Chapter 5 Dean
CHAPTER FIVE
Dean
Back when I used to live in Hart County, I rarely came to see Owen at the Sheriff’s Office headquarters. All the guns and nightsticks and cameras, that reek of authority… it didn’t sit well with me. Not after I’d left my old life behind.
But today, I was here to see Owen in his official role as Sheriff Douglas just as much as I wanted to see my friend.
The officer at the front desk looked up as I strode inside. Somebody young who I didn’t recognize. “I’m here to see the sheriff, please,” I said.
He took in my messy hair and rumpled clothes. “Sheriff’s pretty busy.”
“I texted him on my way over. He knows I’m coming.”
Owen hadn’t been happy. You’re here right now? In Hartley? Thanks for the heads-up, buddy.
Owen Douglas wasn’t the most sarcastic guy, but I’d certainly heard it dripping from those words. I had some explaining to do. But so did he, and I didn’t plan to settle for an official “no comment.”
The desk officer looked skeptical.
But then Owen stepped out of his office with a frown. “Reynolds, get your butt in here.”
“Nice to see you too, Tex,” I said as I strode over to him.
He pulled me into a fierce hug. “It is. But you could’ve taken a moment on your way back to the US of A to send me a damn message.”
We went into his office. He jabbed a finger at the chair in front of his desk, and I sat down. Clearly I was in the hot seat.
Owen went around to his own chair, taking off the cowboy hat he always wore.
That was partly why his callsign had been Tex in the Marines.
He’d loved wearing that battered hat whenever he was dressed in his civvies, and he had the hint of a country drawl to match.
His family also owned a cattle ranch, though Colorado was home rather than Texas.
My best friend had been wilder in his Marine days. Fearless. Now that he was sheriff, he was far more cautious.
“I knew you were upset after my call,” he said, “but then you went dark on me. Not a word. I had no idea what was going on.”
“You had enough to deal with without focusing on me.” I hadn’t wanted to take up a single minute of Owen’s time when he should’ve been investigating Keira’s attack.
He gestured at my bandaged hand. “What happened there?”
“It’s not important.”
Owen raised a brow. I scratched my forehead.
“Anyway, there were some flight delays and crap like that,” I said. “I let Keira know I was on my way, but apparently she didn’t get the messages.” Because she’d blocked me, but I didn’t want to admit that to Owen. “I’m here now.”
“Have you seen her?”
I nodded. “This morning. She yelled and threw me out.”
It had been harrowing to see her in the hospital, so small and diminished.
Keira might not have been very large in size, but she had a personality that took up space.
Not because she was loud or boisterous. But because of her constant regard for other people.
The light she brought to any room she was in.
Earlier today, when I’d seen her in that hospital bed, her light had been burning a whole lot dimmer.
Then I’d made her feel worse just by showing up.
Owen’s eyebrows went sky high. “Keira Marsh, Hart County’s Sweetheart? The woman who was shot twice a few days ago, who’s immobile in a hospital bed, threw you out?”
“Figuratively speaking. Brynn probably would’ve done it on Keira’s behalf if I hadn’t removed myself. Keira seems pretty furious with me.”
“Can you blame her?”
“I guess not.”
Owen knew, more or less, how I felt about Keira. Though we’d never discussed it outright. He also had a pretty good sense of why I’d moved away from Colorado after staying here so long.
But I wasn’t here to talk about that.
“I’d like to hear about the investigation so far. What progress have you made in finding the people who did this?”
Owen tilted his head, assessing me. “First of all, how is that any of your business? Second, I wanna know what you’re thinking, showing up this way after two years.”
“At least once a week, you text and tell me I should visit.”
“But you’re not here for me, and I’m not asking because my feelings are hurt, asshole. It’s good to see you. I’m asking for Keira. She wasn’t the same after you left. If you show up like this when she’s already been through it and then take off again, how do you think that’s going to go?”
I was glad Owen was looking out for Keira. She’d been one of his most trusted deputies for years now. I would never begrudge him that.
Also, fair question.
“I plan to stick around for at least a while.” I rubbed a hand over my rough jaw. “I don’t want to hurt her again, Tex. Never wanted to hurt her at all.”
Owen’s mouth twisted. “I’ve avoided asking this because I love you and trust you. But before you left, you didn’t… There wasn’t anything between you and Keira, any reason for her to…”
A bolt of heat crackled in my veins.
“If you’re asking if I loved her and left her, the answer is no. I never touched her.” I’d cared way too much about her to do that. Regardless of what I might’ve wanted.
Go. That’s what you’re good at.
She’d never spoken truer words.
“Good.” Owen slumped into his chair, sighing. “You know, you look like a damn hippie with that long hair. All you need is a beard, but you could never grow a decent one.”
I chuckled, the tension in me unwinding.
We’d been friends for well over a decade now, and because of my nomadic ways, we’d often gone years without seeing each other face to face. But Tex and I always dropped into our easy closeness like this. He was one of the few constants in my life. I was grateful for it.
Even if that could put us in an awkward position now, considering what I was about to say.
“I appreciate you calling to let me know what happened,” I said. “I’m here because I want to make sure the people who went after Keira are brought to justice.”
“You think I don’t intend to do that?” My friend’s voice had taken on a harder edge.
I was treading on shaky ground here, and we both knew it.
“Every citizen of my county, every victim, matters to me,” he said.
“But Keira’s also my family. She’s put her life on the line for me, and I’d do the same for her a hundred times over. ”
“I know you’ll make your best efforts. But I had to come see for myself and make sure.”
“Because you’re suddenly a law enforcement expert?”
“I didn’t claim that.” My expertise was in…other areas. “It’s not meant as an offense to you.”
But there was no way I could’ve stayed across the ocean behind some bar, just living my life, as if Keira was a mere acquaintance.
As if she meant nothing to me.
Owen picked up a pen from his desk and squeezed it. “I assure you, we’re looking at every possibility. This investigation is my top priority, and we’re devoting every resource. Does that satisfy you?”
His tone told me it was time to back off and stop questioning his authority in his office.
Too damn bad.
“It doesn’t satisfy me at all. Sounds like empty words. Do you have suspects yet?”
“You need to let me take care of this.”
“When Genevieve was on the line—”
He stood up, his desk chair wheeling back against a filing cabinet. “Yes, I would’ve done anything when the woman I loved was in danger. You were there for me then, and I’ve never forgotten it. But this is not the same.”
“How?”
“Keira isn’t being held by some madman right now. She’s safe. She’s going to recover, and I need to run my investigation as normally as possible. By the book, so that when we find the culprits, the DA can prosecute and get solid convictions.”
“And if you fail? If they get away with it?”
“Keira is one of our own. Beloved not just in my department, but with everyone at Last Refuge.” He swallowed. “Trust that I’ll bring the Protectors in if more discreet action is necessary.”
Aiden Shelborne had founded the Last Refuge Protectors, and Trace Novo was their leader.
Owen had been there since the beginning, but his membership was far less official.
He was more like a trusted associate. Given his role as sheriff, he had to keep himself apart and purposefully ignorant of some of their activities.
The Protectors had dealt with some very bad men in the past. Men with no remorse. In those cases, they hadn’t shown mercy.
But would Owen truly give the Protectors free rein to target the men who’d hurt Keira?
Could I even trust the Protectors to do it?
They all had families now. Aiden, Trace, and River were married men, and two of them were fathers.
So much to lose. Even Brynn and Cole, both of them Protectors, had each other.
My position was different. I had few responsibilities. Nothing holding me back from doing what I might have to do.
“Do you have suspects yet?” I demanded again. “Names?”
“I can’t discuss that with you.”
“Fine.” I stood. “I guess we’re finished for now. Before I go, I’ll need the key to my storage locker.”
Owen gave me a hard look.
Certain items of mine had been in storage for a long time now. Since I’d left government service. When I’d taken off from Hart County, I’d left those items here, mainly because this place was the closest thing to a home that I had.
I’d given Owen the key so he could stop me from doing exactly this.
“What is it you’re planning to do?” he asked.
“Whatever I have to.”
His eyes narrowed. “Fucking hell. You’re serious about this.”
“I am.”
“Trace asked you to join the Protectors years ago. You have skills they can use. But you said no. For good reasons. You were true to yourself, and I’ve always respected that.”
I glanced at the wall. “But what the hell do my reasons matter if she gets hurt, and I don’t step up?”
There was a long pause. “This isn’t you, Dean. You’re not Bullseye anymore, and I know you don’t want to be.”
Hearing my old callsign made a muscle in my neck twitch. I resisted the urge to reach for my necklace, holding out my hand instead.
“The key. Please. It’s my property.”
He dropped his volume to a harsh murmur. “You said you closed the door on the man you were. Not that I judged anything you had to do back then, or any choice you made, but… Don’t destroy what you’ve built.”
What I’d built? Like that amounted to anything. Seasonal jobs and fleeting friendships. Freedom and peace of mind meant nothing if it meant turning my back on the only people I cared about.
Turning my back on her.
“Are you planning to make illegal use of what’s in that storage unit?” Owen asked.
“I can’t discuss that with you,” I said, throwing his own words back at him.
Shaking his head, he opened a desk drawer. Pulled out a small keychain with a single key attached. “For the love of all that’s holy, don’t be an idiot.”
“I’ll try.”
“Not a very convincing answer.”
“Best I can do.”