LIAM DROVE BACK to work and walked straight into Burkot’s office without knocking. “She needs protection.”
Burkot looked up. “Everyone is working the case. There’s no one to spare to sit on Caisey when she’s leaving town anyway.”
“He knew she was FBI when he took her. The Chloroform Killer played his game and then he still showed up again here just to taunt her.”
His boss leaned back in his chair. “You think he’s going to take her again?”
“We can’t rule it out.” Liam folded his arms. “If you’re not going to make it official, I’ll protect her myself. Call in some favors, get her covered until she leaves town. If the Chloroform Killer is fixating on her we can’t leave her to swing in the wind.”
“Agreed,” Burkot said. “The team is locating every tan-colored seventies RV in the city. It’s a long shot, but at this point it’s all we’ve got.”
Liam nodded.
He’d have to call Gabe. The man wasn’t trained, but he at least needed to know Caisey could be in danger so he could watch out for her. Liam also needed to put in a call to Deputy Kurter to do the same. His partner hadn’t come this far only to lose out now, on the brink of the rest of her life.
“I’ll ask around, see who’s willing to give up some personal time to keep Caisey safe until she leaves.”
Burkot nodded. “I’ll take the first shift.”
**
The house was quiet when she let herself in. Caisey pocketed her key and yelled, “Anyone home?”
“In the kitchen!”
Jenna was stirring pink bits of chicken around a pan and she didn’t look up. “I thought you’d be gone already.”
She was pouting.
“Like I’d leave without saying goodbye? Off to my new life in a new town, with Gabe.” “Are you really going to live in that rinky cabin of your dad’s?”
“Uh, no, since it got trashed. We’re going to build a house on the land.”
Jenna nodded to the pan. “Great views.”
“So where’s Nic? You guys didn’t…”
Jenna turned. The first sign of life. “He just went to talk to his insurance adjustor. He’s coming back for dinner.”
“And you’re making him that chicken thing, with the honey?”
Jenna laughed. “Yes, I’m making it.”
“Pulling out the big guns. I like it. He’ll love it so much he’ll probably ask you to marry him by the end of dinner.” Jenna’s face flickered over to hopeful. “You want him to!” Caisey laughed and hugged her friend. “I’m glad for you.”
“You’re not the only one with a future to look forward to.”
Caisey sobered. “Now all we have to do is convince Jake it’s the case for him too.”
“Pretty much.” Jenna turned back to her chicken. “When are you leaving?”
“I’m not sure. It depends how long it takes for the house to sell. Are you sure you’re okay with this?”
Jenna shrugged. “Why wouldn’t we be? It’s a fresh start for all of us and it’s what Jake wants.”
“After you’re settled wherever, then you can come visit me.”
“What if it’s longer…than just a visit?”
Caisey frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, what if we moved to Buckshot?”
Caisey stared at her friend. She hadn’t wanted to be the one to suggest it, since Jenna might feel obligated to follow her just to keep them all together. She wanted her friend to choose her own life and feel the independence of making and living that choice, since so much had been decided for her.
“If you don’t want us to, it’s fine. I understand if you want to have you own—”
Caisey covered Jenna’s mouth with her hand. Jenna pushed it away.
“I was just saying.”
“Well, stop saying. My own life? Is that where you were going?” Caisey rolled her eyes. “Let the record show that I would like nothing more than to have you and Jake and Nic come and live in Buckshot. And since, but for the last week or so, it’s been years since Gabe saw his cousin I can safely say Gabe would likely want nothing more either.”
“So that’s a yes?”
Caisey grinned. “You better believe it!”
Jenna squealed and hugged her.
“Mom?”
Caisey stilled and they both turned to the doorway. Jake’s face was pale, his hair matted to his head, and the only color was the purple bruise on his cheek bone. “Yeesh, kid. You look like crap.”
“Caisey!”
Jake’s mouth flickered. Caisey nearly jumped up and down all over again at another sign of life.
Jenna sighed. “What is it, honey?”
Jake’s eyes moved to his mom. “Is it okay if I go out for a while? I want to see Natalia’s g-grave.”
“I’ll drive you.” Caisey turned to Jenna. “We’ll get something out. Enjoy your dinner with Nic.” Jenna blinked. Caisey brushed past Jake and grabbed her car keys. “Come on, Jake. Let’s hustle.”
He didn’t say much while Caisey drove to the cemetery, and she didn’t feel the need to say anything that would yank him out of his head. If the kid needed quiet space, she was going to give it to him. She parked the car and pointed the way for him. While Jake wandered over to the headstone, Caisey leaned back against the car.
Twenty minutes later he walked back to her, his cheeks red and his eyes watery.
“Everything copacetic?”
Jake nodded.
“Cheeseburger?”
“Sure.”
They climbed in and buckled up. Jake turned to her. “I don’t know how to make it stop hurting.”
Caisey bit her lip. She couldn’t do what she wanted—punch something, or squeeze the breath out of her godson with a hug—she had to hold back her reaction. Despite the fact that he’d seared her to her soul with that one line. She sucked in a choppy breath. “The only thing that will do it is time. Which sounds completely lame, but it’s true. For all of us.”
Except that Jake had a heap of guilt over what he’d done on top of his grief over Natalia…and Grams.
“Stick close. With the family and with your faith.”
“But what if God doesn’t want me to get married?”
Sheesh. The kid had years to worry about this. “Natalia was the one?”
Jake nodded; his eyes on the street rushing past out the window. “I thought so. What if there isn’t anyone else? Or if I don’t want there to be.”
“Honestly, Jake, you have a lot of years before you need to worry about that. Let it happen when it’s time. Look at your mom and Nic, and Gabe and I. I’m not saying you need to detour the way we all did, but we waited and God brought your mom and I both back around to the people we were always supposed to be with.”
“But that was Natalia.”
“Or it was always someone else.” She squeezed his fist. “And this put you on a journey to her.”
There was silence for a while, before Jake said, “Are you really leaving?”
Caisey nodded. “Looks like you guys might be coming too.”
“Cool.”
“Yeah.”
Caisey smiled to the road and turned in the direction of home—a journey that would take her to where she was always supposed to have been.
**
Gabe leaned against his car and sipped bad gas station coffee. He should have been on the road already. He’d have been home by now. Night had fallen and Gabe watched the city lights. He had everything he wanted, but it was here in Denver and not in Buckshot. Not yet, at least.
Caisey had done it. She’d given up her whole life to come to be with him. The whole idea humbled Gabe in a way he hadn’t felt ever. No one had ever done something like that for him, it was unreal.
Everything about their relationship was unreal. Seventeen years of longing on the strength of one—albeit fantastic—date and suddenly God throws them on each other’s paths again. All so Caisey could get him out from under the threat of his uncle finding him.
And yet what had he done for her? Certainly not quit his job and decide to move to a whole new town. That was for sure. But that was pure Caisey, all in, no holds barred love that was so powerful it took everything she had to give. And Gabe wanted to soak it up.
He pulled out his phone.
It rang twice and then she picked up. “Hey.”
He smiled to himself. “How are you?”
“Good. You?”
“Trying to get up the gumption to leave you.”
Her soft chuckled warmed his ear. “I’ll be there soon. Probably only a couple of days, actually. It didn’t take as long as I thought it would to wrap everything up.”
Gabe stuck his free hand in his pocket, since it was cold out. “Are you doing okay with all that?”
“Do you want me to have second thoughts?”
He laughed. “Definitely not. But I’d rather you were honest.”
“Honestly, I think I’m missing something. Like something should have clicked by now that hasn’t.”
“About what?”
There was a moment of silence over the line and then she said, “Family. Grams is gone, Jake nearly killed a man, Jenna and Nic are together now and it’s all new and when the stress wears off are they going to be solid? And why am I worrying about this anyway, their relationship is none of my business except when Jenna gets mad at Nic and she’ll want to unload on me.”
His lips twitched, but he needed to know something. “Are you worried about us?”
“No. Of course not, we’re like…destined.”
Gabe laughed.
“What?”
He laughed harder. “I might go back to Buckshot for a day, get everything I need and come back to help you move.”
“I’d like that.”
He smiled and glanced at his shoes. “Thank you.”
“For what?”
“Everything.”
“Oh. You’re welcome.”
Gabe gripped the phone. “I’ll see you soon.”
“Bye Gabe.”