Come a Little Closer

by Kelsey Browning

  Teague broke into a run toward field three. When he angled around the bleachers, staying behind the home team dugout, he slowed, walking the rest of the way. Listening for any sound from the dugout. If possible, he wanted to get eyes on this guy. With measured steps, he slid around the cinderblock wall and snuck a look around the side.

  From what he could see, Desi’s little girl sat on the bench, her knees drawn up under her soccer jersey just beyond her father, who was beside her, rocking back and forth in agitation. To Teague’s ever-loving relief, he heard the girl say, “Daddy, I don’t like baseball. I want to go home.”

  “We can’t. I have to think.” And the rocking sped up.

  Teague eased back out of sight and took a breath. His voice steady and practiced, he said, “Hey there, Randy. Can you hear me? This is Sheriff Castro. How’re y’all doing in there?”

  Letting the quiet seconds tick by, Teague waited until he heard movement inside the dugout again. “Randy, it’s Sheriff Castro. Anything I can do to help you?”

  “You can help by getting the hell away from us.”

  Good, he was talking. “Randy, you know I can’t do that.” Teague purposely slowed his words, trying to calm the situation. “Everyone okay in there?”

  “Get back. I’m telling you. If you don’t—”

  “It’s okay, man. I’m just hanging back here. It’s all good. I was heading out to dinner when I saw the ruckus over here. Did you just get off work too?”

  “I wanted to see my daughter. No law against a dad doing things with his daughter.”

  “So what’s the problem, Randy?”

  “The problem is the busybodies in this town are up in my business. My wife, that bitch, she takes all my money in child support, spends every-damn-thing I make. All I wanted was to take my little girl to Disney World. My wife won’t even talk about it, and that damn coach went postal on me when I got here. This isn’t even his business.” His words came fast. Frantic. “I’m her father. I love Gabby.”

  “I’m a dad too. I get it.” Every once in a while a little white lie helped in these situations. And even though Teague forced cool confidence into his tone, truth was, a line of sweat was trickling down his spine, one that felt too damn much like the flop-sweat he’d been drenched in that long-ago night in Houston.

  The night a call had come in through the 911 system with a woman talking so fast, she’d been edging on hysteria. “We need help. He’s going to kill them.”

  Dispatch said, “Ma’am, what’s your location and who’s in danger?”

  “The children in the Light of Wisdom Compound.”

  The Compound stirred up a lot of controversy across the county. Some of the other officers had joked about the whackjobs who lived at an old farmstead between Rose Hill and Hockley on the northwest side of Harris County. Even though they were technically residents of the fifth-largest metro area in the country, apparently they’d renounced most ties with society, growing their own food and making their own clothes.

  But that didn’t keep the local school district from reporting the compound’s kids for truancy. Which was, at that time, a criminal offense.

  That day, a school district truancy officer had traveled to the compound, trying to talk the Light of Wisdom leadership into allowing the kids to come to school. Only no one could’ve imagined what that request would spur.

  Teague swiped at the back of the nice dress shirt he’d ironed for his date with Jenny, sopping up the evidence of his fear and doubt.

  Get that old scene outta your head, Castro. You can’t change the past, but you can impact the future. “Have you and Gabby always wanted to go to Disney World?”

  “Damn Desi was such a cheapskate, she’d never go. She’s hanging that back child support over my head. She can’t keep me from my own daughter. Why don’t you go get on her case? Why’s it always gotta be me?”

  Teague waited. Silences made people uncomfortable, and there was power in discomfort. He knew from Desi that she’d been in a long battle with her controlling husband, but she’d finally broken the cycle. Good thing too, because from what he’d heard, the way he treated Desi was borderline abuse.

  “She was always saying ‘We gotta pay this bill’ and ‘There’s no extra for vacations.’ Where the hell did all my hard-earned money go? That’s what I wanna know. Probably into that bakery. She was probably stealing my paycheck all along.”

  “Marriage can be a rollercoaster, but that doesn’t mean Gabby wants to ride too.”

  “Shut up. You don’t know what my daughter wants. You’re on the bitch’s side.”

  Damn. The guy was heading the wrong way, getting more agitated instead of calming down. “Randy, I know you mean well, but I would imagine all this is scaring Gabby. Why don’t you let one of my deputies take her before she gets chilled in the night air? Let’s all go home tonight.”

  “What the hell?” the guy roared. “There’s a guy out there in the parking lot with a gun. That the way this works, Sheriff? You try to sweet-talk me while your people get a bead on me? You’re just like Desi. You think I’m a loser too. I’m not. You’re going to be sorry. Everyone is going to be sorry.”

  Teague dipped his chin to the radio on his collar. “He spotted the rifle. Get where he can’t see you,” he ordered his guys.

  Something pinged against metal dugout fencing. “If that’s the way you’re gonna play it then you oughta know I got a gun right here too.” Randy’s voice came loud and two octaves higher.

  And those words echoed in Teague’s head. As loud as the mothers’ screams that awful night in Houston when things had gone so terribly wrong.

  Chapter 10

  “I got a gun.” The words from Desi’s ex stopped Jenny’s progress toward the dugout. Her breath caught, and she suddenly wanted to be back in the safety of Teague’s truck with Grayson.

  Why had she thought it was so important to get out in the first place? Probably because she couldn’t sit in the truck while her friend’s daughter was in danger.

  Now Jenny was behind Teague, only feet from the back of the dugout, and her legs felt as if they’d turned to lead. If that crazy man came out and started shooting, she probably couldn’t get out of her own way. She eased one foot out of her high heel shoe, then the other, and steadied herself under wobbly legs, her bare feet cool on the damp grass.

  What kind of father would endanger his own child? As mad as her own ex-husband made her sometimes, she knew he’d never do anything like this.

  But then Desi had shared some of the details that had led to her separation from her husband. Apparently, their marriage had started out well enough, but after Gabby was born, he’d become more and more possessive. Said things like “What’s mine is mine and will stay mine until the end of time.”

  Jenny shuddered. That kind of talk was chock-full of crazy.

  Teague’s voice was steady. “I hear ya, Randy. It’s been a long day. Let’s not scare your beautiful little girl.

  The man gulped a breath, or maybe it was a sob. “She’s as beautiful as her mother. But that woman turned against me. I never meant to hurt her, but she hates me now.” His voice raised with each word. “If I let Gabby stay here, she’s going to hate me too. You watch.”

  “Don’t get them confused,” Teague warned. He let the silence hang, and it made Jenny want to scream into the night.

  “I’m losing everything,” the man said. “I won’t let her take anything else from me.”

  “No one wants to take what’s yours. You’ll always be Gabby’s father.” Teague took a step toward the dugout, and the shadows hanging across the field suddenly seemed ominous to Jenny. “Can I come talk to you? Man to man?”

  “I hear you out there. Stop. You need to leave. Just let me drive away. You’ll never see me again.”

  Randy must have grabbed Gabby because the little girl yelped, “Daddy, no!”

  “Is Gabby okay, Randy?”

  “The girl will be okay if you let me leave.”
/>   “I can’t let you do that.”

  “If I can’t leave, then neither can this girl.”

  Teague’s body stiffened. He pulled in a deep breath and took one step forward. “Easy, buddy. I’m on your side here. That’s not just any little girl. That’s Gabby. Your daughter. Don’t forget how much you love her.”

  Jenny could hear the muffled voice over Teague’s earpiece. He’s got the gun on her. He’s turned her away from him. I don’t have a shot.

  “Gabby, it’s Sheriff Teague. Turn and face your daddy. Tell him you love him.” Teague paused. “Randy, I need you to help me help you, man. I know you don’t want to hurt Gabby. Let’s all go home tonight.”

  “Don’t make me do this,” Gabby’s dad hollered.

  He’s in a panic. He’s pacing away from the little girl. I have a shot.

  “Hold position,” Teague said in a low, tight voice before raising it to call toward the dugout. “Come on out, Randy. Just walk out of the dugout and let Gabby come here with me. Then you’re just a guy on school property. No big deal, right?”

  Teague repositioned his hat. Which meant he wasn’t nearly as calm as he sounded. Jenny’s heart hitched, and she stepped closer to Teague and laid a hand on his arm.

  He whirled around, and in a fraction of a second her arm was in his tight grasp. His lips in a line, his words were low and harsh. “What the hell are you doing here? I told you to stay put.”

  “I—”

  “Jenny. This isn’t a game.” He took in a stuttered breath, and his jaw pulsed with the effort. “This is life and death and—”

  “I know. I’m sorry. You’ve got this, Teague.” She squeezed his hand. “You were the best negotiator Houston had.”

  “You don’t know anything about that. You don’t know what happened there. What happened…what I let happen to other children.”

  No, she didn’t. At least not how it related to Teague specifically. But news of the incident had been all over national TV. She couldn’t have missed it if she tried. “I love you. No matter what happens. I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you and stay in the truck.” She knew she had to leave—to let him fight the demons of his past, to save Desi’s daughter, but it was hard to move away. “Desi said he calls Gabby his little Ladybug.”

  He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Go.”

  She nodded and turned toward the parking lot. Over her shoulder, she saw Teague say something into his radio then take three long strides toward the dugout and the out-of-control father.

  “Let me help you,” Teague said to the man. His voice was smooth and steady, under control.

  “Get the hell back or I will do something everyone here will regret. Do you hear me?” The dugout gate clanged open, flinging wide and bouncing off the cinderblocks. Desi’s ex-husband strode out, pulling Gabby by the arm.

  Jenny stopped mid-stride, her insides paralyzed. Teague froze too, leaving him in an awkward position, his hand on the brim of his hat.

  Then Teague didn’t move. Didn’t counter. Didn’t seem to breathe.

  Desi’s ex-husband was a big man, much bigger than Jenny had pictured. Gabby looked so tiny next to him, and even from here Jenny could see the tender pink welts under the little girl’s eyes. But Randy’s gaze darted around like a panicked goat’s—like he wasn’t sure whether to run, jump, or worse. He pulled Gabby in front of him like a half-sized shield.

  Randy leveled the gun in Teague’s direction. Less than fifty feet between them with Jenny also standing in the desperate man’s line of fire. Her muscles went stock-still, simply quit answering to her brain.

  Please don’t shoot.

  Why the hell hadn’t she listened to Teague? What if he was shot because of her stupidity? What if she was shot and orphaned Grayson?

  Suddenly Randy rose on his toes, looking past Teague. “Shit. Shit. Shit. Is that Desi? You brought my damn wife here?” Randy lunged forward and grabbed his daughter. “That bi—”

  “No.” Teague drew his own gun and cast a quick glance at Jenny. “No, man. I was out on a date when I got a call about some trouble. That’s my girl. Not your ex.” Without taking his attention off the guy, he told Jenny, “Say hello to Gabby’s dad, Jenny.”

  Jenny’s mouth felt as if she’d gargled glue. “Hello.” Had she even said the word aloud?

  Randy lifted a shoulder and his shirt rose, revealing the sweat trailing down his skin despite the cooling temperature.

  “Miss Jenny!” Gabby cried out and tried to pull away from her dad.

  The muscle in Teague’s jaw flexed. “You know how women are,” he said to the man. “Never do what you want them to. Can my girl go back to my truck?”

  Randy looked away, spit on the ground.

  Teague said nothing, just stood there tense and completely still.

  “Get her out of here,” Gabby’s dad finally grumbled.

  “Thanks, man. How about you let your little Ladybug go with her?”

  Randy’s shoulders dropped at the term of endearment for his daughter. His stare dropped from Teague and Jenny back to his daughter.

  “Look, she’s shaking,” Teague said. “You’re scaring her.”

  “She’s just cold.” The man’s brows knit tightly, and he glanced down at his daughter. “I’m taking you to Florida. It’ll be warm, Ladybug.”

  “I don’t want to go.” Gabby twisted in his hold, her voice garbled with sobbing breath and tears.

  “She’s tired,” Teague reassured him. “You’re tired. Been working all day, right?”

  “Every damn day. Never get any time off, especially with all this child support to pay.”

  “I hear you. It’s exhausting. Put the gun down and let Gabby go. Let’s call it a night.”

  Randy picked up Gabby, settling her on his hip and swaying from side-to-side. “I love you. Daddy loves you, Ladybug.” The gun hung from his hand. “I can’t be without my girl.” His voice was strained, but even Jenny could hear he was starting to give in.

  Barely moving his lips, Teague spoke into his radio. Move in.

  Jenny tried not to look, but from her peripheral vision, she spotted Teague’s team swarming across the field from the tree line.

  “Put the gun down.” Teague pulled the man back into conversation. “You don’t want any accidents. Nobody’s hurt. We can work through this if you’ll put the gun down.”

  But Teague’s gun was still trained on the man. My God, would he have to shoot? Suddenly his job was much more real…and much more dangerous.

  After the longest two minutes Jenny had ever waited, Randy set Gabby back on her feet then slowly squatted and placed the gun on the orange dirt of the infield. His shoulders drooped forward.

  “Move away from it.” Teague paced his comments. “We’re good here. You still with me, Randy?”

  Randy stepped to the side, and Teague’s deputies raced from the far side of the field to take over.

  Gabby ran straight to Teague and wrapped herself around his leg. As soon as the deputies had Randy on the ground and secure, Teague hefted her into his arms, patting her back and whispering to her. Feeling helpless, Jenny watched until Teague turned to her and nodded, relief clear in his gaze. “Let’s take Gabby to her mom.”

  “Gladly. Teague, you’re a hero.”

  “No, Jenny, I’m just a man.”

  Chapter 11

  Whoever had claimed his brand of deodorant provided all-day protection had obviously never put it to a hostage-negotiation test. Teague’s deputies escorted Randy Fanning to a squad car parked away from the gathered crowd, and although Teague’s body wanted him to sink down on the baseball field bleachers, he forced himself to walk with purposeful strides and his head up.

  The folks who’d earlier worn expressions of worry—possibly even doubt that Teague could handle this crisis—were now smiling, some even reaching out to pat him on the back.

  Didn’t they realize his skin felt as if it was about to peel away from his bones?

  “Good job,
Sheriff.”

  “We knew you could do it.”

  “You sure clinched my vote for the election.”

  A piece of Teague wanted to round on the person who said that. Didn’t they realize a man’s career wasn’t made in a single moment, that it was the sum of all the parts that mattered most?

  And some of his parts were certainly lacking.

  He headed straight for the ambulance where EMTs were looking over little Gabby.

  Desi was holding her daughter’s hand and breathing in a way that told Teague she was holding back her tears. When she spotted him, Desi lost a bit of the battle, and her emotions escaped, one teardrop sluicing down the side of her face. “I don’t even know how to thank you.”

  “No need to,” he said. “I was just doing my job.”

  She angled her body away from Gabby. “You saved her life.”

  Teague squatted down, just out of the EMTs’ way, and said to Gabby, “Sweetheart, how’re you feeling?”

  She sucked her bottom lip into her mouth then let out a shuddering breath. “Why did my daddy take me?”

  “Because he was confused. For a little while, he forgot the difference between right and wrong.”

  “Is he in trouble?”

  “You know what, why don’t you let me worry about that? The only thing I want you to think about is going home with your mommy and snuggling down in your own bed.”

  He rose to his feet and reached for the brim of his hat only to find it still missing. He needed to find Jenny, but before he could make progress, Angelina flounced up to him.

  “I owe you an apology,” she said.

  “This isn’t a good time.”

  “Please. I have to apologize. I feel awful.” Although her words were clear, the line of her jaw looked as if she’d just swallowed something rotten.