by Barb Han
She nodded.
“There are two men dressed in suits. Could be dangerous.” His attention shifted to her. “How old is your nephew?”
“Four.” With reinforcements on the way, she dared to think she could get Noah back safely before the sun went down.
A muscle in the cowboy’s jaw ticked. “You heard that, right?” A beat later came, “Somebody cut the fence on the north corner. Jimmy’s been running this side. Ask him how things were the other day when he came this way.”
Katherine looked at the barbed wire. The last bit of hope this could have been a bad dream shriveled and died.
“Tell the men to be careful.” Caleb took more of her weight as he pocketed his phone. “I’ve got you.”
“I’m fine.” Katherine struggled to break free from his grip. Her brain was scrambled. She’d been dragged through this area thinking it had been a random trail, but how could it be? They’d cut the fence in advance. Everything about them seemed professional and planned. But what kind of file could she possibly have for men like them?
The cowboy’s strong grip tightened around her as she fought another wave of nausea. “I think I’ll be fine once I get on your horse.”
“My men are all over this. Matt’s phoning the sheriff as we speak. I need to get you home where I can take care of your injuries. The sheriff will need to speak to you for his report.”
“The longer I wait, the farther away Noah will be.” She had no purse, no ID and no money. Those had been discarded along with his medicine. Everything she’d had with her was scattered between here and the pumpkin patch.
His brow arched. “You won’t make it a mile in your condition.”
“I can. I have to.” Katherine tried to put weight on her foot. Her knee buckled. He pulled her upright again with strong arms. He was powerful, male and looked as though he could handle himself against just about any threat.
Caleb shook his head. “Hell, I’d move heaven and earth if I were in your situation. But you’re hurt.”
“He needs me. He’s little and scared. You can’t possibly understand.” Her voice hitched.
The lines in the cowboy’s forehead deepened. “We’ll cut through the McGraths’ on the way to the house. How’s that?”
His arms banded around her hips. Arms like his would be capable of handling anyone or anything they came across. He lifted her onto the saddle with no effort and then swung up behind her.
“I need to make sure you’re going to be around long enough to greet him. You let infection set in and that leg will be no use to you anymore.”
She didn’t argue. Fatigue weighted her limbs, drained her energy. If he could fix her leg, she could find Noah.
Taking the long way around didn’t unearth any clues about Noah’s whereabouts. The sky was darkening. Night would fall soon.
The house coming into view was a white two-story Colonial with a wraparound porch and dark green shutters. An impressive set of barns sat behind the house. There was a detached garage with a basketball hoop off to the side. This was a great place for kids.
Katherine hadn’t stopped once to realize this man probably had a family of his own. The image of him cradling a baby edged its way into her thoughts. The contrast between something so tiny and vulnerable against his bare steel chest brought shivers up her arms.
Did he have a son? His reaction to Noah’s age made more sense.
She prayed Noah would be home in bed before the sun vanished. Was he still panicked? Could he breathe? Did he have time before the next attack? Did she?
What would happen when the men came after her again if she couldn’t produce the file?
She shrugged off the ice trickling down her spine. Police would need a description of the attackers. She had to think. The last thing she remembered was being hauled through the woods. She ran so long her lungs burned. The next thing she knew, she was facedown in the dirt. The men had disappeared. She’d lost everything.
“Lean toward me. I’ll catch you.” Caleb stood next to the horse.
One of his calloused but gentle hands splayed on the small of her back. He carried her inside as if she weighed nothing and placed her on the sofa in the front room. He lifted her bloody leg to rest on top of the polished knotty-pine coffee table.
The smell of spices and food warming sent a rumble through her stomach. How long had she been dragged? She wouldn’t be able to eat, but how long could Noah go without food? Was he hungry?
“Margaret, grab my emergency bag,” Caleb shouted before turning to Katherine. “Margaret helps me out with cleaning and cooking. Keeps me and my boys fed.”
So he did have children. Katherine figured a place with this kind of space had to have little ones running around. Noah would have loved it here.
A round woman padded into the room. A salt-of-the-earth type with a kind face, she looked to be in her late fifties. Her expression dropped. “What happened?”
Caleb gave her a quick rundown before introducing them. “I’ll need clean towels, a bowl of warm water and something for Katherine to drink. Some of these gashes are deep.”
Margaret returned with supplies. “If anyone can find your nephew, it’s this man.”
Margaret’s sympathetic expression melted some of Katherine’s resolve. “Thank you.”
“You look like you’re in pain. Tell me where it hurts.”
“My head. Stomach.” Her hand pressed against her midsection to stave off another round of nausea. “But I’ll be fine.”
“Of course you will. You’re in good hands.” She set a cup of tea next to Katherine. “This’ll help.”
She thanked the housekeeper, smiled and took a sip. “Tastes good.”
“Would you mind grabbing the keys to my truck? Call the barn, too. I rode Dawn again. Ask Teddy to put her up for the night.” Caleb patted one of Katherine’s gashes with antibiotic ointment.
She gasped, biting back a scream. “Now that I’m okay, we’re going to find them ourselves, right?”
“I’m taking you to the E.R.”
“No.” Shaking her head made everything hurt that much worse. “I can’t leave. Your guys will find Noah and bring him here, right?”
“Yes.”
“Then the only reason I’d walk out that door is to help search for him. I won’t leave here without him. He needs me and his meds.”
She expected a fight but got a nod of agreement instead.
Caleb went back to work carefully blotting each gash without saying another word. Trying to distract herself from the pain, Katherine studied the room. The decor was simple. Substantial, hand-carved wood furniture surrounded the fireplace, which had a rust-colored star above the mantel. The cushions were soft. The place was more masculine than she figured it would be. There had to be a woman somewhere in the picture. A protective, gorgeous man like Caleb had to have a beautiful wife. And kids. She’d already envisioned him holding his child. She could easily see him with two or three more.
There was one problem. Nothing was out of place. She knew from spending the past week with Noah, kids left messes everywhere. “I hope your wife doesn’t get the wrong impression when she sees a strange woman on your sofa.”
Caleb didn’t look up. “I’m single.”
Had she met him under other circumstances, the admission would’ve caused a thousand tiny butterflies to flutter in her stomach. But now she could only think about Noah.
“Do you want to call Noah’s parents and let them know what’s going down?”
“No. There’s no one else. His mother died. I’m all he’s got.” The poor kid.
Her sister, Leann, had always been the reckless one. Everything had been fun and games and risk for her. Now she was gone and Noah was in trouble.
A hundred questions danced across Caleb’s intense bro
wn eyes. To his credit, he didn’t ask any of them.
Katherine figured he deserved to know the truth. “She died in a climbing accident at Enchanted Rock a week ago. She was ‘bouldering,’ which apparently means you don’t use safety equipment. You’re supposed to have people spot you, but she didn’t.”
Caleb’s jaw did that tick thing again. She’d seen it before when he’d seemed upset and held his tongue. Did he have something he wanted to say now?
“Sorry for your loss. This must be devastating for you. What about Noah’s father?”
“She...the two of them...lived in Austin alone. She never told me who his father was. As far as I know, no one else has a clue, either. My sister may have been reckless with her actions but she could keep a secret.” Katherine wondered what else she didn’t know about Leann.
“Be easy enough to check out the birth certificate.”
A half-laughed, half-exacerbated sigh slipped out. “She put down George Clooney.”
If Caleb thought it funny, he didn’t laugh.
Katherine cleared her throat. “I doubt if the father knows about Noah. Leann never told anyone who she dated. Not even me. I never knew the names of her boyfriends. When she spoke about them, they all had movie-star nicknames.”
“There must’ve been a pattern to it.”
Katherine shrugged. “Never gave it much thought before. Figured it was just for fun.”
His reassuring nod comforted her.
“You two were close?”
“Our relationship was complicated, but I’m...was...fiercely protective of her.” Katherine squeezed her elbows, not wanting to say what she really feared. Her sister had shucked responsibility and become involved with something or someone bad, and now both Katherine and Noah were in danger. Things had been turning around for Leann. Why would she do it?
Katherine tamped down the panic rising in her chest.
No one could hurt Noah.
She had to believe he would come home safely. Even though every fiber in her being feared he was already panicked, struggling to breathe. What if she found him and couldn’t help? Her purse was lost along with his medicine.
One of Caleb’s eyebrows lifted. “What about her friends?”
“I don’t have the first idea who they were. My sister was a free spirit. She moved around a lot. Took odd jobs. I don’t know much about her life before Noah. It wasn’t until recently she contacted me at all.” Had Leann known something was about to happen? Was she connected to the file?
Caleb didn’t look at her. He just went back to work on her leg, cleaning blood and blotting on ointment.
Oh, God. Bile rose in her throat. Acid burned a trail to her mouth. “No news is definitely not good news.”
“There aren’t a lot of places to hide. If your nephew’s around here, we’ll find him. My men know this property better than they know their own mothers.”
His comfort was hollow. A wave of desperation washed through her. If the men got off the property with Noah, how would she ever locate him?
“You hungry?”
“You know, I’m starting to feel much better.” She tried to push up, but her arms gave out.
“Eat. Rest. The pain in your leg is only beginning. You must’ve twisted your ankle when you fell. It’s swelling. Stay here. Keep it elevated. I’ll check in with my men.”
Caleb disappeared down the hall, returning a moment later with a steaming bowl in one hand and a bag of ice in the other. He’d removed his cowboy hat, revealing sandy-blond hair that was cut tight but long and loose enough to curl at the ends.
He set down the bowl before placing a pillow behind her head and ice on her ankle. He pulled out his cell while she ate the vegetable soup Margaret had prepared.
There was a knock at the front door. Katherine gasped. Her pulse raced.
* * *
CALEB’S EYES MET Katherine’s and the power of that one look shot straight to his core. Her on his couch, helpless, with those big eyes—a shade of violet that bordered on purple in this light—made him wish he could erase her pain.
He let Sheriff Coleman in. The officer’s tense expression reflected Caleb’s emotions. “Your coming by on short notice is much appreciated.”
Coleman tipped his hat, a nod to the mutual respect they’d built for one another in the years Caleb had owned the ranch.
“My men are out looking as we speak. I’ll need more details to file the report.”
Caleb introduced Coleman to Katherine. “This is the boy’s aunt. He was with her at the Reynolds’ pumpkin patch when it happened.”
Sheriff Coleman tilted his head toward Katherine. His lips formed a grim line. “Start from the beginning and tell me everything you remember.”
She talked about the pumpkin patch.
“Do you have a picture we can work with?” he asked, looking up from his notepad.
Her head shook, her lips trembled, but she didn’t cry. “No. I don’t. Lost them along with my purse and everything else I had with me. Not that it would do any good. He’s only been living with me for a week. We haven’t been down to clean his mother’s apartment yet. I don’t have many of his things. A few toys. His favorite stuffed animal.”
She rambled a little. Not many women could hold it together under this much duress. Her strength radiated a flicker of light in the darkest shadows of Caleb. Places buried long ago, which were best left alone.
“Let’s go over the description then,” Coleman suggested.
“Black hair. Big brown eyes. Three and a half feet tall. About forty pounds. He’s beautiful. Round face. Full cheeks. Curly hair. Features of an angel.”
“And the men who took him?” he pressed.
“One of them had gray eyes and a jagged scar from the left side of his lip. He had a dark tan.”
“How big was the scar?”
“Not more than a couple of inches. It was in the shape of a crescent moon.” She sobbed, but quickly straightened her shoulders and shook it off.
The sheriff glanced away, giving her a moment of space. Caleb dropped his gaze to the floor, respecting her tenacity even more.
“He mentioned the name Kane. He said ‘Kane wouldn’t like it.’”
“We’ll run the name against the database.”
“I’m sorry. It’s not much to go on. My nephew is alone. Sick. Scared. If he gets too upset, he could have an attack. Without his inhaler or medication, he won’t be able to breathe.”
Silence sat in the air for a beat.
Coleman cleared his throat. If Caleb didn’t know any better, he’d say the sheriff had moisture in his eyes. In this small town, they didn’t deal with a lot of violent crime.
“We’ll do everything we can to bring him back to you safe and sound. That’s a promise,” Coleman said.
“Thank you.”
“What’s Noah’s last name?”
“Foster.”
“You said you haven’t had a chance to clean out his mother’s place. Where’s that?”
“Austin.”
“That where you’re from?”
She shook her head. “I live in Dallas.”
Caleb could’ve told the sheriff that. She had a polished, city look. The jeweled sandals on her feet were one of the most impractical shoes she could wear to the country aside from spiked heels.
“When’s his birthday?”
“March. The seventeenth.”
Caleb looked at her. He could see the tension in her face muscles and the stress threatening to crack, but to her credit, she kept her composure. Probably needed to be strong more than she needed air. Caleb knew the feeling for reasons he didn’t want to talk about, either.
He’d known she was different from any other woman he’d met when he’d showed up to help
her and she’d thanked him with a makeshift knife to his ribs. Hell, he respected her for it now that he knew the circumstances. She’d probably believed he was working with whoever had taken Noah and that he’d showed up to finish the job. She’d bucked up for a fight.
When she pushed herself up, it took everything in him not to close the distance between them and pull her into his arms for comfort. No one should have to go through this alone.
If Katherine Harper wanted to do this her way, he wouldn’t block her path.
The sheriff asked a few more routine-sounding questions, listening intently to her answers. “You fight with anyone lately? A boyfriend?”
Caleb tried not to look as though he cared about the answer to that question. He had no right to care.
Katherine looked down. “Nope. No boyfriend.”
“What about other family?”
“None. My parents died during my freshman year of college.”
He didn’t want to think about what that would do to a person.
Coleman asked a few more questions about family. Katherine looked uncomfortable answering.
“I’ll notify my men to keep an eye out for your belongings. What were you doing out here with your nephew?”
“I wanted to take his mind off things. Get him out of the city. We planned our trip all day yesterday. He’d never seen a pumpkin patch. He loved the open space. I didn’t think much about letting him run around. We’ve been in my small apartment all week. Didn’t look to be anything or anyone else around for miles. He followed a duck out to the tree line. When I went over to take pictures, two men came from nowhere and snatched us. I panicked. Couldn’t believe what was happening. I remember thinking, ‘This can’t be.’ I fought back. That’s when I ended up tangled in the barbed wire and they took off. If only I hadn’t been so stubborn. If I hadn’t fought.”
“Don’t blame yourself for this,” Coleman said quickly.
“They told me if I came any closer or called the police, they’d kill him.”
The sheriff nodded, but Caleb caught a flash behind Coleman’s eyes. Caleb made a mental note to ask about that when they were alone.
“Ever see them before or hear their voices?” Coleman’s gaze was trained on his notepad as he scribbled.
