“Cat’s checking Moria out of school right now,” Julia told Eric. “She talked to the resource officer on duty and explained we had a possible threat, so he’s waiting with Moria.”
They’d reached her house in record time. Eric slammed on the brakes and put the truck in Park then hopped out to come around for her. “She’ll be okay, then. The school knows Cat is listed in case of an emergency right?”
“Yes, thank goodness,” Julia said, her breath catching in her throat. “I just need to see Moria to be sure, but they’re going back to the café for now.”
Eric guided her up the steps to her house. “Good idea. Moria doesn’t need to be here until we find out what’s going on.”
Julia understood. “As long as I know she’s safe—”
Mrs. Ulmer was waiting on her front porch, and now she came rushing over, leaving her husband there to watch from his scooter chair, Fred barking and dancing around by his side. “I’m so sorry for scaring you, Julia. But I declare, when I looked out my back window and saw a strange man coming out of your back door, well, I just knew something wasn’t right. Gus heard me calling out to the man, so he naturally wanted to go over there and confront him, but I told him no. We didn’t see any type of repair truck, either. That’s when I called you.”
“Is he still in there?” Eric asked, his voice low.
“I don’t know,” Mrs. Ulmer said, her lips pursed. “One minute he was there on the porch and the next, he seemed to just disappear around the other side of the house. I didn’t get a very good look at him, either. I think Fred’s barking scared him off.”
“Thanks, Miss Nina,” Julia said, her hand on the door.
Eric tugged her back. “Let me go in first.”
She nodded, hoping against hope that there truly was some sort of repairman inside her house. But when Eric opened the door, he was immediately met with some resistance. Frowning, he pushed hard until he almost fell into the room.
And that’s when both Julia and Mrs. Ulmer gasped at the sight before them. Julia’s house had been ransacked. Furniture and magazines were scattered all over the place. A huge sofa pillow was shoved against the door. Even the tiny television had been thrown to the floor.
“Oh, my,” Nina Ulmer said, her plump hands going to her mouth. “I should have called the police the minute I saw him. At least Eric is here now.”
“Stay out here,” Eric warned. “I’m just going to go in and check things out.”
“Should I call for help?” Mrs. Ulmer asked in a shaky voice.
Eric looked at Julia. He must have seen her anxiety, since she was shaking all the way from her head to her toes.
“No, not yet. I doubt he’s still here. Just stay out here and be quiet. I’ll be fine.”
Julia wasn’t so sure about that. “But your shoulder—”
“I’m well enough to put up a fight,” he retorted, his finger going to his mouth to quiet her. “Just stay back.”
Julia did as he told her, her hand grabbing Mrs. Ulmer’s. Nina waved to her frowning husband to reassure him, even if neither of them felt all that reassured themselves.
Then Nina picked up a small garden shovel Julia had left on the porch. “Take this, at least.”
Eric frowned but took it, then he pushed inside the door. “Wait right here.”
While they waited, Julia held her breath and asked God to help her. It had been a while since she’d turned to God for any favors or pleas. Probably since the night the police had told her that her husband was dead. Not once during all her fears and trepidation in San Antonio had she relied on God to calm her or guide her. But standing here, in this rental house in Wildflower, with the sun shining in a piercing deception of peace and tranquility all around her, she knew she needed God’s help in dealing with this. And she was beginning to believe God was sending her that help in the form of one very brave hero.
“I pray Eric doesn’t find anything bad in there,” Mrs. Ulmer said.
Julia nodded. “So do I.” And this time she meant it.
When her phoned beeped, she almost jumped out of her skin. “Julia, it’s Cat. Moria is at the café with me and Adam is staying close. Is everything all right at home?”
“I don’t know. Eric’s checking it out. Someone broke into my house.”
“Oh, honey, that’s not good. I’ll keep Moria here until I get the all-clear from you, all right?”
“All right. I’ll call you.” She heaved a breath. “And Cat, please keep an eye on her.”
“You know I will. She can help me make the pies for tomorrow’s lunch crowd.”
Julia closed the phone just as Eric emerged from inside her ruined living room. “He’s not in here. He must have been leaving when you spotted him, Nina. Your dog must have spooked him, so he tried to get away without anyone seeing him.” He gave the older woman a gentle look. “Do you think you could identify this man?”
Nina shook her head. “I don’t know, Eric. I didn’t have on my glasses.”
Eric nodded. “We’ll worry about that later then.”
Both women let out the breaths they’d been holding. “I’ll go tell Gus what’s going on,” Mrs. Ulmer said. Then she turned around, her paisley printed apron flying out. “I’ll come back and help you clean up, suga’.”
“Don’t touch anything. I have to call this in first,” Eric said, his gaze resting on Julia. “I have to.”
She knew what that meant. Even more scrutiny on her private life. But…she really didn’t have a choice now. Someone was obviously searching for something. Her husband had died because of this. Mingo Talor had possibly died because of this. She didn’t want to think about what these people would do next.
“I know,” she told Eric as she stepped inside the clutter of her home. “I know. I just wish—”
“Look, I’m going to Sheriff Whitston with all of this.” When Julia held up a hand in protest, he added, “And since I’m not clear for full duty until my arm heals, I’m going to ask him to assign me to you.”
“What?” Julia shook her head. “I don’t need a bodyguard, Eric.”
“Yes, you do. I think you and Moria are being targeted, Julia. And until we find out why and by whom, you need protection.”
“So you’re just going to camp out on my doorstep?”
“No, not exactly,” he said, his gaze sweeping over the broken dishes and strewn food in her kitchen. “But you are going to be with me 24/7. You and Moria are coming to stay at the lake with Dad and me. And that’s final.”
Later that afternoon Julia was once again on the big deck stretching out over Caddo Lake, the silhouette of Eric’s spacious cabin behind her as she allowed the gentle spring wind to play through her hair. Too numb to think about how most of the few possessions she’d brought from San Antonio were now destroyed, she just thanked God that Moria was safe. At least she’d stored some of her more prized possessions in Cat’s big attic.
Of course, she’d had to dig in her heels with Eric. She wasn’t going to stay out here on the lake day and night, and that was final, she’d informed him earlier. However, she was willing to come out here for dinner tonight, just to keep Moria from seeing their house. Cat had agreed to let Julia and Moria stay with her for as long as they needed. After all, Cat had reminded her, she’d wanted them to stay with her when they moved back, anyway, but Julia had insisted that would be imposing. Now Julia felt trapped between two very dynamite forces—her cousin and the man who kept coming to her rescue. They’d reached a compromise of sorts, at least. When she wasn’t working at the café, she and Moria would be with either Cat or Eric, or both if need be. They wouldn’t be alone until Eric could make sure they were safe again.
“I like it here, Mommy,” Moria said from her spot near the railing. “I like the turtles. Do we get to stay a long time?”
“I’m not sure, honey,” Moria replied, careful to keep her tone light. “Probably just for dinner, okay?”
Moria nodded. “Why can’t we go back home?”
Julia would like to know the answer to that question herself. “I don’t know yet. Remember I explained how some things had been damaged at our other house. We have to get that fixed first. We’ll visit with Eric and his dad, then we’ll stay with Aunt Cat for a while. It’ll be fun, since you’re out for spring break next week.”
Moria clung to her doll. “Rosa likes it here, too.”
“I’m so glad,” Julia said, turning to touch a finger to the doll’s glistening hair.
At least Moria’s favorite toy hadn’t been destroyed by the burglar. Eric seemed to think the man had heard Fred barking, or something else had alerted him before he’d searched the whole house. Then when he’d seen Mrs. Ulmer, he’d run off. Julia’s room had been plundered, but it looked as if the man had stopped midway and left. Moria’s bedroom was untouched.
“That just means they’ll be back again,” Eric had reasoned earlier after the whole place had been dusted for prints.
Hearing footsteps on the deck, she turned now to find him coming toward them, a look of fatigue shadowing his face. Whispering low, he said, “We’ll have to wait to hear on the prints—if there were any new ones. That’s all we have to go on right now. Whoever did this, they didn’t leave behind any evidence.”
“That doesn’t surprise me,” Julia said. “I have a feeling whoever is behind this is desperate.”
Eric leaned close. “Exactly. Even more reason to take extra precautions.”
Moria ran up to Eric. “Mr. Eric, I’ve seen six turtles so far. No alligators, though.”
“I wouldn’t count on seeing an old gator,” he said, running a hand over Moria’s head as he stepped close. “They like to lay low. Just remember what I told you—don’t ever go out to the dock by yourself, okay?”
“Okay,” Moria said, looking back out at the water. “I won’t.”
Eric’s smile was indulgent. “Supper is almost ready.”
“I could have helped,” Julia said, feeling awkward and out of place with nothing to occupy her time.
“Dad doesn’t allow anyone near when he’s making his famous chili dogs.” He grinned over at Moria. “Hope you like tator tots.”
“I love them,” Moria replied, her smile shy.
Eric looked back at Julia. “Everything is set. Dad and I both are on active watch now. One of us will be with you or near you at all times. The school has been alerted and they know the routine. You are the only person who can give approval to check out Moria until this is resolved. Nobody else, not even Cat, not even me, you hear? It’s important to stick to your routine, no matter how hard that is.”
“Then why did I have to leave my home?” she said on a low whisper.
“Because your home is uninhabitable right now. And because you’re much safer out here where I have a built-in security system, and a bulldog of a daddy. We’ll keep you here and at Cat’s house, with Dad, Adam and me taking shifts. The normal routine will begin again once school starts back after spring break. But hopefully, between the authorities in San Antonio, and with our department here working on things, this will be cleared up by then.”
Trying to find some humor, she shrugged. “And here I thought this was just your way of getting to know me better.”
“Maybe that’s part of it, too.” His expression changed from amused and interested to deadly serious. “I need to keep you safe and it’s just easier on everyone to do that here as much as we can. We’re off the beaten path, and we have more room, more distractions for Moria, and…as I said—my dad as backup.”
She nodded. “Don’t worry. I understand. But I’m going back to Cat’s house each night. I don’t want to disrupt Moria’s life too much and we hang out at Cat’s house all the time as it is.”
“Which we need to consider,” he said, shaking his head. “Someone might be aware of that routine.”
Julia shuddered. “I can’t just stop my life in midstream.”
“True. Okay, I can live with that as long as Adam can help with checking on all of you. Cat knows how to use a weapon. And we’ll assign an additional man to watch the school if we haven’t figure this out by the time Moria is due back, okay?”
Forcing herself to relax, she said, “Well, we don’t have to worry about school for another week, at least. Spring break on the lake—reminds me of high school.”
He gave her that tight little smile again. “Cat said y’all used to have some fun times every summer. I wonder how I never got around to knowing you back then. I guess I was away at college part of the time.”
“We probably ran in different circles. Cat was older, wiser, smarter, I think. She kept me out of trouble.” And he would have been serious trouble, she thought to herself.
“Cat’s good at that.”
Julia watched as Moria threw pebbles into the water. “Are you sure your Dad’s okay with this female invasion?”
“He’s just fine. He and Moria have already established a nice bond.”
“She doesn’t take to everyone. Your dad is a very nice man.”
“Thanks. I inherited that trait.”
She saw the amusement surfacing in his dark eyes again, and in spite of all the tension surrounding them, she felt a little ray of hope…and a big jolt of awareness. “I think you did.”
“So…are you okay with all of this?” he asked. “My dad will serve as chaperone and disciplinarian if I get out of hand,” he added, nudging her elbow. “Just like high school again is right. And the more I’m around you, the more out of hand I could get.”
“You can’t flirt with me until this is over,” she said as she shifted away. “We agreed on that back at my house when you talked me into this, remember?”
“I don’t remember any such agreement. But considering how I got a lecture from my superior about withholding information and going behind his back to investigate a case that was clearly not mine to investigate, I’d say flirting is definitely out of the question right now. But…that’ll just make it all the better later, when things are back to normal.”
“And will things ever get back to normal?” She had to wonder at that. Lowering her voice so her daughter wouldn’t hear, she said, “I mean, I’ve forgotten what normal is, it’s been so long since I’ve felt that way.”
He moved closer, the warmth in his eyes glistening right along with the sunset over the water. “I wonder about normal myself. I try to imagine this house full of love and laughter, with a family of my own.”
She shook her head. “And yet, you’ve obviously never married, right?”
“Right.” He shrugged, then his eyes turned hazy with memories. “I’ve dated a lot, one or two times it looked serious. But…once I got settled into the routine of my job, my personal life kind of fell by the wayside.”
“Did you ever have someone special? I mean, really special?”
He looked away. “Once, but that was when I was in college. And it was over before it even got started.”
Julia looked out at the water, watching as a dragonfly buzzed over the surface. Maybe he didn’t like talking about his personal life. “I loved being married, being a mom. I had it all. Or so I thought.”
Eric gave her a measured look. “You seem to be good at the mother part.”
Glancing back toward where Moria sat fussing over Rosa, she hoped that was true. “Everything changes when you have a child. Your whole perspective shifts.”
He drummed his fingers along the railing. “I certainly understand that. Sometimes I envy my dad. He’s had all of that, and even though my mom died a few years back, now he gets to sit back and take it easy, knowing he’s a blessed man.”
“Or at least he did,” she said, “before we were forced on him.”
“My dad is tough. He can handle you two. Besides, he has his own place. He can retreat to his cabin anytime he wants.”
“I hope so. I don’t think he’s as thrilled as you seem to be about having us here.”
She saw him hesitate before he responded to that. Then all doubt was gone. “My dad always does the right thing. Let’s go eat, or he will be mad at all of us.”
Later, after Moria had fallen asleep on the couch and they were all three sitting around the spacious paneled den with a perfect view of the lake, Eric wondered if Harlan did resent having Julia here. But then again, his dad hadn’t hesitated one bit when he’d called earlier to explain things to him. Eric figured his dad was just trying to protect him, on both a professional and a personal level. His dad sure had seen the ups and downs of Eric’s pathetic love life and the ups and downs of being a lawman. And Harlan didn’t have to tell Eric that he was in way over his head with this particular work-related project. But they both knew Eric couldn’t turn away from Julia now.
Hoping to break the ice between his dad and the woman who was somehow fast becoming an important part of his life, Eric chuckled. “It’s been a long time since I brought a girl home to meet my dad, huh, Pops?”
Harlan glanced up from his newspaper. “You can say that again. I thought we were both destined to remain two grumpy old bachelors.”
Julia shifted in her spot on the couch. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. I’m not moving in—just spending some time here.”
Harlan kept on reading, his bifocals jutting out from his nose. “That’s what my Patsy said when we first started dating. Told me she wasn’t interested in me, no way, no sir.”
Eric winked over at Julia. “Well, I’m sure glad you convinced her to marry you since I wouldn’t be here if you hadn’t.”
Harlan shot his son a deadpan look. “Believe me, I’ve considered that through the years.” Then he looked at Julia. “This one is famous for his hare-brained schemes.”
Julia gave Harlan a questioning look, her slanted eyebrows lifting up. “Such as bringing a woman and her child home for dinner?”
Harlan didn’t even blink. “Yep. This has got to rank right up there with the time he brought home two baby wood ducks and a bullfrog but forgot to tell his mama they were all cozy in the bottom of his closet. Boy, that caused a regular ruckus around the house.”
Julia looked embarrassed until Harlan shot her a grin. “But, honey, you are much prettier than that old bullfrog and a lot less noisy than those scared little ducks, let me tell you.”
They all laughed, and Eric breathed a sigh of relief. Leave it to Harlan Butler to get things rolling. “Dad, I appreciate your help on this. I don’t think I need a chaperone at my age, but I know you’ll make a good one.”
Harlan put down his paper, then turned toward them. “I can’t say I understand your tactics, son, but I don’t cotton to a woman and her child being threatened or harassed. So you both can count on me. Now, let’s consider that the end of that particular discussion.”
Julia sat up to clutch a throw pillow Eric’s mother had cross-stitched years ago with Bless This Mess. “I don’t intend to hang around here all the time, Mr. Butler. And while I didn’t want to resort to leaving my home, I want to thank you for tonight. I can rest better knowing Moria is in good hands for a little while, at least.”
“Call me Harlan,” Eric’s dad said, pushing up out of his chair, his smile gentle as he looked down on where Moria lay nearby. “Now, I’m old and I’m tired. So I’m going to go across the yard, feed my dog and go to bed. Eric, you’ll make sure she gets safely to Cat’s, right?”
“Of course,” Eric replied, smiling up at his dad. “Get a good night’s sleep.”
Harlan held a hand up in parting. “Same to you.”
After his father had left the room, Eric turned back to Julia. “Finally, we’re alone.”
She frowned over at him. “Was this your plan all the time, deputy?”
He slid closer to her on the couch. “Maybe.”
He watched as her gaze moved from him to the moonlit night. “Hard to imagine that someone could be out there, watching my every move.”
“Not so hard to imagine,” he reminded her. “I saw your house today. I’m just glad you weren’t there when that man decided to search the place.”
She let out a little gasp. “I don’t even want to think of that. I just want this to be over.”
“Me, too,” Eric said as she glanced back at him. “For more reasons than one.”
He could see the becoming blush rising up her neck. “No flirting,” she reminded him. “For lots of reasons.”
“Want to tell me some of those reasons?”
“Not tonight,” she said. She got up, pointing toward her sleeping daughter. “It’s time to take us back to Cat’s.”
She moved toward Moria, leaving Eric to wonder what other obstacles he’d have to face once he’d caught the bad guys.