Going Hard: Steele Ridge Series

by Kelsey Browning

  “Where are Evie and Mom?”

  “Inside. Evie’s blaming herself.”

  Grif held Carlie Beth by the arms so he could look into her face. “I need you to go inside. Reid and I will—”

  “You are out of your fucking mind if you think I’m going to sit around and wait while someone has my baby.”

  Her use of the F-word hit Grif like a slap across the face. But he understood, so he nodded once, then asked his brother, “What else do we know?”

  “Looks like the guy used a four-wheeler to come in on one of the hiking trails. Maybe he left it in the woods so we wouldn’t hear it and then hoofed it the rest of the way to the house. I’d need a battalion of guys to patrol all this acreage.”

  Damn Jonah for having to piss a long stream of money at the city. Who needed twenty thousand acres?

  “Can we follow the trail in your truck?”

  “Already did. The tracks end at the county road. Whoever it was might’ve had a truck stashed and driven the ATV up onto a trailer, but it’s doubtful because there were no other tire tracks on the side of the road.”

  “Which means he took Aubrey somewhere on the ATV?” Carlie Beth said. “Oh my God, she could be anywhere out in the woods. He could be holed up in some—”

  “Don’t jump to conclusions and panic,” Grif said, shooting Reid a gimme-something-we-can-work-with look.

  Reid took a deep breath. “I think it was someone Aubrey knew, because there was no sign of a struggle in her bedroom.”

  Carlie Beth looked Reid up and down. “A man your size could’ve just picked her up and thrown her over his shoulder.”

  “Yeah, but a human body is awkward to carry, especially if—”

  “If what? If she was dead weight? If she was de—”

  “It all leads back to you.” Grif held her by the arms, trying to pull her out of the spiral of crazy they could both get caught up in if they didn’t keep their heads on straight. “What are we missing here? Who are we missing?”

  “We went over all this before. If I’ve offended someone so badly that they’re killing people I care about, it’s slipped my mind.”

  “Wait a minute,” Grif said. “People you care about. What about Roy Darden? He wasn’t exactly a loved one.”

  “I went out with him one time.”

  “Jesus,” he breathed. “What if up to this point, this whole thing hasn’t been about people you care about, but people who care about you?”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “Remember that guy you mentioned who disappeared on you?”

  “John? So?”

  “So what if he didn’t just take off?”

  Reid rubbed his hand across his hair, messing it up even more. “You think whoever grabbed Aubrey has been systematically getting rid of people who love Carlie Beth?”

  “It fits.”

  “How does this help us figure out who has Aubrey?” Carlie Beth’s voice was full of the panic and misery Grif felt deep in his gut. Apparently her knees finally gave out because she slumped to the wood porch. “Oh my God, Maggie. Why haven’t we called the sheriff?”

  “I did that before I ever called Grif,” Reid told her. “She’s got her people out all over the place.”

  What was Grif missing? There had to be a piece of information he’d overlooked. The oil. “I never got a call back from the last store around here that sells quenching oil.” He pulled out his phone and hit redial for the supplier he hadn’t been able to get a hold of yesterday. A long shot, but having the phone in his hands kept them from shaking so damn much.

  After four rings, the call connected. “D’ya know what time it is?”

  “Is this Bill Smithfield?”

  The man grunted what Grif assumed was a yes.

  “I’m Grif Steele from Steele Ridge. I called yesterday asking about anyone who’d recently bought quenching oil from you. Did you get that message?”

  “Yeah.” The old guy snorted, coughed, and spit something on the other end of the line. “Went through my records, but then the wife cooked ham and collard greens for dinner and—”

  “Sir,” Grif tried to keep his voice steady, but he was so close to losing his shit. “I need to know now. This is a matter of life and death.” He glanced down at Carlie Beth to see what little color she’d still had in her face completely disappear. “Did you sell quenching oil to anyone recently?”

  “Yeah, about three gallons to some gal who owns the gallery there in town.”

  33

  “Let’s go,” Grif barked and grabbed Carlie Beth’s hand to yank her off the ground. “In Reid’s truck. Now.”

  “What did he say?” She kept pace with him as he ran toward the driveway with Reid right behind.

  “I think she has her at the forge.”

  “She?”

  He shoved her up into the truck and was only halfway in the cab himself when Reid fired it up and tore down the driveway. Grif asked Carlie Beth, “Have you ever had any strange interactions with Yvonne Winters?”

  “You think Yvonne took Aubrey? Killed Austin?”

  He nodded at Reid, who grabbed his phone and quickly gave Maggie the update.

  “Yeah, I think she was listening while you and I were talking with Maggie about Darden’s death. That’s when she got the idea to grease up the climbing grips, and Smithfield just confirmed she bought several gallons of quenching oil not long ago.”

  “She’s talked on and off about trying her hand at blacksmithing. Maybe she was just…” She must’ve caught something in his expression because she trailed off. “She…she warned me about you when you first found out about Aubrey.”

  “Warned you how?”

  “She’s the one who told me about Madison Henry.”

  “Anything else?” Reid asked as he navigated down the narrow backroad toward the edge of town where Carlie Beth’s house was.

  “Just a little speculation about Austin’s crush on me at dinner the other night.” She paused and looked at Grif, her expression full of apology. “And she mentioned that you might try to lure Aubrey away from me, promising her nicer things.”

  Hell. “And this was right before I came storming up, slinging accusations at you.”

  “Yeah.”

  Carlie Beth shook her head as though trying to dislodge a thought. “This is probably nothing…”

  “No such thing as nothing,” Reid said. “Spit it out.”

  “When I was trying on Evie’s dress, Evie and Aubrey went downstairs for cookies, so Yvonne helped me get out of the dress.”

  “And?”

  “Nothing exactly. Just a feeling. I was uncomfortable being in my underwear in front of her.”

  “Has she ever touched you?”

  “Girlfriends give each other hugs all the time.”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “Just a strange little brush on my back. And she had trouble with the zipper, but Evie and you didn’t.”

  God, how he wished they could go back to earlier tonight. Although it hadn’t gone down like Grif had planned, even their argument was so much better than this gut-twisting fear.

  Reid pulled the truck to the side of the street about ten houses down from Carlie Beth’s. “We’ll walk the rest of the way.”

  “No,” Grif said. “We run.” When they approached Carlie Beth’s house, he caught sight of light coming from the forge’s window. “They’re in there. I know it.”

  Carlie Beth darted forward, but Grif and Reid each caught her by an arm. “No. We scope it out first.”

  “I have to—”

  Grif stopped and cupped her face in his hands. “Please listen and be logical. I know you’re frightened. I’m so fucking scared I can’t see straight. But letting your emotions put you and Aubrey in even more danger isn’t the way for us to handle this. Do you hear me?”

  She nodded, but tears gathered at the corner of her eyes. Grif pulled her in for a hard hug and whispered, “I will not lose you and I will not lose A
ubrey. Nobody is taking either of you away from me.”

  The Taylor Swift song Grif had heard the day at the gallery came from Carlie Beth’s pocket, and she clawed it out. “Aubrey, baby, are you okay?”

  He pointed at the phone and mouthed speaker. Carlie Beth immediately hit the button and held the phone out in her palm.

  “Mom?” Aubrey’s shaky voice, tiny like a little girl’s, made Grif feel as if an icepick was being slipped between his ribs and up into his heart.

  “I’m here. Are you okay? Has she hurt you?”

  Apparently Yvonne had the same speaker phone idea they did, because she said, “What do you mean you’re here?”

  Carlie Beth’s eyes went wild and her gaze darted from Grif to Reid and back to Grif. “I…ah…I’m here at the house. I thought—”

  “You thought what?” Yvonne’s tone was sharp and brittle, like cheap crystal shattering on a tile floor. “Tell me, Carlie Beth, how much does your daughter’s life mean to you?”

  “Everything. You know that.”

  “Then prove it.”

  “How?”

  “If you come into the forge, I’ll let Aubrey go.” The line went dead and it took every shred of control Grif had not to lean over and heave on his shoes.

  * * *

  With a hand as unyielding as his last name, Grif gripped Carlie Beth’s wrist. “Wait for Maggie and her people. You can’t do this. It could be a trick.”

  As if she were in the eye of a hurricane, Carlie Beth was finally calm inside. She would get her daughter the hell out of there. No matter the cost.

  God, she, Grif, and Aubrey had been so close. So close to being a real family.

  She rose on her toes and kissed Grif hard. Hard enough that she could feel his teeth behind his lips. When she dropped back to her feet, she said, “I have to do this. If she’d asked for you, you’d make the same choice.” He couldn’t deny it. She could see the truth in his eyes.

  Carlie Beth touched Grif’s face, capturing his attention once again. “I want you to know how much I love you, but our daughter needs me. If…if I don’t—”

  “Do not even fucking say those words.”

  “I want you to know I asked for an amendment to Aubrey’s birth certificate for paternity determination, just in ca—”

  He gripped her around the waist and gave her a kiss that matched the fierceness of hers, cutting off words she knew he didn’t want to hear. If sheer will could solve problems, they’d come out on top every time. “I love you.”

  She let her hand trail slowly off his face and hurried around the house to the backyard. With a steady finger, she dialed Aubrey’s number.

  Yvonne answered with a “Yeah?”

  “I’m ready. Will you please send Aubrey outside?”

  The laugh from the other end sent chills over Carlie Beth’s arms, and they settled in a cold knot in her stomach. “I’m not stupid. You come in and she gets to leave.”

  “Do you promise?”

  “What, are we in fourth grade? Do you want me to pinkie swear? Just come to the fucking door.” Again, Yvonne disconnected.

  From her side vision, Carlie Beth caught sight of movement on her right. Holding handguns they must’ve gotten from somewhere in Reid’s truck, Grif and his brother had been joined by a group of deputies. Maggie was waving Carlie Beth back, but the stoic expression on Grif’s face gave Carlie Beth the last bit of strength she needed.

  She jogged up the path toward her forge and knocked on the door. “Yvonne, let me in.” It swung open just enough for Carlie Beth to squeeze her way inside. She immediately reached for Aubrey and shoved her behind her. “Go.”

  “Mom, I can’t—”

  “Do it right this second, Aubrey Steele.”

  “Mom, come with—”

  “Go and I’ll be right behind—”

  “You’re not going anywhere until we have a little chat.” Her eyes red and her short hair standing every which way as if she’d pulled on it, Yvonne let Aubrey slip out, but blocked the door before Carlie Beth could follow.

  Carlie Beth faked a sidestep, hoping to lure Yvonne away from the door, but she wasn’t having any of it. Instead, she pushed Carlie Beth’s shoulders, making her stumble back.

  “So you went and married him,” Yvonne said, staring down at Carlie Beth’s left hand.

  “No.”

  “But you will.”

  “Yvonne, you got what you wanted. I’m here talking to you, but you really don’t want to keep me from leaving—”

  “I got what I wanted?” Yvonne’s laugh was edged with mania. “I’ve never gotten what I wanted.” She took a step, but Carlie Beth matched her with a backward shuffle.

  One, two, three. Carlie Beth kept moving. She knew every inch of her forge and would dance this twisted tango all night if that’s what it took. If she kept Yvonne talking long enough, surely Grif and Maggie would come to her rescue. “What do you mean? You’re a successful business owner. You have respect and people here love you.”

  “Do you have any idea how long I’ve loved you?”

  How could she have known when she hadn’t even realized her friend—former friend—was gay? “I—”

  “Been in love with you? Do you know how long I’ve waited for you to look at me the way you look at that slick bastard you’re fucking?”

  Assuming the best answer was no answer, Carlie Beth bit her lip and edged her way around the coal forge. If she could circle back to the door without Yvonne realizing she was luring her in that direction, everything would be okay.

  “Do you know what it feels like to do without the one person in the world who’s your other half? Who would complete you?”

  She hadn’t realized until recently, but she’d been living that way for the past fifteen years. Telling Yvonne that sure wouldn’t help this situation, so she held out a raised hand to keep her at bay. “I’m sorry I didn’t recognize your feelings.”

  “What kind of friend are you?”

  Apparently a blind one. Or maybe just a trusting one. “We could still be friends.”

  “Friends? You want to be friends? Where the hell has that gotten me for years?” Yvonne screeched. From the worktable, she snatched up a pair of scrolling jaw tongs, the ones that had gone missing recently. Oh, God. The ones with jaws that matched the wound on Austin’s temple. With short, sharp movements, Yvonne thrust them toward Carlie Beth’s face to make her point.

  With every jab, Carlie Beth scooted back a little.

  Aubrey’s phone rang in Yvonne’s hand, and with wild eyes, she tossed it on the anvil and attacked it with the tongs—wham, wham, wham. Bits of plastic and electronic guts jumped like crickets and rained down on the floor. Lip curled and teeth bared, she glared down at the only piece left—half of the back cover. “I don’t want them to call me again!”

  Carlie Beth’s heart was like a trapped animal in her chest. Stay calm and keep her talking. That’s the only way you’ll get out of this. “Then what do you want?”

  “What I’ve always wanted,” she cried, advancing again, the tongs waving wildly in her grip. “I want you to love me.”

  “Carlie Beth!” Grif’s panicked yell came from just outside the door. “Are you okay?”

  “Dammit, Grif, get away from there.” Maggie’s voice was commanding, but Carlie Beth thought she heard a thread of fear in it as well.

  She tried to get words past her tight throat, but the first two were silent wheezes. Finally, she was able to respond. “Everything’s fine. Just—”

  “Shut up, you stupid bitch!” Yvonne lunged forward.

  Carlie Beth was hemmed in by two metal worktables, and couldn’t dodge the blow to her shoulder. Holy God, the pain exploded through her. It was then she realized Yvonne was subscribing to the if-I-can’t-have-you philosophy of relationships.

  How could this be happening? How had she missed that Yvonne was a crazed lunatic?

  Maybe the same way Grif had missed that Madison Henry was an abuse-seeking psyc
ho. Because they both believed people were who they said they were. Because that’s what growing up in a small town taught you.

  But living in this small town had also taught Carlie Beth to fight to make her own life because no one was going to simply hand it to you. And sometimes it wasn’t as pretty as people liked to believe small-town life should be.

  Regardless, it was her life, she loved it, and she damn well wanted it.

  Which meant she couldn’t wait for someone else to take care of this situation. If she could just make her way over to—

  Thud. The tongs connected with her thigh, washing her with a vicious, nauseating pain. She breathed through it in shallow gasps.

  Yvonne rested the tongs on her shoulder. “That’s how you make me feel every time I see you with that man.”

  Say something back. Maybe if you keep her talking, she’ll let up on the whacking.

  “What…what if I could learn to love you?” She shuffled left a couple of steps, her leg protesting.

  Yvonne’s eyes narrowed as she seemed to consider Carlie Beth’s words. “Learn to love? Bullshit. Two people are either meant to be together or not. And I love you, have always loved you, enough for both of us.”

  “That’s…” She couldn’t say nice. “I didn’t realize. I’m sorry.”

  “You’re sorry?” Little flecks of spit were gathering at the corners of Yvonne’s mouth and her eyes looked like one of Dave’s spooked cows—wide, white, and rolling from side to side. “Sometimes sorry just doesn’t cut it. Tell me, do you think your rich lover will take your daughter to Los Angeles after you’re dead? She’ll probably get out there and whore around with a bunch of men just like you’ve done.”

  A bunch of men? The only thing that kept Carlie Beth from laughing in Yvonne’s face was the shit-fire crazy in her eyes. Two more steps. Just. Two. More. Then she could reach…

  One. Two. She angled her body toward Yvonne, so she could reach for the rounding hammer behind her. “I know Aubrey is in good hands with her father. With the whole Steele family,” she said, pushing confidence into every word. Yeah, she was antagonizing Yvonne, but they were playing to win now.