the customer. Brody leaned against the doorjamb and watched her. He could feel the sweat rolling down between his shoulder blades. How the hell did she do this? It was hotter than hell out in the greenhouse but Madilyn looked as if the heat didn’t bother her at all. Finally, the customer left, and she moved toward him, smiling.
“What are you doing here?”
Brody straightened up and cleared his throat. “Can we talk tonight?’
Madilyn frowned. “Yes. Is everything all right?”
“I want to tell you why I left the Marshals.”
“All right. I’d like to hear it. I don’t get home until around six tonight.”
“That’s fine. I’ll bring a pizza. You still like mushrooms on yours?”
“Yes and if you still like green peppers, do half of each.” She smiled at him.
Brody nodded. “All right. I’ll see you tonight.” He turned to move away.
“Brody.”
He turned to face her. “Yes?”
“It’ll be fine.” Madilyn tried to reassure him.
Brody nodded. “I hope so, Maddie. I sure as hell hope so.” He smiled and walked off.
* * * *
Madilyn frowned as she watched him sauntering away from her. She didn’t have a good feeling about what he was going to say and she hoped it didn’t change anything between them. She shook her head. Nothing could change her feelings for Brody. If the fact of him leaving her five years ago hadn’t changed anything then nothing else could. She nibbled on her bottom lip. At least she hoped not. He seemed a little uneasy about whatever he had to tell her. The butterflies in her stomach were telling her it wasn’t going to be something she wanted to hear. Maybe it would be better if he didn’t tell her anything at all. She’d never seen him nervous before, not even the night he told her he was joining the Marshals. He’d been confident, but now he seemed hesitant. As if he knew it was something she w
ouldn’t forgive him for. What could he possibly have done to make him think that way? He had to know she’d love him no matter what. Yes, she’d love him, but would she stay with him?
Was it something so terrible, he was afraid she’d never forgive him? Madilyn was afraid to hear what he had to say. Should she call him and tell him she didn’t want to hear what it was about? It didn’t matter to her what his reasons for leaving the Marshals was, she didn’t need to know. It was between him and the Marshals. She didn’t need to know. Making up her mind, she picked up her cell phone but a customer came in and the rest of the day passed quickly. She never got the chance to call him. He was going to tell her and knowing Brody as she did, she knew if he wanted her to know, he’d tell her no matter how she felt about it. With something that important, he’d tie her down to make her listen if he had to. She shrugged, knowing she’d listen but it wouldn’t change how she felt about him.
Chapter Six
As Brody drove to Madilyn’s later in the evening, his stomach was in knots. He wasn’t sure how she was going to take the fact he’d been involved with a married woman. It didn’t matter whether he knew or not, she’d frown upon it. She said cheating was something she could never forgive. Shit! He ran his hand down his face. How was he going to tell her? Would she even believe him when he told her he hadn’t known Abby was married? Brody shook his head. Maybe he should have kept it to himself. What she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her. He never believed in that saying, because eventually the person found out and when that happened, all hell broke loose. He’d never lied to Madilyn before and he wasn’t about to start now. Brody knew he’d feel better after telling her just as he did after telling Sam.
He pulled into the parking lot and strolled to her apartment. God, he hoped this went well. Taking a deep breath, he blew it out as he knocked on the door. She pulled it open and smiled at him and his heart hit his stomach. He loved her so much and after losing her five years ago, he swore he never would again.
“Hi. Come in.” She opened the door for him to enter.
“Hi.” He quickly kissed her lips and strolled to the living room. She entered behind him and took a seat on the sofa. He paced.
“Is it so bad? What you have to tell me?” she whispered.
Brody ran his fingers through his hair. “It’s not pretty but I want you to know about it before we go on with our lives. I don’t want it to surface later and you get angry I didn’t tell you.”
Madilyn nodded. “All right. Sit down, Brody. You’re making me nervous.”
Brody sat on the sofa next to her and took her hand in his. “Before I say anything, I want you to promise you’ll listen to all of it before jumping to conclusions.”
She seemed to hesitate but finally nodded. “I promise. Go ahead.”
“I had an affair with a married woman.” When she tried to pull her hand away, he held it tighter. “You said you’d listen.” She huffed and nodded. “Good. I didn’t know she was married. She hid it from me for six months. I should have known. I have better instincts but I didn’t see it.”
“Because you were in love with her?”
“No. I was never in love with her. At first, it was just sex then I thought I’d try to make a go of it with her. I thought I’d never be with you again, and I wanted to get married and have kids.” He shook his head. “Her husband, Wilson Delgado, came to see me. Told me to stay the hell away from his wife or I’d regret it. I told him I didn’t know she was married. He laughed and said he didn’t believe me. I also told him I was a U S Marshal and he just laughed harder. It didn’t matter he said. I called Abby later that night to break it off with her. She took it hard and swore she’d leave him. Of course, I didn’t believe her. I mean, all she did was lie to me. A month later, she was dead. I know her husband killed her but I couldn’t prove it. He’s a very powerful man in Butte. He’s involved with the mob but just like anything else, it’s never been proven. I was let go from the Marshals because I couldn’t let it go. I followed Delgado everywhere and he eventually reported me to my supervisor. When Holt warned me the first time I didn’t listen, I continued to follow Delgado. I was obsessed with proving him the killer. As I told Sam, he may not have pulled the trigger but he had something to do with it. I know it in my bones.”
Madilyn stood and moved away from him. “Why were you so obsessed with proving him the killer? Why did it matter so much to you?”
Brody jumped up. “Why did it matter so much? Because a woman was murdered.”
“Is that all it was, or was it because you did love her and wanted to avenge her death?”
“I wasn’t in love with her, Madilyn,” Brody said through clenched teeth.
She nodded. “Then why not just let someone else investigate it? Why were you so hell bent on getting him for it? And I find it hard to believe you didn’t know she was married, Brody.”
“Son of a bitch. I knew you would say that. It’s why I battled with myself all the way here. I didn’t know. She hid it from me.”
“For six months?”
“Yes, for six months. Look, I beat myself up for it every day because she’s dead and it’s my fault. If I’d known she was married, I never would have gotten involved with her. I do not get involved with married women.”
“Apparently, you do.”
Brody stared at her. “I can’t believe you said that. You know better.”
“Do I? You’ve been gone for five years, Brody. How do I know what you’re like now?”
“Well, if you’d have gone with me, you’d know and none of this would have happened.”
Madilyn laughed without humor. “So it’s my fault your lover’s dead? Don’t pull that shit on me. You screwed around with a married woman and she’s dead. You couldn’t let it go and it cost you your job. A job you left me for. If your supervisor told you to let it go then you should have, but you didn’t. To me, it sounds like you cared for her way more than you’re willing to admit.”
“I cared about her, yes but I wasn’t in love with her. You’re the only woman I’ll love.”
“You thought about marrying her,” Madilyn said softly.
“Only because I thought I’d never see you again. I didn’t know if you’d gotten married and had children or what. It was five years. I was sure you’d moved on and I needed to.”
Madilyn shook her head. “All you ever had to do was ask someone.”
“You’re serious? Did you ever once ask Sam about me?” Brody stared at her. “Did you?” he shouted.
“No. You left me. That told me I wasn’t important enough to you.”
“You’re sprouting such bullshit and you know it. I asked you to go with me. You refused. We’ve wasted five years.”
“You didn’t. You were ready to move on,” Madilyn shouted.
“I feel like I’m banging my head against a fucking wall.” He strode to her and clasped her arms. “I asked you to go with me. Don’t put this on me. You wouldn’t go. It may not be your fault about Abby, but it is your fault we lost five years.”
Madilyn jerked away from him. “Get out. I’m done. I’ve had enough of this. I don’t believe you about not knowing she was married. I will not take the entire blame for ending it five years ago. You left. If you’d have loved me you would have stayed.”
“And you should have supported my decision to become a Marshal. You didn’t love me enough. If you had, you’d have taken the chance and gone with me. I’m still here. I wasn’t shot or killed like you were so sure would happen. You ruined what we had. I didn’t.” He strode to the door and left, slamming it behind him.
* * * *
Madilyn stood at the counter helping a customer when the bell rang over the door. She glanced up and smiled when she saw her friends enter. Emma Stone was a longtime friend. The two women with her were new friends but she loved them just the same. Becca Stone and Olivia Roberts were new to Clifton. They’d been there for three years and Becca owned the Clifton Bed and Breakfast, which is what bro
ught all the business into the small town. Becca married Jake Stone two years ago and Emma was married to Jake’s brother, Gabe. Olivia wasn’t married but she moved to Clifton since she and Becca were best friends. Closer than most sisters.
“Hey, girl. We brought lunch.” Emma smiled as she held up a large bag.
“I knew I smelled food. Burgers from the diner?” Madilyn grinned.
“Yes and onion rings and fries. We weren’t sure which you wanted. Where’s Katie?” Becca glanced around.
“In the back office. I’ll get her when I finish with Mrs. Holden,” Madilyn told them.
“We’ll be in the break room,” Emma told her.
Madilyn nodded and waited while Mrs. Holden looked through flower arrangements then she joined her friends in the break room. They had the food out, waiting for her. She noticed Kaitlyn was missing.
“Where’s Katie?”
“She was here for a minute then said she needed to use the bathroom,” Olivia told her.
Madilyn nodded and sat down. Kaitlyn entered the room and sat back down. Madilyn knew by the look on her face that something was wrong. She reached out and touched her hand.
“Katie? What is it? You look so pale.”
The women stopped what they were doing to gaze at Kaitlyn. “We’re all friends here, Katie. You can tell us. You know it won’t go any further than this room,” Emma said softly.
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