August was smiling.
“Always have a backup plan,” August taunted. He glanced at his watch again. His smile widened.
Just as the sound of the explosion ripped through the house.
Chapter Seventeen
One second Jameson was standing, and the next he was back on the floor. Somehow, he managed to catch on to Kelly and break her fall, and she landed in his arms. The pain shot through him again because that definitely hadn’t helped with the ribs he was certain he’d cracked.
The pain was the least of his worries, though.
“Run!” Gabriel shouted. He, too, was on the floor next to August, and his brother hauled the man to his feet and headed for the front door.
Jameson did the same to Kelly. Not easily, but he got her moving. And that’s when he realized the entire back half of the house was missing. There was a groaning sound, and the roof came swooshing down, the ceiling and boards clattering all around them.
Thankfully, Kelly seemed to be able to run, so maybe that meant she hadn’t been hurt. Except he saw the blood on her forehead. It was possible they hadn’t gotten so lucky after all.
With Gabriel gripping August, they ran down the porch steps and into the yard. Not a second too soon. Because the entire house fell right in front of them. Debris went everywhere, mixing with the burning car parts that were still all around them.
“Take my truck,” Gabriel said, tossing Jameson the keys. “It’s parked on the road just up from here. You and Kelly get back to the house, and Cameron and I will take this piece of scum to jail.”
August sure as heck wasn’t smiling now. He looked back at what was left of the house, and his nostrils flared. His face twisted into an enraged snarl. As arrogant as he was, the last thing he’d probably expected was to fail.
But he had.
Thank God, he had.
Even though Gabriel had said the hands had rounded up August’s goons, Jameson didn’t want to risk her being out in the open any longer. He hooked his arm around her waist and got her into Gabriel’s truck. The moment he had her inside, he started the engine and got them moving. He also glanced at Kelly to see if that bleeding on her head had gotten any worse.
“It’s just a scratch,” she said, following his gaze and then touching her fingers to her forehead. “But you need to see a doctor. You wince in pain every time you move.”
Yeah, he was wincing, but Jameson had hoped she hadn’t noticed. “We’ll both see the doctor in an hour or two. Once we’re sure the scene has been cleared.”
Her eyes widened, and she made a soft moan. “You think those men—”
“No. I just want to make sure all the explosives are gone.” With August’s sick mind, he could have planted others. Heck, he could have done it weeks or even months ago, since he’d apparently been planning this for years.
Kelly didn’t exactly breathe any easier, but he hoped once she saw that Gracelyn was all right, that it would help steady her nerves. Jameson did something that he figured definitely wouldn’t calm her, but he couldn’t help himself. He kissed her when he pulled to a stop in front of Gabriel’s house.
He’d been wrong, though, about it not helping. Because he could feel some of the tension leave her body. It helped him, too, but he definitely didn’t want to start a make-out session in the truck. Not with a deputy and his sister-in-law watching from the windows. Jameson got her moving, and they hurried up the steps into the house.
“Thank God, you’re all right,” Jodi immediately said. She gave them both hugs. “Gabriel?” He saw the worry in her eyes, too.
“He’s fine. He arrested August.”
“August?” someone repeated. Ivy. His sister was at the top of the stairs.
There was plenty he could tell her, but this wasn’t the time for it. Not with their emotions still so raw. “August is the one who killed Mom and Dad.”
Ivy shook her head, as if she might not believe that, but then a sob tore from her mouth. He pulled his sister into his arms. A hug wasn’t much, but maybe knowing the truth would finally help them all heal.
“Where’s Gracelyn?” Kelly asked, taking the question right out of Jameson’s mouth.
“Still in the bathroom with Erica. They’re both fine,” Ivy added. She moved out of Jameson’s embrace so he could head up the stairs.
But he came to a quick halt.
That’s because there was someone in the family room. Mandy. And she was holding a little girl. Boyer’s daughter, no doubt.
“I started running and didn’t know where else to go,” Mandy said, her voice raw and broken. The baby seemed all right, though. In fact, she was sleeping in Mandy’s arms. “Boyer’s dead, isn’t he?”
Kelly nodded. “August said he was in the car that exploded.”
“He was.” Tears shimmered in Mandy’s eyes. “I saw him, but I figured if I didn’t get to the baby, those men could hurt her.”
“They could have,” Jameson assured her. “You did the right thing getting her out. A dangerous thing,” he tacked onto that. But it was hard to argue with something that had worked to save a child.
“I didn’t have anything to do with August’s plan or the attacks,” Mandy insisted, her gaze shifting to her sister. “I love you and want you safe.”
“I believe you,” Kelly answered. “And I love you, too.”
Kelly said the words as easily to Mandy as she had to him right before all hell had broken loose. She sounded sincere. Both now and then. But Jameson wasn’t sure if the I love you she’d given him was because she had been afraid they were going to die.
“I’ll have to go to jail, won’t I?” Mandy asked. “Because I’m the one who took Amy. I’m the one who kept her from Boyer. But I swear I thought it was dangerous. I believed what Hadley told me about him.”
Jameson would have liked to reassure her that all would be well. He couldn’t. After all, Mandy had committed a felony, and that meant she almost certainly would do some jail time.
“What will happen to Amy if I’m arrested?” Mandy pressed.
Kelly went to her, and as Jodi had done to them, she hugged her sister. She also brushed a kiss on the baby’s forehead. “I’ll make sure Amy is taken care of while we look for her next of kin.”
That was the right thing to say, and Jameson would indeed do just that. Heck, if they couldn’t find any of her relatives, he could raise her himself.
That mentally stopped him.
He had obviously jumped right into daddy mode. But there was no way he was going to let Amy go into foster care, not after everything she’d been through.
“Should I, uh, go ahead and arrest Mandy?” Edwin asked.
“Not yet. Let her stay with the baby awhile longer.” It was the best Jameson could offer her under the circumstances. “But if Mandy tries to run—”
“I won’t,” Mandy interrupted. “No way do I want her back out there with possible explosives.” She cradled the baby closer and rocked her.
Later, he’d need to have a long chat with Mandy about all the details of the attacks that she might have witnessed, but it was just routine. Jameson didn’t expect any more surprises. At least he hoped like the devil there wouldn’t be. He’d had enough surprises to last him a lifetime.
Or so he thought.
But when Kelly and he went into the bathroom, and he saw his daughter, Jameson couldn’t believe that he loved someone as much as he loved her. It was incredible and terrifying at the same time. And somehow perfect.
Gracelyn was asleep in Erica’s arms, but the baby opened her eyes and turned her head toward them. She gave them a sleepy smile before closing her eyes. Oh, man. There it was again. That punch of emotion. He went to her and eased Gracelyn from Erica.
“Is everything okay?” Erica whispered.
“It is now.” Jameson brushed a kiss on Gracelyn’s cheek and handed he
r to Kelly so she could do the same.
Erica made a sound of relief, and she must have sensed they needed some alone time because she excused herself and left.
Kelly gave the baby another kiss and looked up at him. There was still blood on her face, and he grabbed a tissue to wipe it away. The nicks and bruises were reminders of the hell they’d just gone through. But they would heal. In a week or so, there’d be no signs of all the bad stuff.
Plus, there was good, too.
Kelly smiled at him, and it gave him that same flood of warmth as Gracelyn’s smile. She kept staring at him. Maybe waiting for him to say something. He had plenty to say all right, but he didn’t even get a chance to start because his phone buzzed. Jameson answered it right away when he saw Gabriel’s name on the screen.
“Please tell me August didn’t escape,” Jameson said. He walked into the adjacent bedroom so the conversation wouldn’t wake up Gracelyn, but when Kelly followed him, he put the call on speaker.
“No. We just arrived at the station, and he’s behind bars.”
Jameson released the breath he’d been holding. August had evaded justice for a decade, and he didn’t want the man getting away with anything else. “Has he said anything?”
“Yeah. Mostly curse words I won’t repeat. He blames me and you for not finding someone other than Travis to convict for the murders.”
That was warped logic, but then, August was a warped man. “If August was so torn up about his brother being behind bars, why didn’t he just confess to the crime he committed?”
“I asked him that, and he put the blame on Dad for investigating him.”
Yeah, August was definitely too far gone to see that he was the monster in all of this. And his arrogance and stupidity had caused a lot of pain and misery.
“In one of August’s profanity tirades,” Gabriel continued, “he did let it slip that he’s the one who’s been sending us threats.”
Well, that was one thing cleared up. But once August had revealed himself as the killer, Jameson had just assumed he’d made the threats, too. And August had probably done that to try to make them think that either there was a copycat or they’d put the wrong man in jail.
Which they had.
“All the evidence pointed to Travis,” Gabriel said as if reading his mind. “Since August insists he didn’t set him up, I suspect Travis went by the house shortly after the murders, and that’s how he got Dad’s blood on his shirt.”
That was possible, since Travis was their neighbor. Plus, the man had been drunk, so he wouldn’t have even realized how incriminating it would have been to touch the body.
Jameson looked at Kelly to see how she was dealing with all of this. Her forehead was bunched up, and there was concern in her eyes. But he thought the worry was for him. For how he was handling all this discussion about his parents. He went to her and kissed her to let her know he was okay.
And he was.
His folks’ deaths would always cut him to the bone, but there were new things in his life to help with the hurt. Mainly Kelly and Gracelyn.
“We’ll go through everything that’s in Kelly’s file,” Gabriel continued a moment later. “And I’ll contact the warden of the prison to let him know that Travis will soon be getting out.”
It wouldn’t be easy, but Jameson planned to be there for the man’s release. He wanted to look Travis in the eyes and tell him he was sorry for the conviction. After all, Travis’s son and daughter were now part of the Beckett family, and Jameson wanted a fresh start for all of them. Well, everyone except August. The man would almost certainly end up on death row.
“Any idea who August planned to set up to take the fall for the murders?” Jameson asked his brother.
“I think Boyer.”
Jameson made a sound of agreement. “When we were in the house, August mentioned putting something on Boyer’s computer that would incriminate him.” And now Boyer was dead. “Boyer’s baby is here at your place,” Jameson added.
“Edwin called and told me. After the CSI team and reserve deputies are in place, I’ll have Edwin bring in Mandy. I can’t make the charges against her go away, though.”
“I know,” Kelly said. “My sister has to pay for what she’s done.” She paused. “But maybe the baby can stay here and not be sent to foster care?”
“I’m pretty sure I can arrange that.” Now it was Gabriel’s turn to hesitate. “Are you two sure, though, that you can manage a second baby? I mean, you’re going to be settling in with Gracelyn.”
Settling in. That was an interesting choice of words. Was that what Kelly and he were doing?
“We can do this,” Kelly assured his brother. “Well, with some help from the rest of you.”
“Are we talking changing diapers?” Gabriel asked. There was a touch of humor in his voice.
“Definitely,” Jameson answered. And he found himself smiling. Gabriel was going to be a good uncle, and one day a good father.
“All right,” Gabriel agreed. “I’ll change a diaper or two. Will even babysit some. What I want to know, though, is how soon will Kelly and Gracelyn be moving in with you?”
Good question, but Jameson didn’t have the answer. “I’ll get back to you on that. Let me know if anything else comes up.”
“And you let me know when Kelly and you set a wedding date.” Chuckling, Gabriel ended the call.
Jameson scowled at the phone and would give his brother a scowl in person later. Gabriel’s comment had no doubt shocked Kelly. It was too soon for her to even be thinking about long-term plans...
Or not.
She slid her hand around the back of his neck, eased him closer and kissed him. Really kissed him. In fact, it was as hot and close as it could be considering that she was still holding Gracelyn. When she’d rid him of every trace of the scowl and made him pretty much mindless, she pulled back.
Smiled.
“I’m in love with you,” she said. “That wasn’t the fear or the adrenaline talking. I meant it. I fell in love with you two years ago, and the feelings are still as strong as ever.”
Good. That was exactly what he wanted to hear.
Jameson pulled Kelly back into his arms and gave the words right back to her. “I’m in love with you, too.”
He kissed her mouth. That smile. And then kissed her again.
Everything he’d ever wanted was right here in his arms—his precious little girl and the woman he loved.
* * * * *
Look for more books from USA TODAY
bestselling author Delores Fossen
later in 2018.
And don’t miss the previous titles in the
BLUE RIVER RANCH series:
ALWAYS A LAWMAN
GUNFIRE ON THE RANCH
LAWMAN FROM HER PAST
Available now from Harlequin Intrigue!
SPECIAL EXCERPT FROM
Tucker Cahill returns to Gilt Edge, Montana, with no choice but to face down his haunted past when a woman’s skeletal remains are found near his family’s ranch—but he couldn’t have prepared for a young woman seeking vengeance and finding much more.
Read on for a sneak preview of
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Hero’s Return
by B.J. Daniels
Skeletal Remains Found in Creek
The skeletal remains of a woman believed to be in her late teens or early twenties were discovered in Miner’s Creek outside of Gilt Edge, Montana, yesterday. Local coroner Sonny Bates estimated that the remains had been in the creek for somewhere around twenty years.
Sheriff Flint Cahill is looking into missing-persons cases from that time in the hopes of identifying the victim. If anyone has any information, they are encouraged to call the Gilt Edge Sheriff’s Department.
“NO, MRS. KERN, I can assure you that the bones that were found in the creek are not those of your nephew Billy,” Sheriff Flint Cahill said into the phone at his desk. “I saw Billy last week at the casino. He was alive and well... No, it takes longer than a week for a body to decompose to nothing but bones. Also, the skeletal remains that were found were a young woman’s... Yes, Coroner Sonny Bates can tell the difference.”
He looked up as the door opened and his sister, Lillie, stepped into his office. From the scowl on her face, he didn’t have to ask what kind of mood she was in. He’d been expecting her, given that he had their father locked up in one of the cells.
Roughshod Justice Page 18
