Cord smiled at his aunt, who was standing at his bedside with Kendall. He was exhausted from being awake for only an hour but he wasn’t going to sleep until he heard the whole story from Eve.
He squeezed his aunt’s hand, so thankful to be holding it. “Go ahead. Sit and tell me all about it.”
Kendall pulled up a chair for Eve and stood behind her.
“I wasn’t his only scam victim, but apparently he changed his usual method with me.” Eve lowered herself into the chair. “Turns out he went to high school with Ollie and heard through mutual friends that Ollie had left me with a nice nest egg. Wessel pretended on Facebook to be a lovely man named Phillip Reese. I foolishly sent him some cash through Western Union, but that wasn’t enough. Apparently, he wanted one final score to set himself up for the rest of his life, so he decided he had to meet me to see if he could figure out how to steal more of my money. At first, he made up reasons for needing the money.”
“What kinds of reasons?” Cord asked, though he knew some of them from Facebook.
“Helping with the rent, for furniture and utility deposits. I figured I should see what my money paid for, but he kept stalling in showing me the apartment. I got suspicious and wondered if he was scamming me.” She clung to Cord’s hand. “So I told him about you. Said you were the best detective ever and if he was doing me wrong, you would arrest him.”
“And what did he do then?” Kendall asked.
“Why, that snake lied to my face and said he wasn’t scamming me. Told me he had to clean up the apartment but would take me to see it the next day.” Eve shook her head. “I believed him, so when he showed up at my place that night, I didn’t think anything of it and let him in. When I was going to make coffee, he pounced. I got away and grabbed a knife. Sliced him good, but then he grabbed me and forced me into the trunk of his car.”
She sighed a long breath. “How did you discover I was missing anyway?”
“I called, and you didn’t answer. I’m so sorry I didn’t make time to talk to you when you needed me.” Cord’s eyes narrowed. “You were going to tell me about this, weren’t you?”
She nodded, a sheepish expression unfolding on her face. “I wanted to run it past you. See if maybe you could do a background check on him.”
“Why did you trust him to begin with?”
“I was grieving after the plane crash and desperately needed something positive, so I guess I latched onto him for that.”
“If I’d only talked to you, none of this would’ve happened.”
“Hey, hey.” She patted his hand. “God’s in control, not you. How many times do I have to tell you that before you accept it?”
“Apparently, a few more times to get it through this thick head of mine.” He smiled. “When you didn’t answer, I kept calling and got worried. So I asked the sheriff’s department to do a welfare check.”
“I did that check,” Kendall said. “And spotted an intruder in your house. Hurley, the guy I shot, hit me with your rolling pin and got away. He’s been threatening me ever since. Tessa has already confirmed she lifted his prints at your place and they found his bike at the cabin and matched the tire tracks.”
“Oh, dear. Someone attacking you makes me even madder.” Eve’s body nearly vibrated. “But I’m glad you have proof, and if he lives, he will go to prison.”
“Do you know how Hurley was involved in this?” Cord asked.
“I do, but I need to tell you the whole story first, and then I’ll explain about Hurley. Wessel planned to kill me, but like I said, he wanted the rest of my money. So he took me to banks to withdraw it.”
Kendall stepped around the chair and sat on the edge of the bed. “Why did you go along with him? You could have asked for help when you were in the bank.”
“He threatened to kill Cord and Lucas if I didn’t do it. But then he started to worry I had evidence at my house that could lead back to him. So he hired this Hurley fella to erase my hard drive and search for anything else that might implicate him.”
“But why did you have the money in your trunk?”
“Trunk? Money?” Her gaze widened. “I didn’t leave any money there.”
“We found ten thousand dollars.”
“Oh, my.” She clutched her chest.
“Do you think Wessel was paying Hurley in cash, but Kendall scared him off before he could get it?” Cord asked.
“You could be right. I heard him tell Wessel he wasn’t going to jail, so he took matters into his own hands, stole a truck and threatened you.” She shook her head. “Wessel got mad and ordered him to lay off, but it sounds like he didn’t listen.”
Eve sat back, and her shoulders slumped. She stifled a yawn and Cord felt bad for keeping her here just so he could understand what had happened.
“I should let them take you home,” Cord said to Eve.
“I… I don’t… I’m…” She sighed.
“You don’t want to go back there,” Kendall finished for her.
“I was thinking of selling the property before, but now I will for sure.”
“Why don’t you come stay at the ranch with us?” Kendall suggested. “You could take one of our guest cabins until you can find a new home.”
“I don’t want to be a bother.”
“No bother at all. We’d be glad to have you.”
“Then yes. I’m happy to take you up on your offer.” Eve struggled to her feet.
Kendall stood and gave her a hug. “Thank you for being brave enough to want to tell Cord about the scam when so many women wouldn’t. I’m proud of you.”
Eve smiled. “And I’m proud of you for finding me. I can already tell you’re as special as Cord said.” Eve looked at Cord. “If you let this one get away from you again, you’re not half the man I thought you were.”
“I guess I’ll see you tomorrow,” Kendall said, blushing.
“Eve,” Cord said. “Would you mind if I talked to Kendall alone for a moment?”
“Mind? Of course not.” She bent over Cord and kissed his cheek. “In fact, I insist on it.”
She suddenly seemed to be full of energy and marched out the door.
“She’s something else, isn’t she?” Kendall smiled and fingered the bear.
“The bear was your idea, wasn’t it?”
“Maybe.” Kendall smiled freely.
His heart tripped at her beauty. With one suspect behind bars and the other one in a guarded hospital bed, her mood was bubbly, and she was positively radiant. He knew it was only temporary. Likely a buzz from adrenaline, but it would soon hit hard that she’d had to shoot someone. He’d been there. Knew the toll it would take.
But for now, he would enjoy her happiness. “Thanks for the bear, and for offering to take care of Lucas tonight.”
“I’m so glad to see that you two are going to be okay.”
“I know he still has a long way to go, but I’ll have to thank Pastor Mark for helping him turn a corner. Gave me a fresh perspective, too.”
“Me, too. I may not be dealing with life-and-death issues like the two of you, but it showed me how much I like things my way. I need to work on that.”
“And I need to work on letting go of the guilt for having put work before my family. I’ll never get that time back, and I don’t want to waste any more. Feeling bad about it has kept me locked in limbo. That has to go if I want to move on to the future I want.”
“That won’t be easy.”
“Hey, if a kid like Lucas can let go of the pain and past, so can I. With help from God.”
She nodded. “You sound so hopeful.”
“Yeah. Yeah, I guess I am for the first time in a while.” After spending the past days with Kendall, he would like that hope for a future to include her. But how, when he lived and worked in Houston?
“I wish I could move back here,” he said without thinking about it. “You know, with Eve and all, but I need a job with good benefits for Lucas, and I know there aren’t any department jobs open.”
“There’s the detective slot if Matt wins the election.”
“That’s your job, and you’ve earned it.”
“I wouldn’t mind if you got it. Honestly.”
He shook his head. “No. I’m not taking your job and that’s final.”
She frowned and sadness replaced her good mood.
“What about a long-distance relationship?” he asked.
Her forehead furrowed. “Do you really think that would work?”
He shrugged. “Let’s think about it, okay? Not rule it out right now.”
She nodded, but for now he would recuperate, pack Lucas up, maybe Eve, too, and head back to Houston. He had no other choice.
* * *
Kendall found her father in the waiting room. Everyone else had gone home, but he got up and crossed over to her.
“How’s Cord doing?”
“Good.”
She felt so emotional and raw that she lifted her arms around his neck for a hug.
“Hey,” he said against her hair. “What’s got my tough girl all upset?”
“It’s Cord. He wants to move back here to be close to Eve, but he needs a job to support Lucas and provide insurance.”
Her dad pushed back. “Just to be near Eve?”
She felt a blush rush over her cheeks.
“Ah, so I’m right, then. You two have a thing again.”
“Wait, what? Again?” She gaped at him. “You knew about before?”
“Sweetheart, there’s nothing I don’t know about in my department.”
“You frowned on officers dating, but you didn’t object.”
“How could I when you were so happy?” He smiled.
“But I… But…” She shook her head and laughed. “Cord’s not going to believe this.”
“I’m here to take his statement, and I’ll tell him if you like.”
“Would you?”
“Sure. I’d love to see him sputter.” Her dad laughed again.
“I want you to hire him for the open detective slot.”
He arched an eyebrow. “You’re kidding, right?”
“No. I want him to have it.”
“I can’t do that, sweetheart, even if I wanted to, which I don’t.”
“Explain.”
He placed his hands on his waist. “Cord can’t walk in and take a highly sought-after detective position. That wouldn’t be good for morale or be fair to Braden. You proved yourself on this investigation and the job’s yours. If you don’t want it, then it will go to Braden. He’s put in the time. But I know you want it.”
“I want to see Cord happy more.”
“So, my little girl’s in love.”
“Looks like it,” she said, surprised she admitted it to her father before telling Cord.
“He could take your deputy slot when you move up.”
“The pay is hardly enough for me, let alone to support a family.”
Her dad widened his stance. “You know I can’t make exceptions to the pay scale.”
She nodded and suddenly felt so weary. She wanted this day to end, and she’d figure this all out tomorrow. “It’s getting late, and I need a shower. I’ll see you at the ranch, okay?”
“Drive safely.”
She headed for the exit and paused to lift her face to God.
If Cord and I are meant to be together, please make it happen.
She continued down the hall, feeling lighter than she had in the past. She hadn’t turned over her concerns to God like this in such a very long time. Hopefully, she was on the path to doing better at that.
She pushed the exit door open and searched for her car. Matt had followed the ambulance to the ER in her vehicle. She spotted it in the back of the lot, and her shirt was damp with perspiration by the time she reached it.
She unlocked the door and opened it, only to feel the barrel of a gun pressed to her head.
“Don’t move,” the familiar male voice sounded behind her. “We’re going for a little ride.”