by Amelia Shea
“Then you saw T’s computer. You saw everything. I know what you told T. You claimed to have closed it when you realized what it was. That was a lie though, wasn’t it, Sadie? You read through as much as you could until you were caught. And you were caught. We saw you on the cameras.”
He watched Sadie jump slightly back and her eyes widened. Her eyes were horrified. He knew what she was thinking. Stone read her mind from the expression on her face. As if he’d ever let anyone but himself see Sadie naked. Over his dead fucking body. Her worried face looked at him expectantly.
“No, they were only turned on when we weren’t home. My room was shut down, T’s was not.” Stone watched as a little relief washed over her face.
“If not for those cameras, I might not have had to explain this now. You would have figured it out, eventually, though. You just didn’t have enough pieces to the puzzle at the time. When you questioned me about Cavanaugh and Shaw that morning at your place, I realized we were over. I couldn’t lie just to keep you. It would have been unfair to you. But I wanted to, Sadie, I wanted to lie. The thought of losing you ripped me apart but not nearly as much as actually losing you.” Stone paused and inhaled deeply. “That destroyed me. The only thing that kept me from going back to you was knowing I didn’t look you in the eyes and lie. Now, here we are.”
Stone walked to the window and looked out into the night. He couldn’t see much. It was pitch black out but he still focused out the window. Sadie stood silent in the same spot. He had no idea what was going through her mind but at this point; he almost didn’t care. All he cared about was telling her everything. He just wanted it all out. He needed her to know the truth, all of it.
“Cavanaugh killed Macey Donavan. He kidnapped, tortured, and raped her for two days. Then he murdered her. He was arrested and tried and ultimately, he was set free when he was found not guilty. They had evidence to convict him but he had an alibi and a witness, Barry Shaw, but you already knew that, Sadie, didn’t you?” He breathed and turned to face her. “Cavanaugh went into hiding after his release. The papers tracked the story for a while but it became stale. Do you want to know why they never continued to look for Macey’s killer?” His eyes blazed into Sadie, riddled with fury. Stone was showing her a side to him she had never seen. Sadie stepped back and he slowly stalked her, stopping just a foot away, peering down at her.
His jaw was tight and his body tense. Through gritted teeth he finished, “Because they already caught him. Cavanaugh, and he got away with it because Shaw lied for him.”
Sadie’s expression changed from intense listening to confusion. She shook her head slightly, not understanding what Stone was saying. Stone’s rigid body watched Sadie. She seemed to be piecing everything together in her head but she was still confused.
“But why would Shaw lie?” Her voice was soft and guarded.
He kept his tone composed, but the anger radiated out of him. “These two go way back, they grew up together. Barry Shaw, coming from a good, well-respected family and Bryant Cavanaugh…not. They were seniors in high school, last week before graduation they got into a car accident. They had been partying, drinking a shit ton. They had a head-on collision with another car. They survived with minor injuries. The other driver wasn’t so lucky. She died the next morning in the hospital. She was thirty-two, married, mother of two.”
Stone walked back to his dad’s desk, his back to Sadie. This part always ripped at his heart. “The police on the scene said when the victim was taken away, they searched her car. The back seat was filled with decorations for a princess themed party, for her daughter. She was out getting last minute stuff for her kid’s party the next day.”
Heaving a long breath, Stone dragged his hand though his hair before taking a seat at the desk, resting his hands on the table. He bowed his head again, not allowing Sadie to see the anguish on his face. Although he knew it could be heard in his voice.
“Cavanaugh and Shaw were taken in, given Breathalyzers. Both of them were well past the legal limit. Cavanaugh was charged with vehicular manslaughter, tried and sentenced to seven years in prison. Shaw was cited and ticketed for underage drinking. He paid his fines and spent his summer doing community service before heading off to college that fall.”
“Stone, I don’t understand. If…” Sadie was shaking her head when Stone interrupted her.
“Shaw was the driver.”
“What?” she whispered.
“Shaw was driving that night; he was the one who killed that woman, not Cavanaugh.”
“Then, why would Cavanaugh take the blame, he had to know he’d go to jail.”
Stone released a disgusted snarl. “I’m sure he did but Shaw’s family gave him an offer he couldn’t refuse. They paid him off. Cavanaugh was a kid with no future and Shaw was a kid with a bright one. So, Bryant Cavanaugh took the money, did the time, while Barry Shaw went off to college. The end, right? Not quite, because when Cavanaugh got out of jail, he paid Shaw a visit. Apparently, Cavanaugh was greatly underestimated by the Shaw’s, which Barry Shaw found out when he was played a recording of Shaw’s father bribing Cavanaugh to take the wrap. It included Shaw admitting he was the one driving the car.”
“Oh my God,” Sadie whispered.
“Yeah, so a deal was made. Someday Cavanaugh would come calling for a favor and Shaw would oblige. You want to guess what that favor was, Sadie?”
“Alibi.” Sadie whispered in a broken voice.
He snorted. “Yeah, that motherfucker knew, he fucking knew that he could kill that little girl and get away with it. He knew Shaw would fulfill his obligation.”
Stone jumped up and walked over to the far wall near the windows again. His enraged eyes stared into Sadie’s. She was sickened by it all. And this was part of his life.
“So where do you fall in this?” she quietly asked. She was twisting her hands together. Stone stared at her hands. She only did that when she was nervous. He looked back up at her face, her beautiful face. Fuck! He was going to lose her.
“I’m a bounty hunter, Sadie, that’s my job. Everything Ethan told you about our company is true.” He sighed. “But we do have other assignments. Cavanaugh was one of them.”
“What kind of assignments?” Sadie whispered.
He took a deep breath and leaned against the wall. He raised his eyes to the ceiling before looking down to meet hers. His angry eyes had changed to sadness. His next words were going to break them.
“We were hired to find Cavanaugh. He went off the grid right after he was released. Our job was to find him and deliver him to the clients.” Stone inhaled another deep breath and released it with his next words. “Our clients are the victim’s family.”
“What did they do to him?”
“What would you do to the man that raped and murdered your little girl?” he countered with an angry scowl and a bite in his tone. He immediately regretted snapping at her when he saw her flinch. He took another breath and exhaled. “We are hired to find and deliver. We don’t play a part in anything beyond that, usually. We have associates that deal with the aftermath. Don’t bother asking for details, I can’t and won’t give them to you.”
“So you found and delivered Cavanaugh to his death?” Sadie asked solemnly.
Stone nodded.
“And the other guy, Shaw, what happened to him?”
“I can’t tell you any more than that, Sadie.”
There was a long silence between them. Stone watched Sadie as she took in everything he just said. He was a vigilante. Stone looked down at her hands as they trembled. Her face was distraught. If this was it, then Stone was going to put it all out for her to see. He told her what he did, now he was going to tell her why.
“We come in when the law fails to give the victim’s families the justice they deserve. The justice they want. We get them the justice they need. You don’t see what I see, Sadie. I see them, the ones left behind. I see their pain, so much fucking pain—it filters into who I am. Have you ever s
een someone lose the most important person in their life? The person they live for, smile for, fight for? The one they breathe for? These people are so much more than a victim’s family. They are victims, too. Broken, ruined victims. It’s a battle to just get out of bed because their pain is so real, so raw. They feel like it’s going to swallow them whole. Every day they wake up knowing they have to live without their child. They have to find a way to get up in the morning, go to work, live their lives. They’ll never hear her laugh again, see her smile, smell her scent, they’ve lost everything. There is no greater loss to a parent than loss of their child. And because of a lie, this child’s killer walks. He gets to laugh, smile, and just breathe. He gets to live and he’s free to hurt again. And he would, Sadie, eventually he would do it again. But not Cavanaugh. He will never hurt another child again. I sleep better at night knowing that and so do the victim’s families. They deserve an eye for an eye and I’m willing to help them get justice…at any means. They heal from it, Sadie. They can go on knowing that no other child will die from this killer, no parent will go through this pain. They get their justice and they heal knowing their only daughter didn’t die in vain.”
Stone’s pain was raw. It filtered into Sadie and her tears fell.
“Stone…” The tears were streaming down uncontrollably.
He wanted to go to her and wrap his arms around her and soothe her. But he remained where he stood. He didn’t have that right with her anymore. She wasn’t his, he lost her.
“I’ll have your flight booked for early morning tomorrow. I can have a cab bring you to the airport,” Stone uttered as he walked toward the door. He had to get out of here, get away from her. Watching her and not being able to hold her was breaking him. He opened the door and started out but he stopped, he kept his back to Sadie. “I only wanted to give you sweet, it’s what you deserve, Sadie. I’m sorry I can’t be that man for you, sweet girl.”
Stone closed the door behind him.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Sadie stayed in the study, seated on the couch, for a long while. He couldn’t be that man he said. Up until an hour ago though, he was that man. He wanted to give her sweet, but life wasn’t sweet, not always anyway. He made the choice for her to leave. He didn’t give it to her. There wasn’t a reason to sit there and wonder if she could live her life with a man who basically played the angel of death. That choice was made by Stone not her. She could live with this.
Her eyes welled up with tears as she let her head drop into her hands. She had lost him again.
She thought of the question Stone had asked her. “What would you do with the man that killed your little girl?”
What would I do?
She got up from the couch and walked out to the staircase. The house was silent. The lights had all been turned off except for a dim bulb shining from the staircase. She walked up the long staircase dragging her hand across the railing. When she reached the top of the landing she looked to the end of the hall.
Sadie made her way down the hall. It was quiet, no sound coming from Bogs’ or T’s room. She stood in front of Stone’s door taking quiet breaths. She raised her hand to knock but stopped. She reached for the doorknob and found it unlocked. Sadie walked into a dark room with just a glimmer of light from the moon shining through the window. He was sitting on the edge of his bed. His pants were on but he had taken off his shirt. His head hung low and he was hunched over with his elbows resting on his legs.
Sadie closed the door behind her and leaned against it. She wasn’t sure if he heard her come in or if he even wanted her there, but she couldn’t just leave without saying it. She would always regret him not knowing how she really felt. She stepped into the room and stood in the center.
Clearing her throat got his attention and he raised his head. What she saw was a man distraught, a man that believed he’d lost her and that thought was tearing him apart. No tears. No begging her to stay. His face and his eyes told her what he was thinking—he had lost her.
“I love you,” Sadie blurted out as she stared into his eyes and watched as they widened in surprise. She gave him a sad smile and shrugged. “It’s true, I love you. It’s crazy, right? We’ve known each other for such a short time, yet, here I am professing my love to a man who is sending me away tomorrow.”
He started to speak but she raised her hand to stop him.
“Let me finish, Stone. Just…let me have my say. This time you listen.” He nodded and she took a deep breath, the tears already forming in her eyes. “I get why you want me to leave. You have all these preconceived notions on what’s best for me, and I love that you want the best for me. I really do. But who are you to decide what that is?” A tear fell as she continued. “You said you can’t be the man I deserve, but how do you know you’re not that man? I deserve someone who will love me, be honest with me, trust me, be faithful to me, and protect me. Are you telling me you can’t protect me, Stone? Because that’s exactly what you did the night Tyler came by my place. And, baby, you’ve been faithful. I know you’ve only been with me since we’ve gotten together.” She gave him a knowing brief smile. “And less than hour ago you put all your trust in me and were open and honest, more than anyone has ever been with me.”
Sighing, she walked over and stopped in front of him. He watched her. She bent down and got to her knees in front of him, taking his hands in hers. Staring at their hands as they were intertwined, peace washed over her.
“I know you don’t love me right now but maybe someday? Someday, Stone? Maybe someday what you feel for me will become love. I’m hopeful there will be a day when you feel for me as I feel for you.” She raised his hands and placed a kiss on the back of his hands.
“Babe, I do…” he whispered, but he didn’t finish because she stretched up to his lips and kissed him. A soft, full of love kiss. She hugged him close around his neck and he circled her waist, lifted her up and lay back on the bed.
“I’ll go, Stone, if that’s what you want. I’ll go, but I don’t want to,” Sadie muttered. His arms tightened on her and he flipped them over so she was now under him.
“And my job, Sadie, what about that?”
Sadie spoke honestly. “You asked me what I would do if I was a family member of the victim. Truthfully? I don’t know. I have the luxury in life of not being in their position. God, I hope I never am. I can’t even begin to imagine what and how they must feel. No parent should ever outlive their child. And to lose your child like that…” Tears filled her eyes. “Would I kill my child’s murderer? Yes. No. I don’t know, but I do know that I understand why someone would. I understand why you do what you do, Stone. And I do, I understand it all. I believe in you and everything you stand for.”
The room was silent. There were no more secrets. They were locked into each other. Eyes, body, and heartbeat were one.
She inhaled a deep breath. “Now…am I going back to Cedar Bluff tomorrow?”
His voice was hushed. “You aren’t going anywhere.”
“Then you have to make me a promise, Stone.”
“Anything,” he swore.
“Fight for me,” Sadie said, holding his stare. He blinked and pulled back a little. She knew her words penetrated him.
“Promise me you’ll fight for me. I’ve never had anyone fight for me, until you came along. I need to know when times get tough that you won’t just push me away, you’ll fight for me, for us. I need to know that we are in this together. I will always fight for you and I’ll never give you up, Stone, never,” she vowed, repeating John’s words from when Stone’s mom gave him up. Sadie repeated his words. She could see the recognition in his eyes. He knew that she knew.
He continued to stare at her. Sadie knew this was taking him back to an unhappy place but she needed this from him. In order to give him all of her, she needed to know he’d fight for them. Her fingers lightly dragged over his arms. His breathing was steady but deep.
“Stone.”
He lowered his head down
and his lips brushed against hers.
“I love you, Sadie. I’m going to spend the rest of my life fighting for you,” he whispered fiercely. He kissed her again and stroked her lips to open for him, which she automatically did. She tasted him and moaned. He tasted like home. Their lips moved over each other. He slowed the kiss to soft pecks until he stopped. He reached out, turned his hand over and slid his knuckles along her cheek.
“Sweet. I’m going to give you a lifetime of sweet.”
“I’m going to hold you to that.” She smirked. His lips quirked up.
“Tell me you love me again,” he whispered.
“I love you.”
“I love you too, baby!” He turned to his side and pulled her into his chest. He dragged the covers over them and Sadie snuggled deeper into him. They were pressed together so tightly she should have been uncomfortable but she wasn’t. She could spend the rest of her life right here, just like this. Safe and loved in the arms of the man of her dreams.
****
Stone woke up to the smell of bacon cooking, light rain hitting his windowpane and his beautiful girl nestled on his chest. Life was good.
He stared at the ceiling in his childhood room. The first room that was his alone that he didn’t have to share. It was his safe place, his quiet place. His mom said it was important that all the kids had their own rooms. “Everyone needs their own sanctuary.”
Stone remembered the first night he came to live with his mom and dad. His mom showed him this room. He tried to play it cool by just glancing around like it was nothing special but inside he was bursting. He had his own room that had things in it. Things for him. A closet and drawers filled with clothes. A big bed with blue blanket lying on top. Toys scattered throughout the room. That night, for the first time he could ever remember, he slept through the entire night. It was the most peaceful sleep he’d ever had.
Until last night.
Secrets no longer between them, Stone was at complete peace.
