Naomi woke feeling disoriented. Her headache was still there, although slightly less intense than earlier. It took a moment for her to remember where she was.
Sawyer’s cabin.
She’d never met a nicer, kinder guy. Or rather, the nice guys she knew weren’t nearly as good-looking. The ones who had the looks tended to know it and acted accordingly.
Like her ex, Tony. Who was very attractive and knew it. He’d acted as if she should be glad he was interested in her.
Jerk.
She eased from the bed and made her way to the bathroom. The enticing scent of chicken soup filled the cabin. It was amazing to her that Sawyer knew how to make soup, although for all she knew, he could have run into town to buy it.
Nah, she didn’t think that was likely. Partially because Sawyer seemed determined to remain glued to her side. And also because last night, when she’d gone outside after her nightmare, she’d gotten a glimpse of his large vegetable garden. Seeing that had surprised her, she didn’t know many men who did their own gardening. At the time she’d wondered if he had a live-in girlfriend.
But she hadn’t found any women’s toiletries in his bathroom, which convinced her that Sawyer lived alone. At least most of the time.
Naomi washed up in the bathroom, then came out into the kitchen. She wished that she’d packed a large suitcase of clean clothes. She was going through shirts and jeans like toilet paper.
She found Sawyer working on his laptop at the kitchen table. “Hi.”
“Hey.” His warm smile made her feel a bit dizzy. “Are you feeling better?”
“Yes.” She crossed over to peer into the large pot on the stove. “You made chicken soup?”
“Yep. Figured that would be better for you than something heavy.”
She replaced the lid and joined him at the table. “Very impressive that you know how to cook.”
“Not that impressive since I like to eat.” He grinned. “And I don’t like wasting veggies from the garden.”
He was unlike any man she’d met, although the past year had been one in which she hadn’t socialized much. Especially after she’d kicked Tony to the curb. “I noticed your garden. I assume the high chicken wire fence is designed to keep the animals out?”
“The deer are the worst,” he said wryly. “And they can jump the fence. I use some natural deer repellant, along with planting various herbs and ferns around the garden that deer and rabbits tend not to like.”
“Wow, sounds like having a garden is a lot of work.”
He shrugged. “Maybe, but it’s worth it.”
“Did your foster parents teach you how to garden?”
His expression turned guarded. “The foster home I lived in for five years was an awful place. But yes, I did learn about gardening there, mostly because I used the garden as an opportunity to escape. I would have spent all day there if I could.”
“That sounds rough.” She felt bad for what he’d been through.
“Yeah.” He quickly changed the subject. “Are you hungry? The soup is ready anytime.”
“Surprisingly, I am.” Initially she’d felt sick to her stomach, a side effect she knew of the concussion.
“I’ll get it.” Sawyer shut his laptop and crossed to the stove. He ladled soup into two large bowls and carried them to the table. “By the way, I have some good news.”
Her heart leaped. “You found Melvin Curtis?”
“No, sorry. Your purse was found at the side of the highway just over the Georgia-Tennessee border. You’ll get your driver’s license back tomorrow, along with your credit cards.”
Since she’d already canceled the cards, that wasn’t much help. “I’ll be glad to have my driver’s license. I don’t suppose my cash was still inside?”
“No.” Sawyer set what looked to be homemade bread on the table. “How much did you have?”
“Less than a hundred dollars.” She tried not to be disappointed. “I’m sure leering man and his driver took it.”
“Or some person who found the purse had helped themselves,” he added. “At least you have one less thing to worry about with getting your driver’s license back.”
“Yes.” She sampled the soup. “This is really good.”
“Thanks.”
“Did you make the bread too?”
“Yep. It’s not hard with a bread maker.” He looked a bit uncomfortable talking about his prowess in the kitchen. “And as I said, I like to eat.”
“Me too, but I’ve never made bread or grown my own veggies.”
“I know what it’s like to go hungry. I enjoy cooking.”
Her heart squeezed at the thought of a young Sawyer going hungry. What kind of foster family made their children go hungry? “I’m so sorry.”
“I’m fine.” His curt response indicated he didn’t want to discuss the issue any further.
She glanced outside. “I’d like to drive around a bit, check out the city.”
“Not tonight.” He leveled her a stern glance. “You promised to rest, Naomi.”
“Riding in a car isn’t exactly stressful,” she protested.
“That’s not your plan, and you know it. We’ve issued a BOLO for Melvin Curtis and the black Buick with the license plate number you provided to us. Along with the sketch of your kidnapper. We will find them.”
She grimaced. Sitting and doing nothing while Kate was out there, somewhere, wasn’t easy. The lack of activity in her current clinic role, compared to being a critical care nurse, had been the most difficult thing to get used to. The hours at the clinic were shorter, and they were busy, but with mundane tasks such as refilling meds and taking calls for patients who wanted to see their doctor. The shorter workday had actually seemed longer than her twelve-hour shifts in the ICU.
Truthfully, she’d keenly missed the hustle and bustle of critical care. Of knowing that patients lived because of her expertise.
She’d never mentioned her dissatisfaction with her new job to Kate, though. Even when the teenager had started rebelling against her guardianship in a big way.
Maybe someday, when Kate headed off to college, Naomi would return to the career she’d loved.
If they were able to find her sister. Her stomach clenched, and she stared down at her soup.
Not if but when they found Kate. Naomi needed to keep thinking positive.
She couldn’t bear to consider the alternative.
Sawyer had been alone for so long that sharing meals and his living space with Naomi provided a level of intimacy he wasn’t prepared for.
He admired her for so many reasons. The way she’d courageously escaped her kidnappers, for being a critical care nurse, and caring so much about her half sister, Kate. Then there was also the fact that Naomi was beautiful without seeming to realize it.
Having feelings for her wasn’t smart, and logically, he knew he couldn’t act upon them. She was a victim and a witness, which made her off-limits. Plus, Naomi didn’t live in Chattanooga and would return to her life in Dalton, Georgia, very soon. Tomorrow, if he had his way.
He was much better off alone.
Especially considering what he’d done thirteen years ago.
“Sawyer?”
Naomi’s voice brought him back from his dark thoughts. He met her gaze, belatedly realizing his soup was getting cold. “Yeah?”
“I trust you, or I wouldn’t be here. But I’m also not used to sitting around doing nothing. I really want to help find Kate.”
“I know.” He honestly couldn’t blame her. He knew what it was like to have your family missing.
While she’d been sleeping, he’d decided to pick up his on-again, off-again search for the rest of his foster siblings. It was something he did when he had extra time on his hands, which admittedly wasn’t often. Hailey was planning to visit next week, but so far, she was the only sibling he’d connected with. And even then, they didn’t get a chance to talk as frequently as he’d have liked.
It shamed him that he hadn’t done more to find the others. As a cop, he should have searched for them night and day. Especially knowing Cooper and Trent had gone off on their own.
The biggest factor, though, was the lack of having a last name for his siblings. He’d learned Hailey’s was Donovan, but he didn’t know the last names of the others. Which probably seemed odd, but when they were with the Preacher, it was all they could do to survive.
Discussing their last names hadn’t been high on the list of priorities. And even if he had known their last names, without any formal paperwork like birth certificates and social security numbers, it was as if they didn’t exist.
If Joe Kohl hadn’t helped Sawyer get his paperwork straightened out, he would never be where he was today. And the faint memory of living in Charleston, North Carolina, had helped in that regard. Sawyer had been nine years old when he’d been sent to the Preacher, so he’d retained some memories of the places he’d lived.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t sure if Cooper and Trent, who were both a year younger, could say the same.
For all he knew, they could have obtained fake identities. And if so, his chances of finding them were slim to none.
Reconnecting with Hailey over a couple of phone calls had been enough to spur him into trying again.
“You’ll let me come with you tomorrow?”
Huh? Once again, he’d gotten lost in his own thoughts. What had Naomi asked? “I’ll bring you with me to the police station so you can get your driver’s license, and we can check on your car.” And maybe Turner would finally talk to her, although he wasn’t going to hold his breath. The guy worked at what seemed to Sawyer to be slower than a snail’s pace. “From there, I’d really like you to head home.”
She held his gaze for a long moment. He caught a glimpse of disappointment in her eyes before she turned away.
“Okay.” She finished her meal without saying anything more.
Sawyer knew she wasn’t happy with him, but what could he do? No way could he allow her to go on patrol with him. He’d lose his job if his boss ever found out. Having her stay with him was risky enough.
And taking off work wasn’t an option either. Finding Kate and Louisa meant he needed to be out there, following up on any and all possible leads.
Like returning to East Ridge.
“One thing you can do for me is show me the gas station where you saw the black Buick. Maybe we can swing by there before heading to the precinct in the morning.”
Naomi looked up in surprise. “Okay. I know exactly where it is.”
“Good. The other thing I need you to do is rest. A head injury is nothing to fool around with.”
“I’m aware.” She reached up to finger the gauze over her injury. “Makes me realize I should have been more compassionate to my patients in the ICU who had head injuries.”
“I’m sure you treated them very well.”
The corner of her mouth tipped up in a half smile. “I really loved my job. It wasn’t easy, but it also was never boring.”
“Is that your way of saying the clinic job is boring?”
She flushed and shrugged. “It’s okay. Caring for patients in any setting is important.”
“But it’s not as interesting as working critical care.”
“Not to me. I guess I do miss the adrenaline rush that comes with taking care of the sickest of the sick. I was also a member of our medical emergency response team. It was my job to run out to take care of any patient suffering an abrupt turn for worse.”
“I give you a lot of credit for being able to do that,” he said honestly.
“Really?” She looked surprised. “You put yourself in danger every day. That’s far more important than what I do.”
“Not more important, but similar I guess.” He finished his soup, stood, and reached for her empty bowl. “I don’t often think of it as being in constant danger. My main concern every day is to keep the public safe.”
There was a long silence before she said, “Sawyer, may I ask you a question?”
He turned and instinctively tensed but nodded. “Sure.”
“Is my being here going to get you into trouble? Either with a girlfriend or at work?”
Hesitating, he shrugged. “No girlfriend, but work? I can’t lie, your being here isn’t ideal since you’re the witness to a crime. I’d rather not tell my boss, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“I’m fine with going to a hotel.”
“I’d rather you head home, but we can discuss next steps in the morning.”
She stared at him for several heartbeats. “Okay. I guess that’s why you can’t take me on patrol with you. Honestly, Sawyer, I don’t want you to get into trouble over me.”
“I won’t.” It wasn’t entirely true. Sawyer knew he was in deep trouble over her. Personally more than professionally.
He cared about Naomi, far too much.
And his feelings toward her, along with her staying with him, could be a big problem if she had to testify at trial against her kidnappers. Which was why he should have insisted on the hotel room.
But he hadn’t. And right now he was more concerned with keeping her safe while making sure she didn’t suffer a relapse from her head injury than about a nonexistent trial.
Hopefully, this all wouldn’t come back to bite him in the rear end.
“I’ll get some sleep, then. Thanks for dinner.” Naomi was looking a bit peaked again, as if this much activity had been too much for her.
Which only convinced him she had no business driving around town looking for her kidnappers.
Or for Kate.
He washed the dishes, giving Naomi time to use the bathroom. Their early start to the day made it seem later than it was, but Sawyer knew the smart thing to do was to rest when you had the chance.
Sawyer decided to head outside to make another sweep around his cabin before heading to bed. The likelihood of anyone finding them there was slim to none. However, he wasn’t about to take any chances.
Not with Naomi’s life.
He avoided his fishing line trip wires and was relieved when he didn’t find anything out of the ordinary.
The area surrounding his cabin was peaceful and quiet, the way he liked it.
Despite his exhaustion, Sawyer found it difficult to fall asleep. He’d been surprised and secretly pleased that Naomi had asked about his having a girlfriend. It made him think he should have asked about her having a boyfriend, but somehow, he sensed she didn’t.
When he dragged his mind off that topic, the shooting outside the café played through his head.
Why on earth would someone take a shot at her when he was in his squad next to her? It seemed like a ridiculous risk to take.
Had the officers canvassing the area come up with anything useful? He considered calling in to find out but figured his boss would have let him know if they’d found something major.
Especially if they’d brought in Melvin Curtis.
A strange thudding sound woke him from a sound sleep. Not the creaking of a floorboard this time, but a muffled sound.
Something tripping and falling in the woods?
One of the kidnappers? Or a wild animal? Sawyer quickly slipped out of bed, taking several precious moments to slide his feet into shoes and to grab his gun and his phone. Naomi’s door was closed, so he silently moved through the interior of his living space, avoiding the creaking spot on the floor.
Easing from the cabin and silently locking the door behind him, Sawyer stood outside for a few seconds, allowing his vision to adjust to the darkness.
His heart was pounding, but every sense was on alert. Years of living in the woods after escaping the fire helped him now. He moved silently, using trees for cover, toward the area where he’d strung the trip wires.
Another rustling sound followed by a whispered curse. Knowing the thudding sound had been made by a person rather than an animal had his pulse skyrocketing.
How had the kidnappers found Naomi here?
He tightened his grip on his phone and briefly considered calling for backup. He rejected the idea for two reasons. He lived so far out of town the intruder would be long gone before anyone had a chance to arrive. And he didn’t want to give away his position.
At the moment, he still had the upper hand. The intruder wouldn’t have cursed if he’d known Sawyer was out there.
Moving farther into the woods, Sawyer peered through the night in an attempt to find the guy. But the intruder must have realized he’d made too much noise and had stopped moving.
Being on the run and surviving in the wild had taught Sawyer to be patient. He went still and listened.
Was it his imagination? Or had he heard the sound of breathing?
He continued to wait. One minute. Five. Ten.
Had he imagined the intruder? He didn’t think so, but anything was possible.
Fifteen minutes, then twenty minutes passed before he heard the intruder moving through the brush. The sounds were faint, indicating the guy was taking his time, stepping carefully to avoid being tripped up again.
Fighting the urge to follow blindly, Sawyer remained still, straining with the effort to pinpoint the intruder’s location. He desperately wanted to catch this guy, but he knew the intruder was likely armed.
Especially if he was the same guy who’d taken the shot at Naomi. In that moment, he realized the gunman must have gotten the license plate of his squad. Although, still, his address wasn’t available on any public listing.
His thoughts were interrupted when he caught a glimpse of movement to his right.
There! A large dark shape was moving in a direction away from his cabin.
Sawyer silently stepped forward, hoping to close the gap between them. But the intruder must have sensed his presence behind him because a small light came on, and the man began to run.
No! Sawyer quickly followed the man’s bouncing light, determined not to let him get away. Then the man abruptly doused his light at the same moment he disappeared behind a large tree.
Sawyer instinctively hit the ground as the echo of a gunshot rang out.
This had to be the same man who’d tried to kill Naomi outside the café.
Sawyer crouched behind some thick brush, again trying to pinpoint the man’s location. Without the light, his eyes took a long moment to readjust to the darkness.
The sound of a person crashing through the brush had him leaping to his feet. Running after an armed man was foolish, but Sawyer didn’t care.
He could not let this guy get away!
Another gunshot rang out. Sawyer easily imagined the guy simply shooting off his gun over his shoulder as he ran in an effort to keep Sawyer at bay.
The shot hadn’t come anywhere close, so Sawyer kept going. But he was moving slower than the intruder, and suddenly he heard the sound of a car engine.
The Buick? Sawyer put on a burst of speed but was seconds too late. As he came out of the woods, he stared in horror at the red taillights disappearing around the curve.
The armed intruder had gotten away.