Her Hometown Redemption

by Rachel Brimble

  She swallowed as familiar feelings of claustrophobia threatened. “I don’t know. All I know is I want to be here now. How long that lasts...” She shook her head. “I can’t make any promises, Liam. I won’t.”

  He stared, before nodding. “Fine. I won’t make you promise anything, but know this, Sasha loves you. Her heart is too big for her own good sometimes and, no matter what you might have said or done to her in the past, that wouldn’t have mattered if you needed her.”

  She raised her hand to cover his at her jaw. “I have to find him.”

  His blue eyes softened. “Then that’s what we’ll do.”

  He kissed her. She didn’t pull away as she should have and leaned into him. She’d worry about the repercussions when they parted.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  LIAM PULLED TANYA CLOSER, his hand moving from her jaw to the back of her head. He tasted her salty tears as they slipped gently to their joined lips. He sensed every ounce of her sadness and despair. Rage and passion stormed inside him, fueling his need to fix everything that had caused her and Sasha pain.

  His head swam with Tanya’s words, his heart with the distress in her eyes and so clearly embedded in her heart. He eased his tongue to hers and kissed her deeply, silently telling her he’d be there for her. How long she wanted him beside her couldn’t be contemplated.

  Together, they would find the man who hurt Sasha and, during that time, Liam would uncover who or what had hurt Tanya...the only woman he’d ever come close to asking to stay with him for the rest of his life.

  Her soft whimper into his mouth broke through his impassioned thoughts, and Liam slowly released her. He slid his hands over her shoulders, down her arms to hold her waist. “You okay?”

  She nodded, her beautiful mouth curved into a soft smile. “I am now. Yes.”

  He smiled. “Good.” Sensing her indecision and discomfort now the kiss was over, he stepped back, giving her space. His rage had ebbed to a low, but dangerous, simmer. One he planned to keep burning for the foreseeable future. “So, if we’re going to go after Davidson, we have to play it—”

  “By the book, I know.” She sighed and pushed some fallen hair back from her face. “That’s why I need you to help me. If I do this alone, I’m bound to fly headlong into another stupid mistake. One that could mean the difference between Davidson paying for his crimes or walking free.”

  He slid his hands into his pockets in a bid to control the urge to kiss her a second time. She was so damn beautiful, a beauty made all the more attractive by her vulnerability.

  He looked toward the warehouse. “Which means we need to get the police involved.”

  “By the police, you mean Detective Inspector Bennett?”

  He turned. “Bennett’s gone. Cat Garrett’s in charge now.”

  “Garrett?” She frowned. “As in Mrs. Jay Garrett?”

  Liam smiled. “They got married a while back and, with Cat involved, I don’t doubt Jay will want to be involved, too.”

  “Why? He’s not a police officer.”

  “True, but that doesn’t stop him from wanting to protect Cat from everything her job entails.” He grimaced. “Believe me, his assistance isn’t always welcome.”

  “I always thought Jay would be off making music or running his dad’s businesses, not making sure his cop wife was okay.”

  “Well, his dad’s businesses are now Jay’s, and Cat is the love of his life. Things change.”

  Liam thought of Jay Garrett and how much he had done for Templeton and its people since his father retired. “Jay has more influence around here than anybody...and he knew the former owner of Funland better than most, too.”

  “You mean Kyle? How will Jay’s knowing the town’s crime lord help?”

  “I’m assuming Kyle knew about Sasha’s abuse?”

  She closed her eyes. “Yes. Worse, Kyle apparently did his utmost to find Davidson but failed.” She opened her eyes. “That failure haunted Kyle. Or, at least, that’s the impression he gave Sasha when she visited him in prison.”

  Liam’s mind raced with this new knowledge. “And what about the police?”

  “Their search for Matt Davidson only led to dead ends.”

  “If Cat knew what happened, and that Kyle tried to do one thing right in his miserable life, she would’ve gone after Davidson.”

  Tanya looked at the warehouse and crossed her arms. “Maybe, but Davidson’s still missing, so we have to face the fact he could still be in action. How much time would the police really have spent tracking a guy who abused Sasha and then disappeared over fifteen years ago? As far as I know, there haven’t been any further victims who’ve brought forward new charges against him. The police no doubt have Davidson’s picture in a cold-case file somewhere.

  “Sasha briefly mentioned a file that is now in police custody. A file containing anybody who ever worked at Funland. Because of Kyle’s criminal activity, the police were investigating each and every person in the file.” She exhaled a shaky breath. “I’m pretty certain Davidson’s will be in there.”

  Liam narrowed his eyes. He knew only too well how many worthy cases the police considered cold before their time. Yet he could not accept that the Templeton police would dismiss a pedophile case so easily. Many of the UK’s cities were ravaged with daily calls and misdemeanors. The same couldn’t be said of the Cove. Even if there was a small chance of this kind of criminal activity being overlooked by Bennett—the DI at the time—the same being said of Cat was impossible. The woman lived and breathed family and community. Sasha’s case would have eaten Cat up from the inside out until Davidson was caught.

  He exhaled. “The first thing we need to do is go see Cat and find out what we can do about getting Davidson’s file out of the cold and thrown right into the fire. Now is as good a time as any. Let’s get out of here.” He gripped her hand.

  She tugged on his fingers, halting him. “Where are we going?”

  “To the police station.”

  “You want to go and see the police now?”

  He frowned at the uncertainty on her face. “Why not? The sooner we start asking questions, the sooner we can get Davidson to the top of Cat’s caseload where he belongs. Before Sasha left Templeton, her fiancé gave something to Cat and Jay that should’ve earned their unending gratitude.”

  “What did John give them? Sasha hasn’t said anything to me about his being involved with the Garretts.”

  “Then neither can I. Client confidentiality.”

  Her hand slipped from his and she crossed her arms. “Don’t you think it’s a bad idea involving the police at this early stage? We don’t know anything. We need to uncover or provide new information that will make them sit up and take notice. There’s little point in storming into the station, demanding DI Garrett, or anyone else, up their game without giving them something to make them take action. We have to provide a stronger reason than Sasha’s sister coming back to the Cove...or because John did the Garretts a favor. Let me at least talk to Sasha first. I’ll ask if she’s willing to testify should we, or Cat Garrett, have better luck finding Davidson than Sasha and John did.”

  “Do you think she will?”

  She shook her head, her gaze sad. “I’ve no idea.”

  Liam squeezed her hand. “Well, we’ll deal with that when we have to.”

  She nodded. “Okay.”

  He dropped her hand and blew out a breath. “In the meantime, we have to make sure that by going after Davidson we don’t give him a legal loophole to squirm through if he has his day in court. The police know what they’re doing. As much as I want to, if we go after him guns blazing, there’s every chance we could mess this up. We have to think this through.”

  “You know all the legal ins and outs where we could mess up. I have to do something right for once in my lif
e. I want to go some way to atone for the careless way I abandoned Sasha in her mission for the fair.” Sincerity and passion stormed in her gaze. “I have to show her I’m sorry and I’ve done the only thing I can think of to make up for not being there when she needed me most. Bringing Davidson to justice would do that.”

  He frowned, concern about her motives pressing in on him once more. “If you were sure finding Davidson would wipe the slate clean between you and Sasha, you’d have told her everything you have planned. I wish you’d tell me what’s really going on with you. This can’t just be about Davidson.”

  Irritation darkened her gaze. “It is. Finding him is as much a part of me starting over as anything else. I need to know that bastard is caught in order to move on.”

  He sensed the same irrationality in Tanya he experienced so often in his clients. A perpetual and often misplaced blame or solution that needed time rather than action to lessen. Now was not the time to relay his knowledge to Tanya. Right now she needed to know he was behind her 100 percent. When it came to the Todd sisters, he had little choice. “Okay, you talk to Sasha and we’ll do what we can to find Davidson.”

  She smiled. “Thank you.”

  Her renewed happiness hitched his heart and he shoved away the doubt that they were embarking on something not only dangerous but also stupid, and owned the decision to help her. Whatever happened next, the one thing he was certain of was he was a damn sight happier being beside Tanya than having her go after Davidson alone.

  He frowned. “Did you walk here?”

  “Yes. Renting a car is another thing on my endless to-do list until I can afford or need one of my own.”

  “Okay, my car it is then.”

  Without having seen nor heard of Davidson before, Liam had no idea where to start to look for him. He pointed his key and his car’s locks shunted open.

  Tanya brushed past him to the passenger side.

  Liam met her gaze over the roof. “Do you have a picture of Davidson?”

  “No, and Sasha said she didn’t have one when I asked her.” She sighed. “She said the pictures in her head were enough.”

  Liam nodded as an idea began to formulate in his mind. “If we’re going to find him, we need a picture.”

  “What are you thinking?”

  “I’m thinking we grab that beer I had planned on having with Scott at the Coast tonight.”

  “Scott Walker? Why would he have anything to do with this?”

  “He wouldn’t, but I’m betting he and plenty of others at the Coast will remember Funland back in the day.”

  She frowned before comprehension lit her gaze. “And I bet they’ve all got some old pictures they wouldn’t mind reminiscing over.”

  “Exactly.” Liam smiled. He was running at ninety miles per hour toward more trouble than just tracking down a pedophile, if the jolt in his chest was anything to go by.

  Her eyes shone with excitement. “I knew you were the right person to help me. Your mind is a masterpiece. All I needed to do was give it a nudge.”

  He cleared his throat and feigned insult. “All you’re after is my mind? What about my body?”

  She laughed. “Get in the car, Liam.”

  * * *

  TANYA WAS EXCITED about revisiting the Coast Inn until Liam pushed open the door and gestured for her to enter the bar ahead of him. The place was packed. Her gaze flitted to the enormous plasma TV on the far wall, and the volume of male-heavy patronage immediately made sense. A Manchester United soccer game neared halftime. Tanya grimaced. She had little to no interest in soccer—although she did have slightly more interest in David Beckham’s cologne advertisements. Somehow she didn’t think that would give her much leverage in getting anyone to open up to her about days gone by.

  Inhaling, and then regretting it when the faint hint of male body odor and beer assaulted her nostrils, Tanya turned to Liam. “I hope this is worth it.”

  “A glass of wine will smooth the edges.” He placed his hand at the small of her back. “I might even buy you some chicken fingers.”

  She widened her eyes. “Wow, just hold me back.”

  He laughed and Tanya’s stomach tightened as the sound washed over her, evoking as many emotions as the soft warmth of his lips had. She turned away from him as trepidation of what lay ahead whispered through her consciousness. If anything more developed between them, was she strong enough to handle it? Would he truly want her, along with the mountain of problems she’d made for herself in the years since she’d been gone?

  She had taken his trust in the past and discarded it as sentimental, almost silly, compared to her work ambitions. She now knew how her impulsiveness could make things go wrong...unlike Liam, who relied on logic and practice to get things done.

  How could she blame him for questioning her motives today, when she had messed up so badly in the past?

  She couldn’t think about that now. Davidson was the focus and would remain so until he was caught.

  Heads turned as she passed. Tanya lifted her chin and met their gazes, curiosity or surprise clear in their eyes. Grateful for the reassuring weight of Liam’s hand on her back, Tanya slid onto a vacant stool at the bar.

  Dave was still behind the bar, as he’d been in her youth. Fondness gripped her heart. Dave had never been one to edge away from her demands and snappish behavior, and she’d often looked at him as a father figure.

  Liam cleared his throat. “A bottle of beer would be good, if you don’t mind, bartender.”

  Dave looked across from the corner of the bar and scowled. “For a fancy lawyer, you haven’t got much patience, sunshine.” He came to stand in front of them. When he met Tanya’s eyes, he raised his eyebrows. “Well, lookie who we have here. I heard through the grapevine you were back. It’s good to see you looking a lot more relaxed than you did in those suits of yours.”

  Tanya smiled. “The suits are the old me. The jeans and shirt are the new me.”

  He nodded, his eyes kind. “I see. Well, I like it. You look good. What can I get the new you to drink?”

  “A lime and soda would be nice.”

  Dave nodded. “Coming right up.” He turned to Liam. “Beer?”

  Liam nodded and glanced over his shoulder toward the TV. “Has Scott been in?”

  Dave poured Tanya’s drink and tilted his head toward a large group of men across the bar. “He’s in amongst that lot, but I’d wait for halftime if you want to get any sense out of him. Every time he comes in here since he was reunited with his kid, he loses his damn mind.” Dave turned and grabbed a bottle of beer from the fridge behind him. “The trials of fatherhood make a man think he’s on vacation whenever he comes out for some time with the boys.”

  Tanya glanced over at the assembled group. Scott Walker was the same age as Sasha and would hopefully be the first step in their investigation—if he was willing to forgive Tanya’s past opinion of him. Since her downfall, she appreciated more than ever just how damaging listening to gossip and passing judgment could affect a person. “What goes around comes around” was a lesson she’d learned the hard way.

  She swallowed. All she could do was hope Scott had softened over the years and wasn’t still the same moody bad-boy type he was when she’d left Templeton.

  Cheers and whistles erupted around her and Tanya stiffened. The clamor was earsplitting, and when she looked at the TV, Manchester United were up two goals at halftime. She faced the bar and picked up her drink. The sharp tanginess of the lime slid down her throat and eased some of the tension from her shoulders.

  She turned and Liam smiled, but his eyes were dark with concern. “You okay?”

  “I’m fine.” She glanced toward the group of men. “Shall we go over there?”

  He took a slug of his beer and exhaled. “Let’s see if we can get Scott on his own. The
fewer people we talk to, the more hope there is that we won’t rouse any interest in what we’re really doing. At least until you’ve spoken to Sasha and made sure she’s okay with this.” He took another drink. “We don’t want talk of Davidson and Funland spreading around town. We should keep our investigating between ourselves for now. Sasha doesn’t need to be the subject of conversation throughout the Cove. This is about her life, not ours.”

  Sliding from her stool, Tanya picked up her drink and followed Liam across the bar. She stared at the back of his head as she battled her annoyance into submission. His emphasis, once again, that their inquiries were about Sasha rather than him or Tanya made her respect him more than ever...even if they somewhat rankled, too.

  He clearly distrusted her.

  Tanya stared around her as they neared Scott’s group of friends. Little had changed in the bar’s decor, and the dark wood paneling dotted with black-and-white pictures of Templeton through the years was unexpectedly comforting. Even the familiar faces, albeit their expressions piqued with curiosity rather than welcome when they looked at her, made her a little stronger in her mission to find Davidson...and make her home in the Cove again.

  “There he is.” Liam’s voice broke through her thoughts.

  Tanya followed the direction of Liam’s nod. Scott Walker was one fine-looking man. Any woman would have to be dead not to appreciate that, but he was also built like a brick wall and could be intimidating if he looked at a person a certain way.

  Pulling back her shoulders, Tanya battled the nerves that rocketed into her stomach and walked forward with Liam beside her. When they were as close as they could get because of the wall of men surrounding Scott, Liam raised his hand. “Scott? You got a second?”

  Scott turned and grinned. “Hey, be right with you.” His gaze flitted to Tanya and Scott’s smile faltered for a millisecond before stretching wide once more. “And I see you’ve found yourself a little company, too.”