Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
C onnor had taken the couch at Aunt Joy’s and Randy had taken the office, leaving Lacy with the spare bedroom, since she wasn’t about to sleep in the dead woman’s bed. She had heard Connor talking on the phone with Brendon earlier, but she didn’t want to make him rehash everything with her. She closed the door to her room and called Ferd.
Ferd answered on the third ring. “Lacy? Is that you?”
“Yes, Ferd. How are you? How is the ranch?”
Silence made Lacy’s stomach tighten. “We’re taking this hour by hour. Officer Nixon has been in touch with us a lot. He’s got eyes on the entrances to town and another stationed on the road that leads to Wayside.”
“So, you’re boxed in.” She’d hated that feeling when they’d had to be behind locked gates and security systems. When Viceroy was finally gone, they wouldn’t need to have such stringent security. Their guests could roam freely again around the ranch.
“Yes, but so far, we’re doing all right. I’m actually more worried about Christmas than I am about an attack. I personally feel, and Nadine agrees with me, that Viceroy will stay away. He has to know that coming here is a huge risk. He could be captured again. I think his main goal is staying out of jail and avoiding trial.”
“That’s a great thought but criminals don’t always make sense.” She took a deep breath. “I may need a place for a friend to stay when we return. Can you get a cabin ready for me? One of the smaller ones is fine. She won’t need a family one.” Hopefully, she would make it through this and be able to come to Wyoming for the winter until Melinda could get back on her feet.
“Sure. I can do that. Just so you know, even though I personally don’t think we need to, security has remained on high alert. The guests have been made aware of the risk.”
“Good.” Lacy realized then that Connor probably hadn’t talked to Ferd. She felt comfortable telling Lacy about the security, but Connor wouldn’t want to know her opinions. He’d want facts. “Have you talked to Connor at all?”
Ferd made a noise that could’ve been a snort. “No. Despite his attempt to talk to me right before he left, he hasn’t talked to me since. I think he knows that there was little for me to do. The men handle everything, especially Brendon and Edwyn. I’m not really needed.”
“That’s not true.” Lacy needed her to want to the job because if she was ever able to get back together with Connor, she didn’t want to work for him anymore. She would always be part of Wayside, but as a spouse, she wanted each of them to have their own commitments that didn’t rely on one another. There were other things she could do around the ranch allowing her to be Connor’s wife and not coworker. “You’re needed. I need you.”
“That doesn’t help right now when you’re not here to show me what you do. Dad said I should put up the tree in the dining room and one in the living room, but then I guess I got the trees backwards and it seemed to put everyone in such a foul mood that I had to take them down and move them.”
Lacy could almost laugh at that. Some things in life were simply tradition and shouldn’t be messed with. Even though the guests would never know that the Christmas trees were in the opposite rooms they had always been in, the workers would know. To them, it wouldn’t be quite right. “Don’t take it to heart. That’s something small. I promise, I’ll show you my job when I return. You’ll be perfect for it.”
“What if I don’t want it? What if you decide you don’t want to give it up?”
That would only happen if Connor couldn’t work out his issues. If he wasn’t willing to examine his heart and his ability to bring his problems to her instead of shutting her out, then she’d keep her job or move on, but things couldn’t stay exactly the same. Her heart couldn’t handle another break. “The only way I’d possibly want to keep my position is if things don’t work out between your brother and I.”
“I’ll say it again, he hasn’t contacted me since we talked the day before he left. Can he be trusted? I don’t know. You know him better than I do.”
“I wish you could see him like I do, at least a little. He’s a good man. I just need him to be able to forgive his mother for walking out on him. That’s a big ask.”
“If he hasn’t done it yet, do you think he will? That was twenty years ago.”
Lacy could see Ferd becoming a friend, hopefully a sister-in-law, but at least a friend. “I think there’s always a chance for healing and forgiveness while there’s breath in our lungs. I’m sorry that Peg never took that opportunity. She died angry with Teddy and apparently Connor, too. It’s so sad to me because Connor never thought less of her.”
“Yeah, I know. He still hasn’t gone to talk to my mother, and we’ve been here almost a full month. Mom purposely stays home even when Dad is gone so she doesn’t encounter anyone from Wayside. She’s worried that they’ll dislike her because Connor does.”
Lacy closed her eyes. This was worse than she’d realized. “I’m sorry. I’ll talk to Connor about it. He can be hard to change. I’m not making excuses for him, that’s not my job. I’m just telling you what might be going on. I know he’d planned to have your brothers over for Christmas so you could meet them. That’s a start. Especially because he hasn’t even talked to his brothers in years.”
“Yeah, then he had to leave and now Dad and I are going to have to meet with them instead of Connor. Dad told me they haven’t spoken to him since they left with Peg. I can see it hurts him, but I don’t know how to make it easier.”
“You don’t. I’ll talk to Connor. Thank you for letting me know what’s going on. If anything happens, please text me when you get a chance. I need to know everyone is alright.”
“Will do. Talk to you soon.” Ferd hung up.
Connor had come to her aid when he’d really been needed at home. He’d chosen her when he was about to mend the gap between himself and his brothers for the first time in twenty years. She strode from the room and headed right for Connor before she could lose her nerve. She came out in the living room and was glad to see he was alone.
“Lacy? Something wrong?” He sat up on the sofa and swung his feet to the floor. “Come and sit.”
She took a seat next to him and gave herself a breath to find the right words. “I just talked to Ferd.”
His brow shot up. “I didn’t realize you two were such good friends.”
“I left her in charge of my job. Of course I was going to call her to check in.” After the first few words, she couched her snippiness. Why should she have to defend calling anyone?
“Understood. What did she have to say? Clearly, something is bothering you.”
She nodded. “It is. She said you haven’t talked to her, and she doesn’t know what to do. About her job, about her brothers, not anything.”
“I didn’t want to leave her holding the bag with them. That wasn’t my plan. You called me and I wasn’t going to leave you sitting in danger. What if I hadn’t come?” He looked her in the eyes. “What if someone had come back after you’d gone to bed and shot out the window, leaving Melinda’s body on the front lawn?”
She shook the image from her mind. “I think you misunderstand me. I’m not accusing you of choosing incorrectly. I’m glad you’re here. I’m worried though because Wayside might be in danger and Ferd doesn’t know how to handle it. She’s your sister.”
“I’m aware.” He frowned. “I put Dad, Brendon and Edwyn in charge for that reason.”
She laid her hand atop his, hoping that the slight touch would let him know she wasn’t there to question his authority or his choices. Wayside was his to run. “I just want you to try to accept Ferd and Gloria. She will always be your half-sister. No matter what. Frankly, she’s wanted to have more to do with you than your full-blood brothers.”
His chin dipped down, hiding his face slightly. “I know. I’m working on it. This isn’t easy for me. They are welcome at Wayside. I suppose I haven’t made them feel that way though.”
Lacy squeezed his hand. “Now you’ve taken the first big step. I just wish we could be certain that you’d be home in time for Christmas. That would be the best outcome.”
Connor wished he could be as optimistic as Lacy. That was probably part of his issue. He couldn’t be that way anymore. Too many things had happened in his life to make him jaded. There was no best possible outcome, only shades of mediocre.
“Let’s deal with this first, then we’ll think about the fallout from having to be away for Christmas.” There was no chance he’d make it home in five days. Not with Melinda in the state she was and not with Wayside in danger. Maybe if someone caught Viceroy again, then that would open a door, but Melinda would still have to be well enough to travel for hours and that didn’t seem likely outside of a miracle.
“Brendon confirmed that it’s been quiet around there for the past twenty-four hours. That’s good. That’s promising. There’s probably an APB out on Viceroy, forcing him to lay low.”
Lacy frowned at the change in subject and nodded. “I’m sure you’re right. I hope he’s caught soon.” She scrunched her face in thought. “You don’t think he’d make a run for the boarder, do you? If he made it to Mexico, he could leave the country and never face charges.”
Connor shrugged since he wasn’t about ready to make a comment on that. If Viceroy had those plans, he’d most likely aim directly for Texas. There were a lot more places to hide in Texas. If they didn’t see him, that was for the best. He didn’t want to have to protect Lacy from two killers.
“I have no idea what he might be planning. I’m sure the police or FBI know more than they’re sharing with us. They’ll give us the all-clear when he’s caught again. That’s about all we can hope for. I’m not going after him right now. I’ve got my own plate to worry about.”
She smiled then looked away. “I’m glad you do. I’m exhausted but sleeping is really hard when I’m alone back there. Mind if I curl up on that chair in the corner?” She bobbed her head toward a comfy looking recliner.
“No, go right ahead.” He’d rather have her where he could see her anyway. Plus, he’d know if she actually slept this way.
She got up from the sofa and headed for the room where she’d left her bag. In a minute, she came back with one fluffy blanket then covered herself as she curled her legs up onto the chair. She rested her head against the back then tilted her chin down slightly. He wanted to warn her of neck pain when she got up if she slept that way, but who was he to tell her what was comfortable?
He laid back down on the sofa, but his senses were anything but restful. While he knew in his head that they’d reached the time of the morning where Tod and Cal would most likely be sleeping, that wasn’t a guarantee. They’d almost managed to kill Melinda. Once they found out she wasn’t dead, there would be a frenzy of activity from them. Connor had been in the military long enough to know what people did when there were no options left.
He closed his eyes and concentrated on the sounds around him. Lacy’s soft breathing was the first thing he noticed, then the sound of the wind outside. Somewhere nearby, a clock ticked away the minutes. Occasionally, he caught a random deep snore from wherever Randy was sleeping.
With Lacy here, even in an uncomfortable chair, he didn’t have to worry that someone would break into her room. The windows in the living room where he was didn’t open. It was a bay window with three sections curving out from the house but all of them were made so they couldn’t open. He’d found Melinda’s aunt to be a fastidious housekeeper and an interesting personality. The police had obviously collected a lot of evidence though because the area where she’d been found had been gone through heavily.
Hopefully, they caught whoever killed her.
Outside, he heard the first car of the morning drive by. People would be going to work and school, to meetings and run errands. Life as usual was going on just a few yards away. Yet, here he was, waiting around for evil to pounce.
Connor stood and headed for the kitchen. If he had to be awake, coffee would help him remain focused. He set up the coffee maker, glad that the former owner had appreciated good coffee. In the cupboards, he found a whole shelf of mugs. All of them were smaller than he was used to and all of them had images of various dogs on them. He chose the most masculine one he could find, a husky with bright blue eyes staring out at him.
His phone buzzed on the counter, and he picked it up then headed outside so he could talk without disturbing anyone. “This is Connor.”
“Hi, this is Dr. Carol. We’ve been observing Melinda all night. She has now been stable for three hours and we’re admitting her to the hospital. Have you been able to get copies of a restraining order or anything that will limit who can see her?”
For one, that didn’t exist. “No, there isn’t any documentation like that. Though there is a police report filed two days ago stating that he roughed her up and threatened her. Is that enough?”
Dr. Carol was silent for a second. “I’ll see what I can do. Generally, in the cases of spousal abuse, the abusers are on their best behavior in front of hospital staff. Was it her husband who did that to her?”
“Can’t confirm that, but we suspect it. There was no one else who could’ve.” Unless she’d met with a random act of violence, but it wasn’t likely some stranger would kidnap her from a home and leave a threatening message for Lacy to find.
“Since she was the victim of intense violence, I’m going to limit the people who can visit her. If you want this to be foolproof, I’ve got to keep all of you away, too. Since I’ve got to call in the police, everyone will be a suspect until they apprehend someone.”
“I think that’s best. Lacy won’t take it well, but we want Melinda safe.”
“Good to hear. I’ll call the police department and report what I found. Since this appeared to be an assault, photos were taken right away, those will also be turned over to the authorities. They may be contacting you for questioning.”
He snorted. “I would hope so. We were some of the last people to see her before she was taken.” Though he meant Lacy, not himself. He’d only seen her once she was already attacked.
“Thank you for calling the ambulance. She wouldn’t have survived without help.”
He’d thought as much but hadn’t said that to Lacy. “We couldn’t leave her there. She is a friend. I’m just glad no one else was hurt. Someone tried to break into the house from another side after dropping Melinda’s body in the front yard. I suspect they planned to do more than what they did.”
“We’re a small town. This doesn’t happen here. Makes me want to lock my doors and call my adult daughter. I want this guy caught.”
“We all do. Thanks again.” He hung up the phone and headed back inside for his coffee infusion.
Maybe a report coming from a doctor would sway the police into seeing Melinda’s history a whole new way. She couldn’t be the only person who’d faced domestic violence and had her spouse try to put the blame on her. He bowed his head over his steaming cup and said a prayer for clarity for the police and everyone else involved, including himself. He needed clarity most of all.
A text came through on his phone and he finished his prayer before he looked up to see who it was. Brendon’s name splashed across the top of the screen and the words chilled him to the core.
Viceroy has been spotted within a mile of Wayside. Police are on alert. So are we. Pray he’s caught before he gets here.