The way Heath remembered it, his father had never held his career in very high regard, anyway. “No. It would be my call.”
“A call you would make without knowing all the facts.” Ian snorted with disgust. “Use your head, Heath. You have no idea what this Meredith Kenyon could be involved in. Drug trafficking, for all you know! There are any number of reasons why those two men may have tried to kill her. The smart thing for you to do is extradite her. If you had any sense, you’d be making the necessary calls to set the wheels in motion right now. There’s such a thing as obstruction of justice, remember. You shouldn’t take her into protective custody on her say-so alone. You show me a criminal who admits to committing the crime, and I’ll put in with you. They always have a sob story.”
As much as he hated to admit it, Heath knew his father was right. “So basically what you’re saying is that my career could go down the tubes if I help her.”
“And you could end up serving time. This is serious stuff! Kidnapping, and a man is dead. If you get involved, your ass could end up being grass, a judge the lawn mower. With a child mixed into the equation and a warrant out on the mother, how long could you keep them in protective custody, anyway? The authorities in New York are going to demand her extradition and that the child be turned over to her legal guardian. What’re you going to do then? Tell them to go screw themselves? You do that, and you’ll find yourself in more trouble than you can handle. Sheriff or not, at that point, you would be an accessory, not just to kidnapping, but possibly other criminal offenses you aren’t even aware of. Is that what you want? To serve time over this?”
“No, of course not.”
“Toughen up. Just do your job. I’ve been there a couple of times. I know it tugs on the heartstrings when a woman plays on your sympathy. But, hey, the Don Quixotes of this world always get screwed. She isn’t worth it.”
Heath sighed. “Well, thanks for the advice.”
“What are you going to do?”
“What I have to do,” Heath said hollowly. “You’re right. I know that. I guess I just needed to hear you say it.”
Chapter 20
As Heath reentered the building, the sound of a child crying drew him to an inner office where he found Helen attempting to soothe an inconsolable Sammy. When the little girl saw Heath, she struggled down from the female deputy’s lap.
“I want my mommy!” she said, sobbing as she hugged Heath’s leg. “Please, I want my mommy!”
Goliath trotted over, whining in concern and nudging Sammy’s back. Heath hunkered down to loop an arm around the child. “Hey, there, sweetcakes. Why all the fuss? You’ve got Goliath here.”
“We both want my mommy!” she cried, rubbing her eye with a fist. “Where’d she go?”
“She’s in my office.”
Heath cupped the child’s small face in his hands and rubbed at her tears with his thumbs. It was hard to say no to those big blue eyes. Besides, he asked himself, what could it hurt to allow mother and child a short visit? Soon, they would be separated for a very long time, possibly forever. Sammy’s grandfather might never let Meredith see the child again after she was released from prison.
“I guess I can take you in for a short visit.”
Sammy immediately brightened. “Can G’liath come?”
“Sure.”
After leading the child and the dog to his office, Heath stood just inside with his back to the door, numbly watching Meredith comfort her daughter. Within him, a gamut of emotions were at war for supremacy, not the least of which was his affection for this woman and child. He knew what he had to do. The badge he wore on his chest demanded it of him. But that didn’t mean it was easy.
Meredith’s whispered reassurances to Sammy drifted to him like accusations. It’s going to be all right, sweetie. I won’t let anything bad happen to you, I promise. Despite the avowals, there was an underlying note of uncertainty and terror in Meredith’s voice. Heath squeezed his eyes closed, trying to block it out. As his father had so succinctly pointed out, it wasn’t up to him to play judge and jury. Meredith could be lying.
All’s fair, she’d told him. She had as good as said that she would lie to him and use him, that he shouldn’t trust her. Maybe her being so honest with him on that score was what made him believe so strongly that she was telling the truth about everything else.
More importantly, though, Heath was impressed by the fact that she had other weapons at her disposal that she still hadn’t used. The stakes in this were high, the woman wasn’t stupid, and yet she wasn’t playing her one trump card. She had to realize how deeply he cared for her, yet she hadn’t tried to use that to her advantage. No tearful avowals of love for him, no offers of a sensual nature, no sobbing and pleading with him to save her.
Heath knew that many women, in similar circumstances, would have played this hand out differently. Far differently. Hell, he’d had female prisoners come on to him in every conceivable fashion, offering him whatever he wanted in exchange for his dropping the charges against them. He’d been kissed, felt up, and afforded the dubious pleasure of seeing women strip and play with themselves in an attempt to entice him.
Not that he believed seduction would come easily to Meredith. In fact, he had a feeling she abhorred the thought of sexual intimacy. But, unless he was reading her totally wrong, her own fears and aversions would take a second seat to her daughter’s welfare. She would probably do almost anything, make any sacrifice, to save her child, even if it meant having sex with him.
Funny, that. Having sex with her would be his dream come true. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to walk away if Meredith Kenyon slipped out of that shirt and gazed up at him with a come-hither look in her eyes. Even the thought tied his guts into knots. Yet she hadn’t used that against him. The fact that she hadn’t told him more about her than she could possibly know.
Heath took a deep breath. Christ. He felt as though he were standing on a high dive and about to jump.
He focused to find Sammy gazing across the office at him. Friends are s’posed to be friends, no matter what, she’d told him that morning. God, that seemed like a lifetime ago. And yet the words rang in his mind as clearly as if she’d just said them.
He smiled at her. Clinging to her mother, the child gazed soberly back at him. She was a tiny replica of Meredith. The same fragile build and delicate features, the same big eyes. Someday even her hair would probably turn the same color as her mother’s, a rich honey color streaked with gold. She’d be a heartbreaker, too, no question about it.
Right at the moment, Heath wasn’t entirely sure who he loved the most, Meredith or her daughter. He only knew he did love them, each in a different way, and that even if it was the dumbest move he’d ever made, he couldn’t sacrifice either of them on the altar of the law.
He’d already had to endure one lecture from Sammy today. Maybe he needed another one. Sure, performing his duty, keeping his oath, and being honorable were important. Until now, he had lived by those tenets. But there were other things that were equally important. Right at the top of the list was being a loyal friend, no matter what.
The whys and wherefores didn’t matter. Meredith needed him. The truth of that was there in her eyes, a tug on his heart he couldn’t deny. Brown eyes, blue eyes. It didn’t matter. It was the essence of her that he had come to love, and right or wrong, he couldn’t turn his back on her.
Barely aware that he had moved, Heath strode across the room. He grasped Meredith’s arm and drew her to her feet. “Come on. We’re getting out of here,” he told her gruffly.
She gave him a startled look. “What?”
“We’re leaving. I’ll take you someplace where you and Sammy will be safe until I can iron all this out and decide what the hell to do.” He drew her arms behind her back to put the handcuffs back on her wrists. “At least it will buy us some time.”
She threw a frightened glance toward the window. Heath knew she was thinking of the dangers that could be lurking ou
t there. She obviously didn’t feel entirely confident that she could count on him to protect them. Hell, to be honest, he was none too sure of it, himself. Taking on thugs who were affiliated with international union leaders and organized crime was pretty scary stuff.
“Look, Meredith,” he said softly. “I’m won’t railroad you into this. And I can’t promise we’ll come out of it in one piece.”
Her gaze clung to his, the expression on her face one of stark fear. Heath wished he could tell her he was one tough son of a bitch, that he could take on the mob with one arm tied behind his back and still kick ass and take names.
“I guess you put it best,” he said. “I’m a big fish in a little pond—the sheriff of Podunk, Oregon. This mess you’re in is way out of my league. I’m liable to get my ass kicked nine ways to hell, and take you and Sammy down with me. On the other hand, taking a chance with me is better than no chance at all.”
“Wh—where will you take us?” she asked shakily. “Are you sure it’ll be safe there? That they won’t find us?”
“I’m not sure of anything,” he admitted. “I wish I were.” He sighed and ran his hand over his face, feeling suddenly tired and old beyond his years. “The way I see it, our best chance is for me to stick with what I know. They’re big city. If they follow us into a wilderness area, they won’t know their asses from holes in the ground.”
“A wilderness area. Out in the middle of nowhere, you mean?”
Looking down at her, Heath began to wonder if the threat from Glen Calendri’s thugs was her only worry. In the wilderness, she would be completely dependent upon him for everything. She’d trusted a man once, and just look where that had gotten her.
“Well?” he pressed. “It’s your call, sweetheart. But don’t take all night. If we hang around here too long, my deputies will start to wonder what the hell’s going on. I should have you processed by now and be locking you up.”
“Is it legal for you to do this? I mean…is there any chance you could get in trouble?”
“I’m the sheriff, aren’t I? I answer only to the county commissioners. If I deem it necessary, of course I can take a prisoner into protective custody.” Heath didn’t add that the safest place for a prisoner was usually in a cell. If he kept Meredith here, the New York authorities would demand she be extradited as soon as they were notified she was in custody. He couldn’t let that happen until he knew for sure that she’d be protected. “I know what I’m doing, Meredith.”
Hope flickered in her eyes. “Well, then, of course, I’ll go. It’s just—”
“Just what?”
“It’s just so frightening. A wilderness area? I know nothing about the woods in this part of the country, and—”
“You don’t need to. You’ll have me.” He caught her chin with the crook of his finger and lifted her face. “Merry, you’re going to have to trust me. After hearing the story about Dan, I know it’s probably not easy for you, and I don’t fault you for that. If anyone ever had reason to keep her guard up, it’s you. But, sweetheart, you don’t have a choice. I promise you, I’ll do the best I can to keep both of you safe.”
Her eyes clung to his, as if she were searching for things he’d left unsaid.
“I’m right. You know I’m right,” he whispered. “If you don’t go with me, you’ll be sent back to New York, and Glen will get custody of Sammy. Like I said, this will buy us some time. I’ve got some connections. I might be able to do some finagling at this end to minimize the risks when you are sent back, and maybe I can cast enough doubt on Glen’s character that they’ll make Sammy a ward of the court until he’s been more thoroughly investigated.”
“Do you really think so?”
Heath didn’t know. He just didn’t know. “What can it hurt to try?”
Leaving the sheriff’s department turned out to be far easier than Heath anticipated. Everyone in the outer office stared at him in stunned perplexity when he informed them that he was taking Meredith and the child into protective custody. But in the past, Heath had always demanded absolute compliance with his orders and decisions, and he took full advantage of that mindset now, using his authority to forestall any questions.
Taking Deputy Bailey aside, Heath said, “I’m leaving you in charge, Charlie. I’ll keep you posted by radio.”
The older man rubbed the top of his bald head, looking concerned. “You sure you know what you’re doin’, Heath? Where are you takin’ ’em?”
“I think it’s safer if I don’t tell you that. I have reason to believe the mob has its finger in this, Charlie. The woman’s life is in serious peril. Once I reach my destination, I’ll even drive several miles away from there to contact you by radio. I don’t want to take any chance on their zeroing in on our location.”
“The mob? Holy shit.”
Keeping it short, Heath filled Charlie in on the story Meredith had told him.
“Those mob boys play rough, son,” Charlie warned. “Keep your head down and your asshole puckered. And, for God’s sake, be careful with that radio. They have more technical gadgets than a hog belly’s got freckles.” Charlie leaned closer. “I seen a show the other night where they aimed a little gadget at a house and could hear everything folks said inside. From clear out on the street! And they tapped into the phone line from out there, too.”
Heath smiled to himself. Charlie was a good deputy and a loyal friend, but his perception of the world was similar to Meredith’s down in Mississippi, very cloistered, the only difference being that Charlie watched television. “I’ll be careful. Count on that. The lady’s important to me.”
Charlie nodded. “For a hundred and six pounds, she’s put together real nice. Not much of a rack, though.” The paunchy deputy shrugged. “Hell, who notices? You know? My Mabel’s ain’t much bigger than skeeter bites, but I wouldn’t trade her for a dozen busty women. She keeps me cool in summer and warm in winter. What more can a man ask?”
Heath chuckled. His life was turned upside down, he might find himself surrounded by thugs shortly after he left this building, and Charlie was talking about his sex life? The man was obsessed. As if anyone could determine Mabel’s breast size? The woman weighed 350 pounds.
Heath rested a hand on the deputy’s shoulder. “Charlie, you keep your nose out of the girlie magazines. You hear? I need you to look smart and keep your eyes open for trouble. I have a feeling we may get a dose.”
“I don’t look at the pictures. Mabel’d slice my bacon and slap it on a hot griddle.” He scratched his nose. “I only read them articles. They’re real informational, you know. Written by educated fellows.”
“My ass.” Heath punched Charlie’s arm. “Don’t educate yourself while I’m gone.”
“I won’t. You know you can count on me.”
“If I didn’t, I wouldn’t be leaving you in charge.”
Once Heath had gotten Meredith and Sammy safely inside the Bronco, he climbed in under the wheel, started the engine, and backed from the parking space.
“Meredith, get your head down,” he ordered brusquely, patting the molded plastic console between them. “Lie across here.”
“Why?”
He flashed her a look that had her obeying him even before he replied. “I don’t want you to be seen. If Glen sent more than just two men, they may have followed us here from your place.”
“If they did, and they’re watching, won’t they know I’m in here with you?”
“With the hedges at each side of the lot, they can’t see the front of the building from either direction if they’re parked on the road.” He reached over to adjust the volume on his radio. “They’d have to park in that empty lot straight across from us, and no one’s out there.”
“Mommy! I wanna go to bed. I’m sleepy.”
“I’m tired, too, punkin. But we aren’t going home to our house tonight. We’re going someplace special.”
“Where?”
“It’s going to be a surprise,” Meredith replied. “Why don’t
you lie down and take a little nap so you won’t feel as tired when we get there. That’s a good girl. Are you comfy?”
“G’liath’s tummy makes gurgles.” The child giggled. “He’s a noisy piddle.”
Heath guessed Sammy meant “pillow” and smiled. She was obviously lying on the dog. Was there nothing Goliath wouldn’t do to please that kid? Evidently not. Glancing down at Meredith, Heath decided maybe he shouldn’t be pointing the finger. He and his dog both had it bad.
The plastic console was slick, and with her hands secured behind her back, Meredith had no way of anchoring herself. Heath knew that had to be a strain, as well as uncomfortable, but she didn’t complain or ask him to remove the cuffs. He admired that about her. Christ. Why didn’t he just start a Meredith Kenyon fan club? He liked everything about her.
He saw her struggle to keep from sliding backward off the console as he accelerated the vehicle. He curled his right hand over her shoulder to keep her from falling. Even the warmth of her skin through the shirt seemed delicate, he thought. Somehow less than his own body heat. It was as if their thermostats were set differently, hers on gentle warmth, his on high with all the propulsive fans going. And she felt so slight. The joint of her shoulder felt itty-bitty with hardly any meat to pad it. He could encircle her upper arm with his hand, his fingers overlapping by a good margin. Even her collarbone felt fragile where it sloped up to her shoulder.
Aware of her tension, he sought to reassure her. “I don’t see any cars parked on the road. That’s a good sign.”
She still didn’t relax.
“Merry, stop worrying. If anything happens, I’ll handle it, all right?”
Meredith had a feeling that from here on in, he would be handling everything, including her if the casual way he’d laid his hand on her shoulder was any indication. His fingers were large and strong, the warmth of them radiating through her shirt.
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