“Thank you for coming, detective.” George moved in front of his oldest to shake the detective’s hand.
“I have to say, when Mrs. Sanders called and asked for me, I was a bit shocked. Miss Smith, how you holding up?”
Everyone’s eyes peeled to her. Not sure what to say, Kathy turned it back to him. “Detective Owen and I had a meeting yesterday. I’m so glad you’re here. You can clear things up better than I can.” She glanced at Dave with an open heart.
“I’ve been investigating a couple who’d been involved in a large sting, south a bit, many months back but we never were able to catch the responsible parties.”
“Kathy’s parents,” Dave said with disdain.
“All we knew is that it was an older couple and we suspected they had many others working with them.”
Dave’s eyes met Kathy’s, and with that connection she saw his love and understanding for all that had happened in the last few hours. Oh how she wanted to leave all the ache and turmoil in the past where it belonged. When Dave wrapped his arms around her, Kathy realized the nightmare truly was finally over.
Owen cleared his throat. “Last night I was following up on a credible lead.”
“You mean, following me,” Kathy filled in.
“Right. This couple was supposedly traveling with a known pedophile and—”
Kathy closed her eyes and swallowed hard. Known pedophile. There was so much in those two words; they meant her parents knew what Todd did and approved; it meant they were okay with him doing it to her; and it meant there were more victims out there.
“—selling drugs. They are also suspects in many of the robberies that have been happening around here and a murder.”
Kathy stared down at her feet because she couldn’t think of any other place to look. Murder. One simple word that meant so much when paired with someone you love.
* * *
Dave held her tighter and wanted to tell her it all would be okay. But how could he?
“It’s okay,” she whispered to him.
“No, it’s not,” he told her.
Detective Owen turned a frown on Kathy. “We have reason to believe that Todd Doyle is the perpetrator who entered Miss Smith’s aunt’s home and killed her.”
The gasps in the room would have been audible to the deaf.
This poor woman was all Dave could think. He was just happy she was in his arms now. He held on a little tighter, hoping she’d understand how much his heart was bleeding for her.
“That monster got what he deserved and it felt really nice to kick his ass,” she told him.
“She sure did, Mr. Sanders.”
“That’s my girl,” Dave chuckled.
Kathy bit her lip and furrowed her brows. “I was trying to find you and explain what happened with my aunt. I’m sorry it got so out of hand.”
“There’s nothing to forgive, Kathy. You and me, we’re all right. And getting married in Vegas,” he whispered in her ear.
From behind him, Dave heard his brother ask, “So, detective, you arrest this guy?”
“Yes. And the couple he was traveling with.” Compassion displayed clearly on Owen’s face. “Miss Smith’s parents were taken into custody early this morning after we got a clear ID from the gunshot victim.”
“Oh you poor girl!” Swooping in Renee pulled Kathy into her ample arms. “How dreadful.”
“It’s okay, Renee. This has been coming for a long time. Now they can’t hurt anyone else.”
“After you left the Triple X,” Owen explained to Dave, “it was robbed and a bartender was shot.”
“What?” Dave’s mind whirled. “Who was hurt?”
Detective Owen pulled out his notebook. “Stan Waitt.”
Relief flooded over him. José was all right.
“I wasn’t looking at you, Mr. Sanders,” Owen told him. “I was watching Miss Smith to see if her parents would show. And with your past, well.…” He let the rest of his sentence hang in the air.
“I understand.”
Owen looked around the bar. “Well, I’m done. Miss Smith, I’ll be in contact. Sanders…” All three men gave a “yeah.” “I’ll need you to come in and give a statement about what time you came into the Triple X, what you saw, and when you left.”
“No problem.” Dave watched him leave and with the detective’s absence a clear, heavy apprehension filled the space.
“Guess he wasn’t as big of a jackass as we thought.” Jake wrapped an arm around Sophie’s shoulders. “Come on, let’s get you home.”
“Yes.” Sophie looked dead on her fatigued feet. “This sucks.” She gave Kathy a hug. “You okay.”
“Yeah, I’m fine.” Kathy wrapped her arms around Dave’s waist.
“Okay, I think we need to let these two talk,” Renee announced. “And when you’re done I want to know the wedding plans.”
“For goodness sakes, Honey Bunny.”
“I want a wedding damn it! I’m finally getting a grandchild, I deserve a wedding.”
Dave and Kathy stared at each with twin smirks.
“What?” Renee and Sophie asked.
“What does everyone think of Vegas?” Dave asked.
Wide-eyed Jake looked at his brother. “You got to be kidding me.”
“Nope, dead serious.”
Kathy clapped her hands together and bounced. “Can we get hitched by Elvis?”
Dave once again cupped her face in his hands. “Whatever you want.”
“One month,” she told him. “I want a dress and everyone there.”
Renee jumped up and down while clapping. “It’s a wedding! A wedding, George!”
George pulled his wife to him. “I know,” he told her with a loud kiss.
“Ah-hm.” Jake cleared his throat. “You know, Sophie and I have been talking about tying the knot—with the baby coming maybe we—”
“Yes!” Kathy and Sophie announced.
“We should get remarried too!” Renee told her husband.
“I think that would be wonderful.” Kathy held a hand out to Dave’s mom. In that moment he knew she’d never have to worry about her parents again. Now she’d have the ones she deserved. Ones that would appreciate her, love her as he did, and never give up on her.
Dave looked at her just as Kathy choked on the tears she’d been trying to hold back. The need to fall to his knees in front of her was strong and forceful and appeared imminent. She had needed him last night and had been coming to tell everyone what was going on. For the first time she would be opening up and trusting him and his family to be supportive—and was asking for help. That must have been hard for her. To find out her parents were going to be arrested, to be part of that plan.
“I love you,” he told her.
“I love you, too.”
A few minutes later Dave was locking the front door to the Lion after his family left. “I think that went well,” he told her.
“I think this is going to be one heck of a wedding.”
“I agree.” He walked to her with other things on his mind. “I’m going to make up for not being there for you last night,” he told her.
“You don’t have to do that, Dave. It was all a misunderstanding.”
“No, I think I really need to.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her.
“Well, if you insist,” she told him, catching on to what he was hinting at. “I think it’s an excellent idea.”