He saw his brothers processing this new information. Shock was written across their faces.
Paul folded his arms and took a long, deep breath. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell us.”
Josh nodded. “Guess we should have been more suspicious when you brought her home out of the blue.”
“Wait, what do you mean, she’s not your wife?” They all turned to find Kellyanne standing in the doorway. She’d overheard their conversation.
“What are you doing here?” Miles demanded.
“Mom called and told me you and Melissa were in a car accident. I was making sure you were both okay.” She walked in and looked at Melissa in the corner. “Is this true? You’re not married to my brother?”
She glanced at Miles, then gave a nod as her answer to Kellyanne’s question. He could see how this was tearing her up. She’d never wanted to hurt this family or lie to them, but anyone could see the hurt and anger in Kellyanne’s face. Melissa had grown to really like Miles’s sister and Miles knew that the feeling had been mutual. They’d become close, like sisters, but they weren’t sisters and they never would be.
Kellyanne turned to Miles. “You lied to us.”
He stiffened, then stood to face her. “I had a job to do. I couldn’t tell you.”
Josh regained his bearings. “Back to this guy who is after Melissa. How do you think he found out she’s here? And why is she here instead of in a real safe house?”
“That’s another thing I should tell you. I brought Melissa here because no one in the marshals service could know where she was. We believe there’s a leak in the WITSEC agency.”
“A leak? Who would do that?”
“I don’t know, and so far my boss hasn’t made any headway in finding out. All I know is that these men who are after Melissa keep finding her. Four weeks ago, right after she was placed in protective custody, she was ambushed. The marshals on duty were able to get her to safety, but two of them were killed in the attack. They moved her to another location. Two days later, the marshals assigned to her learned of an impending threat and moved her again. After that, it took Shearer’s men five days to find them, but they did. My boss gave me this assignment with explicit instructions to tell no one where we were. Not even he knows. The rest of the office doesn’t even realize I’m on this case—they think Dad had a relapse and I came home to help. So how did they find us?”
Paul folded his arms across his chest. “It doesn’t matter how they discovered it. They just did.”
“It matters to me. I have no idea who I can and can’t trust in my own agency. A WITSEC inspector who is giving up witnesses is a major breach. It can’t be ignored, but my first priority has to be to Melissa and Dylan.”
Kellyanne gasped. “Dylan! That’s why you asked about him and told Dad to get the rifle. You thought someone was coming after him.”
“After the crash, I wanted to make sure he was safe. I didn’t know where that guy who ran us off the road was going.”
Melissa stood and addressed Kellyanne. “Is Dylan still with your parents?”
“He’s still at the ranch with Mom and Dad. Don’t worry. They’ll keep him safe.” She looked at Miles and her expression hardened again. “Learning he’s not their grandchild might kill them however.”
He didn’t care for her jab at the moment. “I’m sorry, Kellyanne. Really, I am, but I can’t think about that now. I did what I thought was best. Can we please just deal with this for now? We’ll figure that out later.”
She gave a regretful nod. “What do you want me to do?”
“Take us back to the ranch. We need to pack up and get out of town before these guys have another opportunity to take us out.”
Paul stopped him. “You can’t go.”
“I can’t stay. Her life is in danger. I can’t risk staying now that this location is known.”
“You just said yourself that you don’t have anyone you can trust. Well, you know you can trust us. Stay here and let us be your backup. Now that we are aware of what she’s involved in, we can help you keep her safe.”
“I can’t ask you to do that.”
Josh stepped forward. “You don’t have to ask. We’re here for you, Miles. We always have been. Besides, we know these men are in town. You’ve got law enforcement on your side. That’s an advantage you won’t have anywhere else. This is the perfect opportunity to capture them and make sure she stays safe.”
Paul and Kellyanne both agreed, but Miles ran a hand through his hair. “No, I’m sorry. I have to get her somewhere else. I appreciate your willingness to help, but capturing this madman isn’t my job. Keeping Melissa and Dylan safe is.”
“But wouldn’t it be better if we could do both? You keep her safe and we’ll do the legwork to try to find this guy who’s after her. If he’s in town, someone must know something.”
Still, Miles hesitated. He turned to Melissa, his eyes questioning. He could see she wanted to say yes, to accept his family’s help. And he wanted that, too.
He looked back to his family. “Can you give us a moment alone to talk about it?”
They all agreed and stepped out of the room.
Miles turned to her. “Well? What do you think? I say it’s too dangerous. We need to leave.”
“I’ll never be able to rest easy if we don’t capture this guy,” she told him. “Dylan and I will always be running. That’s not the kind of life I want for my son.” Or for herself, if she was honest. She wanted a family just like the one Miles had shown her. A family that stood together and helped one another out, who faced danger and trouble together, united. She’d grown used to this clan and would miss them when she left here, but if they could help her stay safe a little while longer, then why run? “Besides, you said you trusted your family.”
“I do trust them. With my life, not with yours and Dylan’s. That’s a responsibility I trust to no one but myself.”
“I don’t want to leave,” she whispered. She reached up and touched his face, running her fingers over his jaw. She wasn’t ready to say goodbye to the Averys, but mostly she wasn’t ready to say goodbye to Miles. “I haven’t felt as safe anywhere else as I have here and that’s even with the attacks against me.”
He pulled her into an embrace and hugged her, pulling her so tight against him that, for a moment, she couldn’t breathe. “I shouldn’t do this,” he whispered. “I shouldn’t be putting your lives at risk this way.”
She broke their embrace and locked eyes with him. “If we leave the Silver Star and they find us again, we’ll have to face them alone. At least here, we have people who can help us. I’m ready for this to be over, Miles. One way or another, I want it to end.”
He sighed, then walked to the door and opened it, addressing his brothers and sister. “Looks like we’re staying.”
By the time the sun rose, Kellyanne had helped Melissa pack her and Dylan’s things and transfer them to her bedroom in the main house after Miles determined that it was safer for them to stay there instead of the cabin. It didn’t take long because they didn’t have much, but Melissa was grateful for the help, and glad to know that Kellyanne wasn’t holding a grudge over her secret about being married to Miles.
But Kellyanne did seem sad as she helped them get set up in her room. “What’s going on with you?” Melissa asked when she had the opportunity.
Kellyanne sat on the bed and sighed. “I thought I had another sister. It’s been me against the boys for all of my life. When Lawson married Bree, I thought, this is great. I finally have a sister, so I’m not so outnumbered. And when you and Miles arrived at the ranch, I thought I’d gotten another.”
Melissa sat beside her and reached for her hand. “That’s nice. You were so kind to me. I hated keeping that terrible secret from everyone. It made me feel so guilty, especially when you all were so welcoming.”
“I understand why you felt you had to. You trusted Miles and he was just doing his best to keep you safe. At first, I was angry with him for getting married and not telling us. Then I was just happy for him, you know. I was happy that he finally found what he was looking for.”
“You’re all so close. I’m not used to that.”
“Aren’t you close to your family?”
“I never really had any. Only my mom. I was an only child, just like my parents.” Melissa paused for a moment as she thought about it. “I don’t even know if that’s true. Mom told me that my dad died before I was born, but maybe he’s alive, but wouldn’t go into WITSEC with us.” She shrugged it off. “If he’s alive, or if I have any aunts or uncles or cousins connected to him or my mom, then I never knew about them. It was always me and my mom. Even my late husband, Vick, didn’t have any family. Now, Dylan is all I have.”
“He’s a precious little boy.”
“Thank you. He’s enjoyed being here so much. The last several places we’ve stayed have been hotels or apartments with no room for him to run and jump and play.” She felt tears pressing against her face and she covered her mouth to keep them at bay. Kellyanne saw her distress and slid across the bed, putting her arm around Melissa’s shoulders.
“It’s okay. I guess you’ve been through a lot, haven’t you?”
She nodded. “I try not to focus on it. I do my best to be strong for Dylan’s sake, but it’s been so hard. And the other marshals who I’ve dealt with, well, they’ve been nothing like Miles. They all treated me like I was a criminal.” She remembered the marshal who’d let her keep her mother’s necklace and realized that wasn’t entirely true. “Well, most of them did. But Miles was different from the start. He seemed to care, wanted to make us comfortable. I knew right away he was a good person.”
Kellyanne nodded. “He’s a great guy. And I think he’ll make a great husband one day.” She stood and went back to folding clothes. “I still have a hard time believing you two aren’t married. You seemed so perfect for one another. And I know Miles has become attached to that kid of yours.”
And Dylan was just as attached to him. It was too easy to imagine what a good father Miles would be to Dylan. And what a good husband he’d be. Melissa recalled the way he’d held her and rocked her in his arms, assuring her everything was going to be okay. He’d been the only comfort she’d had since this nightmare started and her growing attraction to him was only making her confusion more pronounced.
She glanced at Kellyanne and felt her face redden with embarrassment. Kellyanne had the strange ability to look right through her and see the feelings she was trying so hard to keep hidden.
Her face broke into a big grin. “I knew it! I knew you weren’t that good of actors. You do like him, don’t you? You’re in love with my brother.”
She flushed and was quick to correct her. “It’s way too early to claim to be in love with anyone. I’ve only known your brother a short time.”
“But you like him, don’t you?”
She couldn’t deny her attraction to Miles. In fact, she’d grown more and more enamored with him since they’d been here. But none of that mattered when their futures were meant to be separate. “Of course I like Miles. And Dylan has grown very fond of him. But we could never make a relationship work. I’m running for my life and his is here in Texas. No matter what happens, when this is over, I’ll be sent to live in another city, another state. I’ll take on a new name, and no one who knew me before will be allowed to know where I am. He’ll stay here doing his job and protecting people.”
“He could come with you.”
She’d already considered that scenario, but she couldn’t ask that of him. “You don’t realize what you’re saying, Kellyanne. For him to come with me, he would have to enter the witness protection program. He’d have to leave his job and his family behind and he would never be able to see or speak with any of you ever again.”
Kellyanne’s hopeful expression soured. Melissa couldn’t blame her. It wasn’t a life anyone would want for someone they loved. She had no family left to mourn or miss her, but Miles would be missed terribly by his family. She could never ask him to make that big of a sacrifice. And even if they somehow worked all this out, found the WITSEC mole and captured Kirby and Shearer, she could never trust a man with so many secrets. “Besides, I’ve been lied to my whole life. I could never really trust a man who is so comfortable being deceptive, even toward those he loves.”
The door opened and Dylan rushed inside, called her name and leaped into her arms. “Mama, Grandpa John let me feed one of the horses. He took a sugar cube from my hand.”
“He did? That’s wonderful.” Her mind went back to the terrible incident in the horse pen. She was surprised Dylan would go anywhere near the horses after that. She wasn’t sure she ever would, but she realized that was probably the very reason John had taken Dylan, so he wouldn’t be scared and traumatized for the rest of his life.
A tear slipped from her cheek as she realized what a nice thing that was to do. These people were always thinking of her child and had fully accepted them both, despite the lies. They were good and decent people, and she was sad that she wasn’t a part of this amazing family.
She hugged Dylan to her. She didn’t want to leave this place. She might not be completely safe here, but she was loved and loved everyone. She couldn’t have wished for a better home for her and Dylan if she’d dreamed it—couldn’t have dreamed it if she’d tried, because she’d had nothing to compare it to except for holiday movies and TV shows that she’d been sure were cheesy and unrealistic. But here, at the Silver Star Ranch, this family was something right from a movie. They’d gathered around one of their own in order to protect her. It didn’t matter that she wasn’t really a part of this family. They still made her feel loved and accepted. For weeks, she’d been wondering where God was when her life was being turned upside down. She was beginning to see His hand in all of this. But she still didn’t understand His plan, or how He could turn this to good. Once Miles uncovered who the leak in the marshals service was, she and Dylan would be shipped off to another town to start a new life. She couldn’t move to wipe away a tear.
“Mama, what wrong?” Dylan asked.
She held him closer and assured him everything was fine. But inside, she was dying at the thought of leaving the Silver Star. Of leaving the Avery family.
Of leaving Miles.
Why bring me here and show me everything I’ve ever wanted if it can never be mine?
Her heart cried out to God at the unfairness and a bitterness took hold of her heart.
Kellyanne joined her on the bed and pulled them both into a hug.
“Griffin, I need you to tell me you’ve found the leak.”
His boss’s sigh of frustration was not what he wanted to hear. “Not yet. I’ve been conducting background checks and going through each marshal’s client log, but so far, I haven’t found any anomalies that would lead me to think one of them is a mole.”
Miles pinched the bridge of his nose as frustration burst through him. “There has to be another way to find out who is behind this.”
“Is something wrong?”
“Yes, someone shot at and nearly killed us. They know where we are and I have no idea how they found us.”
“Then you have no choice but to pack up and leave. Keeping this witness alive is your number-one priority.”
He understood that, but the fact that his boss couldn’t nail down the leak in the WITSEC program didn’t instill him with confidence that Melissa would be any safer elsewhere. And Melissa was right when she’d told him if they left and were found again, they would be on their own. At least here at the Silver Star, he had his family to help keep her and Dylan safe.
He hung up with Griffin, frustrated that the man wasn’t making any progress. He stepped into the house and was confronted with his family. From the looks on his parents’ faces, they’d been informed about his situation.
Miles rubbed his face and took in a long, deep breath. He’d dreaded the day his family found out his secret, but a part of him was glad the truth was finally out there.
He lowered himself into a chair as he stared at the stunned expressions on their faces. Obviously, they’d never expected him to be so deceitful and secretive. His sister was the first to respond.
“I can’t believe you could keep something like this from us, Miles. I thought we were closer than that.”
“We are close, but my job—”
“No, don’t use your job to try to justify this. We’re family.”
“And knowing the truth puts you in danger. Loving you means wanting to shield you from that.”
Paul stood. “We can take care of ourselves, in case you haven’t noticed. And we can help keep Melissa and Dylan safe.”
He rubbed his face again. “You don’t understand. Someone is after Melissa and, sure, you can help. But knowing my secret, knowing about my job? It’s better for me to seal it off from my personal life as much as possible. I don’t tell the people under my protection my real name, and I don’t tell the people I love my real job. There are good reasons for that—first and foremost, the people I deal with are dangerous. They’re not all innocent victims like Melissa and Dylan. Most of them are criminals who would do whatever it took to protect themselves. If they knew about you, it would compromise me and my ability to do my job. The best way to make sure they don’t find out is to make sure as few people as possible know the full story of who I am and what I do.”
“Well, we can’t unknow it,” his father commented. “What should we do?”
“Never tell anyone. I mean it. No one outside this house can ever know.”
His mother turned away. “I don’t like secrets.” She was a strong woman, but worrying about her children was just a part of who she was, and now, this revelation gave her one more thing to worry about.
“I know you don’t, but I love my job. I can’t imagine doing anything else.”
His father stood and addressed them all. “We owe it to Miles to keep this within the family. His life and his career are his business. But now we need to get back to the matter at hand. Melissa and Dylan. How can we help keep them safe?”
Miles stood and paced. His mind worked better when he was on his feet. “I don’t want to leave here. I still believe the Silver Star is the best place to keep them safe. But we’ve obviously been compromised. Somehow, someone has come onto our property and tried to kill them. We have to lock down the ranch. No one in or out that we don’t know and trust.”
They all agreed. He couldn’t do any better than his family, but he still wished Lawson and Colby were there as additional backup. What they were about to do—attempt to capture a paid assassin—was dangerous. Even though Josh was the sheriff and Paul had infiltrated enemy camps and rescued people during his time with the Navy SEALs, his father was still recovering from a heart attack six months ago and his mother and sister would be no match for Richard Kirby. Besides, they still had that unidentified WITSEC informant and a mob boss to deal with, too.
A truck pulled into the yard and Miles reached for his weapon, startling his mother. He started to apologize, but didn’t. They would figure out that locking down the Silver Star meant not taking any chances.
He spotted Josh hopping from the driver’s side of his truck as the passenger door opened and another man exited. Together they headed for the house.
“Who is this with Josh?” Miles asked.
His dad hurried to the window. “That’s Zeke. He’s worked for us off and on for the past several years part-time while he attends school. You know Zeke.”
He remembered him, but he hadn’t recognized him right away. The kid had filled out since Miles had seen him this past summer.
Josh and Zeke entered the house and both removed their cowboy hats. “I need to talk to you,” Josh told Miles. “It’s important.”
“You can tell us all,” his dad chimed in. “After all, we don’t have secrets in this family. Not anymore.”
Miles rolled his eyes at his father’s jab. Fine, it was going to take time for his family to forgive him. He got that. “What’s up?” he asked Josh.
“You remember Zeke?”
“Sure.” He reached and shook the young man’s hand. “How are you doing, Zeke?”
“I’m good.” He fidgeted with his hat in his hands and shifted nervously from foot to foot.
“Zeke came to me with some information,” Josh explained, then nudged the boy. “Go on. You tell them.”
“I don’t want you to think I’m the type of person who hangs out with criminals or anything because I don’t. I just know a lot of people around town and, well...they approached me. I thought you should know and I called Josh just as soon as I could without drawing any suspicion.”
“What’s going on, Zeke? What are you talking about? Who approached you?”
“It was just some guys I know from one of my classes. They know I work at the ranch part-time and I guess they thought I would see it as an easy way to make some fast cash.”
Miles didn’t like the way this conversation was going. Zeke was being evasive, although it didn’t appear it was on purpose. “Why don’t you tell us what these guys wanted from you.”
“Well, they wanted me to kidnap your wife.”
His heart sank at the young man’s words. “Kidnap Melissa? Why? For what reason?”
“I don’t know. There’s a man in town who’s been approaching local gang members. They’ve put a price on her head. They’re willing to pay anyone who can get to her.”
“And these friends of yours thought you’d hand her over?”
“Well, I guess they knew I could get close without anyone getting suspicious. After all, it wouldn’t be strange to see me around here, and why would someone like me want to kidnap Melissa Avery?”
Miles didn’t like this one bit. He’d asked the same question of the boys in the bunkhouse, and now he knew the answer. Money was the only reason anyone needed. And if someone was in town offering up money for Melissa, it meant the danger could be coming from anywhere and anyone. Zeke might have been honorable enough to come to Josh with the information, but that didn’t mean others would balk at kidnapping, if the reward was great enough.
He looked at Josh, who only sighed. “That explains why all the attacks against her haven’t been direct threats.” Until last night. Until Kirby had decided to take matters into his own hands. “They were kids trying to make some quick cash.”
“By threatening my family.”
“Don’t you mean your witness?” Kellyanne asked, correcting him.
He turned to glare at her, a reminder not to speak of Melissa as his witness in front of others. Even though he’d known Zeke practically since the kid was born, that didn’t mean he was trustworthy. After all, he apparently hung out with friends who saw absolutely nothing wrong with setting fires or leaving a little kid to be trampled by a bunch of spooked horses in order to get to her in the chaos. At least, he assumed that was the reason. Even if the boy was well-intentioned, he might accidentally let something slip.
He was glad Melissa was upstairs with Dylan and not a part of this conversation.
Miles watched the kid. He continued to look nervous, and even after setting down the cowboy hat, he rubbed his hands nervously on his jeans.
His dad made a pot of coffee and offered Zeke a cup, which he took, and they all sat down.
“So tell me how you know these guys who made you the offer.”
Zeke shrugged. “Like I said, we hang out sometimes. They’re not bad guys, just looking to have fun.”
“And kidnapping a woman is having fun?”
Zeke paled. “No. I didn’t mean it that way. I just meant, they sometimes do drugs to have fun so they know some rough types. They hear things. I don’t think they would have really gone through with it.”
Miles had way too much experience with people who hadn’t meant for a crime to go too far. Often they were the very ones he helped protect when they got in over their heads and had to make plea deals to turn on the bigger fishes. They hadn’t meant to become criminals, but the temptation of easy money was often just too strong to resist. Yet, this kid had chosen to do the right thing. Miles admired that.
“Can you identify the man who made this offer?”
“No, I’ve never met him. When my friends approached me, I said I wasn’t interested.”
But Josh had other ideas. It appeared he wanted Zeke to work for them. “Can you find out from these friends of yours how much they’re offering and who is making the offer?”
Zeke shrugged. “I can try. I suppose I can go back to them and say I’ve changed my mind. They know I need the money. I’ve been bumming rides from them ever since my transmission conked out on me two weeks ago.”
But Miles was hesitant to ask this of Zeke. Josh had the best of intentions, but he had no idea the kind of people who were after Melissa. Shearer and his men were hard-core dangerous and Kirby was a killer. He could never ask a twenty-two-year-old college kid to take on that sort of risk.
“I think he can handle it,” Josh responded when Miles questioned the plan.
“I don’t mind,” Zeke said. “I hate to see anyone get hurt, especially after how good the Avery family has been to me.”
“And no one wants to see you get hurt, either,” Miles assured him.
Josh stood. “This is a serious development, Miles. We need to get in front of it and if Zeke is willing—”
“He’s a kid. We can’t involve him in this.”
Zeke stood and faced Miles. “I understand you don’t know me that well, Miles, but you should know that I’ll do almost anything I can to help this family. To help you.” He slipped on his cowboy hat and headed for the door. “I’ll find out who is behind this and, don’t worry, Miles, I won’t let anything happen to your wife.”
He walked out before Miles could protest again. Not that he thought it would do any good. Zeke seemed determined.
Josh slipped his hat back on his head and also headed out. “I’ll keep in constant contact with Zeke.”
Miles followed Josh out the door and onto the porch. He had a feeling that, if Zeke lived, he was about to have another witness who needed protection.
Miles paced the conference room at the sheriff’s office while Josh and Cecile readied a recorder on the table. Paul leaned against a wall in the corner and Melissa sat waiting at the table. He didn’t like having her here and didn’t think she needed to hear this, but she’d insisted on being present.
“These are the recordings Zeke took when he approached his friends,” Cecile told them. “They, in turn, took him to the guy who had made the offers.”
“Were you able to capture him?” Miles asked, hoping for a quick resolution to his problem.
“No,” Josh said. “But we recorded his conversation with Zeke and he’s definitely placed a target on Melissa’s head. He’s still offering a reward for anyone who can kill her or bring her to him. I’ve got Zeke working with a sketch artist, but it was dark and he said the guy kept to the shadows.”
As Cecile hit the button to start playing the recording, Melissa leaned forward, obviously having a difficult time making out what was being said.
Miles heard Zeke’s voice asking questions and another man responding. Something about his voice seemed familiar, but Miles couldn’t quite place it.
“Are you certain you can get close enough to her to grab her?” the man asked Zeke.
“I’ve worked for the family for years so they know me. They won’t suspect anything if I’m around.”
“Good. You do that. Grab her. Kill her if you can. If you can’t, bring her to me and I’ll take care of it.”
Miles didn’t like the coldness in the speaker’s voice. This was all business for him and, whoever he was, he wouldn’t hesitate to kill Melissa if given another chance. He might have been the one shooting at them on the road after his accomplices ran them into a tree.
“There’s a time limit for this job. It needs to be handled quickly. The first person who brings her to me gets the prize.”
Whoever this man was, he knew things about Melissa and about the Silver Star. But how had he known Melissa would be at the ranch? Miles still didn’t understand that. Even with a mole in WITSEC, the information that he was on the case, and where his family could be found, should not have been available to them. How then were they receiving their information?
“How did you know she was here in town?” Zeke asked the very question Miles had been wondering himself and the man growled at him.
“That’s not your concern. Do your job and collect your money. It’s as simple as that.”
The recording ended and Cecile clicked it off. Melissa sighed and sat back in her seat. Miles could see how listening to someone offering money for her life had her shaken. “Are you okay?” he asked.
She nodded, but then pushed back her chair and stood. “I think I’ll go check on Dylan.” They’d placed Dylan in Josh’s office when they’d arrived and asked the receptionist to keep an eye on him.
He nodded. “I think that’s a good idea.” She left the room and Miles turned back to his brothers and Cecile. “Zeke did good. Did you show him the photo of Kirby?”
“I did,” Josh stated. “He said it wasn’t the guy he met with. I also showed him Shearer’s photo, too, just in case, but it wasn’t him, either. In fact, he couldn’t identify him as any of Shearer’s known associates. He described the guy as in his thirties, tall and athletic with dark hair but, again, it was dark and this guy made certain Zeke didn’t get a good look at his face. I doubt he’ll be able to give us a good enough sketch.”
“Shearer isn’t the type to do his own dirty work, but I can’t believe it wasn’t Kirby.” Griffin had said Kirby had gone underground, but he certainly had the most to lose since Melissa could identify him as the man who’d murdered her mother. But Shearer had other men on his payroll, including whoever was leaking him WITSEC information. Was he the one leading the attacks against Melissa? If so, they had to uncover his identity soon.
“Whoever this guy is, he’s careful,” Cecile told them. “He blasted a vague but pointed notice on social media, but made sure it didn’t lead back to anyone in particular. We traced the user name he used to a fake account and the IP address to a local library in Dallas, where he signed in under a fake name. He’s using a cloned phone for text messages. He’s covering his tracks.”
“Maybe, but he’ll have to show up in person to collect Melissa,” Paul stated.
“What are you saying?” Josh asked him.
“Have Zeke message him that he’s kidnapped Melissa and is ready to hand her off. He’ll have to show up then.”
“Or he might send someone else to pick her up,” Josh argued.
“Either way,” Cecile commented, “it would be putting her in danger’s way.”
Miles gaped at his brother, appalled that they were even discussing the possibility. No way was he placing Melissa into the hands of a known killer even if it meant bringing the guy in. Too many things could go wrong. He wouldn’t risk it.
“Not if it’s not her,” Paul continued. He turned to Cecile. “You and Melissa are about the same height and build. With a wig, it could fool him, at least until you got close enough to arrest him.”
She considered it, then nodded. “That’s a decent plan. And if we make me up to look like I’ve been beaten up, that would help hide my face even more.”
Josh stood stoically. “That’s asking a lot of Zeke.”
But Cecile stood to face him. “He’s the one who wanted to do this. I would be right there with him. Plus, you and your brothers would be close by. I’m not saying it isn’t dangerous, but it’s the job we signed on for, isn’t it?”
Josh nodded. “Okay. Bring Zeke in. I want him under my protection until this goes down.”
Cecile hurried out of the conference room.
Miles studied his brother. He saw hesitation in his face—hesitation to put people he cared about in the line of fire. He understood that. “Are you sure you want to do this? It’s not too late to back out.”
“Cecile is right. This is the job.”
Miles didn’t like this idea much, but if they were truly going to capture this guy, he agreed it was time to act. And using Cecile to lure this guy out of the darkness was the best plan he’d heard so far. Best of all, it might mean they could resolve this soon and end the danger to Melissa. No matter what else happened, he wasn’t going to allow anyone to hurt her. Like his brother, he wasn’t ready to lose anyone he cared about.
He walked out of the conference room and into Josh’s office. Melissa looked up at him. He probably shouldn’t have brought her—or Dylan—with him to the sheriff’s office, but he’d decided he wasn’t ready to let either of them out of his sight. He preferred having them where he could protect them both and he couldn’t do that if he was across town.
“What did you all decide?” she asked.
“They’re going to have Cecile pretend to be you and have Zeke deliver her to this guy who offered to pay him. By the way, it wasn’t Kirby.”
“Who do you think it is?”
“I don’t know. The mole in my office, maybe. Whoever they are, this could tie him back to Kirby and Shearer—and then you would be safe.”
“Do you think that will work?”
“I don’t know. Maybe. I hope it does.”
“That Zeke is a pretty brave kid, isn’t he?”
“Yeah, I’m just now realizing what a good guy he really is. Are you going to be okay in here or would you rather we return to the Silver Star?” He preferred staying here, but it looked like it was going to be a long night monitoring the situation with Zeke and Cecile, and it might be easier to care for Dylan at the ranch. But, hopefully, once it was over, this nightmare would be over, too, and Melissa would be free from danger.
She rubbed Dylan’s hair as she looked up at Miles. “I’d rather stay close.”
He was glad. The sheriff’s office would be on minimal staff with five of the eight deputies involved in the operation, but Melissa was still safer here with him and his brothers close by than she would be anywhere else. “We’ll be in the conference room if you need us and I’ve got my cell phone. I’ll be checking on you.”
He headed back toward the conference room, where Cecile was pulling on the wig that would transform her into a reasonably convincing copy of Melissa. He had to admit, from a distance, she could pass. It was a good plan and he was hopeful. He grabbed a cup of coffee and was surprised to find Ellie sitting at one of the tables in the break room. He hadn’t seen his old girlfriend since he and Melissa had bought those clothes from her when they’d first come to town. “Hey, Ellie, what’s going on? Why are you here?”
“Someone tried to...break into my house this afternoon.” Her words came out choppy and he noticed how anxious she seemed as she gripped a paper cup full of coffee. “I came home from the grocery store and found him. Deputy Vance asked me to come in and file a report and look through some mug shots to see if I can identify the guy, but it seems everyone is busy with something else.”
Normal operations had been affected by this sting operation and he felt bad she was being inconvenienced by it. “I’m sure someone will be able to help you soon.”
“It doesn’t matter. I really don’t want to be alone in that house right now. I’m just as happy to stay here for a while.”
He kneeled beside her and felt her shaking. She’d had a frightening experience and was fortunate the intruder hadn’t harmed her. He felt like a jerk now for bringing up her marriage back when they’d run into each other in the store. It wasn’t until he’d spoken with his mother later that he’d learned that not only was she divorced, but she’d also lost her four-year-old son in a drowning accident. As bad as things had gotten for her, he was surprised she’d returned to Courtland County, but perhaps this community could be what helped her cope with her losses.
He understood that, too. His hometown was important to him, as well. He glanced through the office windows to where Melissa was reading Dylan a book on Josh’s couch and felt a familiar pull. This place was home, but so was she.
Ellie followed his gaze. “Is that Melissa in Josh’s office?”
“Yeah, she and Dylan are hanging out while we take care of some business with my brother.”
“Maybe I’ll stop in and keep her company until Vance is ready for me.”
“I think she would like that.” And he liked that Melissa wouldn’t be alone.
Ellie reached for his hand. “You’re a good man, Miles Avery. I’m happy I got to see you again.”
He wished her well then headed back into the conference room, but not before spotting another sight in the hallway that caught him off guard—Zeke leaning down to plant a kiss on Miles’s sister. Kellyanne spotted him watching as Zeke hurried for the conference room. Her face flushed when she realized Miles had seen them.
She locked eyes with him and shrugged as if it was no big deal. “You’re not the only one with secrets, you know.”
But yet, she’d been the one to read him the riot act when his secrets had come to light.
“Zeke has been asking me out since we were in high school together, but I was never interested before.”
“What changed your mind?” Miles asked her.
“I see a lot of bad things, a lot of bad people, in my job. I suppose I finally realized I shouldn’t turn away a good man when I see one.” She glanced into the conference room, where Zeke was being fitted with a recording device, and Miles realized she was worried about him. He saw affection shining in her expression and was happy for her. She was right. Zeke was one of the good guys. “Don’t worry,” he said, trying to reassure her. “Josh and Cecile won’t let anything happen to him.”
“I know. But I’m going to stick around just in case.” She hurried down the hall toward Josh’s office and he saw her kneel down to play with Dylan on the floor. He was glad Melissa had decided to stay. They all needed a distraction tonight.
Melissa chatted with Kellyanne and briefly with Ellie before Deputy Vance called her out to look at mug shots. The whole time, Melissa’s attention was never far away from what was happening miles away and being observed in the conference room. She wished she was in there watching, too, but she didn’t think she could stand seeing an image of herself being handed over to a killer. It wasn’t real, but that didn’t stop fear from pressing down on her. She knew that if she watched it, she wouldn’t be able to stop the constant replay in her head of the moment she’d found her mother’s lifeless body and then realized the killer was still inside the house, and every other life-threatening incident since then. She was weary of it all and she preferred to just stay here in this office with Dylan, where they were safe from the madness that was happening in the world.
She turned back to see Kellyanne playing dinosaurs with Dylan, who was giggling and having a good time. He wasn’t bothered with being cooped up in this office because he had people around him who played with him and cared about him. Kellyanne would have made a good aunt to Dylan and she wished that he would have a family like the Averys. But that could never happen. She had to enjoy it while it lasted, before she and Dylan moved on to their next identity and said goodbye to both Miles and the Avery family for good.
She grew a little light-headed at the thought of saying goodbye and sat on the couch before her legs gave out. She always did her best to keep her emotions in check, especially in front of Dylan, so this reaction was disconcerting. But she soon realized this was more than just her emotions gone wild. The room started spinning and she felt sick. She tried to call out to Kellyanne, but saw her lying unmoving on the carpet as Dylan played beside her.
Something was wrong. Kellyanne wouldn’t have fallen asleep like that. She glanced at the coffee cups sitting around the room and realized someone must have drugged them. She tried to reach for one and knocked it over, spilling the contents on the floor, but she couldn’t muster the strength to clean up the mess. Her limbs had grown heavy and she was having trouble keeping her eyes open.
She tried to call out to Dylan and after a moment he walked over to her and looked at her questioningly.
“Mama, you okay?”
She wanted to reassure him, but at the same time she knew something was terribly wrong. She tried to scream at him to run and hide, but the words wouldn’t come. The door opened and Dylan turned to someone who picked him up. She couldn’t see who it was, but she was screaming in her head.
Help me! Please, help me!
She tried to turn her head to see what was happening and caught only a glimpse of Dylan’s face as someone carried him out the door before the darkness pulled her away.