Scarred Horizon (Scarred Series Book 4)

by Jackie Williams

  Amy studied the huge man beside her. She could almost feel the air vibrating with his frustration. His long hands gripped the arms of the chair until his knuckles turned white. She glanced up at his handsome face. His jaw was square under the layer of dark stubble, a delicious indentation sat in the centre of his chin. His hair flopped over his forehead and brushed the hard line of his eyebrows. The deep crease between his dark brows begged to be touched by a gentle forefinger and it took all her concentration to resist the temptation to lean over and rub all his tension away.

  She held her breath as his wide shoulders shifted slightly and he inclined his head in her direction for a moment but then he lifted his chin again and kept his face immobile. She looked at his ear behind which he had tucked his long, dark hair. It was nicely shaped, almost delicate and for a wild second she wondered what it would feel like to run the tip of her tongue around its curves. She took a shallow, controlling breath and looked down at her feet.

  She had first seen this man in her office several weeks ago. Her breath had caught in her chest as he stood in the office waiting for her supervisor to arrive. He was tall and incredibly good looking and even his obvious annoyance at being put in this humiliating situation couldn’t mask his well-deserved pride. She had calmed her pounding heart, looked up into his sightless glass eyes and asked him to take one of the seats directly to his left. She offered him tea but he had declined abruptly, stating that he wanted to get the interview over with as quickly as possible.

  Fiona had eventually arrived, had taken the man’s elbow while steering him into her inner sanctum as if he were an aging geriatric. She patted his arm like he was a pet dog as she pressed him into a seat and everyone in the department had treated him like some kind of idiot thereafter. Amy hated the way his square shoulders drooped and how his expression had become so defeated by the end of any meetings.

  She hadn’t spoken to him again as her supervisor had taken over the case, calling him into her office as soon as he arrived each week, but Fiona was now away on maternity leave and Amy had taken up her position only two days previously.

  In view of his imminent appearance in court on the assault charges she had trawled through his records, scraping up details of anyone who may be able to help him but it had been a long haul. Paul clearly didn’t want any help. He was adamant that the bearded Afghan was a drug baron and a terrorist and for some reason Amy was inclined to believe him even though the rest of the world clearly didn’t.

  She persevered into the late afternoon the day before the court case and had eventually struck gold when she noticed that a former service mate had stood as security for his original deposit for any damages to his flat. Gemma Wainwright hadn’t appeared to try and contact Paul when her security deposit was forfeited against the unpaid rent. Amy wondered why someone wouldn’t be bothered about several hundred pounds going missing without any hope of its retrieval.

  Her initial and rather aggravated first thought was that Gemma must be his girlfriend. Although Amy had never seen him with anyone maybe Gemma just had a soft spot for the handsome ex-soldier but a quick phone call had soon put her straight on that score.

  Gemma had laughed long and hard at the thought of asking for the money back and she laughed even harder when Amy asked if she was Paul’s girlfriend. Gemma called Paul all kinds of stubborn. When the money had disappeared from her bank account she had been waiting for his call to ask her if he could sleep on her couch. It seemed that they were true friends but that Paul was way too proud to ask for help from a woman. Fortunately Gemma was able to furnish Amy with some telephone numbers and it wasn’t long before she spoke to a retired Captain David Phillips who was currently living in France.

  After a short but detailed explanation of Paul’s recent fall from grace and a lot of furious shouting later from the now frantic retired Captain, a retired Major Patrick Reeves V.C. had wrestled the phone away from his agitated colleague and had bellowed down the line, ordering her to hold the trial up any way she could. The Major would be with her as soon as he was able to book a flight back to England and she was to wait for him in her office until he arrived. It never occurred to her to say that she would be closing the office soon. She didn’t dare object to his authoritative tone telling her to expect him shortly. She had asked her secretary to wait with her and less than three hours later, having somehow managed to catch the five o’clock flight from Dinard, a wall of a man, scarred terribly down one side of his face, had marched furiously into the office.

  Her petrified assistant had screamed in shock at the sight of him before she could stop herself as the huge man threw open the doors and presented himself at her desk. Amy had fought a laugh as Patrick rolled his eyes dramatically at Carla’s reaction to his presence.

  “Where is the idiot?” He demanded without preamble and Amy had hated explaining that Paul was in custody in the local police cells due to the assault charge and having no fixed address.

  Patrick had been fuming by the time she had filled him in on the last six months of Paul’s life. It had taken her every ounce of her patience and persuasion to stop him breaking into the police station and removing his friend there and then.

  She waited patiently for Patrick to explain his idea to the judge. In her position as Paul’s new social worker she had immediately approved of his plan. Now she just prayed that the judge would see sense and give the gorgeous man at her side his life back.

  Chapter Two

  How she had gone from a grey and miserable office in a rundown area of London to this in the space of twenty four hours was completely beyond her. Amy’s mind was still in a frenzied whirl as she stared up in wonder at the magnificent château that had seemingly grown out of the thick forest that surrounded her. The pale stone walls gleamed through the lush greenery and the dizzying heights of slate topped turrets pointed proudly towards the sky.

  Paul sat stiffly beside her and she could feel the waves of resentment rolling from his shoulders, though what he resented her for, she had no idea. She was the one having her life turned upside down but she was left with no choice after the judge had handed out his sentence.

  She bit back the urge to tell Paul that it hadn’t been her idea that she go with him on his new adventure. The judge had thought of that all by himself. He wasn’t convinced that Paul could look after himself in the simplest of situations and after Patrick had explained the nature of his idea the judge had insisted that his social worker accompany them for at least the first four weeks of the experiment.

  Patrick hadn’t hesitated in accepting the amendment to the arrangement on her behalf. As long as he could remove Paul from that courtroom he would have accepted just about anything the judge had asked but there had been a few anxious moments when Amy’s jaw had dropped and she gulped at the idea like a stranded fish. It had never occurred to her that the judge would want Paul to travel with a babysitter, as he so politely referred to her as soon as the judge released him into Patrick’s care.

  Paul had only spoken to her briefly on the hour long flight from Stansted to Dinard and he hadn’t said a word as the taxi had whisked them from the airport to the château. Now he shifted uncomfortably at her side. His fingers skimmed over the door panel as he reached for the handle but it was pulled open before he could undo it himself and then there was suddenly a great yell from outside the car.

  Paul was engulfed in a tight embrace as another huge man lugged him from the cab. The next ten minutes were taken up with a lot of masculine back slapping and fist punching along with ruffling of hair as the squeals of laughter and excitement from a variety of beautiful children pierced the forest air.

  Amy stood quietly watching the happy gathering and for the first time in months she saw a genuine smile, one reaching the corners of his eyes actually crease Paul’s normally taught face.

  “And when are you going to introduce us to this beauty?” David walked over to Amy and reached out his hand. “Hello, I’m David. I’m afraid I didn’t realize
that you were together when we spoke on the phone. We weren’t expecting a girlfriend, but it’s not a problem at all. The more the merrier as far as we are concerned. I’m very pleased to meet you.”

  Amy smiled up into vivid blue eyes that sparkled with mischief and delight as she took hold of the proffered hand. It was just as well that she had familiarized herself with Patrick as the man before her bore even more scarring to the side of his face and nose. She was about to correct David’s assumption but Paul broke in sharply.

  “She’s not my girlfriend Dave. Amy’s here to make sure I don’t put a foot out of line for the next four weeks. After that she’ll be going home. For some reason the judge seemed to think I needed a babysitter.”

  There was a short silence as the tone of Paul’s voice let David know exactly how he felt about being wrapped up in cotton wool and treated no better than an infant, but he ignored his friend’s less than polite introduction and carried on speaking to Amy.

  “Well, you are very welcome anyway Amy. This obstinate idiot needs someone to keep an eye on him clearly, though I don’t suppose he is going to make it easy for you or himself. Come on inside and meet the rest of the team. Ellen, Lucy and Joe have prepared some sort of meal. I’m afraid you will just have to accept what it is. With Patrick being over with you and my wife Geraldine being in hospital we haven’t had chance to make anything gourmet. I think Joe managed to find one of Patrick’s lasagne’s in the freezer but who knows what he will have dished up with it.”

  Patrick laughed as David made fake gagging noises. He put his hand on his brother-in-law’s shoulder and gave him a friendly squeeze.

  “Any news about Geraldine and the baby yet?”

  David shook his head.

  “It was just a false alarm. They’re keeping her in for some rest but she isn’t really due for another four weeks. The doctors want to run some more tests before sending her back home. I’ll go and pick her up tomorrow afternoon. Robbie and Fran are missing her but we’re all managing fine.”

  Patrick nodded, clearly relieved by his friend’s news. He bent and picked up a pretty toddler who was dancing at his feet. She looked to be about two years old and he turned with her towards Amy.

  “Hey Rose, this is Amy. She’s going to be staying a while. Do you think I should take over in the kitchen while you help Lucy sort out somewhere for her to sleep?”

  Rose looked out from under dark lashes at their visitor. She narrowed her eyes at Amy for a moment and then glanced at Paul. She seemed to come to some decision in her pretty head and suddenly nodded enthusiastically as her dark ringlets of hair bobbed about her face.

  An older boy picked up Amy’s suitcase and with a great effort started dragging it towards the château steps.

  “I’ll take that Robbie.” David took the big bag from his son’s hand and passed him the smaller duffel bag that Paul was about to fling over his shoulder. “Say hello to Amy.”

  Robbie rolled his eyes.

  “More girls. This place is overrun with them. When are we men going to get a look in? Mama better have a boy this time or I am going to make a formal complaint.” He grinned at his father as he said the words and David cuffed him playfully over his head.

  Amy stifled a laugh and followed David as he walked up the steps to the front door. His trousers lifted slightly as he took the first step and she had to stifle a gasp as she saw metal ankles suddenly appear above his shoes.

  Her breath caught in her throat and she fought to stop tears forming in her eyes. What these men had been through she couldn’t even begin to imagine but that they were happy was more than evident. She looked back at Paul as he started to make his way forwards. His white cane was nowhere to be seen and his step was slightly hesitant as his confident smile slipped.

  She stopped and waited for him.

  “Five of your normal paces I would think and then four steps up and you’re at the front door.” She said quietly over her shoulder and she sighed with resignation as she heard the responding growl.

  “Just let me get on with it will you. I don’t need you to tell me where to go. I’ve been here plenty of times before.” Paul’s tone was irritated and unforgiving but suddenly there was another voice at his side.

  “You’ve only been here twice actually and the first time you were constantly lost. It was like a game of hide and seek trying to find you as I remember. Now stop being so freaking stubborn and either use your bloody cane or play nicely with the pretty lady.”

  Paul’s head came up swiftly and his mouth split into a huge grin.

  “Joe!” His delighted voice couldn’t conceal his pleasure at meeting his friend.

  Joe grabbed Paul’s arm and began dragging him towards the steps. He winked a hooded eye at Amy as they passed her and she had to cover her momentary shock once again. Joe’s face looked as though it had been slammed repeatedly into a brick wall. Only his lips and chin had escaped the carnage but suddenly a beautifully curvy woman stepped out of a doorway inside the huge hallway and walked towards them. She held a baby on her hip and quickly moved to Paul’s side. She kissed him on both cheeks and whispered something to him that made him turn a violent shade of pink. Then she moved back to Joe and kissed him full on the lips. It was only a brief kiss but Joe’s tattered eyelids drifted downwards and the look of tenderness on his face made Amy gulp back a breath.

  The woman smiled up lovingly at Joe and passed the baby to its delighted father then she caught Rose’s outstretched hand as she turned back to Amy.

  “Hi, I’m Lucy, Joe’s wife. Come on in. Joe will look after Anna while Rose and I show you to your room. We can let the men catch up with what’s been going on while I settle you in, and don’t listen to David about our cooking. We’re all perfectly capable of producing a meal without Patrick… not necessarily a great one but we certainly won’t starve.” She smiled mischievously as she took hold of Amy’s arm and steered her towards the grand staircase that led up from the hall.

  Amy answered Lucy’s questions about the flight and journey as Rose bobbed along in front of them. They walked along a sumptuously carpeted corridor and turned a corner then stopped speaking as Lucy threw open a bedroom door. Rose ran into the room in front of her and threw herself into a big chair.

  Amy stood on the threshold and gazed in at the fabulous room.

  “Wow!” She breathed out slowly from between her teeth as Lucy guided her through the stunningly furnished lounge and into a huge bedroom. The massive bed that stood in the centre of the room was hung with beautiful soft drapes and the luxurious material drifted around the bed, fluttering in the breeze coming in at the open window.

  Lucy opened another door and Amy gasped aloud as she saw the bathroom. The walk-in shower and sunken bath looked beyond tempting.

  “Yes, that was exactly my reaction when I stayed in this room.” Lucy smiled over her shoulder.

  Amy ran her finger along the beautiful pale stone that edged the bath.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever been in such an opulent room. Are you sure this is meant for me?” She hesitated before falling in love with the suite.

  Lucy nodded and smiled widely.

  “Oh yes, Ellen wants you to be comfortable and as we are setting up this new project we are only having a few guests for the next month. Ellen and David are hoping to buy another château. The holiday scheme has been a huge success but what they are now proposing is a little different. Paul will be ideal to run it.”

  Amy turned to face the woman.

  “I hope so, but I have my reservations. He’s just so stubborn. He doesn’t want to accept anyone’s help at all.”

  Lucy laughed.

  “Well he won’t get any help here that’s for sure. Well, not the kind of help you mean. The men are nothing if not independent. I take it you realized about David and Patrick. David lost both his legs, Patrick only one. Coping with prosthetics doesn’t come easily to any of them, but coping without your sight, well, let’s just say that if anyone can get
results it will be someone as game as Paul. At least he has a few days to settle in before our first new guests arrive.”

  Amy felt weak as she moved over to the bed. She sat down with her head in her hands. It was all becoming a little overwhelming. Little Rose came over and peered up at her through her hair. Amy reached out and moved the girl’s dark curls away from her eyes. She looked back up at Amy and smile as she spoke.

  “Papa has four legs,” she said shyly and held up four fingers as if to prove it. “Joe mends the bad ones doesn’t he Lucy?”

  Amy looked up as Lucy nodded.

  “He sure does Rose. Your papa and uncle can be very naughty. Lucky for them uncle Joe can sort their broken legs out.”

  Amy felt faint.

  “Patrick has a prosthetic leg too? And he needs spare ones too. I can’t believe it. I didn’t notice anything and I’ve been with him for hours over the last two days. I wouldn’t have known about David if he hadn’t walked up the steps. I saw his metal limbs above his shoes but I swear I would never have realized otherwise. And your husband? Obviously I noticed his scarring but does he…” She trailed off as Lucy shook her head.

  “No, he was lucky. It’s just his face that was affected. A bomb blast caught him as he was trying to repair a broken down army vehicle. He was lucky he wasn’t killed and I was even more fortunate to find him here a couple of years ago. Anna is our first baby but I can’t wait to have more children soon.”

  Amy took a deep breath as she pondered the meaning of the word lucky.

  “And what about Paul? I don’t mean to sound nosy but has he met anyone do you know?” Her voice sounded innocent enough but Lucy laughed loudly.

  “He’s gorgeous, isn’t he? As stubborn as a mule too from what his friends say but he helped me out of a very sticky situation that I was in with my previous employer. I saw him again when he came over for our wedding of course, but you know how busy days like that can be. I’ve heard a lot about him though. Joe and David have known him for years. They were all in the same regiment at one time and the stories they tell about their escapades, well it doesn’t bear thinking about really. It’s sad that things have gone wrong for him. He was doing so well with the bionics that we all thought it would be forever. I know that he couldn’t see perfectly or anything but it was better than nothing. Just shows how things can change for these guys. With the severity of their injuries they never know what’s going to be on the horizon. I think he’s going to be thrilled with the opportunity here though. He could make a real difference to people’s lives.”