by HELEN HARDT
“Gina had this friend. Marie Cooke. Marie came to me when I was a young officer right out of the academy. I’m not sure how she found me. She was one of the only people Gina confided in about what was going on, and even then, she wouldn’t go into any detail or name any names. But I knew exactly what she was talking about. Remember, my father tried to rape me. That’s why I left.
“Anyway, Marie said that Gina’s father had come to her and told her not to come around anymore. That she’d better stay away and not breathe a word of anything to anyone, or the same thing would happen to her.”
My mouth dropped open. “I suppose he could’ve been talking about something else entirely.”
“What else could he have been talking about? What else was going on? Gina was your patient for a while. Was there anything else going on that he might have been talking about?”
No, there wasn’t. And although I really couldn’t discuss what went on in my sessions with Gina with Ruby, it certainly didn’t hurt to say one thing. “No. She never gave me any indication of any other traumatic event in her life.”
“They’re terrible, terrible people. I wish I didn’t have their DNA.”
“Your DNA doesn’t define you, Ruby. Your choices and your actions do. You joined the police force. You’re one of the good guys.”
“I try to be. But let me tell you, confidentially. There are times when I want to whip out my gun and shoot some of those people.”
“Believe me, I know exactly how you feel. My parents were horrible and neglectful people, very verbally and emotionally abusive. But compared to Gina, I was lucky. I was at least never physically or sexually abused by anyone. I’ve always wondered if I had it in me to be a parent. My own parents were terrible, and I possess their DNA. But you know what? I think I would be a good mother. I think I would like to have a child someday.” I chuckled nervously, taking a sip of my wine. That was the first time I had ever thought it consciously—that I might like to be a mother. “Of course, my biological clock is ticking away.”
“No, not really. Lots of women in their forties are having children now.”
“True. But as a physician, I know the risks of a pregnancy in later years.”
“Sure, there are more risks, but the odds are still in your favor.”
I couldn’t help a smile. There was something about Ruby Lee that I liked. She had a cautious optimism that was unusual, given her circumstances. “Was Lee your mother’s last name?”
She shook her head. “The name on my birth certificate is Ruby Lee Thornbush. That was her maiden name. Her first name was Diamond, no lie. I guess that’s where I got my gem of a name.” She chuckled. “After she died and I went to live with my father, he had it legally changed to Mathias. Once I turned eighteen, I decided I needed a new start, free of both of them. So I took my middle name as my last name.”
“I don’t blame you,” I said.
“I almost changed my first name as well. I never wanted to be named after a stone. I mean, look at me. I’m sort of a tomboy. With the name Ruby.” She let out a raucous laugh.
“Actually, I think Ruby suits you. You have beautiful features.”
“Now, don’t you start trying to make me over too.”
“Oh, God, no. I would never do anything Brooke Bailey would.” Ruby had no way of knowing that I was intimately acquainted with Brooke Bailey and that she had come on to Jonah. I had no great love for the woman, but I did feel sorry for her. Her boyfriend was a complete psycho, and although they couldn’t prove it, Talon and Jonah both believed that Nico Kostas had tried to have Brooke killed for insurance money. She was still living in Talon’s home, recuperating from her severe accident.
“I suppose, as a cop, it’s easier to be taken seriously if you don’t dress like a froufrou woman.”
Ruby looked down and stared at her wine glass. “Yeah. That’s it.”
She was hiding something. Her mannerisms were feminine, even though she dressed like a tomboy. Something was off. It didn’t take my experiences as a psychotherapist to know that. There was more to Ruby Lee than met the eye, and I had a feeling that before this mystery was solved, I would know her quite well.
Chapter Eight
Jonah
Melanie was no longer at home—at least not at my home. I’d told her to leave, to go to Talon’s. So that’s where I was going. I didn’t deserve to see her, but I needed to.
The drive took an hour, and it was near midnight when I rolled toward Talon’s ranch house. I didn’t expect anyone to be up, but luckily, I could see through the front picture window that the light in the kitchen at the back of the house was on.
I knocked quietly.
Talon’s dog, Roger, appeared in the window, his goofy canine smile on his face. Talon followed and opened the door.
“Joe? What are you doing here this late?”
“It’s a long story, bro. But I need to see Melanie.”
“Melanie’s not here.”
My skin chilled. “What? What do you mean she’s not here? I told her to go to your place.”
“I know. When she didn’t show, Jade and I figured you had gotten some sense in your head and kept her at your home, where she belongs.”
I walked past Talon into his house. “If she’s not here, where the hell is she?”
“I don’t know. Did you come from your place?”
“No.” I helped myself to a cup of coffee and sat down at the kitchen table, where Talon had papers spread out. “I couldn’t bear to be there when she left, so I left first.”
“Then how do you know she’s not at your place?”
“She isn’t. The way she looked at me when I told her the truth, that I had ignored her phone call that night she got taken… There’s no way she was going to stick around.”
“I don’t think you’re giving her enough credit. She’s an amazing woman.”
I rubbed at my forehead. “You don’t have to tell me.”
“Listen, Joe, I don’t want to pry, but I have to tell you something. Jade told me that her mother told her that you and Melanie are in love.”
“She did?”
“Yes. Did you tell Brooke?”
I shook my head. “No, I didn’t. It must’ve been Melanie, that day she was over here hanging out with Brooke while you and I were talking to Felicia.”
“Well…is it true?”
I sighed. “It is on my end. Probably not on hers any longer.”
“I doubt that.”
“What would you know about it?”
Talon guffawed. “Are you kidding me? What wouldn’t I know? I fell head over heels in love with Jade, and I tried every trick in the book to stay away from her. It didn’t work. That love had a grip on me. It kept me by the shoulders and wouldn’t let me go. If Melanie is feeling for you anything close to what I’m feeling for Jade, she won’t be able to walk away, no matter what you think you did to her.”
“Tal, you know what I did to her. I intentionally didn’t take her phone call that night while we were driving to Denver to see Wendy Madigan. I was pissed off because she had sneaked out of my house when you and Jade showed up. I was being petty. I deserted her in her time of greatest need, just like I deserted you.”
“Are we really going to get back on that hobbyhorse?” Talon sat down next to me, a cup of coffee in his hand. “You did not desert me that day. You said you couldn’t go with me. I chose to go by myself.”
“Ryan didn’t desert you. Your little brother was there when you needed him, but not your big brother.” I fisted my hands in each side of my hair. “Some big brother.”
“Oh, for fuck’s sake. How long are we going to go through this? Are you going to try to get me to sock you again? That didn’t work out so well the first time. You know damned well I can’t ease your guilt. No one can, except you. You have to let it go, Joe. And please, if you can’t let it go for yourself, let it go for me. I’m happy now. I have the most wonderful woman in the world by my side, I own a quarte
r of this ranch, and I thought, for a few seconds, that I was going to see my big brother get the same kind of happiness with a wonderful woman.”
“Are you saying you’re healed?”
“Yes and no. I’m functioning, and I’m happy. Does my past still haunt me sometimes? Of course it does. And I imagine your guilt will always haunt you on some level. But you have to let it go. You have to pick up the pieces of your life and live. Suck out the good in life while you can. Someday none of us will be here.”
So here I was, feeling like an idiot again. My brother, who had been through so much at such a young age, was trying to pick me up. What a selfish bastard I was.
“Man, I’m sorry.”
“Would you stop apologizing to me? I forgave you a long time ago.”
I smiled. “No, I didn’t mean for that. I meant for having this stupid pity party for myself right now. It was completely self-indulgent, and I’m sorry.”
He returned my smile. I marveled at the fact that I had seen my brother smile more in the last several months than I had in the last twenty-five years. Every smile was triumphant. And he deserved each one.
“No worries, bro. I still get self-indulgent myself sometimes. But Jade is always here to snap me out of it.”
“You’re a lucky man.”
Talon took a sip of coffee. “I am. That’s no lie. But you can be just as lucky. The doc is a wonderful woman. Take some advice from someone who knows. Don’t let her go, man.”
“I don’t know, Tal. I don’t know if I can get her back.” I rubbed the back of my neck. Man, I was tense.
“Joe, you don’t even know if she’s gone yet. Have you tried calling her?”
“Actually, no. I’ve been a little busy.”
“Yeah? Something going down in the pastures?”
“No, man. You’re not going to fucking believe where I’ve been.”
“Try me.”
Where to start? I hadn’t even told Talon my suspicions—which were no longer suspicions and hadn’t been for a while—about Tom Simpson yet. Besides Marjorie, the only person I had told was Melanie.
Now I risked my brother’s wrath for not letting him in on it. And also…for letting Tom Simpson get away.
This was going to be a long night.
Chapter Nine
Melanie
The talk with Ruby had renewed my vigor. What a strong woman. I had met a lot of strong women in my practice, but never one who’d been on her own since the age of fifteen. On top of that, I’d found a new friend who I had a feeling would turn out to be very helpful to both me and the Steels. I was beginning to look at my own strength in a new way.
I had left Jonah’s home to take myself back. But the truth of the matter was I needed to be with him to do that very thing. I would show him the strength I possessed. I would fight for us.
It was nearing midnight when Ruby finally left, and I decided I would not be going to a hotel. I packed up what little I wanted from my loft and got back into my car. I was going back to Jonah’s.
I was going home.
* * *
Jonah’s ranch house was dark, but that didn’t concern me. It was the early hours of the morning, and he was no doubt in bed. I let myself in, and Lucy bounded to me.
“What are you doing up, girl?” I let her out to do her business and then refilled her water bowl, which was bone-dry. It wasn’t like Jonah to neglect Lucy.
I quietly stole down the hallway to his master suite. I knocked lightly on the door. “Jonah?”
No answer.
I opened the door slowly and walked in. I didn’t want to turn on the light and wake him. My eyes adjusted to the darkness, and I went through the sitting room and into the bedroom.
The bed was made, and Jonah was nowhere to be found.
Where was he?
Oh, God. Images of his BDSM club floated through my mind. He wouldn’t go there, would he? He said he hadn’t been there in years and had no desire to go back.
But that darkness still lived within him, a darkness I had only seen glimpses of.
And he had been in a bad way when he left.
Worry clenched at me. I sucked in a breath and left the bedroom. I went back outside to my car and brought in my things. It took me two trips, but I got it all, including the box that I had put all of Gina’s files in. Then I let Lucy back in and gave her some loving pets on her soft head. “I guess it’s just you and me tonight, girl.”
She followed at my heels as I took my things to the guest room where I had been staying before. My file cabinet still sat there, undisturbed. Well, of course. I hadn’t yet been gone twelve hours.
Where was Jonah? Why hadn’t he come home?
I thought about calling him. Would he answer? I wasn’t sure. After all, he didn’t know where I was. He thought I had left.
Boy, did I have a lot to tell him. And to tell Talon.
“Oh, for God’s sake, Melanie,” I said aloud. “Just call him. You’ll drive yourself crazy if you don’t.”
My cell phone was nearly dead, so I hooked it up to the charger and hit Jonah’s number.
“Hey,” he said softly when he answered.
“Hey. Where are you?” I asked.
“I could ask you the same thing. You’re supposed to be at Talon’s.”
“How do you know I’m not?”
“Because I’m at Talon’s.”
Relief swept through me. Jonah was all right. He hadn’t gone running off to the BDSM club or into the arms of some other woman. I hadn’t realized how tightly I was strung until my muscles relaxed.
“Thank God.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because I’ve been worried about you, Jonah.”
He paused a moment. Then, “Where are you, Melanie?”
“I’m home.”
“Your loft? I thought that was still a crime scene. And I thought you said you couldn’t stay there any longer.”
I cleared my throat gently. “I got a call from the insurance guy earlier today. The police have wrapped up their work, so I can come and go as I please.”
“Are you sure you’re safe there?”
“I’m perfectly safe where I am.” And I was amazed that I actually believed what I was saying. I was safe at Jonah’s place, even if he wasn’t there. I had done what I had set out to do. I had taken myself back. I was no longer going to let the fear of being abducted again rule me.
“I want you to leave there, Melanie. Come here to Talon’s. I need to know you’re safe.”
“Like I said, I’m perfectly safe where I am.”
“Fine. Don’t move. I’m coming to get you.”
“You don’t have to. I told you. I’m home.” I smiled, knowing full well he couldn’t see me. “Our home.”
Silence again.
“Jonah?”
“You… You didn’t leave?”
I chuckled. “Oh, yes, I left. But I came back. I’m not going to let you run away from this, Jonah. I happen to think we’re worth fighting for.”
Chapter Ten
Jonah
I couldn’t speak. Couldn’t breathe. Had I heard her right? She wasn’t leaving me?
“Jonah?” Her voice was soft and questioning.
“I’m here. I just can’t… I can’t believe it, Melanie. I let you down.”
“You did, but you were perfectly within your rights to be angry with me that evening. And what were the chances of someone coming to my place and kidnapping me?”
“Considering my family’s history, I should’ve known they were pretty damned good.”
“I’m not going to let you torture yourself, Jonah. Not anymore. Not over what happened to Talon, and not over what happened to me. You’re a good man. A strong and protective man who would do anything for those you love. I know that, and it’s time for you to know that too.”
Words failed me.
“So would you please come home? Please? Come home to me?”
I hadn’t yet had t
he chance to tell Talon what had happened tonight. He deserved to know. Again I was stuck with a choice. Stay and help Talon, or go home and make things right with Melanie.
“I will. I’ll come home. But there are some things I have to talk to Talon about. I won’t be long, so don’t worry.”
“Okay,” she said. “I understand.”
“I’ll explain it all to you when I get home, baby. I love you. I love you so much.”
“I love you too, Jonah. Always.”
I ended the call and went back into the kitchen.
“So?” Talon raised his eyebrows.
“She’s at home. My home.”
A broad grin split Talon’s face. “What are you waiting for then? Get on home to her.”
I shook my head. “I need to tell you what I was up to today. I have some news—news that concerns all of us.”
“Joe, you’re my big brother. I want to solve this whole thing as much as you do. But right now, go home to your woman. It took me a long time to figure out what’s really important in life. Don’t make the mistake of letting her go.”
“Tal, you don’t understand. This is some big shit.”
“Then come back tomorrow. Bring Doc with you. We can all have dinner here.”
Dinner? This couldn’t wait that long. Jade would get the news in the morning from Ted Morse. I had to tell Talon before then.
“How about breakfast?”
“Breakfast? Don’t you eat burritos out in the pastures?”
I nodded. “Usually, but not tomorrow. We’ll have breakfast here. What time does Jade go to the office?”
“She leaves around eight thirty to get in by nine.”
“Great. Melanie and I will be here at seven. Make sure Marj wakes up too. And keep Brooke in her room.”
“Wow. This is that big?”
“I’m perfectly willing to stay and talk to you now.”
“No. I’m not going to let you screw this up with Melanie. Now that I know what love is, I want you to have it too.”