Chapter 9
Every noise caused Cassie’s pulse to kick up a few more notches as they waited for Hudson’s classmate to show. She didn’t like the idea of a picture of her being circulated around town or the fact that Jeb might have already seen it.
Every second that ticked by felt like a time bomb.
Every minute she stayed in town made her that much more exposed.
The tow truck pulled up, the driver—Jeb, she assumed—waved, and then he parked in front of Hudson’s truck. Jeb exchanged greetings before getting right to work. He was tall with black hair and bottle-thick glasses. He was polite.
She kept her back turned to him as much as possible without coming across as rude.
“Hop in, and I’ll give you a ride into town,” he said before looking at Hudson. “We can catch up on the way.”
“I’ll let you scoot in first,” Cassie said to Hudson.
“That way, you two won’t have to talk over me.
” Since Hudson dwarfed her, it would also be easier to hide on the other side of him.
If Jeb had seen the missing person’s picture of her being circulated, he might not be able to put two and two together since she’d let her hair grow back to its natural color and stopped straightening it.
Cassie twisted her fingers into a knot. Hudson glanced over and then took her left hand in his, linking their fingers. The connection meant the difference between a full-scale panic attack and being able to breathe for the rest of the ride.
The drive seemed to take forever. Cassie couldn’t wait to get out of the tow truck so she could talk to Hudson.
Jeb drove them to town in less than half an hour. A Jeep waited for them at the repair shop. She understood why Hudson would want to ditch the truck instead of having the tire fixed. Jarek or his people knew what kind of vehicle they’d been in. They knew the color. They would see the license plate.
Shit.
Would that lead Jarek to the ranch? Would it put Hudson’s family in danger?
“Can I see you for a minute over here?” she asked when they were out of the vehicle, motioning toward the side of the repair shop.
“Sure thing,” Hudson said, keeping their connection as they rounded the building. “What is it?” He let go of her hand, placed his feet in an athletic stance, and folded his arms across his chest while leaning forward.
“It’s very likely Jarek or his people know your license plate number.”
He nodded slowly. “Meaning they could go to my family’s ranch and stir up trouble.”
“That’s exactly what I was thinking.” She hated the thought of dragging innocent people into this fight. She put her hand up, palm against his chest to brace herself. “He would do just about anything to draw me out if I keep escaping.”
Hudson rocked back on his heels as he studied her. “If we tell them everything, they’ll want to pitch in and help.”
“Can we say no?”
“We can try, but believe me, they’re a force once they dig their heels in.” He paused for a beat. “They’re actually helpful once they know the stakes, and they’ll respect any boundaries we throw at them, which doesn’t mean they won’t have their own opinions because they will.”
Cassie thought about one of his family members being caught off guard because they weren’t warned about what might be coming. “Okay, we have to fill them in. It’s the only way we can give them a chance to defend themselves.”
His smile might have been brief, but it delivered the impact of a bomb detonating.
“They have to be warned,” she said, repeating it like a mantra in her head a few more times to cement the decision. It had been too long since she’d opened up to anyone, let alone a whole family, and she wasn’t any good at it.
“We can head that way now. I just need to grab the keys to the Jeep from Jeb.” He held up a hand, telling her to wait.
The urge to run struck the moment he turned the corner and disappeared.
Could she draw Jarek away from Hudson and his family?
Should she give up? Let him take her back?
That way, she would be the only one to suffer.
Jarek would make it more difficult to leave a second time, but she was determined to break free from him.
He’d have to be dead to stop searching for you.
Jarek needed to spend the rest of his life behind bars.
Could she run now and turn herself in to the U.S.
Marshals Service? With what evidence? She could tell them about the money.
It’s gone by now. The voice in the back of her mind picked that moment to remind her that she’d taken a chunk of it.
Was that the real reason Jarek was after her?
For the money? She’d hidden it in a backpack that was currently locked inside a gym locker.
After flirting with the trainer, she’d convinced him to let her pay for a year’s membership in cash.
She had enough to get through a few weeks on her own.
Cassie didn’t realize she was holding her breath until Hudson came around the corner. She released it on a slow exhale.
“Ready?”
“Let’s go,” she said.
It took another forty minutes to arrive at Rescue Ridge Ranch.
His family home was as impressive on the inside as it was on the outside.
The massive tumbled-stone house looked more like the lobby of a fancy hunting lodge than a place where people lived.
Deer heads hung on walls with cathedral ceilings.
There was enough leather furniture to skin an entire herd of cattle.
Cassie wasn’t sure what she’d expected after witnessing Hudson request a family meeting over their group chat. She’d heard a few of their names already and hoped she remembered them.
A low hum of voices drifted down the hallway to the entryway.
Hudson reached for her hand. She slipped hers inside and held on to steady her nerves as they headed toward the chatter.
He introduced her to the twins, Owen and Archer.
Then, came Kade, whom she’d heard about, as well as Beau.
Chloe, the only female in the family, hopped up and introduced herself. She was as spunky as Cassie expected.
“Where’s Conrad?” Hudson asked, holding out a chair for Cassie so they could join the others at the table.
She sat down and studied the faces. What would it be like to grow up around so many siblings?
“He’s out of cell range,” Kade answered.
“I’m sure he’ll be here as soon as he gets the message,” Chloe said. “Travis is on his way, too.”
Having the sheriff involved freaked Cassie. She still hadn’t told Hudson about her son. Could she leave him out of the equation for now?
Might be best.
Owen tensed. “We need to consider carrying emergency phones for situations just like this one.” She remembered that he was the one who’d been caught off guard, abducted, after being mistaken for his twin, Archer.
Beau was an interesting character. Tension radiated off him in palpable waves.
He tapped his foot on the floor. He’d shifted his weight at least three times since she’d entered the room, and he had yet to make eye contact.
No one sat next to him. Or, it was possible he chose to separate himself from the others.
Isolation, she understood. Being the odd person out, she understood. Being somewhere you wanted to fit in but didn’t, she understood.
Her heart went out to him.
“First of all, I wanted to say that I’m sorry for involving your family in my situation,” she said, half expecting the others to shoot dirty looks at her for dragging them into this mess. “It wasn’t my intention to get anyone else involved in my mistakes.”
“We know.” Chloe reached across the table and patted Cassie’s hand. “And, believe me when I say that we understand.”
Tears pricked the backs of Cassie’s eyes at the warmth and understanding emanating from the room. Could she relax around Hudson and his family? Could she actually open up and let someone in?
Past mistakes made her want to close up. But now that Hudson’s toe was in the door, could she bring herself to push him out?
You’ll have to when the time comes to leave.
Nikki hurried through the back door and into the kitchen as Cassie finished updating the family. Hudson’s newly minted sister-in-law scanned the faces in the room.
“Has anyone heard from Conrad lately?” Nikki asked. Tension sat thickly in the room as heads shook.
“He was supposed to be back to meet me for a doctor’s appointment,” she said. She dropped her gaze. “He wouldn’t miss this.”
“Is everything all right?” Chloe asked, the first one to get the question out as everyone sat a little taller in their seats. There’d been enough drama in the family to fill a lifetime and bad medical news wasn’t something anyone wanted to hear.
“He’s supposed to be my ride,” Nikki said, but the evasive response sent alarm bells off.
“I’m heading into town after this,” Chloe said. “I can take you.”
“No.” Nikki shook her head and twisted her hands together. “It’s okay. I’ll just drive myself. It’ll be fine. It’s just not like Conrad to say he’s going to do something and then not show up. I saw the chatter on the group chat and got worried.”
“It’s understandable with everything going on,” Chloe said, being the level-headed person she’d always been.
She might be the youngest, but Hudson figured she was one of the wisest and most practical out of all the siblings.
She picked up her cell and fired off a text.
“We’ll keep trying to contact him until he gets back in cell range.
” Chloe looked at each person in the room.
“I think we can all agree that’s the most likely scenario here. ”