Chapter 34
Malachi
Everett knew I needed to work off some excess energy.
Hunter had collected Cora for some training drills, so I was free to head to the gym with Everett.
I went through my regular exercises to work off this extra tension, and the low thrum of anxiousness that had simmered in my stomach as soon as I’d watched Gracie leave with the twins.
Worry gnawed at me that my Gracie was out there, and I wasn’t there to protect her.
I knew Oak and Ollie would and could protect her, but I wanted to be there, too.
“You should be taking it easy.” Ev grumbled as he lifted weights. “I don’t know how you think this was a good idea.”
Sweat dripped down my back as I moved from the rowing machine to the weight bench. Ev helped me adjust the weights and spotted me through my reps. My arms trembled after my usual fitness routine, but energy still hummed throughout my body.
After I paused to get a drink and stretch, Ev came over to join me.
“You might be pushing yourself a little too hard.” His gaze evaluated me from head to toe. “What’s eating at you? Other than Cain being out there.”
Everett saw more than others. His years of tracking, deducing, and analyzing, both in and out of the military, made him a master at picking up things people tried to hide. The intense focus of his steel-blue gaze on me was unnerving.
He’d seen me through so much ever since Oak and Ollie had brought me home on leave. I’d blended into their family, and Everett had become my confidant, my best friend, my brother.
“Gracie’s pregnant.” I whispered the words, as though I was betraying her if I spoke too loudly. “It’s still early and not my news to share, but I’d like to know what to expect. How can I help her? Take care of her. Do you remember anything helpful from the pregnancy with Maisie?”
I knew better than to say his ex-wife’s name, ever.
Everett looked stunned for a moment before a grin lifted his bearded cheeks and he thumped me on the back. “Radar, congrats, man.”
“It’s Cain’s,” I wheezed, a lump catching in my throat as I voiced the truth I hated.
“But I am going to claim the baby as mine. After all, it’s technically my niece or nephew, and Cain has no right to be a father.
He never deserved Gracie, and I will do everything in my power to keep her, for as long as she wants me. ”
“You’ve picked a winner. She’s someone you can ride the river with. Don’t let her go.” Ev dipped his head in a nod.
Everett was right. My Wildflower was incredible, dependable and honest, and everything I’d ever wanted. We could do this. I was not going to let her go. “I’m excited, but it’s been a lot, and with all this mess with Cain, we haven’t had time to just enjoy her being pregnant.”
“I can only imagine. Well, you’ll need to be prepared for cravings, and let me warn you, they can get really weird.
Stock up on mints, ginger candy, and lemon and ginger teas if she can stomach them.
Be prepared for waterworks and mood swings; they were a rollercoaster, but you two seem to be on the same wavelength, so I think you’ll be fine.
” He bumped me with his shoulder. “I’m so proud of you.
You’ve embraced this thing with Grace, wholeheartedly, and haven’t let your past or experiences cloud the life you’re building. That’s not an easy thing to do.”
His words made my cheeks burn. Sometimes he did not know how much I respected him and, in some ways, longed for his approval. “Thanks, man. Couldn’t have gotten this far without you and your family.”
Our heavy breathing filled the air around us as we sat in companionable silence.
We both worked through another set before grabbing some dinner and going our separate ways.
Even after the workout and a substantial meal, I was still on edge.
Rushing through my nighttime routine, I hopped into bed and tried to sleep, knowing I needed it to fully recover and be able to get back to work.
But I tossed and turned, sleep eluding me.
Checking the time, it was after one a.m. Gracie would finish up and be on her way home soon. Giving up on sleep, I stumbled back into the kitchen for something warm to drink as I waited for her to arrive. I was putting the finishing touches on my hot cocoa when there was a knock at my door.
Cora growled from her dog bed before jumping up and sitting by the door, tail wagging.
Moving to answer it, I looked up to find a rumpled Everett standing there, phone to his ear and stress creasing the lines of his face and the set of his jaw.
My body instantly went on high alert. “What’s happened?”
“Grace’s missing.” Ev’s words reverberated around my brain. Missing? She can’t be missing.
“Where’s Annie and Thor? Thor able to find a trail?” Ollie was as good a tracker as Everett, and I was thankful that he was already on site and might find something straight away. Cora whined as she nosed my hands in my lap.
“You need to get ready,” Ev said with a nod to my lack of a shirt and my wheelchair.
“Shit!” I cursed as I dashed for the bedroom, rushing to get dressed and put on my prosthetic.
We needed to get to the scene as soon as possible.
I could hear Everett’s clipped voice as I finished attaching my prosthesis and hurried to the door to grab my jacket and boots.
Ev had Cora ready in her vest and lead attached.
“What have they got?” My voice was hollow, but I needed something to focus on, a mission to move forward.
“There are signs of a scuffle, and the front cameras caught the edges of a black sedan with Wyoming plates. The back cameras were damaged.” Ev raddled off the facts as we jogged back to the main ranch house.
Walker, Hunter, Willa and Maisie were already in Everett’s truck while Rhett stood with Gramps on the deck. “You bring her back, you hear?” Gramps called.
Rhett cut an imposing figure, towering over Gramp’s hunched six feet and wearing his leather vest and boots. He rarely spoke other than grunts, but the Scottish cowboy was as solid as they came. He dipped his head in a nod. “I’ll scout the backwoods. I’ll take Cora and Hunter, canna borra Nitro?”
Hunter rolled down the windows. Ev’s truck was that old. “Yeah, his vest is in the tack shed with the boarding kennels. You know what to do.” I handed Cora over, and with that, we took off.
“Status,” I barked.
“Annie and Thor are on site. Cameras assessed. Waiting for Willa to scent. Max has arrived to take statements, running plates.” Everett ran through the events in sergeant mode, and I was thankful. It was something we all knew and could settle into. Less emotion, more action.
We arrived in record time, and the flashing lights of the sheriff’s vehicles had my anxiety spiking. Sam and Max approached as soon as we exited Ev’s truck.
Ev nodded in greeting. “What can you tell us?”
Max covered everything we already knew and had run the plates, and the car was stolen. Cursing inwardly, I made my way around the back of the bar to the site of the abduction—cause that’s what this was: an abduction.
Hunter and Willa followed, speaking to one of the deputies. “Sam, can you ask Avery for something of Grace’s? Willa can track.”
Moments later, Avery handed over Gracie’s apron. “You’ll find her, right?” Her warm brown eyes glowed with emotion.
“There is no other outcome.” My voice was raw as I rasped the truth. I would find her. We had to. There was no other option. I couldn’t live without my Wildflower, my Gracie, my heart.
“She’s lucky to have you.” Avery nodded at me and went back to comfort Flora, who was practically vibrating with rage on the sidelines of the crime tape.
Willa did her job, but we all came to the same conclusion: Cain had kidnapped Gracie and had taken her by car somewhere unknown.
Frustration and anger swelled inside me at Cain’s audacity.
Why risk taking her again? He had to know there was a warrant out for his arrest. I hated my brother, but he wasn’t stupid; he knew how to play the game.
So, what changed to make him act this reckless and who was helping him?
Panic and fear were eating at me. Where was she? What were they doing to her? My mind spun as Ev came rushing around the corner. “Rhett’s got something. Let’s go.”
Moving hastily, our crew piled back into Ev’s truck, Maisie and Walker offering to stay behind. Maisie went to help with Flora and Avery, and Walker went to go over security upgrades and see if he could find the sedan in older footage.
As soon as we were off, I asked. “Did you loop Max in?”
“No,” Ev grunted. “She’s one of ours, and how we bring her home might not fall within Max’s statutes.”
My heart swelled at Ev’s simple acceptance of Gracie into the fold. We all knew what Ev wasn’t saying. We might need to color outside the lines to keep her safe.
“What did Rhett find?” I asked.
“Nitro and Cora found a scent.” Ev’s words detonated the silence in the cab, as he floored it back to the ranch.
Hold on, Gracie, we’re coming.
Gravel scattered as we turned onto the ranch’s drive in less than five minutes and continued down to the back of the ranch’s property. As soon as Ev parked, we were all out and racing towards Rhett and the dogs off to the side, right by the damaged generator.
“Status?” Ev barked, and Rhett filled us in as Hunter assessed the dogs’ behavior.
“We need to move. The dogs are restless,” Hunter explained as he took Nitro and I took Cora. He passed me a Colt 1911 from his shoulder holster, I checked the magazine, and ensured the safety was on, before setting it in the waistband of my pants. I would use that later.
Hunter calmed the dogs as we waited for Ev to hand out vests and get his own gun from his lockbox.
Once we were all set, we followed Hunter and Nitro as he scented the path only he could see.
Moving through the thick forest outside the property lines, we traversed ice and snow until we came to a rundown fence with rotting wood and barbed wire.
Cora was sniffing back and forth in a zigzag pattern until she stopped sniffing and sat, still as a statue in front of the fence. Nitro pulled on Hunter’s sleeve and did the same. Hunter threw his fist up in a halt motion, and we all froze.
“Whose property is this?” I asked Ev.
He assessed his tactical compass. “We’re heading northwest so McKinley’s is still a few klicks over. This is still our property, but I don’t know what this is or why it’s here.”
Hunter assessed the dogs and the barbed wire of the fence, following the metal links slightly up the hill. “Tripwire and explosives. But also, accelerant.”
“Fuck,” Ev cursed. “Disarm?”
“On it,” Hunter called back, then he pulled his tools from his tactical belt and got to work disarming the booby trap.
Everett’s gaze assessed me, as he rubbed a hand over his bearded jaw. “Does your brother have any military or law enforcement experience? This seems too sophisticated from what you’ve shared about him before.”
“Not likely, but I agree this is far too complex for him to do on his own. He has help, no doubt.” And that thought worried me more than I liked.
“Disarmed, going to scout ahead,” Hunter stated.
He and Nitro returned moments later. “The hostiles are one click in, by a dilapidated shed. I couldn’t see Grace, but there are signs of at least three hostiles.
I disabled their car, and there are no other traps I could see or Nitro could scent in the immediate vicinity, but we need to be extra cautious if any of the accelerant ignites; this entire range could go up. ”
The fact that Hunter said they could be mere yards away had my pulse skyrocketing. Gracie was trapped with at least three people there to do her harm. Hold on, Gracie. I’m coming.
“We need a three-way approach,” Ev instructed as he laid out the plan. He and I would take the front, while the other two would flank either side. Hunter had assured us that the shed had no windows and only one door.
“Let’s move out,” I said as I handed Cora off to Rhett. I needed my focus front and center for this encounter.
Darkness engulfed us as we moved deeper into the forest, navigating the terrain with ease.
Even with Rhett, our team moved as a unit.
I knew little of Rhett’s background, but he moved with the ease of a Frogman, traversing the various ice and snow.
I wondered if he served, but he never spoke about his past. We learned early on that the topic was off-limits.
We made it to the shed in no time, taking cover to assess our entry. The door was wide open, and Cain was nowhere in sight. We each took our positions with Ev and me on either side of the door, ready to breach, when a scream pierced the air and my blood turned to ice.