by Linda Warren
“And maybe Wade’ll let me ride Fancy again,” Brit said eagerly.
“We won’t be here long so let’s be on our best behavior while we are.”
“I’m always good,” Brit pointed out. “Adam’s the troublemaker.”
“And you’re st—”
“Adam.” Callie’s voice cut him off before he could finish the word.
“Sorry,” he mumbled.
“Tell us a story,” Mary Beth begged.
Her mind was a maze of worry and fairy tales eluded her. She didn’t feel much happiness, except… “Once upon a time there was a sheriff who owned a beautiful horse that needed to be ridden.”
“That’s Fancy, right?” Brit joined the story.
“Then a little city girl came to town who wanted to be a cowgirl and the sheriff thought she was perfect to ride his horse.”
“Is the sheriff a prince? Mary Beth wanted to know.
“No. He’s a flame-eating dragon.” Adam rose from his cot with his arms outstretched and jumped onto the bed. The girls screeched and dove beneath the covers. Adam bounced around and hissed and poked at them. They giggled and wiggled until Callie called a halt. Adam flopped down by Mary Beth and the room became quiet, but the tension was gone. Laughter was the best medicine and she knew they were going to be fine.
After Adam was back in his bed and the girls asleep, Callie crawled out of the bed and went to find Wade. She had to talk to him. She found him in the kitchen at a table, staring at a piece of paper. When he saw her, he turned the paper over.
“Do you need something?” he asked, a weary look on his face.
“No.” She tucked her hair behind her ears.
“I heard the kids laughing. I’m glad they’re okay.”
“I hope we didn’t disturb your father.”
“Everything disturbs my father, but he’s barracked in his room so don’t worry about it.”
“I’m sorry. We’ll leave first thing in the morning.”
“You’ll stay as long as you need to,” he said. “It’s time my dad dealt with life again and three kids in the house is just the way to start.”
“Still, we have to go back to our house.” She took the seat next to him and tightened the belt of her lightweight robe. “Do you have any idea who would do such a thing?”
He raked a hand through his hair and she noticed his dark hair had a slight curl and a few strands of gray, making him that much more appealing.
“I have to be honest with you. As I told you, a lot of people are not happy with the newcomers in town. I’ve had several incidents that I can’t explain, except for just plain meanness and mischief making.”
“So you think someone was trying to scare me out of town?”
“Or to make the Home Free Program look bad.”
“I see.” She twisted her hands in her lap. She had to tell him the truth about herself, but doubts inundated her. Was she crazy? What purpose would it serve? He could arrest her and put her in jail, then what would happen to the kids?
She glanced around at the country kitchen with its cream tiled floor, oak cabinets and table, white appliances and sunflower curtains. It had a very warm, very friendly atmosphere—just like Wade. In that moment, she knew her earlier decision was the right one and she prayed she didn’t live to regret it.
“I need to tell you something.”
“You said that at your house.”
“Yes.” She locked her fingers together. “I’m not sure where to start.”
He turned the paper over and pushed it in front of her. “Will this help?”
She stared down at her face. At the top in bold letters was written Wanted. At the bottom For Kidnapping. Her name, Callandra (Callie) Lambert, was under her photo and the kids photos were at the very bottom with their names. Wade knew. He knew who she really was. Her stomach rolled with a sick feeling.
She licked suddenly dry lips. “How long have you known?”
“It came through on the wire service when I was at the office. I took it before Virg or Ray could see it.”
“Why?” She swallowed convulsively, waiting to see if her instincts about him were right or wrong.
“Brit said you wouldn’t do anything bad unless you had a good reason. I suppose I wanted to hear that reason.”
He was giving her a chance to explain. Air gushed into her lungs—her instincts were right. She gripped her fingers until they were numb. How could she convince him to help her? Feminine wiles, she’d heard her friends say, worked on men. Bat her eyes, show some leg, a little more cleavage. What was she thinking? Wade was not that type of man. She’d definitely watched too many movies and listened to too many crazy friends. She had to be honest because if she had to depend on her feminine wiles she’d be in jail for the rest of her life.
“I didn’t have time to get all the details, but why would you kidnap your own children?”
She exhaled deeply, glad for the opening. “They’re not my children.”
His eyes narrowed and she rushed into speech. “They’re my half siblings.” From there it was easy and the whole story spilled out.
“So everything on the application was false?”
“Yes. I never realized it was so easy to get fake IDs.”
He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest. “Tell me about your relationship with your mother.”
“My mother was fickle, impulsive and wanted a better way of life for both of us—that’s why she left my father.” She didn’t mention her father being from Homestead. Like always, she pushed it to the back of her mind. “He was an alcoholic and couldn’t hold down a decent job. We lived in a one-room apartment in Houston and it was depressing. Glynis went through a string of men and I spent a lot of time with our elderly neighbor, Mrs. Heinbacker. She taught me how to cook and I basically took care of Glynis and myself. I did the cooking and cleaning because Glynis didn’t care about any of those things. She kept telling me she was going to find us a rich daddy.
“She didn’t love John when she married him, but as the years went by she grew to love him. John was a good, decent man. He adopted me and we moved to New York and we became a family. John wanted more children but it took five years for that to happen. I’ve always been there for the kids. Glynis was busy with social functions and I kept them when John and Glynis went on vacations or out for the evening. The only time I was away from them was when I was in college, but then John would send tickets for me to come home every other weekend. I still miss him.” She forced back tears. “When he was dying, I promised to help Glynis with the children. Mom had a habit of getting stressed out and making bad decisions. John had the kids’ futures planned from the day they were born. Education was his top priority, and he wanted the children to attend the same private school that he did. From there they will apply to Harvard as he did. Their education is paid for and I gave my word to see that his wishes were carried out, but Mom knew his plans and the kids wanted to be just like their father and I never thought there’d be a problem. That was before Mom met Nigel.”
There was a long pause before Wade spoke. “Did you ever ask your mother why she married him?”
“Yes, and she got angry and said I didn’t understand what she was feeling. So I stayed out of the picture. She called me the week before she died and said that she and Nigel were arguing. He wanted to send the kids to boarding school. That was something John had never considered and he would have been fervently against it. He wanted the kids at home with family. Glynis said she didn’t know what to do.”
“What did you tell her?”
“I reminded her of what John had wanted and she told me again that I didn’t understand.” Callie smoothed the fabric of her robe. “The night she died, she called me at the restaurant and said she needed to talk to me. I told her I didn’t get off until twelve. She said she’d made a big mistake and didn’t know what to do and that she had to see me. I told her to come to the restaurant and she agreed. I waited and waited
but…”
“She was killed before she could reach the restaurant,” Wade finished for her.
“Yes.” This time a tear escaped and she blinked it away. “I guess she was going to tell me she’d changed her will.” She raised her eyes to his. “Are you going to arrest me?”
“I should. That’s my job.”
Callie waited, her breath wedged in her throat like pine needles. As the silence grew, she plunged into speech. “They’ll give the kids back to Nigel and they’re deathly afraid of him. Please don’t do that.”
Wade ran both hands over his face. “You’re asking me to break the law.”
She watched the turmoil on his face. “You knew who I was when we stopped at your office. Why didn’t you arrest me then instead of bringing us out here—to your home?”
He sighed. “Because I guess I knew then that I was going to break the law.”
Her eyes held his. “You’re not going to arrest me?”
“It would be best if you go back and face this situation. Fight it in the courts.”
“I tried that. The courts take time and no one seemed to care that Nigel was hitting them and making Mary Beth sleep in a bed of urine. And he leaves them alone at night with no one else in the house. I also tried to get Child Protective Services to remove them from the home until my case was heard, but they refused. I didn’t have any options left but to abduct them and run.”
“That’s makes you the criminal.”
“Yes. It wasn’t easy to make that decision. I’d be taking them away from the environment John had planned for them. But I knew in my heart that he wouldn’t want them being afraid or hit. I did the only thing I could under the circumstances. I hired a lawyer and as soon as she can get a judge to hear my side, I will take them back. Until then I will stay on the run unless…” She gnawed on her lip. “What are you going to do?”
The silence grew and she resisted the urge to bite her nails. Suddenly he looked at her, his expression unreadable.
“I think I’ll check out Nigel Tremont.”
Callie jumped up and threw her arms around his neck. “Thank you. Thank you.” She kissed the side of his face, knowing she was right on target about this man.
He stilled. “I don’t want that kind of thanks. And don’t read anything into my offer. I’m only trying to get to the truth.”
“I’m sorry.” She immediately pulled away, feeling as if he were putting handcuffs on her—handcuffs on her heart.
He rose to his feet. “Callie, I’m looking for answers and it’s not going to help if you and I get involved. You’ve falsified an application and done a lot things I shouldn’t be turning a blind eye to. I’m taking a big risk, but you’re safe here until I get those answers.”
She brushed her hair back with a nervous hand. “Okay.”
“No more lies and no more running.”
She hesitated. “I can’t really promise about the running. I’ll do everything I can to keep those kids away from Nigel.”
“Give me some time.”
She nodded and walked to her room.
“Callie.”
She looked back. “I’m leaving early in the morning so just ignore my father and don’t take his attitude too seriously.”
“The kids and I will go with you. I have to start repairing the damage to our house.”
“Not tomorrow. I don’t want anything touched until I’ve caught the culprit.”
“Oh.”
“Just enjoy the ranch. I’ll have Poncho saddle up Fancy again for Brit and he’ll help her learn to ride. He’s very good with horses. I’ll be back before you know it. “
“I don’t guess I have much of a choice.”
“No.”
WADE WATCHED HER WALK into the bedroom with an ache in his gut. From the start, he knew she was hiding something. From the start, he knew she was trouble. And from the start, he knew he’d be powerless to change the way she made him feel. He touched the side of his face where her lips had kissed his skin, still feeling her softness and that stir of desire in his lower abdomen. But he had to stay focused. He could lose his job over this. His job kept him sane, kept him going. Without that, he’d become a bitter old man like his father.
Why was he risking everything for a woman?
CHAPTER SEVEN
WADE WAS UP EARLY and in town before the sun rose. In all good conscience, he couldn’t arrest Callie or notify the FBI. He didn’t doubt for one minute that she was telling him the truth. The kids were tense and afraid and clung to Callie, clearly a sign of trauma. He’d noticed that from the start, but wasn’t sure of the cause, thinking it had something to do with their father’s death. Now he knew the real reason and there was no way he’d send those kids back into that situation. He saw how much they loved Callie and how much she loved them. Until he got some answers about Nigel Tremont, he’d protect them.
Her best recourse was to go back and face the music—that was the legal way. He’d been a lawman long enough to know the legal way wasn’t always right and he couldn’t force her to do that. She’d have to spend some time in jail and he wanted to make sure those kids were well taken care of before that happened. And hopefully, he could find something on Nigel so Callie wouldn’t have to go through that. He’d work tirelessly to keep her safe.
He didn’t question his motives. He already knew his heart was involved, even though there wasn’t any future for them. That was the way it had to be. Seemed as if the two of them were tortured souls looking for a safe place to hide. He’d found his, but Callie’s place wasn’t in Home-stead. She’d leave as soon as her life was sorted out. And the future would be the same for him—just another day to get through.
He hated leaving her to face his father, but he had a feeling Callie could handle anything.
His first stop was the office. He had to make sure no other bulletins had come in on Callie and he needed to call a detective he knew in New Jersey. Simon Marchant had been a detective with Wade in Houston, but after being injured on the job, he’d resigned and moved to New Jersey where his wife’s family lived. He was now a private investigator and if anyone could find dirt on Nigel, Simon could.
He then spoke to Ray about Tolliver Craddock, who’d been arrested for poisoning Kayla Ritter’s vineyard and was out on bail thanks to a fancy lawyer from Austin. Wade’s deputies were keeping a close eye on him, though. Ray said Craddock had gone to San Antonio to visit his sister and hadn’t returned. That meant Craddock wasn’t in Homestead at the time of the vandalism and was therefore not involved. Or so it seemed.
Later, Wade drove to Callie’s house to check things out. He frowned as he stopped at the curb. June Bug was asleep in a rocker on the porch with a shotgun across his lap.
As Wade hurried up the steps, June Bug jumped to his feet with the gun in his hands.
“Oh, it’s you, Sheriff.” His voice was sleepy.
“June Bug, put that gun down. What are you doing?”
He propped the gun against the house. “Making sure nobody does anything else to this house.”
“Have you been here all night?”
“Yes, sir. We got a yellow-bellied coward in this town and if he comes here again, he’s gonna get a load of buckshot. No one’s hurting Mrs. Austin as long as I’m around.”
Wade sensed that June Bug had a big crush on Callie. Hell, he did, too. “Go home and let me do my job.”
“I’m not leaving until I get the house fixed up for Mrs. Austin.”
It was useless to argue with him. Wade was familiar with the Stromiski stubbornness. “Just don’t touch anything until I’m through here.”
“Yes, sir.”
Wade went inside to look around. Everything was thrown around, but the biggest damage was the spray paint and broken windows. Glass was everywhere. With his handkerchief, he picked up several rocks and placed them in a bag. In the kitchen, he squatted to study the floor. Nothing gave him a clue, then he spotted a gum wrapper by the back door. He added it to the b
ag. It probably belonged to one of the kids, but he’d still check it out.
As he stood, Virgil came charging into the kitchen, the left side of his face slightly blue.
“How’s the head, Virg?”
“Fine. I’m back on duty. Ray said there was some vandalism here last night and I guess he was right.”
“Yeah.” He handed him the bag. “Lock this in the safe. I’ll be over at the office later.”
“Okay. What do you want me to do with Cora Lou and Norris? Cora Lou apologized for hitting me, but Norris is getting angry, saying he’s going to sue the sheriff’s department.”
“I’ll take care of Norris when I get to the office.”
Virgil looked around. “Who’d do this?”
“Not sure yet.”
Virg leaned over and whispered, “June Bug has a gun.”
“I know.”
“Want me to take it away from him?”
“No.” The last thing he needed was for Virgil to get into another altercation. “I need you on duty today.”
“Come on, Wade. It wasn’t my fault. Cora Lou’s a mean bitch, but I’m still not hittin’ her.”
“Virg.” Wade sighed. “I’ve got a lot to do today and I need you to take care of the office.”
“I’m on my way.” Virg headed for the door.
“And lock that bag in the safe.”
“Got it.”
Virgil was sometimes a little overeager, but he was a good officer. People didn’t take him seriously, which was where the problems started. In a town this size, they were lucky to have him.
Wade walked outside to question June Bug.
He took out his pen and pad. “What time did you leave last night?”
“I left about five-thirty. I told Mrs. Austin I was because I wanted to check on some prices for a central air and heat unit. I called several places and my sister Etta was at my place and did some checking on the computer for me. Etta fixed supper. She can’t cook like Mama, but—”
