Chapter 25
Chapter Twenty-Five
M ack stuck his foot in the stirrup and swung up into the saddle. He patted Zeus’s neck. “Let’s go home, boy.”
It felt good to say that. And the Lassiter Ranch really did feel like his home now. But he was starting to feel like his home might be in another place as well—with Lorna and the kids. Being with them just felt easy, right, and he was happy when he was around them.
He let out a sigh as Zeus plodded toward the ranch. In his experience, just about the time he was starting to feel happy was when the rug got pulled out from under him.
His phone buzzed, and he pulled it from his pocket to see a Face Time request from Lorna. He was already smiling when he accepted the call, thinking she’d get a kick out of talking to him while he was out riding his horse. “Good morning, beautiful. Do you miss me already?”
Max’s terrified face filled the screen.
“Hey buddy, what’s going on?” he asked, already spurring the horse to move faster as panic tightened his chest.
The boy’s bottom lip trembled, and Mack could tell from his red eyes that he’d been crying. “My daddy was here, and he took my mommy.”
“What do you mean took her?”
“He said he was taking her to the courthouse to see the clerk and re-order.”
The clerk and recorder?
“Why?”
“He told my mommy he wants her coffee shop, and she said she would give it to him.”
“Where are you? And where is Izzy?”
Max turned the phone to show the baby asleep in the swing behind him then brought it back to his face. “Gertie is supposed to be coming. But she’s not here yet. And I don’t know what to do.”
“You did exactly the right thing, buddy,” Mack told him. “And I’m on my way to you right now. But I’m on my horse, and I need you to hang tight while I get back to the barn and to my truck. Can you just stay on the phone with me? And stay right there next to your sister?”
“Yes.”
“Okay, hang tight.” He gripped the phone tighter then pushed the horse into a full gallop, racing across the field and into the barn. “You still with me, Max?” he called out. He heard a small voice say “yes” as he tucked the phone into his front pocket then frantically pulled off the saddle and bridle, latching Zeus in his stall and sprinting toward his truck.
As soon as he was inside, he pulled his phone back out and was relieved to see Max still sitting in the same space. “I’m in my truck. I’ll be there in three minutes. You doin’ okay?”
“Yeah. Mocha is here too.” He tipped the phone to show the dog curled in his lap.
“I’m glad. You keep petting Mocha and letting your sister sleep. You’re doing an amazing job. I’m really proud of you, and I’m so glad you called me.”
“Me too.”
“Hey Max, why do you have your mom’s phone?”
“Because my daddy hit it out of her hand when she tried to call Gertie. Then they left without it, so I used it to call you.”
His fingers curled tighter around the steering wheel. He was going to kill that son-of-a-bitch. “That was a really smart thing to do,” he said, keeping the focus on the boy’s clever actions instead of the violent ones of his father.
He kept up an easy conversation with the boy as he sped into town and practically jumped the curb pulling into the driveaway. Max was sitting on the floor by the corner of the sofa when Mack flung open the door, but he got up when he saw him, ran across the room, and flung himself into his arms.
Mack wrapped him up tight, pressing his cheek to the boy’s head and thanking God for protecting him and Izzy while they were on their own.
An undercurrent of dread filled him as he thought about what was happening with Lorna, but he knew her well enough to know she’d want him to take care of her kids first before worrying about trying to find her.
The door opened behind him, and he turned to see Gertie coming in.
“My word, I’m so sorry I’m late. I had a flat tire, and I had to wait for the garage to come out and help me, and my stupid phone was dead.” She paused in the process of dumping her purse and knitting bag on the table then her expression turned to concern as she must have noticed Max’s tear-stained face and the way he was holding on so tightly to Mack. “What’s going on? What’s happened?”
“My daddy came over and took my mommy,” Max told her. “She tried to get him to wait for you, but he said no, so I called Mack on her phone all by myself.”
Gertie’s eyes widened in alarm. “What?”
“It sounds like Lyle took Lorna to the courthouse to get her to sign over the coffee shop to him,” Mack explained.
“Why would she do that?”
“Because my daddy said he would take me and Izzy away if she didn’t.”
That bastard.
“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry I was late,” Gertie fretted. “I can’t believe today of all days…”
“It’s okay, it wasn’t your fault. It was all Lyle’s.” He didn’t want to think about how terrified Lorna must have been to leave her babies alone. “And apparently, our sweet girl has slept through the whole ordeal.” Mack nodded to Izzy as he gently set the boy down on the sofa. The little dog jumped up and curled into his lap. “Now that Gertie’s here, I’m going to go find your mom, okay?”
Max nodded.
Gertie hustled to the sofa, sat down, and pulled the boy to her side. “Should I call the police?”
“No, not yet. We’ve already been talking to a deputy. Let me find Lorna, and then we’ll call him.”
“Go,” Gertie told him. “I’ve got the kids covered. Go get Lorna.”
“You don’t have to hold onto me so tight,” Lorna told Lyle as he all but dragged her into the courthouse, using the same tight controlling grasp on her forearm he’d used before. She’d snuck a glance at her arm in the car and saw the set of circular bruises the grips of his fingers had left there. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“I just don’t want you changing your mind and trying to run away.”
“I won’t change my mind. My kids are more important to me than anything. So, you can have the coffee shop and the building.”
He leaned close to her ear. “I know I can.”
He was close enough for her to smell the beer on his breath, and she wondered if that was from this morning already or the stale leftover scent of the night before. Alcohol was the usual culprit fueling the worst of his rages, and she worried about what it couldtalk him into this morning.
The Clerk and Recorder’s office was on the second floor at the end of the hall. Lorna was thankful the elevator and hallway had been empty, and they hadn’t run into anyone they knew.
They stopped outside the office door, and Lyle tightened his hold on her arm. “Now, I’m gonna let you go, but you’re gonna behave when we get in there, right?”
“Yes,” she whispered, loathing the submission in her voice.
She wanted to yell and scream and fight and claw his psychotic eyes out, but more than anything, she wanted to get this over with and get back to her children.
Please God, let Gertie have shown up already.
They stepped through the office door, and Lorna was both thankful and mortified to see Judy Fitzgerald sitting at her desk. She was grateful for the familiar face of a friend, but ashamed that this woman would soon witness how weak she was and how she had succumbed to Lyle’s power over her.
Judy looked up, a pleasant smile on her face as they walked in, but her smile faltered as her gaze dropped to the bruises on Lorna’s arm.
She hadn’t seen her reflection, but she wondered if the red sting of the backhand still showed on her face, as well. Maybe the heat of humiliation rushing to her cheeks would hide it.
“Lorna. Lyle. What can I help you with today?” Judy kept her tone congenial, ever the professional.
Lyle nudged Lorna hard in the ribs.
“Oh…um…we would…I mean… I would like the deed to the commercial building where Mountain Brew is located because we…I mean… I want to transfer ownership of it over to Lyle.”
“You want to give the coffee shop to him ?” Judy asked, the astonishment evident in her eyes.
Lyle nudged her already bruised ribs again, and she fought not to cry out in pain. “Yes, I do.”
“I don’t think it’s your job to question your customers, Ju -dy,” Lyle sneered. “I think it’s your job to just get them what the hell they want.”
Lyle’s behavior was terrifying Lorna. He usually used his charm and charisma to get his way with people. In this town, he was one of the good old boys, a high school jock, who liked to pick up a round at the bar. But today, the asshole that she knew and had once loved was surfacing, and it told her that he’d either already been drinking or just how desperate he was.
And neither option was a good one.
Judy peered at Lyle over the top of her glasses. “I see. Thank you for explaining that part of my job to me. Unfortunately, I’m not going to be able to help you today.”
Lyle glared at her. “Why not?”
“Because we don’t keep those deeds on file here. There was a fire some years ago that destroyed a bunch of records, and ever since then, we have stored the most important documents in Denver.”
“So, you’re saying we have to drive all the way down the pass and to Denver?”
“No, not necessarily. I can put in a request for the documents, and they’ll get sent up here, usually within five to seven business days.”
“Five to seven days? We can’t wait that long.” He peered around the office at the filing cabinets and shelves behind her desk. “You’ve got to have some kind of transfer of ownership form we can sign to do this today. I looked it up online, and it said we just had to come down to the clerk and recorder and you could take care of it.”
Judy looked at Lorna. “Are you sure this is what you really want to do?”
“Of course it is,” Lyle answered for her. “It’s part of our divorce settlement. Now are you gonna help us with this, or am I gonna have to find someone else who can?”
“No,” Judy said, staring directly at Lorna and giving her a solemn nod. “I can help you.” She opened a file drawer, rifled through it, then drew out a one-page form. “This should accomplish what you need until the deed arrives. It’s a transfer of business but it takes two business days to take effect. So, with the weekend, the business won’t become yours until Monday.” She smiled at Lyle, but the smile didn’t quite meet her eyes. “Surely, you can wait through the weekend to take over the shop.”
“I guess I’ll have to,” Lyle said. “Where do we sign?”
“Let me get a little information from you.” She filled out their full names and the address of the business then frowned. “I just realized, we’re going to need a notary to sign this, and she doesn’t come in till later today. So, you may just have to come back.”
Lorna finally caught on. Bless this woman for trying to help her.
“That’s ridiculous. You can witness it and have her put her little stamp on it when she comes in later,” Lyle told her, snatching the form from her hand and signing the line by his name without even reading it.
Lorna was pretty sure that wasn’t how it worked, but if it would get them out of there quicker, she’d sign it. Lyle thrust the pen into her hand, and she scribbled her name on the line.
“I’m sure that will be fine,” Judy told them as she took the form back. “And I’ll place an order for the deed to be delivered up here as soon as possible. Is there anything else I can help with?”
“No, that’s it.” Lyle plucked one of the cards from the holder on her desk and scribbled his name and number on it. “Call me as soon as it comes in.”
“I look forward to it,” Judy said, but Lorna caught the sarcasm in her voice.
Lyle was too busy shoving her out the door to notice. She was sure the opinion of an older woman in a county office was of no consequence to her arrogant ex-husband.
The elevator at the end of the hallway dinged, and tears sprang to her eyes as the doors opened and she saw Mack inside.
His jaw was set, and the heels of his cowboy boots struck the tile flooring as he strode out of the elevator and toward them.
The door to the stairwell was in front of them, and Lyle grabbed her arm and pushed her through. She stumbled down one flight in front of him, then he shoved her to the corner of the landing, and she fell to her knees as he sprinted down the next flight without her. “I’ll see you soon,” he called over his shoulder. “And tell Lassiter to back the fuck off.”
The door at the top of the landing banged open, and Mack flew down the steps and gathered her into his arms.
She pushed against him. “I’ve got to get home. The kids are alone.”
“I just left your house. Gertie’s with them.”
Her knees buckled, but Mack’s strong arms held her up, and the sobs she’d been holding in finally broke free. She clung to his chest, surrendering to his caring embrace as he hugged her to him.
“I was so worried about you,” he said into her hair. “I was praying I would find you here before that asshole took you somewhere else.”
“How did you find me?”
“Max used your phone and Face Timed me out at the ranch.”
A laugh broke through her tears. “Of course he did.”
“You would have been so proud of him. He sat right next to the swing, and Izzy slept the entire time it took me to get to him. Which I’m pretty sure I set a new record for speeding to your house.”
“What happened to Gertie?”
“She had a flat tire and a dead phone. She feels terrible for being late.”
“Oh no, poor thing.”
He drew back and wiped the tears from her cheeks then brushed her hair back from her forehead and pressed a kiss there. “Max said Lyle hurt you. Are you okay?”
She nodded, touched by his deep concern. “Yeah, I’m fine. He caught me off guard, and Max saw him backhand me, but he could have done a lot worse.” She told him about Lyle’s threats to take the kids and his claims of her being a bad mother.
“That’s bullshit. You’re a great mom. You always put your kids first.”
“Thank you. And I would do anything for my kids. That’s why I’m giving him the shop.”
“He can’t just expect you to give him a commercial property.”
“Oh, yes, he can. That’s why he brought me down here, to transfer ownership of the building to him.”
“Did you do it?”
“Yes, I think so. Judy Fitzgerald helped us, and she said the actual deed was in Denver and it would take close to a week to get here, but we did sign something that said he gets the shop in two business days.”
“That gives us the weekend to figure out how to fight him and to keep your kids.”
She shook her head as she pulled away. “No. I’m not going to fight him. He can have the building. Especially if it means he’ll go away. He wants to take the money from the sale and start over in Florida. I can always find another job.”
“But that coffee shop was your dream.”
“And I got to enjoy that dream for a little while. But nothing outranks my kids. And it will be worth the loss if he leaves.”
“Guys like that have a way of showing back up again. Especially if they think they can get something out of you again.”
“This is what I can do now.” She swiped the remaining tears from her cheeks with the back of her hand. “Can you give me a ride back to my house now? I’d really like to hug my kids.”