Line of Duty

by Christy Barritt

The thought caused anger to burn inside him.

  Before she could say anything, movement outside the window caught her eye, and she froze.

  “What is it?” Luke asked.

  “I just saw someone outside . . .” she murmured.

  “Are you sure?” Jaxon asked.

  She nodded. “Positive. He’s in the woods.”

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Jaxon and Luke rushed outside, guns drawn. Jaxon’s gaze scanned everything around them.

  There.

  He saw the movement in the woods, just as Abby had said. He and Luke darted toward the stranger.

  This could be the Executioner. This was their opportunity to catch him, to end this once and for all.

  Was it Patrick? Or another faceless stranger?

  “Police! Put your hands up!” Luke called, his gun drawn and aimed.

  Jaxon waited with anticipation of what would happen.

  A moment later, a fifty-something man stepped from behind the trees, his hands in the air. He was big and burly, with dark hair and thick shoulders.

  Jaxon blinked, trying to figure out who he was. He looked vaguely familiar, but . . .

  “Who are you, and what are you doing here?” Luke demanded.

  “I’m here to talk to her.” The man shoved his thick finger at Abby.

  Luke joined him, putting a barricade between this man and Abby.

  “Who are you?” Luke asked.

  “That’s none of your business,” the man said.

  “This is Theresa’s uncle, Marshall.” Abby’s voice cut through the tension.

  Theresa’s uncle was here now?

  “Why did you come out here?” Luke asked, his voice still rock hard.

  “I came out here because I was following Patrick.”

  “Why would you follow Patrick out here?” Abby shook her head as if trying to make sense of things.

  “Because I’m trying to prove that he’s my niece’s killer. Name is Marshall Thurman.”

  “Why don’t you come in and have a seat?” Jaxon glanced back at Abby, who nodded in agreement.

  A few minutes later, they were all seated at the table, but the tension remained in the room. This man was big and scary looking. Though Jaxon knew he and Luke could take Marshall, the man still had a threatening disposition, and that made Jaxon uncomfortable.

  “Start from the beginning,” Luke said.

  “I believe that Patrick murdered my niece, and I am going to prove that’s what happened if it’s the last thing that I do.” Marshall’s nostrils flared and his eyes narrowed.

  “So you followed him here?” Jaxon asked. “Did you hop on the same plane?”

  “No, but I’ve been tracking Patrick’s moves. I have someone tailing him, actually. I saw that he came here, and I figured he had a good reason to do so. I also knew that Abby was no longer in Georgia.”

  Jaxon glanced at Abby and saw her skin go pale.

  “Why are you keeping tabs on me?” Abby asked.

  “Because I wasn’t sure if you were a part of this or not. I no longer believe that you are.”

  “What changed your mind? That article came out this week with all those fake emails that I supposedly sent to Patrick.” Her voice trembled as she said the words.

  “I have a feeling that was Patrick’s doing. I talked to you before. Those emails didn’t even sound like you. Plus, I know that you weren’t in Minnesota when she disappeared.”

  “How do you know that?”

  “Because I hired a private investigator to look into you. I know you planned to head to Minnesota, but you changed your mind.”

  Abby’s shoulders seemed to relax. “That’s correct.”

  “My private investigator also discovered that somebody has been threatening you. I don’t believe you’re guilty. I just want to talk.”

  “So you’re not the one behind those threats toward Abby?” Jaxon asked. He knew that the man wouldn’t necessarily be truthful, but he asked the question anyway.

  “Me?” Disbelief stretched in his voice. “No. Of course not. I would never do something like that. I only want justice for my niece.”

  “Who do you think is behind the threats against Abby?” Luke asked.

  Marshall shrugged. “Patrick would be my first guess, especially knowing now what he did to Theresa. Anyone who could murder his wife is capable of anything.”

  Jaxon saw Abby shudder again. He wanted to reach out to her, to try to comfort her. But this wasn’t the time or place.

  “When did you get into town?” Luke continued, not softening in the least.

  “Last night.”

  “And how did you know that Abby was here?”

  “I saw the article and came to Fog Lake. Once I arrived, I asked around, and people said they’d seen her with Jaxon Wilder. It didn’t take that much research to figure out where Jaxon lived.”

  Jaxon made a mental note that he needed to make it harder for people in the future. Especially considering the enemies he had made.

  “What now?” Luke asked.

  “What now?” Jaxon echoed, surprise ricocheting through him. “Aren’t you going to arrest him?”

  “On what grounds?”

  “Trespassing.” This man had been on his property, if nothing else.

  Marshall scowled. “I wasn’t trying to trespass. I was only trying to see if Abby was here.”

  “What do you plan on doing now?” Luke repeated.

  “I want to find Patrick.”

  Luke’s steely gaze remained on Marshall. “What will happen when you do?”

  The man’s nostrils flared. “It will take everything in me not to kill him.”

  Fifteen minutes later, Luke and Marshall left.

  Abby still felt a tremble deep inside her. She couldn’t believe Marshall had shown up here. At least, he didn’t think Abby was guilty. That had been the one good thing about his unexpected visit.

  Jaxon glanced at his watch and frowned.

  At once, Abby remembered Jaxon’s meeting. “You need to get ready to go.”

  “I do. But with everything going on . . .”

  “I’m not going to be the reason that you lose this deal. I’ll go with you.”

  Jaxon gave her a skeptical glance. “I’m not sure that’s a great idea.”

  “You’re meeting him out in public, right?”

  Jaxon nodded. “Yes, we’re going to meet at the coffeehouse in town.”

  “What if I go with you but sit at a different table? You’ll hardly know that I’m there.”

  He still seemed hesitant but finally nodded. “If you wouldn’t mind doing that, that would be great.”

  “Of course. Let me just put some lip gloss on and run a brush through my hair, and I’ll be ready to go.”

  A few minutes later, they were in Jaxon’s truck.

  They headed through town, found a parking space, and a few minutes later stepped into the coffeehouse. It was the first time Abby had been there, and she had to admit that the place had potential.

  A whole array of baked goods begged for attention in a display case near the counter. The soothing aroma of coffee filled the room, local artwork graced the walls, and pleasant music played on the overhead.

  Was this the shop that Ansley had said was for sale? With a few changes, this place could be a raging success.

  But this wasn’t the time to think about things like that.

  Jaxon’s gaze met somebody else’s across the room, and he nodded.

  Before Abby went her separate way, she squeezed his arm and whispered, “You’re going to do great.”

  “Thanks for your faith in me. Stay close, okay? Promise?”

  She nodded. “I will.”

  Abby found a table two places away. She looked across the room at the man Jaxon was meeting with. He appeared to be in his early thirties . . . and he had a beard.

  But that didn’t mean he was the man they were looking for. Not every man with a beard was a suspect.

&nbs
p; As Abby listened to Jaxon interact with the man, she felt like this was going to be a home run for him. This man would be a fool to pass up Jaxon’s coffee.

  A surge of delight welled in her. Jaxon deserved all the good things that might come his way. Abby hoped that she wouldn’t hold him back.

  She looked around, wishing she could celebrate. But that was hard to do with a killer on the loose.

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Abby waited until she and Jaxon stepped away from the coffeehouse to say anything. But, as soon as they went outside, the sound of the band playing at the festival overpowered everything else.

  Raising her voice, Abby asked, “How did it go?”

  “I got an order for one hundred pounds of coffee to start with. They’ll serve some and sell it by the package also. If that goes well, he’ll add it to all his shops—and he has ten.”

  Abby squealed and threw her arms around Jaxon. “That’s great.”

  He leaned into her and pulled her closer. “Thank you.”

  Abby realized what she’d done and stepped back. What had she been thinking? She needed to keep her distance.

  She straightened her shirt and hesitantly pulled her gaze to meet his. “I’m really happy for you, Jaxon.”

  They started walking back toward his truck. As they did, Abby caught a glimpse of the festival in the town square area. People lingered and danced as Dirk Watson and his band played a slow ballad. String lights were strung overhead, and hearts had been mounted on the light poles.

  Abby paused and sighed. It was quite the sight, almost like one of those heartwarming movies come to life.

  Jaxon took her hand. “Let’s check it out for a minute.”

  “Really?”

  He smiled. “Really.”

  They cut through the town and stopped on the edge of the festival. It looked like the perfect way to spend the day. Abby spotted the rest of Jaxon’s family standing together not far away.

  “Can I have this dance?” Jaxon asked.

  Abby drew her gaze away from his family and blinked in surprise. “With me?”

  A grin tugged at his lips, and he looked around. “I don’t see anyone else nearby that I want to dance with.”

  Abby thought about it a minute. She wanted to. She really did. But . . . “Do you think that’s a good idea with everything that’s happened?”

  “I always think a dance is a good idea.”

  Finally, she nodded. “Okay then.”

  Jaxon took her hand and led her into the crowds. His arms went to her waist, and he pulled her close. Immediately, warmth rushed through her.

  She liked the feel of Jaxon beside her. Liked his leathery scent. Liked the muscles beneath her hands.

  In fact, she liked Jaxon a little more than she should. If she were honest with herself, she’d admit that he’d consumed her thoughts ever since they’d met.

  He leaned closer, his warm breath hitting her cheek. “I promise, I won’t let anything happen to you.”

  Something about his words brought a burst of pleasure through her. He sounded sincere, and, from what she knew of him so far, he was the type of guy who lived out what he believed in. She’d be a fool to ever let someone like him get away.

  As the band in the background played, they swayed back and forth to the music.

  “You want to hear something crazy?” Jaxon whispered.

  “I’ve had my fair share of crazy lately, but go ahead.”

  He pulled his head back until their eyes met. “I really like you, Abby Brennan.”

  Another flash of delight rushed through her. “That is crazy. No one in their right mind should.”

  He chuckled. “I didn’t mean it that way exactly.”

  “And how did you mean it?”

  “I mean that, given the circumstances, there’s no way I should be thinking about romance or how beautiful you are or how I feel like we connect in ways that I haven’t felt before. Yet, somehow, that’s exactly what I’m thinking.”

  “I can understand that.” Her voice nearly cracked as she said the words. Because she meant them.

  Jaxon gently stroked his thumb across her cheek. Their gazes met until everything else around them seemed to disappear. Slowly, Jaxon leaned toward her until their lips met.

  Warmth exploded inside her, traveling up and down her spine and all the way to her fingertips. Abby never wanted the bliss of this moment to end.

  Except . . .

  She stopped swaying and took a step back. A flurry of emotions rushed through her, and she tried to hold back tears. “I can’t, Jaxon.”

  “But I thought you just said you felt the same way.”

  “I do. And that’s my problem. Even though there’s nothing I want more than to be lost in this moment with you, I’ve made some serious mistakes in my past. I dated a married man.”

  “You didn’t know that he was married, though. That’s on him.”

  “Maybe it is, but I still have to live with that for the rest of my life. That’s a big deal. I have to live with the fact that Patrick murdered his wife so that he could be with me. Maybe I’m not directly guilty, but I feel guilty. I feel like I should be punished for that.”

  “Abby . . .”

  Her eyes met his. “You deserve someone who doesn’t come with this kind of baggage, Jaxon.”

  “Why don’t you let me be the judge of that?”

  Tears rushed to Abby’s eyes, and she quickly wiped them away. She couldn’t let herself be happy right now. She didn’t deserve to be happy. Not after everything that had happened.

  Before they could even finish the conversation, someone tapped Jaxon on the shoulder. A man Abby had never seen before stood there. He reminded her slightly of a lumberjack, but the look in his eyes turned her stomach.

  What was happening now? Whatever it was, it wasn’t good.

  “Danny Axon,” Jaxon muttered as he watched the man gloating in front of him. The two of them had never liked each other. Danny was nothing but trouble. Jaxon mostly tried to avoid him, just to keep the drama out of his life. “What do you want?”

  Instead of addressing Jaxon, Danny’s eyes went to Abby. “I heard who you are.”

  Jaxon glanced at Abby and saw her go pale. She took a step back.

  “You’re the other woman. You and your boyfriend killed your boyfriend’s wife so you could be together.” Danny’s loud voice rang out through the crowd until the people dancing around them stopped and stared.

  Jaxon saw his family surrounding them, stepping up in case they needed the support.

  “Danny, you need to back off,” Jaxon said.

  “No, everyone here needs to know who this woman really is. She and her boyfriend killed somebody so they could be together.”

  Gasps sounded around them. Abby buried her face in horror.

  “It’s not like that,” Jaxon said, glancing at the crowd around them.

  But they were already taking steps back, judgment already forming.

  Jaxon fisted his hands at his side, wanting to give this man a piece of his mind. But Luke touched his arm before he could do anything foolish.

  “You don’t belong here in this town,” Danny told Abby.

  “Danny, you’re the one who needs to get out of here,” Luke growled.

  “The perfect Wilder family is coming to the rescue of one of their own.” Danny clucked his tongue. “I should’ve known you all would be here.”

  “I mean it, Danny,” Luke said. “You need to get out of here before I arrest you for disturbing the peace.”

  Danny narrowed his eyes and took a step back. “While we’re sharing secrets, maybe I should tell you all that Jaxon here has been keeping in touch with his mom for the past seven years. Did you guys all know that?”

  Ansley turned to Jaxon, her eyes wide and disbelieving. “Is that right?”

  “This isn’t about me right now,” Jaxon said through gritted teeth. “This is about Danny. Don’t let him distract you.”

  “Litt
le Jaxon betrayed all of you,” Danny continued, a taunting tone to his voice. “How does that make you all feel?”

  As Jaxon glanced back at his siblings, he realized Danny had succeeded in doing exactly what he’d set out to do: the troublemaker had put a wedge between them.

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Ansley stared at Jaxon, something dark and angry in her gaze. “You’ve been meeting with Mom?”

  “It’s not like it sounds,” Jaxon said, his chest tightening.

  “Then what exactly is it?” Ansley demanded.

  Jaxon raised his hands in the air. This wasn’t the place that he wanted to get into it, but it appeared he’d been forced into this position.

  “I know that none of you want Mom to be a part of your life. And I get it. I know why. But that’s not what I wanted for myself. Despite everything that she’s done, I still love her. Maybe that makes me a bad person. Maybe it makes me naïve or stupid. I don’t know. But I couldn’t cut her out of my life.”

  “She betrayed us,” Ansley said. “She left us when we needed her the most.”

  “I know, and she lives with that guilt every day.”

  “If she felt so guilty about it, then why didn’t she tell us that?” Ansley said. “I’ve never once heard her say she’s sorry.”

  “Have any of you ever given her the chance to say sorry?” Jaxon asked. “Look, she’s not perfect. She’s made a lot of mistakes. So have all of us.”

  “I just can’t believe you would keep this from us.” Ansley crossed her arms.

  “It was because I didn’t want a situation like this,” Jaxon said. “I wasn’t going to push it on any of you. But it’s a choice that I made for my life.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with Jaxon being friendly with Mom,” Luke said. “It’s his choice. Boone invited her to his wedding. I visited her in the hospital.”

  “That’s different. When none of us had anyone else, we had each other,” Ansley said. “I didn’t know he was standing with the other side.”

  “There are no sides here,” Luke said. “Each of us wages our own battles. Don’t we all know that by now?”