Timothy Blackhawk escorted his grandson’s wife back into his home. Just watching her in the cemetery was the answer to all the questions he had about the woman. She was astute and very much in tune with everything around her. When the wind picked up, he took it as a warning of them being watched. He believed the spirit world watched over them at all times, and gave them signs if they looked for them. He didn’t want to worry her with his warning, but she just knew. Elizabeth was very perceptive. Had he not known for a fact, he’d think she had some Native blood in her. Timothy had great hope for his grandchild she was giving life, and that maybe he would be allowed to be part of his culture and pick up the gifts his mother carried and his father shunned.
“I’ll make you dinner,” he said, walking to the kitchen.
“No, I think I’ll make you dinner,” she answered, keeping her gun on her hip. She no longer felt watched, but still, she wasn’t willing to be caught unarmed and risk either of them. If anyone was coming at them, she’d be ready. “Tell me what you had planned and I’ll take care of it for you.” Elizabeth walked into the kitchen and made the older man sit.
“I was planning on simple. Some soup and a sandwich, but we can do more elaborate if you wish.”
Elizabeth put water on for tea. “No, that’s fine, Granddad. I happen to be a culinary master at soup and sandwiches.” When he laughed, she winked.
“The soup is in a container in the freezer, and the sandwich items are in the refrigerator.”
Elizabeth got to work; she didn’t mind spending time with the older man. Her husband’s grandfather was very sweet, and just the peace she received from being around him was very welcoming. As the tea kettle whistled, she took down a mug and poured him a cup of tea.
“Tell me, Lyzee,” he used her nickname, since it felt right at that moment. “The FBI lured you in, but have you always wanted to be an agent?”
As she cut a tomato into slices and layered them on bread she answered, “Always, from the minute I was a little girl I always wanted to find justice,” she grinned. “Call me old fashioned, but I like to see the good guy win.”
“Ethan had me worried for a while. When he left, he was very angry, and then five years went by and money started arriving magically into my bank account.” Timothy motioned to the house. “It repaired the house and keeps it maintained, and I still didn’t know what he was doing. Then one day he ran into Callen ten years ago.”
“Ethan believes in responsibility, and I know he’s taking care of you,” she answered, nonchalantly. She’d seen the automatic transfers monthly out of their account and followed the paper trail back to his grandfather’s account. She wasn’t surprised. Ethan Blackhawk was a good man deep down, even if he was infuriating to no end at times.
“He wouldn’t come see me, but he still remembered me,” he said sadly. “It gave me hope that he’d come home one day.”
Elizabeth pulled the soup from the microwave and stirred it. “He loves you very much, and he wasn’t running from you, Granddad. Ethan was, and still is, running from himself. For some reason he worries about his past, and what people will think of him. One day he’ll figure it out and stop running. I can keep up with him for as long as it takes,” she paused. “I’m not ashamed of his past, Granddad. I am proud of where he came from, but he needs to find that path himself. I can’t force it on him. All I can do is wait for him to realize that being Native isn't a hindrance but a blessing. I’m proud to be a Blackhawk, now he needs to be.”
The old man looked up at her. Elizabeth was very astute indeed, and she knew her husband well.
“When he finally comes to peace with it, he’ll jump in completely. Right now he’s still punishing himself for what has him worried.”
“You’ll forgive him then? Today, too many people run from responsibilities instead of sticking by them and fighting for them.”
Elizabeth constructed the rest of the sandwich, and cut it in half placing it on the plate. She thought about it, as she licked mayo from her thumb. “I’m stubborn, Granddad, and I don’t run from things. I generally run head long into them. Right now I’m angry at your grandson, but I still love him more than anything in this world. I could have gone out in the field alone to spite him and his feelings, but why hurt him when he’s been hurt so much in his life? Ethan, right now, is breakable and I’m not. I’m willing to swallow the hurt, to keep his heart intact. I came here to avoid a fight with him, and give us both space to think.”
Timothy was touched.
“His last girlfriend wasn’t very nice and without going into details, she did a number on his heart, confidence, and mind.” Elizabeth left it at that. This wasn’t her story to tell. It was Ethan’s and she wouldn’t divulge things he didn’t want discussed. She’d protect his heart and the things that gave him shame.
“She hurt my boy?”
Elizabeth placed a sandwich in front of the man and a bowl of steaming soup. Joining him at the table, she thought about it and then spoke. “Let’s just say if I ever meet her, they’ll probably be taking me off to jail for kicking her ass for hurting him.”
Timothy laughed. “That bad, huh?” he said, taking a bite of his sandwich.
“It wouldn’t be the first woman I’ve had to knock around when they crossed the line with Ethan, and it probably won’t be the last. I’m still waiting to run into Kaya Cheek. I am so going to hand her an ass kicking too,” she said, biting into her sandwich.
“Oh, that one I would like to see,” he chuckled. “There is no love lost with that woman. She caused my boys a lot of grief. I didn’t like her from the start,” he answered. “Kaya was hell bent on stealing the Blackhawk name.”
A little wave of awareness touched her mind at the man’s words. Elizabeth pushed them down until later; she wasn’t ready to think about it just yet. “Ethan told me to be on my best behavior on the reservation, so I haven’t gone to meet her yet. When this is over I can’t make any promises.”
“It is a joy to know you carry on my name, Elizabeth. A pure joy, and if you kick her ass I’ll cover for you with the council. It would be my pleasure. You're a Blackhawk now, and that means something here.”
“That’s what I like Granddad, backup.”
Callen Whitefox got the second text message, and he looked over at his brother. He was sitting on the couch and staring at the ceiling. Growing up as kids, whenever Ethan was stressed or upset, he would go very quiet and silent. His brother was trying to figure out a way to solve the problem he created. “Get your shoes, we’re going for a ride.” Whitefox would just drop his brother off at his grandfather’s and let him work it out there. The old man would referee it.
“I can’t. I have to wait for my wife to come back, if she ever does.”
Whitefox sighed. “I know where she is,” he said, watching his brother’s face fill with rage. “Hold on there, Ethan,” he said holding up his hand. “Before you start swinging, I just found out one minute ago where she was, and this time if you swing, I’m punching back. I took a face shot because I deserved it, and I didn’t cause this damn mess or drive your wife off.”
Blackhawk stared at his brother, his jaw clenched.
“When we went to granddad’s cabin and he was gone, I called my deputy on duty, and asked him to find him. Granddad doesn’t go out often unless it’s for council.”
“She’s with granddad?”
“Yeah, my deputy found them at the burial grounds together, and now they’re back at his house, and have been the last hour.”
“I have to go,” Ethan jumped up.
“Hold on! I’ll drop you there and come back. You don’t need to be driving like a maniac and killing yourself. I’m more level headed right now than you are, clearly.”
Blackhawk was already slipping into his shoes and grabbing the keys.
“I mean it, Ethan. Hand over the keys.” Whitefox held out his hand.
“Okay, but let’s go. I want to bring my wife home.”
“Ethan, y
ou may want to start with an apology and behavior modification,” he replied, following his brother to the door, and setting the alarm when his brother didn’t bother.
Blackhawk hopped up into the passenger seat of the Denali and waited for his brother. He was lucky that his wife was safe and unharmed, and he made a vow right there that he’d stop treating her like she was a prisoner in her own life. While she was gone, he reevaluated and knew what he had to do. Forcing her into hiding wasn’t going to work, but sticking to her like glue and watching over her like a hawk would. It would just be easier.
Whitefox started up the vehicle and backed out of the driveway. “Ethan, remember you can’t force your wife to do what you want. You need to ease off her, okay? If you don’t, next time I’ll help her find a place to hide out that you can’t find,” he meant it.
Blackhawk nodded. “I appreciate that you sent your deputy out looking for her and watching over her. It means a lot to me.”
He nodded. “Just cut her a break.” Yeah, he had a soft spot in his heart for Elizabeth, and he would kick his brother’s ass if he didn’t see what a treasure he’d found. Someone had to do it. His brother was incredibly lucky, and there would be men lining up to take her off his hands if he didn’t clean up his mess. Including himself.
“Can you drive a little faster?”
“Want me to put on the lights,” he asked, laughing.
“Yeah, do it.”
Whitefox shook his head and pretended he didn’t hear him. Clearly, Ethan Blackhawk was completely out of his mind.
Timothy Blackhawk had cake with his granddaughter-in-law and noticed that she looked worn out. He gave her some tea and took her by the hand. “I have a spare room. Just lay down for a little while. You need to rest before you collapse and make yourself sick.”
“Okay, Granddad, but please wake me up in a bit. I don’t want Ethan to worry too much about me. If I don’t come home he’ll have every FBI agent on the planet searching for me, and S.W.A.T will be kicking in your door.”
The old man laughed and tucked her in on the bed. He’d done it so many times before with the boys when they were young. Now he hoped to at least get to do it with a great-grandchild or two before his time was done. He noticed Elizabeth placed her gun right beside her, and his heart broke for her. That kind of worry and fear must be a very large burden indeed. He wished he could take it all away and soothe her. After all, she was now his to take care of, just as much as his grandsons.
As she closed her eyes, he walked out of the room, shutting the door behind him. He was going to let her fall asleep and then make a very important phone call to his grandson. It was time he had a discussion with the boy, and he was going to make sure he listened and listened well. He wasn’t going to let his grandson follow in the path of his own son. He’d made that mistake before, of not intervening, and he wasn’t doing that again. Ethan wasn’t too old to have some good old fashioned sense beat into him.
Whitefox pulled over next to his deputy and rolled down the window. “Chet, how’s it going?”
“She entered about ninety minutes ago, and they haven’t come out. I stayed back pretty far, but when she got back in her vehicle at the burial grounds, she strapped on her gun. I think she knew I was watching. I backed up a bit more.”
“I appreciate it. Go on and head on out. I’m dropping my brother there, and he’ll take care of it now.” He rolled up the window and pulled forward. “Fix your mess, Ethan,” he said, as he parked outside the house.
“I plan on it,” he answered, hopping down. “Thanks Callen, I owe you one.”
He watched his brother run for the door, “No Ethan, I owed you, and now we’re even.”
Ethan Blackhawk rushed into the house, and he was met with his grandfather, blocking his path and not looking at all happy. He’d seen that look plenty of times before, and this time he earned it. Someone’s ass was about to be chewed a new one, and he braced for it. Granddad looked livid.
“Sit!” He pointed at the couch. It wasn’t lost on him that his grandson looked scared out of his mind and worried about his wife, but he was still getting the intervention.
Blackhawk obeyed. The tone meant business, and he was suddenly that young boy all over again.
“I just tried calling your home. Your wife is here, and she’s finally resting. But we need to have a little discussion on the correct and incorrect way to treat the woman you married.”
“Granddad,” he started.
“No, Ethan Jackson Blackhawk! You will listen to me and not say a word until I’m done. Am I perfectly clear?”
He just nodded. Wow, he used his middle name. When he stole his truck at seventeen, he didn’t even use his middle name. This was big trouble indeed.
“Your wife called me tonight, asking if she could come here for a while. I could hear it in her voice, and told her to come. She showed up visibly upset and had been crying. Then she proceeded to weep until I thought she would make herself sick.”
Blackhawk felt really bad that he’d made her cry that much, and that she had to resort to leaving their home to find comfort.
“You’re heading down a dangerous path. It’s one that your father took before you. No, you aren’t cheating on her, but you are still damaging her heart, and that’s unacceptable. I raised you better than that, and maybe I failed with you too. I let your father ruin the lives of who knows how many women, by his stupidity and careless actions. I’ll not let you do the same.”
“Yes Granddad,” he answered. He had done something careless. Once again, he bruised his wife’s heart when she didn’t deserve it. Just because he had issues, it wasn’t fair to dump them on her.
“She’s a good woman, and Elizabeth reminds me of your grandmother. She won’t put up with your shit, but her heart can still be hurt. We went to the burial grounds, because she wished to see your mother’s grave. It makes me angry that you didn’t bother to share that part of yourself with her before now.”
He didn’t know how he felt about her going there. Part of him wished he was strong enough to go himself.
“Then we came here, and she made me dinner and kept me company, even though she was hurting inside. She even brought me a cake.”
He couldn’t help but think about Mrs. Feinstein.
“The poor child wanted chocolate cake. Instead she got carrot, because you have her so tied up in knots about what she eats and harming her child. You need to stop controlling this to death. You’re taking the joy and happiness right out of her eyes and life. If you think that she’ll want to have more children with you after this, you're mistaken. I would venture to guess she is questioning having this one with you.”
That scared him. All he wanted was a family full of children running through their house. It’s why he bought a big one. And he did it again. It wasn’t them buying the house, it was ‘he’. Yeah, he was one big, giant, insensitive asshole today.
“She’s pregnant. Let her eat what she wants! Who are we as men to tell her that she has to eat salad, or not eat something? You aren’t growing a child. Elizabeth is, and since you seem to not know this, your wife is a very smart woman. I don’t doubt that she can carry the load on her shoulders just fine without you bossing her around like she’s three.”
Ethan had the decency to look embarrassed.
“You married her because you fell in love with who she was, and now you are trying to take away that identity. What if she told you that you had to change? That your job was too dangerous, and you needed to sell shoes for a living?”
“I’d be appalled and angry.”
“She told me she feels like her only value is that of a child bearer.”
Now he felt horrible. He didn’t appreciate her enough, and he didn’t treat her the way she should be treated. There was no doubt that he deserved this conversation as a wakeup call.
“You think she isn’t stressed enough? I heard she saved your life this morning. What if Elizabeth didn’t do her job, and she wasn’t w
ith you today? She’d be a single parent right now, and I’d be burying you beside your mother. Wise up son! You're going to push her so far away that she won’t want to make the journey back to you, and then I’ll really be angry. I happen to be quite attached to your wife, and the little fact that she is growing me the next generation of Blackhawk. I’d like more than one great-grandchild and for her not to file for divorce and run from us. She’s the only woman in this family right now. All the remaining men need to be a little more careful as to how they treat her, and act accordingly. There has been too much sadness and upheaval, and we don’t need to lose yet another woman.”
“How mad is she?”
“Plenty and I can’t blame her for one second.”
“Can I see her?”
The old man stood. “She’s sleeping and needs to rest. Don’t you dare wake her! Let her get some down time, because fighting with you wore her out.”
“I promise. I’ll try and stop being so heavy handed.”
“Watch over your woman, Ethan. Don’t crush her with your own issues.”
Blackhawk nodded, walking past his grandfather to the spare bedroom. He just wanted to see that she was safe. When he opened the door, the light from the hall fell across her body and her face. She was sleeping peacefully, and her hand was resting on the butt of her gun. He crept into the room to watch her rest. All the emotions overwhelmed him. Finally, now that she was safe he could relax.
Blackhawk peeked out the room. “Granddad, can I stay the night?”
The old man nodded. “You’re always welcome here. This is your home, Ethan, and now it’s hers too.”
Thanking his grandfather, he returned to his wife. Blackhawk unclipped his own gun, placing it on the bed stand, and slipped hers from under her hand. When the guns were moved, he climbed onto the bed with her and just laid there watching her sleep.
Sacred Burial Grounds (An FBI Romance Thriller (book 2)) Page 31
