Grainger flailed and gasped but said nothing.
Brady aimed a finger at the open window, and Zane took off running, yelling, “Piper!”
Brady panted for a breath and swept a scanning glance around the field until he spotted the handgun a few feet from him. He scrambled on his hands and knees to recover it.
Grainger had regained his wits and was giving Josh a fight. He landed an elbow in Josh’s gut and had almost wrenched free.
Brady stumbled over to the struggling men and pressed the muzzle to Grainger’s head. “Freeze, Grainger. It’s over.”
Ken hesitated, swinging his head around to face Brady. His expression showed shock, then fury. “You don’t have the guts to shoot me, cowboy.”
He made a move toward Brady, and another gun clicked as it was cocked.
“Don’t bet on it.” Josh aimed the revolver from Zane’s truck at Grainger’s head. “And if he misses, I guarantee I won’t.”
With two guns aimed at him, Grainger stood down. Glaring at Brady, he snarled, “You don’t deserve Piper. Leaving you and this stinking cowtown was the smartest move she ever made.”
The jibe shouldn’t have hurt, considering the source, but it spoke to the deepest fear Brady had concerning Piper. He said nothing, merely holding the man’s malevolent stare with one of his own.
But Josh said, “News flash, buddy. She’s moving back and going into business with us. Including him.” He jerked his head toward Brady and sported a gloating smile. “You’re the one who’s not good enough for my sister. Brady’s a hundred times the man you are.”
Grainger clearly took umbrage and puffed his chest up. “He shovels horseshit for a living!”
Josh stepped closer, shoving the gun in Ken’s face. “Better to shovel it than to be a shit like you.”
“Josh, don’t.” Brady shook his head. “He’s not worth it.” Taking a slow breath, he moved closer to Grainger. Pitching his tone low, he grated, “If you hurt Piper in any way, this shit-shoveler will see to it you pay for it every day for the rest of your miserable life.”
Josh nodded toward the open back window. “I’ll watch him. You go.”
Brady didn’t need to be told twice.
* * *
The gunshot outside had chilled Piper to the marrow. She imagined one of her brothers lying in a pool of his own blood, and grief buried her, suffocated her like an avalanche of thick, wet snow. Losing either one of her brothers was untenable. Whip-smart and caring Zane or risk-taking and loyal Josh. Her heart ached, and every minute she sat, hands and feet bound, not knowing what was transpiring, was torture.
Then she heard another familiar voice shouting her brothers’ names. Brady was here. Someone had gotten him from the hospital, and he’d joined the cavalry to find her. A rush of joy flowed through her, followed by a streak of terror. Brady was in the line of Ken’s fire along with her brothers. Ken had a particular hatred for Brady.
She squeezed her eyes shut as a sob of dread racked her chest. “No, no, no! Please, God, protect them all.”
As much as the thought of her brothers’ deaths scared her, life without Brady saddened her more. He was her heart. Her future. The father of her son and the man with whom she hoped to have more children. Nothing like the prospect of losing someone forever to realize how much they mean to you.
“Brady!” she called but choked on her tears and only managed a strangled mewl.
Damn it, but she wished she knew what was happening.
She heard more voices, the sounds of struggle through the open window and strained to catch a fragment of what was happening. Then Zane’s voice reached her, clear and strong, calling her name.
“In here! Zane!”
“I’m coming! Piper, are you all right?”
She heard the thump and rustle as he climbed through the back window. A fresh flood of tears, happy tears, filled her eyes and made her nose run.
Zane charged into the room, and when he spotted her, his own face reflected the same immense relief that swamped her. On the heels of his gladness, she saw the flash of fury in his eyes when he took in the silver tape cutting into her wrists and binding her ankles.
She shook her head, sniffling. “Doesn’t matter now that you’re here. I’m okay.”
He wrapped her in a bear hug that crushed her ribs. She could feel shudders race through him as he came down from the adrenaline rush of worry and panic. “Piper, thank God. Are you sure you’re not hurt? Did he...do anything to you?”
“Just scared me. I’m fine.” She drew a broken breath. “Zane?”
“What?” he asked, still squeezing her tight.
“I’m getting snot on your coat.”
A laugh rumbled in his chest. “I don’t even care. This one time I will give you a pass.”
“Just the same,” she said through her sniffling tears. “Would you cut my hands free? They’re pretty numb.”
He pulled back, swiping suspicious moisture from his own eyes, before pulling a pocketknife from his pocket and slicing through the duct tape. He rubbed her chafed skin and helped her carefully pull the sticky tape off.
She yelped as the adhesive pulled the hair on her arms and as blood rushed back into her hands, causing a painful ache as nerves sparked back to life.
“Sorry,” Zane muttered and cringed.
“Don’t be. Damn, but I’m glad to see you.” She hesitated, then with her heart in her throat asked, “Where’s Josh? And did I hear Brady? I know there was a gunshot. Are they—?”
“Fine. They’re watching Grainger until the cops get here.”
A dizzying second wave of relief flowed through her, just before the thump of boots sounded at the back of the room.
“Piper!” Brady emerged from the bathroom, his face battered and swelling and drawn with worry. He paused to survey the room for mere seconds before crossing to her in three large steps. Zane backed away, allowing Brady to scoop her into his arms. “Thank God, you’re okay,” he rasped, hugging her. After a brief embrace he pulled back, eyebrows knitted, and framed her face with his cold hands. “You are all right, aren’t you?”
She nodded and touched the edge of his mouth where his lip was split and bleeding. “Better than you, it seems.”
He grasped her fingers and kissed them, shaking his head. “It’s nothing. I’m just—”
Without finishing his thought, he pulled her close and kissed her. Deeply. Desperately. She tasted his blood, but nothing could have stopped her from returning his kiss. She plowed her still-tingling fingers into his hair and held his head close. She angled her head to seal her lips against his, and a shiver of pleasure and joy raced through her.
“Um...” Zane said, taking a step back and scratching his forehead. “I’ll just...go help Josh with...uh, yeah.” He headed for the front door of the room. “I think the cops are...”
Needing a breath, Piper broke the kiss but didn’t release her grip on Brady. “Zane.”
Her brother stopped and pivoted to face her.
“Thank you...for—” Emotion tightened her throat.
When she didn’t say more, Zane simply fastened the top button on his coat before he opened the door and winked at her. “Anytime, Pipsqueak.”
Chapter 18
“So that was Deputy Ramsey,” Piper said two days later, waving her phone as she returned to the dinner table where both the McCall and Summers families sat, waiting for the update from the sheriff’s department.
“And?” Michael asked, his expression anxious. “Did Ken Grainger cooperate? They will throw the book at him, won’t they?”
“Throw a book at him?” Connor repeated, wrinkling his nose.
“Um, Connor, sweetie,” Melissa said, setting her fork down and scooting her chair back. “Why don’t we go see what we can find in the kitchen for dessert. I bet we find some homemade cookies i
n there.”
Melissa exchanged a concerned look with Piper, who gave a subtle nod of agreement. Connor didn’t need to hear the grim details of Grainger’s arrest.
“I’ll take him,” Brady offered.
Melissa raised a hand to stop him. “No, Brady, you stay. I’ll have Michael catch me up later.” She held out her hand to Connor with a warm smile. “Come on, little man. I’ll show you where I keep my secret stash of chocolate.”
Zane’s head came up from his rapt attention to his beef and potatoes. “Secret stash? Hey!”
“Easy, bro. I know where it is. I’ll show you after dinner,” Josh said, sharing a chuckle with Brady.
When Connor and Melissa were out of earshot, Brady returned his gaze to Piper. “Okay, spill. I hope they’re putting the cretin away for life.”
“Well, they offered him a deal in exchange for information he might have regarding the vandalism around the ranch.”
Roy, who’d been released from the hospital with no permanent damage the day after Piper’s rescue, scowled. “A deal? That bastard nearly killed my family. He deserves to rot in prison!”
“True,” Piper said with a nod, “but any information we can get to help catch the person responsible for the trouble the ranch has been having is welcome in my book.”
“What did they offer him? And did he take it?” Brady asked, slipping his hand into Piper’s.
“Reduced charges all around. Three counts of attempted second-degree murder, one count of simple kidnapping, with the charges of stalking and trespassing dropped.”
“Dropped?” Brady almost came out of his chair. “For invading your privacy and spying on you for months the cretin deserves—”
“The State of Massachusetts can still bring those charges,” Piper reminded him.
“Regardless of how many charges and what kind, he’s going away for a very long time. That’s what matters to me. He can’t hurt you or this family again,” Michael said, including Brady and his father in that statement with a nod to them.
“I still want five minutes alone with him to...” Josh waved a fist and pinched his mouth in a taut line.
“Get in line,” Brady said.
“You already took your swipes,” Piper said, touching her fingers gently to the corner of his healing mouth.
“I want another turn. He messed with my woman, and I don’t believe in reduced charges.” He smoothed a hand down the back of her head and settled his hand at her nape.
“Your woman, eh?” Roy said, arching an eyebrow. “Do you two have something you want to tell us?”
“Uh...not at the moment,” Piper rushed to say, and she felt the slight tensing of Brady’s hand on her neck. “Things have been rather crazy the last couple of days, and our first priority has been making sure Connor was safe and not unduly frightened by the recent events.”
She cast a glance to her father whose eyes reflected the same warmth her mother’s had for Connor. She’d filled her father in on the whole story and been given the same grace and love her mother had given her. He was thrilled to know he had a grandson.
“What about the fire in the hayfield? Did he do that?” Josh asked.
Piper shook her head. “No evidence of that.”
“So what did he tell them about the ranch vandal?” Roy asked. “What did he see?”
“Pitifully little. His ace to get his charges reduced proved to be a much lower card.”
Brady huffed his disgust.
Piper continued, “He gave a very generic and unhelpful description of the person he saw in the alfalfa field before the fire started. But he also agreed to take—and passed—a lie detector test regarding his involvement with the fire and the poisoning in the pond and so forth. He wasn’t responsible for any of the vandalism.”
“He was in Boston stalking Piper when the poisoning happened,” Josh said bitterly.
Brady frowned. “Wait, what about that guy Ron Sandburg? He admitted to you that he killed Ron. He should get first-degree murder for that!”
“The Colorado and Massachusetts DAs are working out his extradition back to Boston for that charge and others,” she said. “But the long and short of it is, between the two states, there are plenty enough charges to keep him behind bars.”
“And away from you. Permanently. That’s what I care about,” Brady said, squeezing her hand.
She heaved a sigh and felt most of the tension that had been coiled inside her for days release its grip. Most. She still needed to settle a few things with Brady, and that conversation had her on edge.
“So one menace has been caught and put away, but the bastard who is plaguing our family with crippling assaults on our livelihood is still out there,” Zane grumbled.
Michael nodded grimly. “That’s the size of it.”
“But...” Josh said, sending his brother a twin-telepathy look, “there is good news to report.”
Piper could feel the mood of the room change as everyone cast expectant gazes toward Josh. Clearly, the whole family was ready for some good news to dispel the general gloom of the past few days.
“Zane?” Josh said, waving a hand of deferral to his twin.
Pushing his now-empty plate away, Zane cast a grin to the family. “I put some feelers out last week for the adventures biz and had some interesting responses. Some aren’t worth mentioning, but I got an email today from an advertising firm in Denver that is interested in developing a start-up plan with us that will help get the word out. They are reasonably new and looking to expand their client base, so they gave me a great deal for a complete advertising and PR package. Getting the word out is going to be key in the first few months of operation.”
“And in order to better assess the adventure ranch and advise us, they plan to send a team to go on a trip with us in the spring. They’ll take pictures, get firsthand knowledge, then use their experiences here to work with travel agents to bring us business.”
“An advertising agency is bringing a team here this spring?” Brady asked, giving Piper a concerned look. “But that’s just four months. Are we ready for that?”
“We will be ready enough for a trial run with them by spring,” Zane said. “They need to see the operation to better produce the fliers and website and social-media campaign.”
Roy shook his head. “I don’t know nothing about social media and all that, but if you want to have a trial run ready by spring, you’ve got a lot of work cut out for you in the next few months.”
Josh nodded. “We know. Can we...count on your help?”
Roy divided a look between the brothers and jerked his chin in agreement.
“Great,” Zane said, slapping the foreman on the shoulder.
“And...” Piper said, smiling at Brady before she looked to her brothers, “you can count on me, too. I’ve decided to take the job as head of finance.”
Her brothers grinned and shared celebratory remarks with the rest of the family gathered around the table. Brady turned a beaming smile to her and tugged her close for a quick kiss that made her insides do their own cheer.
The happy noises brought Melissa and Connor, who had a giant, half-eaten cookie in his hand, back into the room.
“What did we miss?” her mother asked.
“The prodigal daughter is coming home!” her father exclaimed.
“Piper is moving back home to be part of the operation of the new adventures business!” Josh said, rising from his chair to pull Piper to her feet and into a firm hug.
Her mother gasped her delight, and with her hands folded under her chin, she said, “Oh, Piper dear, I’ve waited so long for that news. I’m so happy that our family will be whole again.”
Piper gave her mother a teary smile, but her stomach flip-flopped. As Zane shoved his brother out of the way to take his turn giving Piper a bear hug, she sent a side-glance to Brady.
The McCall family might be whole again, but what of the family she and Brady might build with Connor? She couldn’t put off the question any longer. Before she moved back, she needed to know what her future held with Brady.
* * *
Piper was drying her hands on a dish towel in the kitchen when Brady found her a short while later.
“Can we talk?” he asked, and her heart gave a nervous tremor.
“Mom, do you—” she started, glancing to Melissa who was putting the last of the leftover dinner in the refrigerator.
“Go.” Her mother flapped a hand. “I’ve got the rest of this. Thanks for your help.”
Taking a deep breath, she faced Brady. “All right, then.” As she followed him out of the kitchen to the mudroom, she asked, “Where’s Connor?”
“Playing checkers with Zane in the living room. Roy promised to see that Connor got him to bed on time.” He helped her put on her coat and opened the back door.
“Where are we going?” she asked, pulling up her collar against the cold night air.
“Not too far.” He motioned toward the stable. “The moon is pretty tonight. Why don’t we talk over there?” He laced his fingers with hers and led her to the fence by the main corral.
She tipped her head back to look at the night sky and smiled at the almost-full moon. “It is pretty. And I missed the stars when I was in Boston. The city lights hid all but the brightest ones. Not like here where you can see thousands.”
He leaned one hip against the fence as he faced her, capturing her hand between his. “Your family was pretty happy about you moving back.”
She smiled. “Yeah.” Then her expression sobered seeing his somber look. “But...”
“But...?”
She inhaled and said, “But what about us?”
He twisted his mouth and met her gaze. “Yeah.”
In the silvery glow of the moon, she could see the doubt, the pain, the fear in his eyes. Knowing she was responsible for those dark emotions gouged at her heart.
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