Chapter One #2
Although I’m grateful for the help I get and know the Hollises will pitch in anytime I ask, it’s hard not to get overwhelmed when there are no days off with little kids. They depend on me for everything, which means I have to be on all hours of the day.
As exhausting as it is, I’d prefer it this way to being a married single mom and having to take care of a man on top of my kids. I finally learned that lesson with Lily’s dad before I got pregnant with her.
By the time I wrap a towel around my body, I have no energy left to dry my hair, so I throw it up, put on shorts, and a T-shirt. I nearly crawl to my side of the bed and sink under the covers with bliss.
“Mom!” Screams echo through my room, jolting me awake in a panic.
“I’m comin’, sweetheart,” I call out as quietly as I can so I don’t wake Raven and Bailey.
“Mommy! Someone’s in my window!”
I trip into the door, stumbling my way in the dark and rushing down the hall to the kids’ room. Flicking on the light, I scan the space and make sure they’re both safe in bed.
“It’s okay, honey.” I crouch next to him, stroking sweaty strands off his forehead. “You had a bad dream.”
“No, I saw him.”
“Who?”
“The man from the store.”
“Baby, what’re you talkin’ about? Where did you see him?”
He points to the window, where the drapes are still open. Standing, I peek out, but it’s pitch-black, so I can’t see anything. With the lights off, it’s possible he saw something outside.
I double-check it’s locked before closing the drapes.
“It was probably the wind, sweetie.”
“No, he was holdin’ a flashlight.”
“Maybe one of the ranch hands’ truck lights. Someone might’ve been gettin’ home late or leavin’ early.”
“But I saw his face! He was standin’ right outside the window, and when I screamed, he went away.”
He’s described each nightmare he had these past several weeks, but it’s never been something like this—convinced that it was real and happened.
Before I can think of what to do, Lily wakes up crying.
“Follow me,” I tell Sam, lifting Lily out of bed and grabbing her stuffed bunny. “Bring your pillow.”
Raven’s awake with Bailey by the time I lead us to my room. I put Sam on my side of the bed and tuck Lily in next to him.
“Help her fall back asleep, okay? I’ll be right back.”
I motion for Raven to follow me out, and once we’re alone in the kitchen, the tears well in my eyes.
“What happened?”
Bailey sleeps on her shoulder, so I keep my voice down.
“He insists he saw the man from the store outside his window…with a flashlight lookin’ inside his room. I’m shakin’ so bad, I dunno what to do.”
“Amelia! You need to call the sheriff now.”
“I know, you’re right. I just don’t wanna scare him more than he already is, but if he really saw him, he’s figured out where we live.”
He saw where I turned, so it was only a matter of looking for my car and seeing where it was parked to guess which place was mine. Fuck. I should’ve driven somewhere else and called 911 while I was on the road.
“I’ll call him for you since you’re about to have a panic attack, but you should contact Wilder so he gets over here too. He’ll wanna know what’s goin’ on and should alert the rest of the ranch hands and family.”
“Okay,” I breathe out, nodding. “Thank you.”
Within twenty minutes, my living room is packed. Between Wilder, Mr. Hollis, a few of the ranch hands who live in the other duplexes, and Sheriff Wagner, there’s barely any room to stand.
Raven took Bailey back to bed and stayed to keep an eye on Sam and Lily. I don’t need him to see the fear in everyone’s eyes.
“Y’all can’t stay here while we figure out who this stalker is,” Wilder says.
“I think that’d be best,” Sheriff Wagner agrees. “He’s already made contact with Sam and now knows where he lives. It’s not safe.”
“And where’re we supposed to go?” I ask, defeated.
Wilder wraps his arm around me and squeezes. “I’ll make some calls, okay? Don’t worry.”
That’s easier said than done.
“And you can’t think of anyone you know who’d do this? Or anyone actin’ suspicious when you’ve been out?” the sheriff asks. “Maybe at the bar, the school, the stores?”
“No.” I shake my head, frustrated that he’s asked already but seems to think I’m hiding something. “I go to work, home, and sometimes the grocery store. When I drink, it’s in my livin’ room. I only moved here a couple years ago, so I don’t know many people outside of the ranch and retreat.”
I’ve lived all over Tennessee, but up until I came here, we were in the next town over. At the time, it was the only area I could find work and a reasonable one-bedroom apartment.
“And Sam’s father?”
The room goes silent.
I swallow hard, wishing I didn’t have to answer in front of everyone. Not even Wilder knows. I never told him, and he’s been respectful enough not to ask.
“He was sent to prison before Sam was born, and as far as I know, he’s still there.”
“Has he ever reached out to you? Called or sent letters?”
“No. I’ve always been unlisted and changed our last name when I filed for divorce.”
Wilder squeezes my shoulder. Another new tidbit he now knows about me.
“Would he hire someone to find you? A private investigator, maybe?”
“I dunno.” I massage my temple. “Not sure why he would or how he’d get the money to do that.”
“Sorry, we gotta explore every possible suspect. What ’bout Lily’s dad?”
“He didn’t wanna be a parent, so I never put him on her birth certificate. He left before she was born. Haven’t seen or heard from him since.”
I truly know how to pick ’em. Which is why up until last year, I hadn’t been with a man.
Sheriff Wagner nods, jotting everything down. “Just in case, write down their names and their last known addresses.” He hands me his pad. “I’ll get someone to check ’em out so we can mark ’em off the list.”
“Sure.” I take his pen when he holds it out.
When I give it back, he reads it before pocketing it. “I’ll have Wendy email you the incident report for your records. When you have it, send me your temp address, and I’ll get a deputy to stake out the area if it’s local.”
“Will do.”
I lead him to the door after he says he has everything he needs. The rest of the ranch hands follow, eager to get back to bed since they wake up early, but at least they’re informed now and can be on the lookout.
“Thank you so much.”
“No problem. Please be safe, okay?”
I nod once.
Once he’s gone, I check on Raven and the kids.
“We gotta leave, but I dunno where we’re gonna go.”
“You can stay with Mattie and me. Get a couple air mattresses and we can have a slumber party!”
I chuckle at her attempt to cheer me up. “I’m not puttin’ y’all in danger too. It wouldn’t be safe. Plus, Sasha would hate the extra kids.”
Mattie’s grumpy old dog isn’t a fan of little ones.
“Nah, she’d be fine.”
“Wilder’s gonna figure somethin’ out for us. I just hate having to uproot the kids again. Not sure I’ll even feel safe when we can return.”
“They’re gonna find who’s doin’ this. I can feel it.”
“Let’s hope so…” Or we’ll be on the run until they do.
I manage to get a couple hours of sleep before Wilder returns in the morning with Delilah and coffee.
“I’m so sorry I couldn’t come last night. The twins were havin’ their own little party in their rooms. I don’t think anyone on this ranch got any sleep.”
Their kids are nine months old, so they’re waking up twice as often to feed and change them, which makes me feel worse about taking Wilder away.
“Oh, stop it. I feel guilty callin’ as late as I did.”
“Nah, never worry when it comes to your safety.” Delilah hugs me. “But I’m here now to help y’all pack. The twins are at daycare, so we can drive y’all up there.”
“Wait, where?” I glance between her and Wilder.
“Willow Branch Mountain,” he replies, and my heart sinks. “My cousin has room for three and said ya can stay at the resort for as long as y’all need.”
Oh God, no.
I’m too chicken shit to ask which cousin, but knowing my bad luck, it’ll be the one I don’t want to face.
“That far? Are you sure that’s necessary? What ’bout my job?”
“We’re gonna give you paid vacation, so don’t stress ’bout that. I talked with the sheriff this mornin’, and we’re gonna use your car as bait to see if we can catch him followin’ it or parkin’ nearby. Maybe get a picture of him or at least his license plates.”
“So I’m not gonna have a vehicle?”
“We need him to think you’re still here so we can catch him.”
Fuck.
“That sounds like a potentially dangerous situation, Wilder. What if he’s armed or somethin’?”
He averts his gaze, holding back a smirk.
“What?” I ask, confused.
Delilah chuckles. “Everyone’s armed here, babe.”
“Oh, right. Doesn’t make me feel any better ’bout puttin’ y’all in the middle of it.”
“If it helps, my cousin Maddox is gonna come down from Stonehaven Falls to assist me. We’re gonna find this asshole in no time.”
“Who’s that?”
I think back to the Langston siblings and don’t recall one with that name.
“He’s technically our second cousin. His family is…”
“Unhinged,” Delilah finishes for him.
“Creative—” he defends, then carefully picks his next words. “—in how they handle shit.”
I cross my arms, growing impatient. “I’m gonna need more context than that.”
“His dad’s the sheriff, so Maddox helps find people who’re on the wrong side of the law while possibly breakin’ a couple laws in the meantime. It keeps the crime rate low. Kinda like….”
“Wilder, spit it out,” I demand, too tired to try and piece together whatever he’s trying to say.
“A redneck bounty hunter,” Delilah blurts. “Without the trainin’ and background check.”
Good God. “What does that mean?”
“He’s not a redneck!” Wilder scoffs. “They run a legitimate B&B on their ranch. Rated very highly online.”
Delilah rolls her eyes. “And hunts bad people down as a fun li’l hobby.”
“With guns?” I ask, blinking hard. “That sounds corrupt and even more dangerous to be ’round.”
“Only when he has to.” Wilder shrugs. “He’s massive, basically a lumberjack mountain man, so he can usually take ’em down with his fists without havin’ to use a weapon. And he’s only put one guy in a coma.”
“Shockingly, that doesn’t make me feel better about his so-called job,” I deadpan. “What does this lumberjack mountain man do with the people he finds who aren’t lucky enough to lose consciousness?”
Wilder flicks his tongue piercing and scrubs a hand through his hair. “Do you want me to lie or tell you the truth?”
“For fuck’s sake. Is his family the mob or somethin’?”
At this point, I wouldn’t be that surprised. They already sound gangster as shit.
Delilah snickers. “We don’t ask questions we don’t want answers to. I stopped askin’ a long time ago.”
“You know what they say…” Wilder shrugs. “Small towns come with big secrets.”
“They should write that motto on the Welcome to Sugarland Creek sign and warn the visitors,” I say, somberly. “Still not feelin’ great about this plan of yours. Y’all could get hurt.”
Or worse.
“Trust me, between the Hollis men and Maddox, this guy is gonna wish for death by the time they’re done with him.” Delilah grins. “This ain’t their first rodeo.”
“And if there’s anyone you should worry ’bout usin’ a gun, it’s Landen,” Wilder adds with amusement.
“Landen?” I bark out a laugh. “He’s the gooey center of a cinnamon roll.”
Wilder’s younger brother is always in a good mood and lives to taunt his wife.
Ellie’s a professional barrel racer who takes her job very seriously but always looks like she’s about to strangle him for his antics.
She’s pregnant with their first child, so her tolerance is even less than usual.
But it cracks me up when they eat lunch at The Lodge, and she’s already had it with his teasing.
“He shot a drug dealer in the dick,” Delilah says casually.
“Oh my God?” Why is she so calm about that?
“Don’t worry, he deserved it. He killed someone and threatened Tripp’s wife while she was pregnant with Willow.”
Wilder’s other younger brother.
“He’s behind bars for life now,” she adds.
I can’t believe they never told me that story. But that’ll have to wait for another day.
“So, this is normal. Sugarland Creek’s a crime magnet.”
“Hey, nothing’s happened since Delly and Raven were kidnapped a year-and-a-half ago.” Wilder smirks. “Put those two guys in prison, too.”
“Guess that means we were due for somethin’ to happen…it’s been too peaceful with all the criminals in jail.” I groan, picking up toys and random objects off the floor to keep myself from spiraling.
Delilah flashes a sincere smile. “Think of stayin’ at the resort as a free vacation.
Don’t worry ’bout what’s happenin’ here.
Plus, you’ll love the amenities—hot tub, massages, fancy food, horseback ridin’, fishin’, swimmin’—you’ll be there at the perfect time of year too.
Summer is the peak season, so there’ll be plenty to do. ”
Doubt I’ll be able to enjoy any of it, but the time off to spend with my kids will be a nice perk.
“Ugh, fine. But I want y’all to keep me updated.”
“We promise!” Delilah squeezes me. “Now let’s pack for your amazin’ vacation in the mountains!”