The Cowboy's Secret Twins

by Carla Cassidy

Henry said nothing as they climbed the stairs back to the room where the blast had occurred. The scent of smoke and gasoline lingered in the air.

  “It must have been loaded with fuel,” he said as he surveyed the damage. “At least it wasn’t filled with any kind of shrapnel.”

  Melissa shuddered at the thought. She pulled her suitcase from the closet and quickly packed what little she’d brought with her. They then moved into the boys’ room, where she packed their clothes and diapers.

  “I’ll have Charlie get you settled in at one of the motels and I’ll call you first thing in the morning,” he said. She turned to face him and saw the worry in his eyes, a worry coupled with rage.

  He stepped up to her and placed his palm against her cheek. She turned her face into the warmth of his hand. “He could have hurt you tonight. He could have hurt you and the boys.”

  “But that didn’t happen,” she said softly.

  “Not this time, but I can’t take another chance. I thought you were safe here, but I now realize I can’t guarantee your safety. You’ll be safe in a motel until the roads are clean enough for you to go home.”

  “Henry?” Jimmy’s voice drifted up the stairs.

  Henry dropped his hand from her face and stepped back from her. “Come on up, Jimmy.”

  Melissa and Henry met the lawman in the hallway. “You can have a look around. I’m sending Melissa with Charlie to a motel for the rest of the night. I’ll be back up here as soon as I get those arrangements made.”

  Henry didn’t say a word as they went back downstairs. Once there, as Melissa and Mary began to put the coats on the boys, he disappeared into his study.

  Minutes later he came out. “I’ve got you set up in a room at Ed’s Motel. It’s clean and comfortable and the owner is a friend of mine. The room is registered in the name of Hank James. Nobody will know you’re there and the key will be waiting for you in the office.”

  A muscle knotted in his jaw. “Charlie will get you there safe and sound and I’ll call you in the morning.” He shoved a wad of cash into her hand. “There’s a diner right next door to the motel. They’ll deliver whatever you need to your motel-room door.”

  It was crazy, but as Melissa pulled on her coat and Charlie grabbed her bags, she had a sudden terrible fear for Henry.

  “Please, stay safe,” she said as she held the twins in her arms.

  He kissed Joey and James on the forehead and then gently shoved a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Get out of here and let me do what I need to do.”

  It took only minutes for her and the boys to be loaded into Charlie’s four-wheel-drive vehicle. While they pulled away from the house Melissa looked back to see Henry silhouetted in the front door.

  Once again she was struck with the strong, inexplicable fear—the fear that she was never going to see him again.

  “Henry, where are you going?” Jimmy asked as Henry pulled on his winter coat. They had just spent the last hour picking through the rubble in the bedroom.

  Jimmy had collected the pieces of the device to use as evidence and now Randy was hanging the plywood over the broken window.

  Charlie had returned to the ranch after dropping Melissa and the children at Ed’s Motel. At least Henry had the comfort of knowing she and the babies would be safe there until she could leave town.

  With each moment that had ticked by a rage had grown in Henry, a seething sick rage that begged to be released. And he knew exactly where to vent it.

  “I’m going to Burke’s house.” Henry buttoned his coat but didn’t reach for his gun in the drawer. He knew if he had it on him he might use it and as much as he wanted to hurt the man he believed was responsible for the pipe bomb, he didn’t want to kill him. He was a father now, a man who had too much too lose by letting his rage get the best of him.

  “Dammit, Henry, you can’t go off half-cocked,” Jimmy exclaimed in frustration.

  “Trust me, I’m not half-cocked, I’m fully loaded,” Henry replied dryly.

  “Just stay put,” Jimmy said. “I’ll go talk to Burke.”

  “Then I’m coming with you.” Henry didn’t give Jimmy another opportunity to talk him out of it, but instead slammed out the door and walked into the snowy night.

  Minutes later he and Jimmy were in Jimmy’s patrol car navigating the slick roads as they headed into town. All Henry could think about was how devastating the results might have been had that bomb been thrown into the boys’ room. The thought of such a tragedy stoked the flames of his rage even hotter.

  “He could have killed my kids, Jimmy. He could have killed Melissa,” Henry said, breaking the silence in the car.

  “I know,” Jimmy said. He grunted as the back of the car threatened to fishtail out. He steered into the slide and straightened the car. “We’ll check out Tom’s alibi for the time that the bomb was thrown through the window.”

  “It’s possible he didn’t personally throw it, but instead hired somebody.” Henry frowned. “I’ve got to put an end to this.” He stared out into the dark night. “Maybe I should withdraw from the election.”

  Jimmy shot him a stunned look. “You’d do that?”

  “If I just had myself to worry about then I’d never quit. But it’s not just me anymore, Jimmy. I’ve got kids and Melissa and they are going to need me.”

  “So they win and the corruption in Dalhart continues.” Jimmy released an audible sigh. “Just give me a few more days before you make a decision. You’re running on pure emotion right now. Give yourself time to calm down and let me sort this out.”

  Henry didn’t reply. He knew Jimmy was right. He was definitely running on emotion, but as he thought of Melissa and Joey and James, he couldn’t help but be filled with emotion.

  He’d wanted to be a hero to the town, to clean up the mess that had been allowed to go on for far too long. But he now wondered if the stakes were too high. He’d rather be a father than a hero.

  He sat up straighter in the seat as they approached town. The only other vehicles they’d passed were snow trucks laying down salt and pushing snow.

  Tom Burke lived well above his means and salary in a five-bedroom luxury home on a three-acre lot. The first thing Henry noticed was that Tom’s car was parked in the driveway. Not only was the car relatively clean of snow, but tire tracks showed that it had recently been driven.

  The rage that had slowly begun to wane during the drive now roared back to life inside Henry. He was out of the car before it had come to a complete halt.

  “Henry, dammit, wait for me,” Jimmy cried as he parked the car and got out.

  Henry didn’t wait. He headed for the front door with a single-mindedness and once he got there he banged on the door with his fist.

  By the time the door was opened by Tom, Jimmy had reached the porch. Henry didn’t say a word, but rather grabbed the short man by the front of his pristine white shirt and dragged him out the door.

  “Hey, get your hands off me,” Tom yelled and jerked out of Henry’s grasp. “What the hell is wrong with you, man?”

  “Have you been out to my place tonight, Tom? I see your car has been driven. Did you come to pay me a little visit?” Henry glared at him and became aware of Deputy Gordon Hunter joining them on the porch.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Tom exclaimed, his beefy face red. “I haven’t been anywhere near your place tonight.”

  “Then you hired somebody to throw that pipe bomb through my window.” Henry took a menacing step toward him. “I had babies in the house, you bastard.”

  Tom looked from Henry to Jimmy. “A pipe bomb? I don’t know a damn thing about a pipe bomb.”

  “Then where did you go tonight?” Henry demanded. “Your car has been driven recently. Where did you go?”

  “To the damned grocery store,” Tom exclaimed in frustration. “We’re supposed to get more snow. I needed to get a gallon of milk. Is that a crime now?”

  “It’s true,” Gordon said. “I’ve been watching
him, tailing him all evening. The only place he went is to the grocery store.”

  Henry stared at Gordon, then back at Tom. “I’m warning you right now, Tom. If anything happens to anyone I care about, I’ll be back here to see you and I’ll beat your ass to a pulp.”

  Tom looked at Jimmy in outrage. “Did you hear that? He threatened me with bodily harm.”

  Jimmy shook his head. “Nah, he didn’t threaten you. He promised you.” Jimmy clapped his hand on Henry’s back. “Come on, Henry, nothing more can be done here for now.”

  Henry shot Tom another killer glare, then stalked back to Jimmy’s car and got into the passenger seat. As Jimmy and Gordon spoke to Tom for another few minutes, Henry steamed.

  How were they ever going to get to the bottom of this? Whoever was responsible was smart enough to leave no clues behind, to do the kind of sneak attacks that made it impossible to investigate.

  One thing was clear. He couldn’t allow Melissa and the boys back into his home until the situation was resolved and that angered him more than anything.

  It was a tension-filled ride back home. Jimmy talked the whole way, detailing his plan to investigate what had happened.

  “We might be able to find fingerprints on the pieces of the bomb that survived the blast. There might be specific traceable material that was used. Don’t you worry, Henry. I’m going to get to the bottom of this.”

  As he babbled on, Henry stared out the window, his mind drifting to Melissa and the boys. What were they doing at this moment? He glanced at his watch and realized his sons would be sound asleep and tonight he wouldn’t be able to stand in the doorway and smell their scent, watch their little faces as they dreamed. Tonight he and Melissa wouldn’t be able to sit together in the living room, enjoying quiet conversation after his mother had gone to bed.

  The fact that some nut had taken these particular pleasures away from him reignited the fire of his anger. But by the time they finally reached the house the anger had burned itself out and he was simply exhausted.

  Randy and Charlie sat with his mother in the living room and he quickly told them what had happened with Tom, then Charlie and Randy left.

  “Are you all right?” his mother asked as he walked to the bar and poured himself a healthy dose of scotch.

  “No. I’m angry and frustrated and I’m wondering if I shouldn’t just pull out of the election.” He sat on the sofa next to her.

  “Is that what you want to do?”

  “I don’t want anything to happen to Melissa and the boys.”

  Mary smiled at him. “That didn’t answer my question. Besides, as soon as the roads clear Melissa and the boys will return to Amarillo. You still have to live here with any decision you make.”

  Henry released a sigh and dropped his head back against the cushion. “I’ve never really been scared in my life, but the thought of how close danger came to Melissa and the boys put a fear in my heart I never want to feel again.”

  “Parenthood brings with it a multitude of fears.” Mary patted his hand. “The first time those boys get on a bicycle your heart is going to race with fear. The day you put them on a bus to go to school you’re going to be filled with a terror as you think of all the things that can go wrong. But you’ll also know a joy greater than anything you’ve ever experienced with them.”

  Henry nodded.

  “And then there’s Melissa,” Mary said softly. “You light up in her presence, Henry.”

  “She’s the mother of my children,” he replied.

  “I think she could be more than that to you if you’d just open up that heart of yours,” Mary said.

  “I don’t want her to be any more than that,” he replied with forced lightness.

  Mary sighed. “Your father was a wonderful man, Henry, but he was obsessed about some woman stealing your money. I worry that instead of making you careful, which was his intention, he made you incapable of allowing anyone close to you.”

  He was in no mood for one of his mother’s attempts to get him to change his mind about love and marriage. He tipped his glass up and drained his drink, welcoming the hot burn down his throat. “Mom, it’s been a long day and I’m exhausted. I have a lot of things to think about and I don’t want to have a conversation about my decision to stay single.”

  “You’re right. I’m sorry.” She got up from the sofa. “I’m going to bed. I’ll see you in the morning and hopefully by then Jimmy will have this all figured out and we can get back to a normal life.”

  “Good night, Mom.” He watched her disappear up the stairs, then once again leaned his head back and released a long sigh.

  He hoped Jimmy had some answers in the morning, but he didn’t expect him to have any. He looked over at the phone. What he’d like to do is call Melissa, just hear her voice before he called it a night. But it was late and he didn’t want to wake the boys. Besides, he’d told her he’d call her first thing in the morning.

  He got up from the sofa and walked to the window. It was snowing again. Yesterday he’d hoped for snow so that he could keep Melissa and the boys here longer. Now he prayed for it to end so she could take the boys back to Amarillo where they would be safe from the madness that had become his life.

  Chapter 11

  It was the longest night of Melissa’s life. The motel room was typical of motel rooms all around the country, equipped with a king-size bed, a television in a cabinet and a desk. It was spotlessly clean and once she’d placed the desk chair and a barricade of pillows along one side of the bed, the boys fell asleep almost immediately.

  Unfortunately sleep remained elusive for her. She took a fast shower and changed into her nightgown, then got into bed and tried not to relive the events of the night.

  What was happening at the house? Were Henry and Mary all right? If anything happened who would come to tell Melissa that something had gone wrong? Surely somebody would keep her informed.

  She tossed and turned with worry and fear and it was during those long hours of sleeplessness that she realized the depth of her love for Henry James Randolf III. And in that realization she knew she would never be able to give him what he wanted.

  The idea of making her home in the carriage house, so close, yet not a part of his life, was physically painful to consider. She could easily imagine the kind of routine they’d fall into over time.

  The twins would spend a lot of their time in the big house with Henry and Mary and occasionally the desire Henry and Melissa felt for each other would rear up and explode and they’d make love. There would be no commitment, no love, just an arrangement. She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t sacrifice her own dreams of a marriage and love forever just so that Henry could get what he wanted—full-time access to the boys and an occasional release of sexual tension with her.

  As soon as possible she was heading home and she and Henry would work out a viable visitation plan, one that didn’t involve her living in his backyard.

  She finally fell asleep around dawn and awakened around eight with a sliver of sunshine drifting in around the edges of the curtains. The boys were still asleep. The disruption from the night before had apparently exhausted them.

  She got out of bed and pulled on the luxurious burgundy robe Henry had bought her and moved to the window to peer outside. Although it had snowed another inch or so overnight, the sun was a welcome sight. Surely by late evening or first thing in the morning the roads would be cleared enough that she and the babies could go home.

  She needed the reality of her little apartment, away from Henry, where she could think clearly. Being with Henry definitely muddied her mind.

  The ring of the telephone on the desk pulled her from the window. She grabbed up the receiver and said a soft hello.

  “You okay?” Henry’s deep voice filled her ear.

  “I am now that I know you’re okay,” she replied. “I couldn’t sleep last night. I’ve been worried about you.”

  “I almost called you last night to tell you that everythin
g was fine, but I was afraid I’d wake the boys. I’ve got a glass company coming out first thing this morning to replace the broken window in the bedroom. Jimmy and his men went over it with a fine-tooth comb looking for anything that might be evidentiary. How are the boys?”

  She glanced over to the bed. “Still sleeping. What happened after I left last night?” She listened as he told her about going to Tom Burke’s home and confronting the man he thought responsible.

  “You didn’t really expect him to confess, did you?” she asked when he was finished.

  “No, but it would have been nice if we could have settled all this last night. I’m hoping Jimmy will be able to get something from the pieces of the device he collected last night, something that will be enough evidence for an arrest.”

  “You know I can’t come back to the house,” she said, her heart heavy as the words left her mouth.

  “I don’t want you and the boys back here,” he replied. “Not until this is all resolved. Last night was too close for comfort and I’d never forgive myself if anything happened to you or Joey or James.”

  Melissa squeezed the receiver closer to her ear as she heard the passion in his voice. He cared about her. She knew he did, but it wasn’t enough for him to invite her fully into his life.

  “You have everything you need there? The roads are still pretty bad but you should be able to get home sometime tomorrow.”

  “That’s what I thought when I looked outside the window a minute ago, and yes, I have everything I need—we need.”

  “I’ll have Charlie or one of the other men deliver your car later today or first thing in the morning. I don’t want to be seen there with you.” He paused a moment. “So I won’t be able to tell you or the boys a personal goodbye.”

  She could hear the regret, a true longing in his voice, but she was almost glad that there wouldn’t be a personal goodbye. There were going to be enough goodbyes in their future and she had a feeling she’d find each and every one of them difficult. “You’ll let me know if anything changes?”

  “Of course,” he replied. “I’ll call you later this evening in any case. And, Melissa, I’m so sorry about all this.”