Chapter 30
CHAPTER THIRTY
“Itold your dad I intended to take care of you,” Charley said to the handsome man as they walked through the foyer of his house. “You need to rest.”
“That’s why I’m taking you straight to my bedroom.”
“Ha! Ha!” Charley giggled as tingles zipped through her entire body. Sully was carrying Wyatt and his dog bed since she refused to let him carry her suitcase. “What you need to do is go to the bedroom, lie down, and behave.”
“I’d rather do you than behave.”
“Oh, no you don’t. Not today.” Walking behind him, Charley made her way into his bedroom and set her bag on the hardwood floor. Sully put Wyatt and the dog bed down, and she said, “Because of your concussion and stitches, I’m not taking any chances with you.”
Sully pulled her into his arms. “You’ve already taken a bunch of chances with me, baby.”
Charley grinned. “I mean with your health.” Sully’s head lowered and when his lips met hers, she gently wrapped her arms around his waist. But because of his stitches, she didn’t hold on too tightly.
He began backing her toward his bed and stopped only when her legs met with the mattress.
When she opened her eyes, the love she felt for him surely showed on her face.
“Sully, I’m serious about taking good care of you. ”
“I want to take care of you too. Again, I’m asking you to please stay here in the country with me, Charley. Forever.” With a shrug and a coaxing grin, he said, “For as long as you like.”
And once again, she thought that wild horses couldn’t drag her away. “I will consider it if you let me make you some lunch,” she bargained.
“I am hungry,” Sully said with a chuckle and stepped back. “I’ll go to bed when you do. Let’s go to the kitchen and eat.”
“What do you think Rod Vaughn’s next move will be?” she asked.
On their way out of the bedroom, the puppy followed them, and Sully scooped him up. In the kitchen, Sully said, “If Vaughn is the guy who attacked you and shot your mom, he’s running on high alert, and anything is possible.”
Sully sat on a barstool at the island with the puppy in his lap, and Charley asked, “I told Detective Groves about the tattoo on the man who attacked me, didn’t I?”
“Yes, you did.”
Looking in the fridge, Charley asked, “What do you want to eat?”
“You. C’mere.” Sully crooked his finger, and Charley walked to him. She took the puppy from him, and Sully wrapped his arms around both of them. “This feels right.”
“It does,” Charley said and cupped a hand to the back of his neck. “It did from day one.”
“Yeah,” he nodded. “From day one.”
He kissed her, then let her go long enough to fix bacon and cheese omelets.
Having closed her flower shop and with Roy manning the gun shop while Randy took care of the horses and skeet shooting, they enjoyed lunch and then a restful afternoon together in the cozy den.
They didn’t turn on the news. Instead, Sully sent Randy a text, and Randy answered saying only Storm and Rain were in the stables.
So, they took Wyatt on a walk to introduce him to the horses.
The puppy bounded around the hay, and when Sully lifted him up to Storm and Rain, the puppy rubbed his little face against those of the horses.
While they were in the stables, a sheriff’s deputy showed up to touch base with them about the report Charley had made.
The deputy had gone to Triple C Ranch-South, but Rod Vaughn had not been there.
The deputy reported that a fellow officer had stopped by Charley’s Old Colorado City property and there was no evidence of a break-in or anything amiss.
That was a relief to both Charley and Sully.
The deputy gave them his name, asked Sully to be sure and tell Owen hello, and then left.
“Let’s go to Coopers’ Lodge for dinner,” Sully suggested once they were back in the den on the leather sofa.
Before Charley could answer, his cell phone rang.
“It’s my dad.” He answered the call and listened.
He made a half-turn, looked at Charley, and placed his hand on her knee.
“So, not only is the caliber the same, the bullets are a match,” he said to Owen, as well as letting Charley know. “I’ll be damned.”
Charley sat quietly, but inside, her nerves jangled.
Wyatt lay in her lap, and she hugged the little puppy remembering how Rod had kicked him.
She listened as Sully asked if CSPD had Vaughn in custody.
Not yet, but Detective Groves was getting ready to pick him up.
Charley’s heart thudded with anxiety. Sully thanked his dad for the update and clicked off his phone.
“Dear God, Sully,” Charley whispered. “What is wrong with Rod Vaughn?”
Sully rubbed his forehead and said, “I think he’s been relentless in trying to get you to go out with him again so that he could change your opinion of him.
” Wrapping his right arm around her and the puppy, he said, “He hoped if he could win you over, you wouldn’t suspect him of the crimes he committed against you and your mother. ”
“But he’s made himself look worse instead of better.”
“Because he’s an entitled jerk used to getting his way,” Sully said bluntly. “When you refused to go to bed with him, he came to your apartment fully intending to take what he wanted. Your mother, hearing you scream, saved you.”
Charley shuddered. “I will always be grateful to her for that.”
“Vaughn didn’t have the safety in place on his gun the day I took it from him. I doubt he had it on that day at your duplex. He panicked and shot your mom during his escape.”
“Yes.” Charley nodded. “I scratched him when I tore the neck of his hoodie and saw his scorpion tattoo. The police have a record of his DNA, from under my fingernails, on file. I wonder if they have tested that DNA against the Cave Killer’s.”
“If Groves hasn’t done so already, you can bet he will,” Sully said with a hug. “Come on, let’s go to the Lodge. If Cash and Tracy are there, we can give them an update.”
Sully suggested they keep Charley’s car safe and out of sight by parking it in his garage.
While she fed Wyatt, Sully moved her car.
A few minutes later she and Wyatt went outside so the puppy could relieve himself.
As they walked across the backyard toward the garage, Charley saw Sully talking on his cell phone.
He smiled at her and motioned her toward him.
As Wyatt played in the yard, Sully mouthed the word Dad and then hung up from the call.
“What’s the latest, Sully?”
“Groves hasn’t found Vaughn yet,” Sully replied, taking her hand and walking her back toward the house. “The cops put out an APB for him, meaning an all-points bulletin. They’ve let the Colorado Springs and Denver airports know not to let him on a plane.”
Back inside the house, Wyatt ran to his dog bed, as Charley smiled and said, “He’s going to be too big for that beagle-size bed before we know it.”
The sun had set, and the temperature was crisp so they put on jackets before going back out to Sully’s truck. He drove to Triple C Ranch-East, and they parked alongside other vehicles of folks there for dinner. They spotted Cash just coming out of the Lodge as they walked toward the entrance.
“Sully! Hey, buddy!” Cash said, coming forward and sticking out his hand. “So good to see you. Hi, Charley,” he added with a smile. “How’re you feeling, Sully?”
“Good. Supposedly I suffered a mild concussion, and I’ve got a bunch of stitches, but I have a great nurse.” With his hand going to his ribs, Sully grinned at Charley.
“My main job is trying to keep him quiet and resting,” Charley said. Thinking of Sully shooting out Rod’s tires, she rolled her eyes. “It’s not easy.”
“Yeah,” Cash said with a chuckle as they paused under the welcoming portico of Coopers’ Lodge. “Good luck with that.”
“How’s Tracy?” Charley asked, knowing her due date was about three weeks away.
“She is quiet and resting,” Cash echoed the last three words. “She won’t be back here to work here at the Lodge until sometime after the first of the year. She and Carly are spending some extra time together before the baby comes.”
“Please tell Tracy and Carly we said hello,” Charley said.
“I sure will. Anything new in Old Colorado City?” Cash asked.
Charley wasn’t sure how much to reveal since the information they had on Rod Vaughn was from Owen through his police contacts. So, she deferred to Sully with a glance.
“Off the record, Cash, the guy you briefly met at Triple C-South named Rod Vaughn, owns a gun that is somewhat unique in that it has a firing issue. That gun’s bullet matches the bullet that killed Charley’s mother,” Sully told him.
“Damn!” Cash replied with a concerned glance at Charley. “Is Vaughn in custody?”
“He will be as soon as the cops can find him,” Sully said.
“They’ve also got his DNA on file,” Charley added. “I hope they catch him soon.”
“Me too,” Cash agreed. “Along with the gun, the DNA will be damning evidence.”
“That’s almost exactly what my dad said,” Sully told him.
The scorpion tattoo wasn’t mentioned, but Charley and Sully promised to keep Cash posted.
In turn, he promised to let them know when Tracy went into labor.
Either way, they were invited to Triple C Ranch-Central for Thanksgiving dinner.
They were to bring Owen along, too, if he’d care to join them.
As for this evening’s dinner, they bid Cash goodbye and continued into the Lodge.
Sully waved at a couple of neighbors he knew.
Charley didn’t know anyone, but then dining customers came from far and wide, as well as the Springs, to eat here.
She and Sully both had the prime rib special, and it was delicious.
Though she’d wanted to treat him, Sully wouldn’t hear of her paying, and he left a generous tip as well.
Back in Sully’s truck, they returned to his ranch.
There in the light of the front porch, Roy and Randy stood talking to Owen.
As they exited the truck, Owen called, “Hello.”
“Have they caught him yet?” Sully took Charley’s hand as they walked to the porch.
“Not yet,” Owen replied. “But when I was driving by your ranch, I saw Roy and Randy and figured I’d bring them up to date.”
“We stopped by to see how you’re doing,” Roy said. “Everything is good at the store.”
“As you know, I took a group of skeet shooters out earlier,” Randy said. “The horses are in the stables, brushed down, fed, and settled in for the night, Sully.”
“Thanks guys,” Sully said. “I’m feeling better, and I’ll be back at the store in a couple of days or so to check on things.”
“If Charley thinks he’s up to it,” Owen added with a chuckle.
“That’s right, Owen,” Charley agreed.
Charley was glad for their families, dinner, and the distractions, because inwardly she remained on edge.
A murderer and would-be rapist was on the loose, and she’d once been his victim.
Were the young women in Old Colorado City his victims as well?
She felt the familiar shudder, and maybe Sully sensed it because he wrapped his arm around her and said good night to his dad and cousins.
With a wave goodbye, she and Sully went into his house.
After changing into comfortable clothing, they watched a movie on the big flatscreen in the den. As the movie ended, Charley saw Sully yawn. She coaxed him into the bedroom and he a tugged her into bed with him. Wyatt curled up in his cozy dog bed, they all fell asleep.
Charley saw the intruder as soon as she left the bathroom. He wore a black ski mask and hoodie. He grabbed her and shoved her onto the bed. He tore at her robe. She scratched him and screamed.
“Charley, wake up. You’re with me. You’re safe.”
Charley opened her eyes. Her heart was slamming against her ribs.
Moonlight showed her that Sully was in bed beside her.
She whispered his name like a prayer. He pulled her into his arms, and she clung to him.
Taking a deep breath she fought against the terror.
When her trembling calmed, she rolled to her side, and Sully’s muscular body molded to the length of hers.
He kissed the back of her head, and his arm came around her, protecting her.
Charley breathed a sigh of relief and closed her eyes.
He was obsessed with her. She seemed oblivious.
He was tired of getting nowhere. He burned for her and needed the blissful numbness.
Bipolar, narcissistic, borderline personality disorder, and schizophrenia.
Those diagnoses had been thrown at him over the years.
He spat on the floor. How insulting. He wasn’t mentally ill, just a normal man with normal needs.
The voices kept repeating that he was losing it.
Medicine helped control the voices, but he resented taking it.
True, he had been careless. The last victim, the one who looked like Charley, had escaped.
That had unnerved him. Why hadn’t Sullivan Custis died in that recent car crash?
He should have died! The fact that Custis was alive was not going to stop him from pursuing Charley.
He would not stop until Charley was his. Or until one of them was dead.