Guarded Secrets

by Leann Harris

  “I’m waiting.”

  Lilly’s eyes scanned the trailer for some sort of weapon she could use to hit her captor with.

  Suddenly the sound of cars speeding up and stopping outside the trailer filled the air. The sound of a helicopter’s blades joined the noise.

  Snake looked out the window of the trailer.

  “This is the Albuquerque police, the New Mexico state police and the Santo Domingo Pueblo tribal police. The trailer is surrounded. Send out the woman and child. Then come out with your hands up.” The command came through a bullhorn.

  Snake turned back to Lilly and Penny.

  “You’re in trouble,” Penny said.

  Lilly’s eyes widened in horror.

  Snake opened the trailer door and yelled, “I’ll send out the little girl, but the woman comes with me. I want a private plane. I’ll release the woman when I board the plane.”

  “No deal,” shouted the officer on the bullhorn.

  “Make up your mind. I can hold both females hostage.”

  “We caught the guy who hired you. He’s on his way to the hospital now,” yelled the officer.

  Lilly raced to the trailer door. “Jon, I’ll go with him if he’ll let Penny go,” she shouted.

  Snake pushed her aside. “I’ll give you three minutes to decide what to do.” He slammed the door shut.

  Ben Narvaiz of the state police and Cruz Romero, an Inter-tribal Indian officer, approached Jon.

  “One of my men,” Cruz said, “is nestled in those hills beyond the road. He’s got a perfect shot. He can take the man out.”

  Jon didn’t want to risk it, but Lilly’s chances of survival would go down if she left here with Snake.

  “If we play along with the kidnapper, we can get the little girl out. Then we can take out the kidnapper,” Ben Narvaiz added.

  Jon thought about it for a moment. “How good is your sharpshooter?”

  Cruz met Jon’s eyes. “He’s the best I’ve ever seen. Before he joined our force, he was a sniper with the U.S. Army.”

  That was all Jon needed to know. He had worked with snipers when he was in the army and didn’t doubt this man could get the job done. “Okay. Let’s go with your plan.”

  Cruz radioed his sharpshooter. When things were ready, he nodded.

  “Snake. You’ve got a deal,” yelled the officer on the bullhorn.

  There was no immediate response. Just when Jon thought things were going south, the trailer door opened and Penny walked out. She glanced over her shoulder. Lilly appeared in the doorway and nodded to her daughter. Penny turned and walked to Jon. He gathered her up in his arms.

  “You’ve got the girl. Now the lady and I are going to walk to my car,” Snake yelled. “I want everyone to back up behind the cars.”

  The officers moved back.

  Lilly appeared first in the doorway, then Snake. He whispered something in her ear. She moved down the steps. Snake moved in tandem with her. Once they were standing on solid ground, he pulled her back against his body. They walked slowly to the van.

  Jon whispered in Penny’s ear, “When you hear the gunshot, drop to the ground and do not get up until I tell you it’s okay.” Her frightened gaze met his. “You understand?”

  She nodded.

  Jon prepared himself to explode into action.

  As Lilly and Snake neared the van, Snake glanced around at the gathered law enforcement cars. He paused and commanded everyone to move back. His arm flexed around Lilly’s neck, drawing her closer.

  The cops complied.

  They slowly moved toward the car readied for them. Stopping by the door, he whispered into Lilly’s ear, “Open the door.”

  He released her so she could grab the door handle. When she bent down, a shot rang out. Blood sprayed out and Snake fell to the ground, dead.

  Lilly screamed, covering her head.

  Jon raced to her side. “Lilly, look at me.”

  Her frightened gaze locked with his. He couldn’t tell if she’d been hurt. Blood and tissue covered her hair.

  “Are you hurt?”

  She stared at him, shaking.

  He ran his hands up her back and into her hair. He could find no wounds. Pulling her into his arms with his lips against her forehead, he whispered, “You’re okay, sweetheart.”

  “Mom,” Penny yelled, coming out from behind one of the patrol cars. She froze, seeing her mother covered in blood.

  Jon ripped his shirt off. “She’s okay, Penny.” He wrapped his shirt around Lilly’s head.

  Cruz Romero went to his car and pulled a blanket from the trunk. He offered it to Jon. He wrapped Lilly up and put her in his backseat. Penny joined her mother.

  Ben Narvaiz stepped forward. “I’ll call an ambulance.”

  Jon nodded and turned to Cruz. “Thank your officer for me. Tell him I’d like to meet him when I’m finished with the incident report.”

  Cruz held out his hand. “I’ll tell Robert.”

  Jon turned to the car where Lilly and Penny sat. He’d been shaken to the core of his soul. When Snake dragged Lilly out of the trailer, he knew he couldn’t have been the sniper because his feelings were involved in a big way. He would’ve traded his life for hers in a second.

  No matter how hard he’d fought against it, he loved Lilly.

  Now was he brave enough to act on those feelings?

  He didn’t have an answer.

  FOURTEEN

  L illy sat in clean clothes, her hair wild around her face. After she’d been checked over by the E.R. doctors, she’d been allowed to shower. Thankfully, she didn’t remember too much of what ensued after she heard the gunshot. The important thing she remembered was Jon’s voice asking her if she was okay. After she’d been released from the E.R. with clean clothes, the patrol officers had fed her and Penny and brought them to the police station.

  She ran her fingers through Penny’s hair, wondering where Jon was.

  A female detective, Mai Rosales, came in and took Lilly and Penny to an interview room and questioned both of them. Penny told the detective how Snake had grabbed her, and how she’d woken up at the construction site. Penny noted that he’d been nice. When she’d asked to go home, he’d given her the soda and candy bar. She’d fallen asleep after that. When she woke, her mother was there.

  Lilly gave her statement.

  “Let me type these up and let you sign them,” said Mai.

  “Can we see Jon?” Lilly asked.

  “Let me see if he’s back from the scene yet.”

  When they were alone, Penny snuggled close to Lilly’s side.

  “Can I tell you something, Mom?”

  Lilly pushed the hair away from Penny’s face. “Of course.”

  “I was so scared when that man had me.” She wrapped her arms around Lilly’s waist.

  “I was scared, too,” Lilly confessed.

  “What did they want?”

  “Your dad had something they wanted.”

  “What was that guy going to do with it?”

  Lilly closed her eyes. “I don’t know.” She wanted to assure her daughter that her father had intended to do the right thing, but she honestly didn’t know what Peter had planned to do with the information.

  Mai reappeared with two pieces of paper—the statements each of them had given. “Read them over. If they’re right, please sign.”

  Lilly and Penny both quickly read the statements and signed. Mai gathered up the papers and left the room. Several minutes later, Dave appeared in the doorway.

  “I’m here to drive you ladies home.”

  “What about Jon?” Penny asked.

  Lilly’s thoughts echoed her daughter’s.

  “He’s tied up questioning Adam Finley.”

  “Who?” Lilly asked.

  “The other guy who was at the trailer. He was your husband’s old boss. It might take several more hours of talking to him. Jon is worried that maybe you would like to go home.”

  It could be hours before th
ey saw Jon. Lilly realized she needed to get her daughter home. “Okay, Dave. Take us home.”

  Dave guided them by Jon’s desk. “You might want your purse.”

  Lilly grabbed it.

  Dave smiled. “Your cell phone is in your purse. That was quick thinking on your part.”

  “That was simply fear, Dave.”

  He leaned over and said, “Don’t diminish what you did, Lilly. Without your cell phone, we never would’ve known where you were. Bravery is about acting in spite of our fear.”

  Lilly nodded. She didn’t feel brave. She felt nervous and alone.

  It was close to dinnertime when they arrived home. Dave walked them to the door. “The D.A. will probably be contacting you in the next few weeks.”

  “I understand,” Lilly answered.

  Dave walked back to the car and waved goodbye to them.

  Once inside, Lilly went to the phone and called her parents in Florida, telling them what had happened. They offered to fly back home, but Lilly knew her father wasn’t up to the trip. She convinced them not to come.

  She waited for Jon to call. By one in the morning, she gave up.

  Two weeks passed. Two long weeks of waiting for Jon to call. Penny had moped, wondering why Jon hadn’t come to see them or called them. Even the beginning of the school year hadn’t cheered Penny up.

  Well, Lilly had had enough. She’d confront him head-on. Apparently, he could talk a good game, but couldn’t deliver. When she arrived at the police station, she asked for David Sandoval. When he appeared in the lobby, Lilly asked him if Jon was there.

  He smiled. “He’s here. Want to talk to him?”

  “I’m going to do more than talk,” she reassured him.

  Dave grinned. “Good.”

  His reaction threw Lilly.

  “Come with me.” He led her into the squad room. “Jon, someone’s here to see you.”

  When Jon looked up, Lilly saw the haggard lines creasing his face.

  “Go for it,” Dave whispered in her ear.

  She walked up to Jon’s desk. “I have a bone to pick with you, mister. You might not have wanted to see me again, but I think you owe Penny an explanation. She asks about you all the time and misses you. She wonders what she did wrong to make you go away.” She paused as she choked back tears. “I wonder the same thing myself.”

  Jon stood.

  “Jon,” she whispered, “I love you.”

  He remained frozen, staring at her.

  She’d worried that maybe he held back because he didn’t think she loved him. Or maybe he didn’t want to gamble again with his heart.

  “I understand if you don’t want to risk your heart again. I’ll pray God will heal you so that you can love again.” She turned to race out of the room.

  Suddenly she was in Jon’s arms and his lips were on hers. And nothing mattered.

  He broke off the kiss and his hands cupped her face. “Lilly, I love you. I was afraid to love again. The pain was so terrible when I lost my girls and wife. But the pain from not being with you and Penny, seeing your faces every day, is worse. I’ve been a coward. Please forgive me. I didn’t realize how much courage it would take to open my heart again. I thought I’d never have another family and suddenly you and Penny dropped into my life.”

  She understood the risk he was taking. “I’ve thought of you every moment for the last two weeks.”

  He rested his forehead against hers. “Lilly, one thing that terrifies me is having another child die the way my girls did. I can’t do that to another child.”

  If that had held him back, she understood his fear. “I understand, Jon. I never thought I’d love again, either. Then our paths crossed and my heart came to life no matter what my head said. I love you, and I have Penny. That’s more than enough.”

  The expression in his eyes brightened, and his lips slowly curved into a smile. “Let’s go find Penny, then see Pastor Kent about a wedding.”

  She nodded and they walked out of the police station.

  Dave yanked the phone off its cradle and called Marta with the good news.

  EPILOGUE

  L illy sat in the church’s fellowship hall. They’d finished the deliveries of vegetables from the garden. This harvest was the biggest they’d had, nearly four times larger than last year’s and ten times the amount of that first harvest. After such a grand success, people had wanted to come back to the church to celebrate. It had been impromptu. People had brought food they’d made at home to share with each other. Zoe, who hated yard work with a passion, had even volunteered to help. She worked alongside Allison and Nancy. Nancy had convinced all of her fourth grade class to come and join in the harvesting.

  Lilly glanced over at her husband. On his knee he bounced his six-month-old son, Tate. Lilly didn’t carry the gene that had killed Jon’s daughters, and Tate had been tested for the disease. He would grow up strong and whole. Penny, now ten, adored her little brother.

  Penny had helped Connie and Caren plant their backyard garden. The three girls were the best of friends and got together frequently.

  Jon raised his head and his gaze locked with Lilly’s. In the depths of his eyes, she saw peace. And joy.

  He’d been a full-time father to Penny for nearly two years now. She’d blossomed under his attention. He’d also been more active in the support group for the disease that had killed his daughters.

  “Your garden is a great success,” Jon said, nodding to the people around them.

  “I had no idea any of this was possible,” Lilly said, “but then, I didn’t see the whole picture.”

  “But we know who does,” Jon whispered.

  “Amen,” said Lilly. In her heart she added, Thank You, Lord. Your gifts are beyond anything we can know.

  Dear Reader,

  Jonathan Littedeer is a man close to my heart. After suffering through the deaths of his daughters and his wife, he tried to drink himself into oblivion. It was the faith of a young child who told him that Jesus could heal him that offered him hope. Sometimes the answers to our most trying questions are the simplest. Listen and be open to the hope God gives us. As I wrote Jon’s story, I walked through his pain. Many times I found myself writing things and sitting back and saying “Wow.” The scene in which Jon and Lilly discuss the picture of his wife and daughters on the mantel in his house is one such instance.

  I hope you enjoy this journey from despair to triumph. As a child, I often visited family in New Mexico. There is something in that harsh landscape that calls to my soul, a beauty that touches me.

  Enjoy.

  Leann Harris

  QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

  Lilly was conflicted by her newfound friendship with her ex-husband and her resentment of his behavior when they were married. Do you think her feelings were justified?

  What do you think of the way Jon dealt with his grief? Have you ever let God comfort you in your grief?

  Connie and Caren were quick to come to Uncle Jon’s defense and Caren helped him find his way out of the darkness after the deaths of his wife and daughters. Have you experienced a situation where you heard the truth from an unusual source?

  Lilly’s job at the church included community outreach. Was the church garden a good idea? How can Christians reach out to the community around them?

  How do we resolve the seeming contradiction between the Scriptures’ claim that believing in Christ ensures salvation and James 2:14, which states, “What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?”

  Jon’s feelings changed over the course of the story. He found his heart restored. Has that ever happened to you? How has God changed your heart so that you see joy and transcend sorrow? Or glimpse hope in the midst of darkness?

  When Lilly initially showed up at the church, she didn’t have any idea how God would use her. Has it ever happened to you that you started one thing, then found God using you to help others in a way you did not expect?

/>   Lilly’s friend Zoe was her advocate. Do you have a person in your life who helps you? Or have you been an advocate for another person?

  Have you ever been in a situation where you were forced to make a choice between what was right and what was convenient, as Lilly’s ex-husband was?

  The book ends with Lilly and Jon having a new baby, who is healthy. Is this realistic? Have you ever had a miracle in your life?

  Jon’s partner, Dave, is a friend who saw Jon through the darkest time in his life. Have you ever had a friend like that? What did it mean to you?

  Jon was afraid to love again. Were his feelings reasonable? Were they right? Beneficial?

  ISBN: 978-1-4268-4169-9

  GUARDED SECRETS

  Copyright © 2009 by Barbara M. Harrison

  All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the editorial office, Steeple Hill Books, 233 Broadway, New York, NY 10279 U.S.A.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  This edition published by arrangement with Steeple Hill Books.

  ® and TM are trademarks of Steeple Hill Books, used under license. Trademarks indicated with ® are registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the Canadian Trade Marks Office and in other countries.

  www.SteepleHill.com

  Table of Contents

  Cover

  Copyright

  Contents

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE