Tattered Stars

by Catherine Cowles

  “Where are we?”

  He turned back to the stove. “It doesn’t matter. All that matters is that it’s home.”

  Helpful. If I got a chance to run, I’d be mostly blind. But if I could get to a clearing, somewhere with sightlines, I could use the mountains as my guide. I’d have to be faster than Ben. Because I was certain of one thing. He wouldn’t have made a home here without knowing the land like the back of his hand.

  I studied Ben as he moved around the kitchen, searching for any signs of injury. Hayes had thought his bullet had clipped his shooter, but I didn’t see any evidence of injury. I needed a weakness, but there wasn’t one in sight.

  I let my eyes close for a moment, feeling the hopelessness of it all wash over me. But Hayes’ face flashed in my mind. And I swore I could almost feel his arms around me. I wouldn’t let this be the end for us. I refused.

  My eyes opened as Ben moved the pot off the stove, placing it in the sink of sorts. He studied the liquid. “It’ll take a while to cool.”

  “Did you try to take that other girl? Did you chase Hadley in your truck?”

  His face reddened. “It was always only you.”

  The embarrassed hue of his skin gave me my answer. He had. The why of it, I didn’t know. Would he have been content with one of them? My fingers twisted in the quilt. At least, it hadn’t been Hadley. That would’ve broken the Eastons. If there was one thing I could be grateful for in this moment, it was that.

  Ben strode towards the door of the cabin. “I need to water the horses. I’ll be back.”

  The horses. God, he really was stocked for a future life here. But how long would that last? Because I would fight tooth and nail if he tried to touch me. And then what? The illusion of his happily ever after would be shattered.

  As the door closed, I scooted up to the edge of the bed. My fingers quickly searched under the mattress for my nail. I prodded until I felt the little piece of metal. So tiny, yet I was counting on it for…I wasn’t sure what. To save my life?

  “Everything is a potential tool. A possible weapon.” I whispered my father’s words to myself. When I made a run for it, I would need every single one of his lessons.

  I slid the nail into my front jeans’ pocket and waited. Listened. I heard the sound of a horse whinnying. And then soft footfalls. I braced as the door swung open, and Ben appeared.

  “I need to use a bathroom.”

  He studied me. “Is that the truth?”

  I nodded. And that nod wasn’t a lie. I could feel my bladder pressing down.

  “I’m going to unlock you. But I have this”—Ben slid a gun from a holster at the small of his back—“so don’t think of running. I don’t want to hurt you, but I will if I have to.”

  I swallowed as the gun glinted in the late-afternoon light. “I won’t run. I promise.”

  I would fly. That was what it would take. My feet would barely touch the ground.

  Ben bent, pulling keys from his pocket and unlocking the padlock. He used the gun to motion me along. “I’ve got an outhouse made up.”

  I pushed to my feet but wavered a bit, my head swimming. Ben reached out to grasp my elbow. “Are you okay?”

  I fought not to recoil from his touch. This was an opportunity. A chance for Ben to see me as weak. “My head. It hurts.”

  “I’ll give you some tea my mom makes for headaches when we get back.”

  I gave him a wobbly smile. “Thank you.”

  I blinked against the light as we stepped outside. The sun was low in the sky. If I had to guess, there were only a few hours of daylight left. I did my best to take in our surroundings without being obvious about it.

  There was a small corral with a shelter for the horses. There was even a wagon parked alongside the fence. A shed. And an outhouse. Other than that, I only saw trees. They were so tall and thick, I didn’t have a chance to catch sight of my mountain. The one that might guide me home. To Hayes.

  I quickly went inside the outhouse to do my business. Ben had even placed a bucket with water and soap inside. A hysterical laugh bubbled out of me. He really had thought of everything. That laugh turned into a most-pressing need to cry, but I swallowed it down.

  I took a long breath, praying to anyone who would listen for my legs to be strong, for luck to be on my side. And I listened. I could hear running water. I would move in that direction when the time came. That would be my map.

  I opened the door. “Thank you for the water and soap.”

  “Of course. See, it won’t be bad here.”

  I didn’t say anything. Instead, as we walked, I waited for my moment—the break in the trees I’d seen that would make for a clear path to run. Ben’s hand stayed on my elbow, but his grip wasn’t tight. He seemed to think I might have given in.

  Twenty breaths. I just needed sixty seconds of bravery, one more time. I counted off my steps. And two before the break in the trees, I swung. My arm ripped out of Ben’s grasp and came back with vicious force. The blow knocked the air out of him, but I didn’t stop there. I whirled and brought his face down to my knee.

  I missed his nose as he turned away from the blow. But the way Ben howled, I thought I might’ve broken his cheekbone. I didn’t wait to find out. I simply ran.

  45

  Hayes

  “So, are you going to tell me what the deal was with that woman?” Calder asked as we steered the horses in the direction of the creek.

  I was sure he was curious, but I knew more than anything that he was trying to distract me. I appreciated it, but nothing would take my mind off Everly in this moment. The woman I loved, possibly being held by someone mentally unstable—and whatever situation we might be riding up on.

  I adjusted my grip on the reins. Soren didn’t deserve me pulling on his mouth because I was about to lose it. “She’s Everly’s cousin. And I don’t think she’s had an easy life.”

  “She lived with the crazy uncle?”

  “And Ian. I’m not sure who else. That ranch is a revolving door of people.”

  A muscle in Calder’s cheek ticked. “I have a bad feeling about that place.”

  “It’s justified.”

  My gaze traveled around us. Through the trees. Towards the sound of running water. There was nothing, but I was on high alert anyway.

  Something about the energy of the air out here was strange. As soon as we’d gotten the horses out of the trailer, my skin had begun to prickle. Ev was out here. We just hadn’t seen any sign of her or anyone else yet.

  A team was assembling to start a grid search, but that kind of thing took time. They’d be at least an hour behind us. I looked up at the sky, sending up a silent prayer that we’d find Ev in time. There was no other option. As I dropped my gaze back to the makeshift trail in front of us, my gaze caught on something.

  I squinted back at the sky. At first, I’d thought it was a cloud, but the shape was wrong. The color, too. I halted Soren’s steps. “Calder. Smoke.”

  He stopped his horse and looked in the direction I pointed. “Hell.”

  I pulled my sat phone out of my saddlebag and dialed Ruiz. He answered on the third ring. “You find anything?”

  “Smoke where there shouldn’t be any.”

  “Where are you?”

  I read off our coordinates.

  Ruiz relayed them to someone in the background. “Stay where you are. We’re sending backup.”

  “You know I can’t do that.” Nothing on this Earth could keep me from heading towards that smoke.

  “Hayes—”

  I hung up. I didn’t want to hear his arguments. I glanced at Calder. “You okay with finding that fire?”

  He checked the rifle attached to his saddle. “That’s what we’re here for. Let’s go find your girl.”

  The tight weave of trees meant that we couldn’t pick up to a gallop or even a damned trot. We had to plod a path through the obstacle course because we needed the cover. I noticed that we were following the curve of the creek. Maybe A
ddie had been right all along. Flowing water. Forest cover. It made for an excellent hiding spot. But the idiot hadn’t thought about the smoke giving him away.

  Calder held up a hand, and we both stopped. I strained to listen. It was something. Could’ve been an animal, but it could’ve been human, too. Whoever and whatever it was, they were running.

  I pulled my Glock from my holster at my hip and slid from the saddle. I handed Calder my reins and made a motion for him to stay quiet. He wrapped my reins around his saddle horn and pulled out his rifle. We’d picked these horses because they had steady experience but were young enough to go the distance. I just had to hope they wouldn’t spook at whatever we were about to face.

  I crept forward through the trees, Calder and the horses on my heels. The sound of running grew louder, and then there was a scream.

  Everything in me froze, my blood turning so cold it hurt as it traveled through my veins. The screaming picked back up, and then I heard the sounds of fighting. It was the only thing that kicked me into action.

  I didn’t think, I simply moved, crashing through the trees until I reached the edge of the forest. There, on the bank of the creek, was the woman I loved. She thrashed in a man’s hold. He wrapped an arm around her neck and pressed a gun to her temple, stilling her movements. “I told you I didn’t want to hurt you. But I will.”

  I raised my gun. “Don’t move. Carson County Sheriff’s Department.” Ben froze. “Now, slowly lower your weapon and release Everly.”

  His hold on her only tightened. “She’s mine. Not yours. You put her at risk. I keep her safe.”

  “If you want her safe, then you don’t want her so close to that gun.”

  His finger was on the damn trigger. It would only take one wrong move for everything to be over. I met Everly’s gaze. Tears spilled down her cheeks and over her chin, landing on the dirt below. I wanted to kill him for those tears alone.

  Ben shook his head with a manic ferocity. “No, no, NO! You have to leave.”

  “Easy does it. Just calm down.”

  “No! You ruin everything. She’s mine. She always was.” His arm around her neck tightened, and Everly began to cough.

  “She can’t breathe,” I gritted out.

  He loosened his hold a fraction. Everly sucked in air. “Please, Ben. Let me go.”

  “No. If we’re going to die, then it’ll be together. Maybe that’s the answer. It’ll be in heaven, but we’ll be together.” He began backing up towards the edge of the creek.

  I’d seen parts of Canyon Creek before, but it looked more like a river in this stretch. Even if he didn’t shoot her, they could still drown if he took them both in. “Just wait, Ben.”

  He kept moving them backwards. “No more waiting.”

  I adjusted the aim of my gun, but I didn’t have a clear shot. Everly’s gaze shot to mine, and she mouthed three words. “I love you.”

  I would’ve given anything in that moment to hear the sound those words made. To have them whispered against my skin while we were curled up in bed. To have them come out on a laugh as she tipped her head back—anything but this.

  Her hand twitched, and she pulled something I couldn’t quite make out from her pocket. In a flash, she lifted her arm and brought it down on Ben’s thigh. He howled in pain.

  I didn’t wait. I went for the shot. And as it cracked the air, I prayed for it to hit true.

  46

  Everly

  The crack of the bullet was deafening. Even against the water rushing behind me and the wind that had picked up out of nowhere. That sound cut through everything.

  Yet everything seemed to move in slow motion. My body was already listing to the side, but my eyes never left Hayes’ face. If I could just not lose sight of him again, I would be okay. I knew it.

  I felt Ben’s arm around my throat fall away, and the heat of him at my back simply disappeared. And I was falling.

  I landed hard on the rocky ground, my hip and shoulder hitting first. I tried to keep my head from knocking, but it was useless. The force of my fall was too great.

  The world went black for the briefest of moments, but Hayes’ face was still there when light returned. And it was moving. He was moving—towards me.

  He was on his knees in a flash, hands roaming all over my body. “You’re okay. Are you hurt anywhere?”

  “I love you.” It was the only thing I cared about getting out. I’d been so dumb to hold the words back. Terrified and thinking I could protect myself from devastation if I simply didn’t voice what was inside of me. But not saying it didn’t change the truth. I loved this man with everything I had. He was my resting place. Somewhere I could lay my burdens and be who I truly was, no shields or false fronts—only me.

  “Ev…” My nickname on his lips was a guttural plea as he framed my face. “Can’t tell you what it gives me to hear those words. But I need to know if you’re okay.”

  “I’m okay.” I tried to sit, the world swimming a bit again.

  Hayes was instantly there, helping me rise. “I’ve got you.”

  “I know.”

  As I sat, I couldn’t bring myself to look behind me. I didn’t know what I hoped to see. Even with everything that had happened, I couldn’t find it in me to wish my childhood friend dead. “Ben?” I croaked.

  Hayes’ jaw hardened. “I don’t know. My shot hit him, but he went into the creek. The current’s strong here.”

  I turned towards the water that rushed and bubbled, swirling around rocks and fallen trees. I couldn’t imagine him surviving that trek with a bullet wound. “I have to know. We have to find him.”

  Calder stepped out of the trees, two horses in tow. “I called in the team. They’re downriver, so they’ll watch for him.” His gaze swept over me, assessing and concerned. “Are you okay?”

  “I am now.”

  And that was when I broke. The first sob tore free before I even knew what was happening. Hayes engulfed me, wrapping his arms around me and absorbing each heave of my chest. He never once let go as I poured out the terror of the past few hours, the heartbreak of losing one of the few safe places I had growing up.

  Hayes allowed me to let loose everything that was tearing me up inside. Not once did he try to tell me that everything would be okay or to stop. Nor did he make any sort of shhhing noise. He simply took it all in and gave me a place to lay it down.

  I had no idea how long I cried. But Hayes was still there as the sobs eased. Holding me. He pressed his lips to my temple. “I’m here.”

  “You always are.”

  “And I always will be.”

  Instead of fear or uncertainty at that vow, I felt only peace. The ethereal feeling that had always seemed out of my grasp. It filled me now, and if I could experience that peace amidst the terror of today, I knew it would never leave me.

  Hayes pressed a kiss to my other temple. “Think I can help you get up?”

  I nodded against his neck.

  Hayes slowly stood, carefully bringing me with him. I wavered a bit, and he steadied me. Then he started prodding at my head. “Shit, Ev. There’s blood. Did he hit you?”

  I brought my hand to my head, my fingers following Hayes’. There was a bit of tacky blood on the left side of my skull. “He knocked me out at the cabin. I didn’t even see him coming.”

  “We need to get you to a hospital to get checked out.”

  “No hospitals. I just want to go home. With you.” It was all I needed.

  I got what I wanted. Mostly. After a slow ride back to the truck and trailer, a Forest Service team escorting us halfway, Hayes took me to his house since mine was a crime scene. He hadn’t forced me to a hospital, but he’d had the town doctor check me out with Hadley serving as his assistant. I hadn’t needed stitches, but I did have another mild concussion.

  Now, after a shower that Hayes had demanded he take with me, I was clean and propped up on his couch with a world of people swarming about. Julia and Gabe. Shiloh and Hadley. And my Addie.


  Hayes brushed the hair away from my face. “Are you sure you don’t want to go to sleep?”

  “No. I want to be right here.” I wanted to bask in the light of the family I was making for myself.

  “Stop trying to mother her, Bubby,” Hadley said as she bustled in from the kitchen and handed me a ginger ale.

  I took a long sip of the bubbly sweetness. “Thanks, Hads.”

  She gave me a wink. “Anytime.”

  “Chicken and dumplings are almost done,” Julia called from the kitchen where she’d been cooking up a storm with Addie’s assistance and Gabe hovering.

  Hadley plopped down on the opposite side of the couch. “It’s my favorite meal when I’m not feeling great. I’m pretty sure it cures all.”

  “She’s not wrong there,” Hayes said, lacing his fingers through mine.

  I caught sight of Shiloh through the windows. She’d needed space since returning from searching for me. When she’d walked into the house, she’d made a beeline for me, hugging me tightly and whispering, “I’m so glad you’re okay.” Then she’d simply left.

  “She needs to walk it off,” Gabe had told me.

  She was back, but she’d made her home on the front porch swing. I knew this had brought up hard things for her—ghosts and demons rearing their ugly heads. But Shiloh was one of the strongest people I knew. She would make it through this, too. We all would.

  I pressed into Hayes’ side. “I love you.”

  “I know,” he whispered. “I knew before you could say the words.”

  I tipped my head back to take in his face. “Cocky.”

  The corner of his mouth quirked up. “No. You showed me without ever saying the words.”

  Everything in me warmed, and I burrowed into his chest, feeling only more of that peace. “I like giving you the words, too.”

  “I like hearing them. And, Ev?”

  “Hmm?”

  “I love you, too.”

  His words wrapped around me, only burying that peace into me. It was so deep now, I knew it would never leave.