Chapter 11
11
T he barn door opened. A twenty-something jeans-clad man walked out, frowning. Before he could get two steps out of the barn, Moe jumped him. At almost the exact same moment, Curly threw Nikki to the ground again.
Kicking like a wild banshee, she connected several times with his shins and thighs. This time, Curly was determined to push through the pain.
“Be still,” he warned as those meaty hands threatened to pull her apart.
“Your friend is being hammered over there,” she said without knowing what was going on.
Curly broke his concentration long enough to look. She rolled out of his grasp and ran toward the wooded area behind the barn.
Not again.
As much as Nikki couldn’t stand the thought of getting lost out here with no shoes, she didn’t see a whole lot of options. Her feet were going to be trashed after this.
Almost to the tree line, a shotgun blast stopped her in her tracks.
An older gentleman stood out the backdoor of the home, loading more shells.
Curly and Moe took off toward the SUV at the same time. Another shot fired into the blue skies got their feet moving until they disappeared, and the vehicle sped away.
Nikki was free.
She hobbled toward the house with her hands in the air. “Help. Please.”
The older gentleman lowered the barrel as thetwenty-something man pushed up from the ground to stand and dusted himself off.
“What happened?” Twenty-something asked.
“Those men were holding me against my will,” Nikki said in between panting for air.
“I called the law,” the older gentleman said, joining them.
“I’m all right,” she said, pinching her side. “You can call them off. They work for my stepfather.”
“What?” the older gentleman said.
“He thinks he’s protecting me, but…”
How could she best explain this?
“The situation is complicated, but I’m fine, and they’re gone now. So, there’s no problem. You can call off the law. I’m not pressing charges.”
“You sure about that?” the older man asked.
“I am.” She needed to get back to Saddle Junction and figure out where Conrad was being held. “Do you have a phone I can use? I need to check on a friend. My name is Nikki, by the way.”
“I’m Harold,” the older man said. “And this is my grandson, Paul.”
“Thank you both for the help,” she said.
“I’ll call off the law before they waste their time heading this way,” Harold said as Paul produced his cell as question marks danced over their heads.
She thanked him and looked up the number for the jail in Saddle Junction.
“I’m the attorney for Conrad Sturgess,” she said to the sergeant, who answered. “I’d like to speak to my client.”
“Your client has been released,” Sargent Smith said.
Okay. Deep breaths. “Thank you.” She ended the call with new marching orders. Get to the Sturgess ranch. She turned to the two men who’d saved her. “I have a huge favor to ask.”
Paul gave a slight nod.
“I need a ride to the Sturgess ranch.”
“You know the Sturgess family?” Paul asked with more than a hint of admiration.
“I do,” she said. Would dropping her last name put them off?
Paul looked to his grandfather, who gave an almost imperceptible nod. “We can take my pickup.”
“You have no idea how much this means to me,” she said.
“Be safe,” Harold said to her.
“Yes, sir,” she said. “Could you hold on a second? I need to find my shoes and handbag before we go.”
Harold was already on the line, canceling his request for a deputy. Said he’d made a mistake and that all was well. There was nothing to worry about.
How she wished those words to be true.
“I’ll help you,” Paul said.
He located her shoes while she found her purse and collected the contents that had spilled onto the ground.
Conrad was out of jail. Thankfully, Sergeant Smith had bought her line about being Conrad’s attorney. Now what?
The pickup was a dual-cab Ford. Nikki settled into the passenger seat and then buckled in for the ride.
“Do you have the address?” she asked Paul after he buckled into the driver’s seat.
“I can look it up,” he said. “Shouldn’t be too difficult.”
The Sturgess ranch was well-known in Texas and would be listed. Paul found it in a matter of seconds and then tapped on the screen, which brought the location up in the phone’s map application. He placed the phone in a cupholder and headed toward the ranch.
“How do you know the Sturgess family?” Paul asked.
“My father worked for them,” she said. “He recently passed away.”
“I’m sorry for your loss, ma’am.”
“Please, call me Nikki. Otherwise, I’ll be looking over my shoulder for my mother.”
Paul chuckled as she scanned the road ahead to ensure those men weren’t waiting, biding their time.
“Is it true what you said back there about being okay?”
“Yes.”
“You’re not running away from someone, are you?” he asked.
“No.”
How much could she tell Paul without giving too much away? “My stepfather doesn’t like my boyfriend,” she said, figuring it was easier to stretch the truth than go into a long, drawn-out explanation. “Doesn’t want me to be anywhere near him, so he sent out a few of his employees to find me and bring me home.”
Paul’s face twisted in disbelief. “Do you mind if I ask how old you are?”
“Mid-twenties,” she said.
“Aren’t you old enough to make that decision for yourself?” Paul asked.
“Yes,” she said. “As a matter of fact, I am.”
“Then, why does he think it’s his business?”
“In his way, he’s looking out for me,” she said. “He stepped in when I was young. My mom was struggling to take care of us both. My biological dad didn’t care one way or the other about us, and my stepdad was the one who stuck around. He might not be perfect, but he didn’t leave.”
“Forgive my saying so, but there’s overprotective, and then there’s crossing a line that shouldn’t be crossed,” Paul said.
He was right.
What did she intend to do about it? After Heath’s actions, she didn’t want to go through with an adult adoption. Nikki’s last name might be controversial to some, but it was her identity. Her father might not have been a stellar person, but he was gone now. Was it time to usher in a new era of Guidrys?
Nikki wasn’t even sure she wanted to go back to law school after spring break. Heath would be livid if she dropped out since he was paying her tuition. But what was the point? Did she even like the law anymore?
“You’re right,” she said after a couple of beats, lost in thought. “My stepfather went too far, but he didn’t intend this. Heads will roll when he finds out how I was just treated.”
“They should.”
“Sorry to get your family involved,” she said.
“It’s no trouble,” Paul said. But it was. He was going out of his way to drive her to the ranch.
Would those three know where she was headed and try to intercept her and salvage the reward?
Or were there others waiting for a chance to snatch her for the money?
Conrad paced in the kitchen. The lawyer believed he could get the trial moved as late as possible to give the law time to find the real killer. Kade and the others were committed to finding out who really murdered Harrison Guidry. Conrad couldn’t leave the house, or at least, he couldn’t go far without triggering the damn device on his ankle.
The sound of gravel crunching underneath tires caused him to move to the window. He didn’t recognize the truck, but he instantly recognized the passenger…Nikki.
How? What?
He practically ran to the back door and out as she exited the passenger side.
What had happened to her? She was limping, and her eye was swollen.
But she was here.
“How on earth did you get here?” Conrad asked.
She ran to him and then wrapped her arms around him. He brought her into an embrace.
“Long story,” she said breathlessly.
A few seconds later, she pulled back and waved at the driver.
“Thank you for the ride, Paul.”
A stab of jealousy pierced Conrad’s chest. Who was Paul? Did he have a right to ask? Was it his business?
“Any time,” Paul said before returning the wave. “Be careful.”
“I will,” she said.
Paul turned his truck around and left.
“I can’t stay outside long without triggering my ankle device,” Conrad said to her, motioning toward the metal. “I may have already done it since I have no idea how far I can wander on the property.”
“Is that why you were released?” she asked, ushering him inside.
He confirmed it was as he studied her bruises. “You’re hurt. What did those bastards do to you?” His jaw ticked.
“The important thing is that I got away,” she said. “I need to call my stepfather to tell him to call off the dogs.”
Conrad ground his back teeth.
“We still need to find out who really killed my father.” She folded her arms over her chest.
“Not until we deal with those wounds.”
“First, do you want out of that ankle monitor?” she asked.
“Why? Do you know how?”
“One of my law professors brought it up in class once, and I wanted to verify the information was true,” she said. “Where’s the silverware drawer?”
He motioned toward the drawer next to the sink. She moved there while he gathered up a few medical supplies.
She grabbed a butter knife and held it up. “This is all you need.”
“That looks like a tool used to dig a deeper hole,” he said, frowning. “Plus, where would I go? Not to mention you haven’t told me exactly what happened to you. I noticed your limp, not to mention the cuts and bruises.”
“Am I limping?” She’d done her best to ignore the pain. “I had to run without shoes on. It’s nothing serious.”
“What else happened to you?” he asked, shooting a look that said he doubted it wasn’t serious.
Conrad’s concern struck a chord deep inside Nikki. She’d been in survival mode. Her biological father hadn’t cared if she lived or died. Okay, maybe that was an exaggeration. Harrison might’ve cared but he’d been too self-consumed to worry too much about her. Heath had stayed around. He’d looked out for her. He was still protective.
Being on the receiving end of compassion and kindness was new. Could she get used to it?
If they didn’t figure out who killed her father, she didn’t have to worry about it. Conrad would go to prison.
The air sucked out of the room at the thought. Nikki couldn’t let that happen. Could she stop it?