Chapter 2 #2
Tanner made his way across the room and kneeled in front of Skyla.
He took her hand in his, and held it for a long moment, meeting her eyes in a meaningful silence.
He didn’t have to tell her that if she ever needed anything, all she had to do was ask.
He didn’t need to tell her how sorry he was for her loss, or how heartbroken he was seeing the dark circles and redness around her eyes.
He’d known Skyla for years, but it wasn’t until she and Blake had gotten together that he’d finally taken the time to actually talk to her and get to know her.
She was strong. Full of passion, grit, and the kind of courage that left her friends in awe.
He had no doubt she could handle anything life threw her way, but right now, the way she was looking at him, he’d give anything to take away the pain and anguish swimming in her eyes.
Just as he was about to release her hand and straighten, she leaned forward and embraced him in a gentle hug. He wrapped his arms around her, hoping to give her even a small amount of comfort. This would be a long journey of grief and recovery for her and Blake.
When she released Tanner and sat back, he gave a quick and quiet glance of acknowledgement to Orly and Hallie, then finally stood to his full height and went into the kitchen.
He needed a moment to regain his composure.
Luke was placing the drinks in the refrigerator, and handed him a cold beer as he walked in.
“You doing alright?” Luke asked.
Tanner nodded absently, taking the question for what it was. No one was doing alright here right now, and it would likely be a while before things went back to normal, whatever that was.
There was a soft knock on the front door.
Blake let Reese and Garrett in, greeting them in much the same way as he had Tanner.
Reese made a beeline to Skyla, where the women hugged tightly and made room for her on the couch.
Luke stepped out of the kitchen as Garrett brought the tray of pre-packaged snacks in and placed them on the counter.
“We didn’t know what else to bring,” he said.
Tanner placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. “I think we’re all at a loss here.”
Garrett shook his head. “You don’t understand. This is all my fault.”
Tanner’s eyebrows nearly touched his hairline. Surely his friend wasn’t implying Skyla’s miscarriage had anything to do with him. “How do you figure that?”
Garrett’s sullen face grew even more pale as he looked over his shoulder, as if to make sure they were alone. Luke, Caden and Martin were in the living room with the women. Blake stood nearby, not really talking with anyone, but at the same time not turning away from his friends either.
“It’s my fault,” Garrett said again, softer this time. “If she hadn’t healed me -”
“Whoa,” Tanner interrupted him. “First of all, you don’t know that, and secondly, she healed you over a month before she lost the baby. I doubt there’s any causation.”
Garrett shrugged, sucking in a loud breath. “Causation or correlation, it doesn’t matter much in this case, does it? The end result is the same.”
“No,” Tanner said. “Not if you’re blaming yourself for any of this. Skyla knew the risks when she healed you, and I bet if you were to ask her, she’d tell you the same thing.”
Garrett took a swig of his newly opened beer just as Blake decided to approach them. “What’s going on?” Blake asked, obviously picking up on the tension.
“Nothing,” Garrett said. “How are you doing? What can we do for you?”
Blake shook his head. “I’m okay. I mean, I’m not okay, but I’m okay.
Shit, I’m not making much sense, am I?” He rubbed a hand over his face and head, revealing just how exhausted and sad he was.
“Nevermind, I actually wanted to talk to you,” he said turning to Tanner, “about our conversation at Madigan’s before all this happened.
You mentioned Arlo J was killed - what’s going on with that? ”
Tanner breathed a small sigh of relief. Work, he could talk about easily. It was his go-to topic when life got hard or complicated. “Still just gathering evidence and data. Nico paid me a visit, squarely putting himself at the top of my person of interest list.”
“I haven’t told Skyla yet,” Blake said. “She has enough on her plate right now without worrying about that asshole at the moment. Though I have to say, Arlo J on a slab isn’t going to make me lose any sleep after the hell he put her through.”
“Agreed,” Garrett chimed in. “Any real suspects yet?”
Tanner shook his head. “No, but I foresee many sleepless nights rushing this case through the system. Captain’s worried about retaliation on the streets, and Nico flat out threatened it.”
Blake leaned his hip against the counter, obviously considering Tanner’s words.
“I’m taking the week off because I want to make sure Skyla takes it easy, but after that, if you need any help weeding through the long list of potential suspects, just let me know, and I’ll make the time to help you out. ”
“Thanks,” Tanner said. Most of his colleagues didn’t like sharing credit or working with other law enforcement agencies.
But he and his friends always kept their egos in check and made sure to do what was best for the case.
Especially if it involved one of their women.
Getting whoever killed Arlo J behind bars would put Blake’s mind at ease, and it would be one less thing Skyla would have to worry about while healing, both physically and emotionally.
Tanner spent the next hour visiting with his friends.
The men catered to the women, bringing them refills as soon as their glasses were close to empty, and arranging all the food and snacks on the coffee table in front of them so it would be within easy reach.
Everyone got quiet when Skyla teared up.
After the second time it happened, Blake told everyone she needed to rest, and pulled her into his arms, taking her to the bedroom.
Tanner helped his friends clean up and put the leftover food in the fridge.
By the time Blake came out and told everyone that Skyla was asleep, the place was clean and everyone was ready to leave.
“Thanks for coming,” Blake said. “It means more than you know.” He hadn’t said it to anyone in particular, but everyone knew he’d meant it for all of them. Caden squeezed his shoulder. Luke shook his hand. Martin embraced him with a slap on his back. And Tanner gave him a chin lift.
“We’re here for you, any way you want us to be,” Luke said.
“I don’t want to see you in the office until next Monday,” Caden said. “But I'll be pissed if I don’t hear from you before that. Even if it’s just one line in a text message. I don’t want to pester you, but I want to know how you guys are doing, and if there’s anything Hallie and I can do for you.”
Blake nodded. “I appreciate it.”
“Not this weekend,” Garrett said, “because it’s too soon for shenanigans, but maybe next weekend, I want y’all to come over to my place.
Just like we always do. It’ll be good for everyone, I think.
” There was a hint of caution in his tone, like he was afraid to overstep.
Tanner understood that. Now more than ever, he was afraid of saying the wrong thing. Of sounding insensitive or overbearing.
Thankfully, everyone responded positively, undoubtedly knowing that Garrett only wanted the best for their friends. Hallie nodded with a teary-eyed smile, and Martin gave Garrett a chin lift.
“We’ll be there,” Blake said. “Thanks, guys.” The words came out tight, as his eyes filled with wetness.
Saying goodbye to his friends was never a big deal, but tonight, Tanner felt like he was leaving a part of his soul behind.
He made the half hour drive home to the five hundred acres Off Rhodes Ranch, owned and operated by his family since the late eighteen hundreds.
He’d never lived anywhere outside of the ranch, and while he was well aware of the stigma of a thirty something year old man living at home, Tanner simply didn’t care.
This was where all his best memories were.
Where his aging parents lived. Where his sister, Faith, had moved back to with her daughter, Sienna, after her husband had left her for another woman.
It was where his parents had brought home the twins, and where Tanner had watched them learn to walk, and later taught them how to ride a bike.
He’d been too young to recall most of those things about Faith, but he was ten years older than the twins, and remembered almost every moment of their childhood.
Off Rhodes Ranch was the only place in the world Tanner felt completely whole, and like everything was right in the world. It was… home.
Just driving through the large gates that separated the property from the public road put Tanner at ease like nothing else ever could.
Smelling the familiar air of the vast pastures, hearing the horses in the distance, and taking in how the moonlight lit up the darkest corners of the property, seemed to lift the shadows his soul had taken on over the last few days.
The main house sat nearly half a mile back from the road atop a small hill overlooking the pastures and pockets of forest. But Tanner’s favorite part was the lake on the far end of the property.
As kids, he and his siblings would often swim in the cool blue water, and when they got a bit older, their dad tied a long rope to one of the thick branches of an old oak tree so they could swing over and drop into the deep end.
Summers at Off Rhodes Ranch were the best, which was why when he’d saved up enough money to put a down payment on a house, he chose to build his home right on the property on the other side of the lake where he had privacy, a great view of the water, and could still be near his aging parents, and all the memories he kept close to his heart.
Someday, if he ever had kids, Tanner hoped they would get to enjoy the same fun adventures he and his siblings had.