Chapter 10 Cannon
Cannon
I’m at my desk in the security office, third cup of coffee in hand, when Miles Turner’s name flashes on my screen.
“Tell me you’ve got something.”
“RJ Henderson. Twenty-nine. Bull rider. Lives in an apartment outside Laurel.” Miles sounds tired, like he’s been up all night too.
“Ran his plates an hour ago. Guy’s got a record, Cannon.
Two restraining orders from two different women in two different counties.
Both cite the same shit: obsessive contact, showing up at their homes and workplaces, refusing to accept the relationship was over. ”
My jaw clenches. “Send me everything.”
“Already did. I’m bringing him in for questioning today. Just need to locate him first.”
“He’s going to run.” I’m already pulling up maps, calculating routes. “Guys like this, once they know they’ve been identified, they either run or escalate.”
“That’s what I’m worried about. I’ve got units watching his place, but his truck isn’t there. Gray Jeep Renegade, matches the description from all your footage.”
“He’s probably already in Wild Ridge.” My gut twists. “Watching.”
“I’ve got a unit heading to Stems & Blooms now. Plainclothes. And I’m on my way to Circle Ridge to show Willow the photo, see if she recognizes him.”
“I’ll meet you there.”
I’m halfway to Bennett’s main house when Jake calls. “You see the email from Miles?”
“Yeah. RJ Henderson. Mean anything to you?”
“Not yet, but social media shows he’s been liking Willow’s posts for over a year. Her business page, her personal page. Every single post.”
“Fuck.” I text Bennett to meet me in his office so he can run deeper background.
I meet both men upstairs, where Bennett’s already working his computer magic. As he works on a new algorithm to sweep socials with the info the chief sent over, his phone rings. After a quick exchange, his eyes meet mine.
“That was a buddy on the rodeo board. This Henderson guy volunteered at the Cattleman’s Dinner. He helped with table setup and worked the silent auction. He had legitimate access to that venue all day.”
My blood runs cold. “The bastard watched Willow and Vi set up those centerpieces. He watched her work, and we had no idea.”
“He’s good at blending in. I’m pulling footage from the arena now.”
I pace back and forth when my cell dings with a text.
I head downstairs to find Willow at the island, a coffee cup clutched in both hands. Her hair’s down, falling around her face, and she’s wearing one of my hoodies.
She looks up when I enter, and the trust in her eyes damn near breaks me.
“Miles is on his way. He’s got a photo.”
She nods slowly. “Okay.”
I move behind her, my hands settling on her shoulders. “Whatever happens today, I’m with you. We clear?”
“Clear.”
When Miles arrives twenty minutes later, he’s got a tablet and a thick file folder. He sets both on the counter, his expression grim.
“Willow, I need you to look at this photo. Take your time.”
He turns the tablet toward her. It’s the enhanced image from Jake’s surveillance footage, clearer than what we had before. The beard, the dark hair, the angular face.
Willow stares at it for a long moment. I watch her expression shift from confusion to recognition, then something that looks like disbelief.
“Oh my God.” Her voice is barely above a whisper.
“You know him?”
“RJ. RJ Henderson.” She looks up at Miles, then at me. “We… last year’s rodeo. We hooked up a few times. Made out behind the barns, got drinks. It was nothing serious. Just rodeo fun. We didn't even have sex.”
“Did you give him your contact information?” Miles asks, pulling out a notepad.
“No. I mean, maybe we followed each other on social media? But I didn’t give him my number or tell him where I worked.” She’s shaking her head, disbelief evident on her face. “It was casual, Miles. A week of fun during rodeo. When it ended, it ended. I didn’t think about him again.”
“Clearly, he thought about you.” Miles opens the file folder, spreading out printed documents. “RJ Henderson has two restraining orders against him. One from a woman in Bozeman he dated for three weeks. One from a woman in Billings he went on two dates with. Both filed within the last three years.”
Willow’s face goes pale as she reads the reports. “They sound just like what he’s doing to me.”
“Obsessive behavior, inability to accept rejection, stalking, unwanted contact. It’s his pattern.” Miles taps the folder. “He fixates on women after brief romantic encounters. In his mind, those encounters mean more than they do. He builds entire relationships out of nothing.”
“So I’m not the first.” Willow’s voice is flat.
“No. And unfortunately, the system failed the other women. First restraining order, he got a slap on the wrist. Second one, he did six months of probation. Clearly didn’t stick.
” Miles leans against the counter. “But we know his pattern now. We just picked him up at a traffic stop with no incident. He confessed to everything.”
“What’s the plan?” I ask.
“We need Willow to come down to the station and give a formal statement.”
“Okay.”
Violet moves toward Willow, hugging her from behind.
“I’ll go with you, Will.”
“Same.”
An hour later, Bennett and I sit outside a small room at the Wildridge P.D. Only one person was allowed to be with her during the interview, so Bennett and I sat right outside the window, where she and Violet could each see us.
The door opens, and she thanks Chief Turner for all his help before running into my open arms.
“It’s almost over.” Her breathing is slow as she nuzzles into my chest.
“Almost?” I pull back, my finger under her chin. “Explain.”
“I get to give a victim impact statement at his sentencing.” She looks at her cousin, then at Bennett, before looking back at me. “We all can.”
I sit in the courtroom, so proud of my sunshine girl. She reads her statement, letting RJ Henderson know exactly what she thinks.
“RJ Henderson took something very precious from me. The feeling of safety. Security. My ability to move about the daily tasks of life without the standard worry that all women feel.” She turns to the asshole.
“I don’t have feelings for you. I never did.
It was casual. But it was never a relationship.
You decided it was. You decided I belonged to you.
And because of your decision, one I never agreed to, never invited, and never encouraged, I was made to fear my own home. My work. My friends and aquaintances.
But you need to hear me when I say this. I am not yours. I was never yours. And every single thing you took from me—my peace, my routines, my sense of safety—I have taken back. Because you don’t matter in my life. And you never will.”
The second the courtroom door closes, I pull Willow against me.
“I’ve got you,” I murmur into her hair. “It’s over. You’re safe.”
“I was so scared,” she whispers.
“I know. But you didn’t show it. You were strong. So damn strong.” I pull back, tilting her face up to mine. “Do you have any idea how incredible you were just now? How brave?”
“I didn’t feel brave.”
“That’s what makes it brave, sweetheart.”
Willow’s hand finds mine. “Thank you for being here. And letting my voice be the only one to address RJ. I needed that.”
“Thank you for trusting me enough to let me stand beside you.”
She leans into me, and I wrap my arm around her shoulders, tucking her close. “I love you, Cannon.”
“I love you too, Sunshine.”