Shaking his head, Matt muttered, “We don’t know, either, Casey. Just thank God you’re okay.”
Nodding, Casey whispered, “At least Megan didn’t see any of this. She’s been traumatized enough.”
“No kidding,” Brenda murmured. She finished cleaning up Casey’s hands and sat back on her heels and smiled over at her. “I don’t know what drug this jerk gave you, but we really do need to get you to the hospital and draw blood. We have to find out what it is to treat you further.”
“Whatever it is, it’s awful,” Casey muttered. Little by little, her pounding heart was beginning to slow down. The adrenaline was starting to decline in her bloodstream. More and more of the people who had been looking for her came up smiling, relief in their expressions.
Finishing off the coffee, she thanked Matt and handed the cup back to him. Turning her attention to the paramedic, she said, “I think I can stand, Matt.”
“Okay, let’s try.” Matt stood up and held out his hands toward Casey.
When she got to her feet, Casey wavered a little. Instantly, Matt put a steadying hand under her elbow. The care nearly overwhelmed Casey and she bit down on her lip to stop from crying. “Let’s go,” she urged him.
All she wanted was to see home. As Casey turned, walking slowly, she searched Matt’s grim face. Her heart yearned as never before for time alone with Matt. All this trauma had done one thing right for her. She now knew without any doubt that she loved Matt and Megan. And all Casey wanted was private time to tell him that.
Taking a deep, unsteady breath, Casey realized as she walked down the smooth dirt trail, that she’d just escaped death a second time. That shook her deeply.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
MATT’S HEART BURST WITH a fierce love for Casey as she leaned on him. It was the look in her eyes, a mixture of love and relief, that made Matt finally break through and release his past. They stopped at the bottom of the trail. Sweeping Casey into his arms, he pulled her hard against him and held her. Just held her. She was soft and pliant, her head resting in the crook of his neck, her arms strong around him.
Closing his eyes, Matt steadied her and in a whisper said, “I love you so much, Casey. I love you…”
The words were fueled by overwhelming emotion as his warm breath caressed her temple and ear. Leaning back in his arms, she drowned in his gaze. “I love you, too, Matt. I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you that before—before this happened. I was scared to tell you.”
He lifted his hand and gently stroked her pale cheek. “We were both scared. And we had a lot of baggage from the past on our shoulders, too, Casey.” He saw her gray eyes grow soft and tender with love for him alone. The last of the shackles from his past dissolved. She had a huge heart. Matt had seen that with her love toward Megan. And now, it was here, shining out of her eyes like food for his starving, lonely soul. “We’ve got a lot to talk about,” he told her unsteadily, his hand coming to rest on the shoulder of her dirty jacket. “First, let’s get you off this mountain and to the hospital for a checkup.”
Wrinkling her nose, Casey released him. Matt tucked her beside his body, his arm around her waist. “I’m really okay, but I know they need to draw blood to find out what kind of drug that bastard gave me.”
Nodding, Matt guided her down the trail, the rest of the entourage following behind them. “It shouldn’t take long,” he soothed. The sun had set and he could see the darkness coming their way. By the time they got all the official reports and medical checks out of the way, it would be dark. Leaning over, he caught her glance. “After that, you’re coming home. With us.”
Warmth began to filter through Casey. She was still a set of screaming nerves from her near-death experience. Home. The word held a powerful charge to her. Nodding, she said nothing and concentrated on where she was putting her feet. Although the trail was wide and well-maintained, there were rocks peeking up here and there. The hiker who wasn’t paying attention would trip and fall. Besides, the drug was still in her system and her clarity continued to disappear briefly at times. When it did, Casey’s legs became less compliant and she was grateful for Matt’s stability, his arm around her waist keeping her upright.
The air was turning cold. Casey could see her breath. She felt the strength and steadiness of Matt’s embrace. Like a thirsty sponge, she absorbed his quiet strength as they walked down the trail. Once her mind cleared, she asked, “How is Megan?”
“I had her taken home. Jessie is watching her until we get there. She’s fine.”
“Was she upset?”
“Yes. I searched about twenty minutes for you in the brush. She was getting frantic standing out in the meadow alone. I needed to get her out of there when I realized you weren’t nearby.”
Mouth tightening, Casey muttered, “I’m so sorry, Matt. Megan didn’t need this stress on top of everything else.” She looked up and caught his shadowed gaze.
Squeezing her gently, he said, “She started talking, Casey. I guess the fear of you being gone snapped something inside her.”
Eyes widening, Casey gasped, “Really? She’s talking?”
Smiling a little, he leaned down and whispered near her ear, “Her first words were ‘Mommy, Mommy.’”
Lips parting, Casey almost halted on the path. Stunned, she saw the tenderness in his eyes. And she realized the implications of Megan’s first words. “Oh, Matt…”
“I know.”
Gulping, Casey forced herself to walk a little faster. Her mind wasn’t functioning properly but well enough that she realized the little girl had bonded with her and saw her as her mother.
“Are you all right?” Matt asked, glancing over at her profile.
“Yes…it’s just so much to deal with on top of my own stuff. I don’t want to mess it up with her, Matt. I’m scared, in a way.”
“Don’t be,” he coaxed, seeing her anxiety.
“Megan’s talking? Really, she’s talking?”
Smiling a little, Matt nodded. “I just got off a cell call with Jessie, and she’s chattering up a storm just like she did before the fire.”
Pressing her cut and scratched hand to her heart, Casey nearly cried. “That’s wonderful, Matt. Talk about prayers being answered.”
Grimly, he thought that more than that prayer had been answered. He’d never prayed so hard as when Casey disappeared. “I know. It’s a good day for all of us,” he told her, his voice cracking with emotion. As he shared an intimate look with Casey he thought he saw a glimmer of tears in her eyes, but couldn’t be sure. “Besides,” he added to make her feel less concerned, “Jessie is putting Megan to bed. By the time we get home, she’ll be sound asleep. You’ll have some time to work on yourself before she wakes up in the morning.”
“That’s good,” Casey murmured with relief. “I just want to get this crap out of my body. When I have clear moments, Matt, I’m okay. But when I get fogged in by that drug, I feel very unstable and super-vulnerable in every way.”
“I understand. Not to worry.” He looked beyond the steep trail that led down to the parking lot. There was an ambulance waiting there along with several sheriff’s cars and the volunteer hikers who had come to try and locate Casey. “First things first,” he said. “Let’s get you into the ambulance. I’ll follow in my truck and meet you at the hospital.”
CADE GARNER CAME INTO Casey’s hospital cubicle. Matt was standing near her as the nurse drew blood from her arm.
“Cade?” she called, giving him a wan smile. “Is that guy in jail yet?”
Shaking his head, the deputy came around the gurney. “He’s in the hospital right now. As soon as we can, we’ll be taking him over to jail. The detectives are interrogating him as a nurse cleans out the flesh wound on his upper arm.” Pulling a piece of folded paper from his pocket, he opened it up. It was a black-and-white photo of her attacker. Matt leaned forward and looked. “He’s singing like the proverbial canary.”
“Good,” Matt said.
“What made him sing
?” Casey wondered, shivering as she looked at the photo. It was a shot of the criminal with his name, Frank Benson, across it.
Smiling a little, Cade waited for the nurse to finish her duties with Casey. She completed drawing the blood and released the rubber tie from around Casey’s arm. Giving them a nod, she left the cubicle with the vial in her hand. Now, Cade could talk.
“What none of us knew was this—Clarissa Peyton, Senator Peyton’s wife, had called the commander five days ago about Benson.” He jabbed a finger at the photo.
Casey said, “What? Why would she know someone like this guy?”
“Right,” Cade murmured. “Clarissa, in August, found a throwaway cell phone on her husband’s desk. There was a phone number in it that she thought was another donor, and so she took down the number. There was no name on it. Later, when she was working on investigating all the new donors, she ran into Benson’s phone number. His name and criminal record popped up. That’s when she called the commander. Clarissa told him that she was worried Benson was stalking her husband. That’s why she called.”
Frowning, Casey tilted her head. “How would Senator Peyton know Benson?” She rolled down the sleeve of her blouse and buttoned it.
Matt scowled, his voice low with feeling. “Peyton swore to get even with me over the loss of his wife and children in that fire five years ago.”
Gasping, Casey looked over at Cade. The man’s face turned as grim as Matt’s voice. “Oh, my God. Don’t tell me the senator hired this guy to go after Matt?”
“It’s better than that,” Cade assured them. He crooked his finger so that the three of them were in a tight circle, his voice barely above a whisper. This was information that couldn’t get out to anyone yet since it was an ongoing investigation. “Benson said that the senator hired him two years ago to set fire to Matt’s home.” He looked over at Matt. “This is the guy who torched your place and murdered Bev.”
Paling, Matt stared in shock at the deputy. A barrage of feelings overwhelmed him. Casey reached out and gripped his hand.
She looked at Matt and then at Cade. “But…you mean this killer was hired a second time by the senator to kill Matt? To finish off what he hadn’t the first time around?”
Nodding, Cade said, “Yes, in a nutshell, that’s it. Only this time around, the senator didn’t want an arson fire. He worked with Benson on setting up what would look like a series of natural accidents for the three of you.” He held Casey’s gaze. “Megan and you were to be kidnapped, drugged and put in a cave. Benson would then lay out a meat trail for a local grizzly to follow up to that cave to kill and eat you. Once that was done, Benson was going to cut the duct tape off your hands and feet so that it looked like you two just had the bad luck of running into a grizzly.”
Gasping, Casey said, “But, what was Benson going to do then?”
“He was going to rely on an ongoing search for you two and then take out Matt. He had the drug, Ketamine, on him. Benson would knock out Matt, fill him with this drug and it would kill him. He was going to carry his body to where you were. In the end, Benson wanted the grizzly to savage all of you. It would look like an accident.”
Stunned and feeling numb over the horror of the story, Casey choked out, “What a horrible plan.”
Matt felt hatred churn up through him. He automatically placed a hand on Casey’s shoulder. “That bastard…the senator…”
“Yes, and Benson is writing up his statement as we speak. Once that’s done, an arrest warrant will be put out on the senator.”
“But, he’s in Washington, D.C.,” Casey said hoarsely.
Garner shrugged. “He’ll be arrested there by authorities and then come back here to answer the charges.”
“What about Clarissa?” Casey asked, feeling deeply for the woman. In more than one way, her detective work had helped save their lives.
Cade gave them a sad look. “I’m sure when it happens, she’s going to be in shock. In a court of law, a wife can’t testify against a husband. I don’t know yet. We can’t find the throwaway cell phone. We’re getting search warrants prepared for his home here in Jackson Hole as well as his apartment in Washington, D.C. I don’t know what we’ll find. Clarissa’s world is about to explode in her face.”
Matt moved his arm around Casey’s shoulders and gently squeezed her. “Peyton swore to get even with me,” he choked out. Shaking his head, Matt added, “We did our best to reach his home. It was no one’s fault.”
“Didn’t matter to Peyton,” Cade muttered with a scowl. He folded the paper, tucked it in his shirt pocket and buttoned it back up. “He’s always blamed you for the death of his family, right or wrong, Matt. What none of us realized was he was going to get even and take your family away from you.”
“But I’m not family,” Casey protested.
“Peyton saw you as someone Matt liked. The senator wanted to destroy everything that was important to Matt. That’s why he went after you.”
“God,” Casey whispered, suddenly shaken even more. The sounds of the hospital intruded upon them. She thought for a moment and then said to the deputy, “Benson screwed up, then.” She pointed to her upper arm where he’d jabbed the needle into her and knocked her out. “I didn’t die.”
“Benson said he thought you would die. After he grabbed you in the bushes and carried you up to that cave, your pulse was very slow. He thought for sure he’d delivered enough of the drug to kill you.”
“Maybe that’s why he didn’t search and find my Buck knife, then,” Casey whispered.
“Right,” Cade said. “He had taped you up in the cave. Benson was certain you would die and become a victim of a grizzly attack.”
Grimly, Matt said to the deputy, “I’ll bet if you look at Casey’s jacket, there’s a lot of the drug that got released in the material before it struck her arm.”
“That’s what the commander is thinking.” He picked up Casey’s muddy jacket. “I have to take this in for evidence.”
Nodding, Casey whispered, “That’s okay.” Feeling another wave of shock rolling through her, she added, “I just can’t believe all of this. What a horrible plan to kill all of us.”
“Peyton’s going to pay for this,” Matt growled. He pulled Casey protectively against him and held her. “He’s a sick bastard.”
Snorting, Cade said, “Beyond belief. The man is certifiable in my opinion.” He smiled a little at them. “Look, it’s going to be a rough month ahead for both of you. We’re going to need your statements tonight. Do you feel up to it? We have to get all the paperwork done before we can issue an arrest warrant.”
Looking at Matt, Casey said, “Yes, I’m up to it.”
“Are you sure?” he asked, worried. Casey was still pale, her eyes unusually dull-looking.
“I’m positive,” she muttered, sliding off the gurney. “Let’s get to your truck, Matt, and we’ll follow Cade to the sheriff’s headquarters. I’ll sleep better tonight knowing we’ve done everything in our power to get that senator behind bars.”
“I’M SO TIRED I CAN BARELY think straight,” Casey murmured as Matt closed the door to his home. She stood there and gave him a wan smile. It was midnight.
Matt locked the door and turned to her. His sister Jessie had just left. Megan was tucked into bed and soundly sleeping. He shrugged out of his coat and hung it on a wooden peg next to the door. “Makes two of us.” He brought her into his arms and she sighed softly as she folded against him. Kissing her hair, he whispered, “Let’s go check on Megan first.”
Wordlessly, Casey agreed. They moved apart and she followed Matt down the hall to his daughter’s half-opened door. Both moved quietly inside. As always, Jessie had made sure the soft glow of a wall light was on. It gave Casey just enough light to see Megan’s blond hair wrapped with her sheet and blanket. Only part of her face was visible. Her heart opened wide as Matt leaned down and placed a soft kiss on his daughter’s unmarred brow. Straightening, he stepped aside.
Casey moved soundles
sly and knelt down on one knee. She gently threaded Megan’s silky hair through her fingers. The girl stirred, but remained asleep. Leaning down, Casey pressed a soft kiss against Megan’s cheek. “We’ll see you in the morning, Meggie. Your daddy is here and so am I. Everything’s all right.” Her whispered words faded into the silence. How innocent Megan looked in sleep. The horror that Senator Peyton wanted to kill this child sent revulsion through Casey. She slowly got up with Matt’s help. Turning, she smiled up at him. He nodded.
Out in the kitchen, he pulled Casey back into his arms. “Let me draw you a hot bath?”
“That sounds good,” she said, closing her eyes and simply holding him. “You have to be exhausted, too.”
“Not like you,” he murmured. Pressing small kisses to her hair, he added, “Bath and bed?”
“Yes.” She looked up. “I want to be in your bed, Matt. With you.”
He saw the determination in her darkened eyes. “You’re sure?”
“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life,” she said, a catch in her voice. Stretching up, Casey met his descending mouth. It was the first time they’d been able to kiss since the whole event had erupted around them. His mouth was tender against hers, searching and moving warmly against her lips. It was a kiss of welcome into each other’s life, Casey realized as she responded to him. They were too tired to do much of anything other than kiss. Emotionally, they were numbed by the enormity of what had just happened. Casey realized how close she’d come to dying. Right now, both were fragile, and all she wanted was to hold Matt and sleep with him. The rest would come later.
Easing his mouth from her wet lips, Matt smiled into Casey’s eyes that now sparkled with love—for him. It helped Matt so much because he felt torn apart inwardly. He just could not fathom that one man’s revenge could go so far and for so long. Peyton’s misguided rage was shocking. The woman in his arms now smiling up at him could have been lost to him, too. Matt hadn’t realized until today how deeply he’d fallen in love with Casey. What was even more wonderful was that his daughter clearly loved her as a mother. In a world gone so wrong, Matt saw the hope in the slats of light that shone through the blackness. He knew Casey loved Megan fiercely and would make his daughter whole after her world had been ripped away from her.
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