Abide: A Christian Romance Novel (The Lewis Legacy Series, Book 7)

by JoAnn Durgin

  Caleb shook the other man’s hand. “Good to see you again, Brian.”

  “Come see me again.” Brian gave his shoulder a squeeze. “Your meal’s on me tonight.”

  “Thanks, but I can’t let you do that—”

  The other man winked and angled his head at Caty. “Put the money toward a ring.”

  “Well, that was…something.” Caleb dropped back into his chair. “Nothing like being obvious.”

  Caty didn’t have one of her quick comebacks and concentrated on finishing her meal. She offered the last rib to him, saying, “Here, Adam.”

  “Thanks, Eve, but I think we have it backwards.” Laughing, he ate it, and then she offered him the last bite of her cornbread. He leaned across the table and she fed it to him, which he enjoyed immensely. Sharing food with this woman was something he hoped to do a lot more of in the future, among other things.

  The clear night sky surrounded the car as Caleb drove them back toward Houston. Still quiet, Caty curled into her seat, but he knew she wasn’t asleep.

  “Brian’s comment about life being fragile,” she said after a while. After starting to say something else, she closed her mouth and looked out the side window.

  “Brian and his wife lost a child to leukemia. Happened a year or two before Helena died.”

  Caty gasped and moved one hand over her chest. “Oh, I’m so sorry to hear that,” she said.

  “Should we talk about it? You got pretty quiet after Brian stopped by our table. I thought we were having a great time.” She’d been perfectly fine until then. Surely she wasn’t upset by Brian’s hints and teasing?

  “I had a great time, Caleb.”

  “Then talk to me, Caty. Are you mad? Did I say something wrong?” He moved his hand over hers, thankful when she readily accepted the gesture. Lifting her hand to his lips, he gave it a quick kiss.

  “You didn’t say anything wrong. I just…got emotional. I warned you.”

  “This is emotional? You’re not saying a word. I thought women usually cry or spout accusations, throw stuff, freeze me out.” In some ways, that kind of behavior might be better to get things out in the open than this…quiet. Somehow he must have hurt her, and Caleb needed to know how and why so he could fix it.

  “Maybe that’s what Helena did, but I tend to get quiet and withdraw.” Caty slipped down into the seat and wrapped her arms over her middle. “I can’t be ‘up’ all the time. That’s not…normal. Don’t mind me. I’ll get over it.”

  He stiffened at her mention of Helena. Surely she wasn’t jealous? That didn’t ring true to Caty’s character. Unfortunately, she was right. Those actions were the kinds of things Helena would do.

  When he came to the next exit, Caleb pulled off in a gas station parking lot and stopped the car.

  “Caty, listen to me.” He tilted her chin and made sure he had her eye contact. “You are the woman I love. Helena is in my past. I loved her, but our marriage was far from perfect. She’s been gone for five years. I’ve had sufficient time to grieve, and now it’s time to move on with my life. God knew who I needed, and when, and He brought you into my life at exactly the right time.”

  Leaning across the console, he kissed her lightly. Something was still bothering her even though she kissed him back. A little more enthusiasm might be nice, but he’d take it. “Are you mad about Brian’s comments about putting a ring on your finger?”

  “Indirectly.”

  Now he was getting somewhere. The irrational thought popped into his mind that Lauren could probably tell him what was happening in Caty’s mind. She might only be twelve, but his daughter understood the way the female brain operated a whole lot better than he did. Clearly he was being an oblivious, clueless male.

  “I can’t help you if you don’t share what you’re feeling with me.” His cell phone made a sound. Reaching for it, he stared at the display and groaned. “Oh, no.”

  Caty struggled to sit up straighter in the passenger seat. “What is it?”

  He released her hand, fired up the engine, and zoomed out of the parking lot.

  “Caleb, you’re scaring me. Why are you going so fast?”

  He eased up on the accelerator slightly. “That was a call from the house. It’s an alarm that’s triggered by the security system.”

  “Hopefully it’s nothing.” He appreciated the soothing tone of her voice, but he knew in his gut this was something.

  “Do me a favor,” he said, handing her his phone. “Call the house. See if Lettie or Lauren picks up.”

  “Sure.” Doing as he asked, Caty dialed the number immediately.

  “Hi, Lettie? This is Caty Lewis. I’m with Caleb, and he got a call he says was triggered by the home security system. Hang on a second. I’m going to put him on the phone with you.” She handed the cell phone to him.

  “Thanks.” He took the phone and checked his speed, slowing down a bit.

  “Lettie, I got an alert through the security system. Everything okay?”

  “I’m not sure,” she said. “A car with dark, tinted windows has been sitting outside the house, parked across the street, for the past few hours. It could be nothing, but I don’t know why you got an alert. The house alarm didn’t go off. Max did go crazy barking for a while, though.”

  Max barked? The breeder told him Bullmastiffs rarely bark. One of the reasons would be when he sensed danger.

  Caleb needed to make a split-second decision. He couldn’t take the risk that something would happen to them otherwise, especially since he was a good hour away from home. “Call the police. Get them over to the house. Tell them you suspect the security system’s either been compromised or tripped and have them check all the entrances. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  “I’ll do that. Don’t worry about Lauren. She’ll be fine.”

  “Does she know about any of this?”

  “Not yet, but I feel safe in saying she will soon enough.”

  Couldn’t be helped. “Sorry, but explain to her what you know, and keep her as calm as you can. You’re very good at that. Tell her I’m on my way back home. I have Caty with me. We should be there in less than an hour.”

  “Okay. We’ll see you when you get here,” Lettie said. “If there’s anything else to report in the meantime, I’ll give you a call.”

  “Sounds good.” Caleb disconnected the call. He glanced over at Caty although he didn’t dare take his eyes off the road for more than a few seconds considering he was pushing eighty mph.

  “Father, be with us as we head back to the house,” she prayed. “We pray nothing’s amiss, and that the security system hasn’t been compromised. We put this situation into your hands and ask you for your watch care over Lettie and Lauren right now. And pray Caleb gets us there without an accident. We ask these things in the name of your Son, Jesus. Amen.”

  “Amen.” He briefly told her what Lettie had said about the car sitting on the street for hours.

  “Prayer is always the best answer,” she said.

  Lord, let them be okay. At least Lettie had answered the phone and things sounded fine.

  Next he punched in Eliot’s number. “I have no idea where in the world Eliot is, but even if this turns out to be nothing, he needs to know.”

  Caty nodded. “Never hurts to have Eliot Marchand on the case.”

  Chapter 44

  Caleb drove the Porsche past the front gates and navigated around three HPD squad cars in the circular driveway. “We’re having a party now.” Within a minute, he’d parked the car in the garage. Slamming his door, he started around the back of the car.

  “I’ve got it.” Caty pushed open the passenger door and started to climb out of the car, whacking her head in the process. “Ow, ow ow.” She put a hand to her forehead. “You go on in. I’m sure they’re waiting for you.”

  For a split-second, her ow ow ow reminded him of Lauren. Reaching around her, Caleb closed her car door and then took her hand. “I’ll have Lettie get you something. Let me take a lo
ok.” Brushing aside strands of her hair with his free hand, he checked her forehead.

  “I think I’ll live, Caleb. Come on. Let’s go inside and see what they have to say.”

  After punching in the security code, he ushered Caty inside. Together they quickly walked through the kitchen and then into the living room. Lettie sat with four uniformed police officers. She appeared calm and in control, a good sign.

  One of the officers stood from where he’d been sitting in an armchair.

  “I’m Caleb Reid.” Wrapping his arm around Caty’s waist, he strode forward and offered his hand. “Thanks for your quick response in coming out to the house. This is Catherine Lewis.” He’d never liked the term “girlfriend” for anyone older than a teenager. From the corner of his eye, he noted Lettie’s quirked brow. He’d need to catch her up-to-speed although he felt sure she could connect the dots quite well on her own. Lauren hadn’t stopped raving about Caty the entire time they’d visited Lettie in Dallas.

  The officer nodded. “Miss Lewis.” He told them he was Lieutenant Taylor and introduced the other three officers. The other men rose to their feet and stepped a short distance away to make room for them on the sofa.

  “Please sit down,” Lieutenant Taylor said.

  Caleb took a seat on the sofa beside Caty. He glanced at Lettie. “Is Lauren upstairs?”

  Lettie nodded. “She’s fine.” He’d go upstairs as soon as the officers departed. If Lauren was awake, he’d talk with her and make sure she was okay.

  “We’ve taken Oliver Portman’s statement as well as”—Lieutenant Taylor nodded to Lettie—“Mrs. Huffman’s statement.” He sat in the armchair again. “We checked the perimeter of the house and found signs of forced entry on the outside door leading into the garage. The security system is fully operational, and we found no evidence of tampering. It’s our contention that your dog’s barking stopped them. We’ve dusted for prints on the outside latch and the door. We also found two sets of footprints to the far side of the garage.”

  Caleb’s pulse raced. “You believe that more than one person was involved?”

  “Yes, that’s the most likely scenario. The footprints would appear to be from male suspects although we can’t be positive without further investigation.”

  “You’re suggesting they either scaled the front gates or the walls, miraculously dodged the security system, and managed to get as far as the garage before Max stopped them?” His stomach felt queasy, and Caleb scrubbed a hand over his face. “So much for the best security system money can buy.”

  “Unfortunately, there’s virtually no home security system that can’t eventually be breached,” Lieutenant Taylor said. Not reassuring.

  “Where there’s a will, there’s a way? Please spare me the platitudes and clichés.” Caleb rose to his feet and began to pace the floor.

  “Mrs. Huffman told us Max is a new addition to the household. It was a wise one. Now that it’s known you have a guard dog on the premises, it might discourage future attempts.”

  Stopping his pacing, moving his hands to his hips, Caleb looked at the officer and returned to his seat. “I hope you’re right.”

  After Caleb answered a few routine questions, Lieutenant Taylor closed his notebook and rose to his feet. The silent brigade of officers followed suit. “You should know the department is aware of the kidnapping threats you’ve received in the past.”

  Caleb glanced at Lettie, but she gave a slight shake of her head. He’d wait and see exactly what they knew.

  “The Dallas Police Department passed on the information from a previous report filed after the incident at your daughter’s school,” Lieutenant Taylor said, answering his unasked question. “I also understand you’ve hired a private security firm here in Houston to follow-up.”

  How did they know all this? Perhaps it was for the best. The more people working to help find the persons responsible, the better. The officer’s statement hadn’t sounded defensive.

  “That’s correct. I felt it the best course of action,” Caleb said slowly. “I’m sure your department has a lot of cases to deal with. Without any substantial evidence or suspects, there’s not much any of us can do.”

  “That might be true, but feel free to call us if you see anything, hear anything, or anything else comes up,” Lieutenant Taylor said.

  “I’ll do that. Thank you again.” Caleb walked the officers to the door, shaking each of their hands. As he closed the door behind them, he turned to Lettie. “Thank you for calling them and taking care of Lauren tonight.”

  “That’s why I’m here.”

  Crossing the room, he pulled Lettie out of her chair and encompassed her in a hug. “You sure you’re okay?”

  “Perfectly fine, dear heart.” She gave his cheek a kiss and stepped back after he released her. “Caty, I’m sorry we had to meet under these circumstances, but I certainly hope I’ll see you again. Lauren and Caleb have spoken very highly of you.”

  Caty gave her a warm smile. “Great to meet you too, Lettie. I’m sure we’ll see one another again.”

  “I’ll say good night then.” Lettie departed the room and headed for her quarters off the kitchen.

  “Caty, will you come upstairs with me to talk with Lauren?”

  She rested her hand on the side of his face. “Cast all your anxiety on Him, for He cares for you,” she whispered. “And so do I.” Her eyes searched his. “So very much.”

  Pulling her into his arms, Caleb held her close. “I’m grateful you’re here. Thank you. Not that I gave you much choice since you were my passenger.”

  “Caleb, there’s no place I’d rather be. I hope you know that.” She touched the cleft in his chin and then started up the stairs. “Let’s go speak with Lauren.”

  They walked up the stairs, hand-in-hand, and an image popped into his mind of coming up the staircase with Caty beside him as his wife. And that’s when it hit him. Caty hadn’t been perturbed by Brian’s words, she’d been irritated with him. He’d been flippant and sarcastic by brushing off the other man’s words about a ring. What a dunce. Hopefully, he’d get the chance to talk with Caty about it on the drive back to her townhome.

  Lauren’s bedroom door stood slightly ajar. Pushing it open, Caleb peeked inside the dark room, illuminated by the moonlight streaming through the open curtains. With her headphones on, eyes closed, she bobbed her head back and forth to the beat of music.

  Seeing him, Lauren started and then jerked the headphones away from her ears. “Hey, Dad.”

  “Sorry if I scared you, baby.”

  “That’s okay. I’m glad you came.” She scrambled to sit up as he dropped onto the side of the bed. Wrapping her arms around him, she noticed Caty standing a few feet away. “Caty, you’re here, too! Did you guys have a good time in Brenham?”

  “We had a great time.” Caty’s quick response made him smile. She didn’t seem upset now. The sobering events of the evening had a way of putting everything in its proper perspective.

  “Come sit with us.” Lauren gestured to Caty and patted the mattress on the opposite side of the bed from where he sat.

  “We wanted to make sure you were okay,” he said. “I hope you weren’t scared by anything that happened tonight. Anything you’d like to ask me? Do we need to talk?”

  “Not really.” She scrunched her features in a frown. “I just want all this craziness to stop so we can get back to our lives and not worry.”

  “I know, and I’m sorry.” He smoothed her tousled dark hair and pressed a kiss to her forehead. “Hopefully, it’ll be over soon.”

  “I know you’re doing what you can. Max was the best guard dog ever! You should have seen him.” When Caleb heard a noise in the room—one he knew didn’t come from the three of them—he spied Max, fast asleep, in a far corner of the bedroom.

  “I didn’t think you’d mind if he stayed with me tonight.” Lauren shrugged. “Notice he’s not on the bed.”

  Caleb chuckled. “I think I’ll get Max a s
pecial treat or a huge dog bone tomorrow to thank him for a job well done. Lauren, did you talk to the police officers?”

  Lauren shook her head. “Lettie told me to come upstairs. She said she’d come and get me if they wanted to talk with me. Lettie was cool. She didn’t crack under pressure or anything. She said she hoped her sister didn’t catch wind of any of this or she’d probably march all the way here and haul her back to Dallas. I guess her sister’s pretty bossy.”

  Caleb resisted his chuckle and put one finger over his lips. “Mum’s the word unless Lettie decides she wants to leave. If she decides to do that, we have to let her go.” He prayed it wouldn’t come to that.

  Lauren turned to Caty. “You’re being quiet tonight. Everything okay?”

  Caty’s smile turned Caleb inside out. “I’m enjoying this sweet father-daughter moment,” she said. “I love watching you two together.”

  If possible, Caleb fell more in love with this woman. How was it possible to fall so quickly and know in his heart it was right? He definitely needed to marry her.

  “What is that noise?” Caty glanced around the bedroom.

  “What’s it sound like?” Lauren shot him a grin. She knew as well as he did that it came from the sleeping canine in the corner. Make that the hero of the evening.

  “I don’t know,” Caty said. “Maybe like a light scraping noise of some kind?” When she tried to replicate the sound, Lauren and Caleb both laughed quietly.

  “That’s Max, too.” Caleb angled his head to the dog. “He makes some very strange noises in his sleep.”

  “He also likes broccoli,” Lauren said.

  He scoffed. “No table food, remember?”

  “I couldn’t help it. I dropped a piece on the floor by accident at dinner, and he scarfed it down before I could stop him. At least broccoli has vitamins in it, right?”

  Lauren gave him a grin—calculated but cute.

  Caty reached for their hands, joining them together. “My dad used to pray with me every night. Is it okay if we do that now?”

  “Every night?” Lauren said.

  “Pretty much, unless he was away on a business trip. Mom was there a lot, too, but it was always a special time I shared with Dad. I think after what happened here tonight, there’s no better way to battle the forces working against us than to stand firmly on the word of God.” She glanced at him. “Are you okay if I go first?”