Chapter 24 Blake
BLAKE
Bumping along over the dirt road, I cursed the ranch truck Jeff had borrowed for me. I wasn’t used to driving a stick, and with every groan of the engine, I worried I was gonna kill the thing.
I drove as far as I could, pulling to a stop in front of the river, just a stone’s throw from the falls.
It was a beautiful area, but the thought that a little girl was found just atop the falls put a damper on the whole thing.
Glancing across the rushing river to the other side of the land that used to belong to the Callahans, I watched as a woman hauled in wood from a bin beside her house.
“Looking for a spot to park that tiny house of yours?”
I gasped, nearly jumping out of my skin as Liam sidled up beside me. “Don’t you make any noise?”
“I thought you were an expert at sneaking around.”
I did, too. “Apparently, my stealth detector went out the window when I got knocked up.”
Chuckling, his eyes scanned the terrain, locking on the woman across the river.
“Any idea who she is?” I asked.
“Pop set her up. He hasn’t said a word about her yet.”
“And you haven’t seen her in town?”
He shook his head.
“Isn’t that unusual?”
“Depends on why she’s here. Eventually, she’ll need supplies.”
As intriguing as it was that a woman showed up on the property, that wasn’t why I was here. “What do you know about the Callahan brother who died?”
“He didn’t,” Liam grunted. “He’s just brain-damaged.”
“No, I mean John’s brother.”
Understanding lit his eyes as he rocked back on his heels. “Jim. Christ, I haven’t heard his name in…a long fucking time.”
“No one remembers him?”
“I’m sure they do, but there were other things going on.”
“You mean the accident.”
Liam nodded. “That family has had a shit ton of bad luck over the years. But Jim’s death was just one of those things that happened. The rest of the shit…”
That wasn’t anything to go on. Bad luck could happen to anyone. “Did you ever get the feeling that he maybe wasn’t all there?”
Amusement flickered across his face at my question. “Any reason in particular you’re asking about that?”
“I just wondered if maybe there was a darker side to him.”
“There’s a darker side to all of us. What exactly are you getting at?”
I wasn’t entirely sure I wanted to make any accusations. Not yet. I had literally a scrap of an idea to go on, but it was the only thread I had to pull.
“It’s just a hunch I’m working on.”
“Yeah, well, watch what you say around town. Gossip spreads quickly.”
“I’m well aware of that,” I smirked.
“As far as your question, I’m not really sure what to tell you. That was before my time.”
“Wait, I thought he died when you were young?”
“He did, but I didn’t know him from a hole in the wall. Other than him yelling at us to get off his property, it wasn’t like we were over at his house all the time.”
“And is that normal? Yelling at kids to get off his property?”
A small chuckle slipped from his lips as he stared off into the distance. “You could say that. Especially with the shit we got up to.”
“And his brother? John?”
Shaking his head, he sighed. “When we were young, it was perfectly normal for us to be hopping from one property to the next. We hung out with his kids all the time.”
“Austin and Clay.”
He nodded. “Until the accident, we were all thick as thieves. Well, Austin became a little strange, but I never thought he would turn into the psychopath he is today,” he bit out, his demeanor immediately turning dark.
Considering Liam was only here because Parker and I pulled him out of that fire, I couldn’t say I blamed Liam for the anger he held toward Austin. Well, that and the fact that Austin was threatening Bailey, and he’d lost her because of the asshole.
“Do you think that psychosis runs in the family?”
“Wouldn’t surprise me, but again, I never really knew Jim.”
“And John?”
His jaw hardened again. “Mean as fuck, but I wouldn’t say he’s anything like Austin.”
I nodded, looking back at the falls. It wasn’t hard to imagine what Liam was going through, to be so close to having everything you wanted, only to have it all ripped out from underneath you.
I’d been through that, and now, Parker and I were happy and living the life we had imagined. Well, aside from the monkey wrench I recently tossed into the whole thing.
“Well, I’ve got more work to do. I’ll see you later.”
“Blake!” Liam called as I walked away.
Turning, I raised my chin slightly, waiting as he considered his words carefully.
“Just remember that you have a baby on the way.”
“I know,” I answered, wondering what he was getting at.
“Be careful what you start digging into.”
That sounded an awful lot like a threat, but considering what Liam had just been through, I was certain his words had more to do with his concern for his brother than anything else.
“I will.”
Glancing in the rearview mirror, I watched as Liam sat on the bed of his truck, staring at the river. He seemed so lost, but then again, that wasn’t surprising since he lost the woman he loved. With so much tragedy and heartbreak surrounding this family, it was no wonder they all clung together.
I let his words sink in as I drove toward the front of the ranch.
Be careful what you start digging into.
My mind immediately went to the last days I spent at the bureau, how everything seemed so cloaked in mystery and deceit. The lies I had been fed led me to Parker, and where I was today, but the sacrifice to get here had been almost more than I could bear.
I shivered as I felt the rush of cold water being poured over my face, the feel of my lungs burning as I desperately held my breath, praying I didn’t die.
Squeezing my eyes closed momentarily, I hoped I could push away the desperation by reminding myself I was no longer in that room, but as my heart kicked up a notch, I knew it wasn’t going to work.
I was going into panic mode.
I yanked the wheel to the right and pulled over on the side of the road.
Resting my head against the steering wheel, I sucked in a ragged breath, feeling the air clawing at my lungs.
My whole body went into meltdown mode as my fingers froze against the steering wheel and my head drooped as the lack of oxygen blanketed me.
Black edged my vision until I could hardly see a thing, but just as I was about to fully pass out, I heard someone calling my name, and then I was being dragged out of the truck. Cold shocked my system, but did nothing to ease the panic tearing my body apart.
My eyes slipped closed for the last time as the voice faded into nothing.
“Blake!”
My eyes popped open and I jerked upright, but a heavy hand settled on my shoulder, pushing me back down.
“Take it easy.”
“What happened?” I murmured, straining to see anything other than the cloudy sky above me.
“You wanna tell me that?”
I recognized the voice, and when I turned my head, it was to find Maverick staring down at me in concern.
“Shit,” I grumbled, pushing up again.
This time, he didn’t stop me, but the concern on his face was enough to make me watch my words.
“I’m fine.”
“Yeah, that’s why I found you nearly passed out behind the wheel. Is it the baby?”
Shaking my head, I started pushing up on shaky legs, determined to move past this.
“Watch it,” Maverick warned, grabbing my arm as he helped me up. “What happened? Do I need to call Michael?”
“No!” I nearly shouted, taking him by surprise.
Fuck, I was never going to get to leave the house alone if Parker found out about this. Shoving my hair back from my face, I tried to think of something that sounded better than what had happened, but everything I came up with would most likely land me in the hospital.
The truth was easier.
Sighing, I leaned against the truck, tucking my hands into my jacket. “Panic attack,” I murmured, glancing off at the mountains.
It didn’t take a genius to know that Maverick was assessing the situation, wondering if he could really let me go without talking to Parker. And as much as I didn’t want to say anything more, I knew only the truth would ease his concern.
“It’s happened before. On my wedding day, actually.”
“Does Michael know about this?”
“Yes. He was there.”
“But you don’t want him to know about this,” he said slowly.
“It’s not that I don’t want him to know,” I hedged. “It’s just…” God, this was so hard. How to explain to a man that I wasn’t fragile, when all the signs pointed otherwise.
“I get it.”
My gaze whipped up to meet his. “You do?”
With a slow nod, he seemed to be assessing just how much he could discern based on my current state. “He told me a little about what happened. Guess it’s only right you might have some issues.”
Issues was the understatement of the century right now. If I didn’t get a handle on this, how would Parker react?
“It’s fine,” I lied, catching the way he rolled his eyes at me. “I mean, it’s not fine. Obviously. But it’s not terrible either.”
Sighing, his eyes trailed across the landscape. “You know, there’s a lady in town who’s pretty good with this kind of shit.”
“Passing out on the side of the road?” I jested.
He shook his head slightly, and when his eyes met mine, there wasn’t a trace of humor in them. “Panic attacks. Traumatic experiences. That sort of shit.”
Yeah, I wasn’t talking to anyone about what happened. Parker had seen it all, and he was the only one I needed. The last thing I wanted was to open up to some stranger and relive some of the worst moments of my life.
“Thanks, but I’m good.”
“Are you?” he questioned. “Seriously, are you? Because I need to know before I make a decision on whether or not to tell Michael about this.”
He would tell him no matter what, so there was only one thing to do. “I’ll tell him about it tonight.”
“Do that, or you’ll find my lips won’t stay sealed. I don’t like keeping secrets, especially from someone I expect to have my back. Doesn’t really help with trust-building.”
“Yeah, I get it.”
“Good. Now, what are we gonna do in the meantime?”
“Excuse me?” I asked in confusion.