by Lavada Dee
Grant heard Baylee before he saw her. She was holding a woman in her arms, rocking her back and forth. Quickly, he made his way over to her and knelt down. She was covered in blood and shivering. He could see a knot forming on her head and blood seeping from a cut on her arm. Panic grabbed at him, and he pushed it away. He didn’t have anything with him to help her and called over to the medics. “I need a blanket here.”
Immediately, an officer grabbed one and brought it over. Urging Baylee to her feet, he supported her weight and wrapped the blanket around her shoulders. “Come on, let’s get you out of here.”
“But what about the judge? And what about Gladys?”
He glanced behind him to the blanket-covered figure lying behind the judge’s chair. It didn’t take a doctor to see that the judge was dead. “Gladys?”
“Joe sh–shot Gladys first, she was s–standing right in front of me, and when she went down she turned and took me down with her. Baylee was starting to come out of the daze, and her eyes darted around the room. “Oh my god, oh Grant...”
He knew the minute Baylee really saw Gladys and realized the woman had saved her from getting shot, and more than likely, from being killed. A soft moan escaped her. “Come on, honey, let’s get out of here.”
“I need to help Gladys. I can’t just leave her here. She...”
“It’s okay. The medics will take care of her.” He held her against him and moved toward the door. When they got even with the medics, he stopped and asked them if he could help.
Both teams shook their heads. One said, “We’ve got this covered and will be transporting in a few. You’re helping by taking care of her.”
Feeling better about leaving the scene, he walked Baylee down the hall to the stairwell. Halfway down, they ran into Jeffrey coming up.
“What can I do to help?”
“She’s not injured. Can you give whoever’s in charge her information and let them know we’re taking her home?”
Jeffrey handed Grant the car keys. “The car’s a block down on the left. If I don’t catch up to you, take her home and I’ll meet you there.”
* * * *
Baylee sat on the end of the sofa with her feet tucked under her. She’d taken a shower and had a pair of comfortable old pajamas on. Grant smiled as he handed her a cup of cocoa.
With a sigh, he collapsed onto the other end of the sofa. “Drink your cocoa so I can slide over and hold you.
She nodded. “I keep seeing Gladys. She didn’t know he had a gun. None of us saw it until it was too late. How did he get it into the courthouse anyway?”
“That’s a question everyone’s asking. They have him on video entering the building with the cleaning crew last night. It’s pretty certain he smuggled the gun in with the supplies and then hid it.”
“If so, he planned it out.”
“Yeah, but did he want to use it to force Cindy to go with him or to murder her?”
Baylee rubbed her temple.
Her color was good. It’d take her awhile to get over the trauma, but physically she’d escaped with a nasty bump on the head and a cut on the arm. The blood covering her had been from Gladys. Grant had given her a prescription he’d gotten from her doctor to help her sleep. From the look of her, it was taking effect.
She fought dozing off and reached for the remote. Grant sighed. She needed to try to clear her mind, not listen to the news coverage of what she’d gone through. But it wouldn’t do him any good to ask her to let it go.
A few minutes later it was a moot point. He grabbed her cup and sat it on the coffee table. The pills had taken effect and seemed to hold a punch for her. He doubted if she’d heard more than a few minutes of the broadcast.
He carried her to bed and lay down beside her. She moved restlessly against him. He made a shushing sound and pulled her closer. It had been a hell of a day, and as tired as he was he couldn’t shut down. He thought about how frail Baylee had looked at the courthouse. By the time he’d gotten her home, she was out of shock mode, but it would be a long time before the memory would fade. It had been a miracle she hadn’t been killed. He’d pieced together the sequence of the event from the news coverage and played it over in his mind.
When Gladys had been shot, the impact had knocked her back into Baylee. Both women had fallen, with Baylee underneath. Baylee had hit her head on the table and had lost consciousness for a few seconds. By that time, Joe Perkins had started sweeping the room with bullets. A shot caught the judge as she attempted to leave. From there, he shot the bailiff and a guard in succession. From the way it looked, his next shots would have been into the people trying to get out the door, but a guard took a chance and shot over the crowd, ending the melee with a fatal head shot.
Grant thought about the people he hadn’t known but now would never completely forget. The news had given a profile of the causalities. Gladys Brakenbush, attorney, wife, and mother of two. Judge Amanda Collins, wife, mother, and grandmother.
He rolled over on his back and shut his eyes. He was used to trauma and used to death, but it had never come this close to someone he loved.
The last thought he had before sleep claimed him was how thankful he was Baylee had been spared, and that they had another chance at life, at love.
Rain spattered the window. Grant fought to stay asleep but finally gave up and eased away from Baylee. She was still asleep, and rightfully so, since the clock read six thirty.
He smelled coffee, which was impossible. He quickly pulled on his pants and made for the kitchen. Jeffrey sat in the gloom of the room holding a mug in both hands. He looked up and mumbled, “Good morning.”
“Yeah, how’d you get in?”
“Wow, grumpy in the morning, huh? You and Baylee are going to make a good pair. I’d suggest neither of you talk until after that first cup of coffee.” As he spoke, he got up, poured a cup, and handed it to Grant.
“Thanks. Now, how did you get in?” he repeated.
“I have a key, and don’t act surprised.”
Grant glared at Jeffrey, and then his brain clicked in. “Huh? Oh, of course you would, the office is right below.”
“No problem. It’s been a bitch of a night. What time did she finally give it up?”
“Sometime during the first few minutes of the ten o’clock news. When she finally let go, she went out like a light.”
Jeffrey took a long drink from his cup. “I figured as much. I wanted to call, but Tracy talked me out of it. She was afraid I might wake you up.”
Grant got up and paced to the counter. “I’m glad you came up this morning.” There hadn’t been a chance to tell Jeffrey about them. About getting married. About moving to Montana. Now Grant wanted to let him know and get thing moving as fast as possible. However, it wasn’t his place to initiate it.
* * * *
Baylee slowly woke up. She felt fuzzy and disoriented. Memory broke through. She stifled the emotion it caused when the sound of male voices penetrated her conscience. They sounded so normal. Pushing thoughts from the previous day out of her mind, she pulled on a robe.
When she got to the kitchen, Jeffrey had already poured her a cup of coffee and held it out to her. “So much for quietly sneaking up on you two.”
Grant gave her a saucy grin and said, “We were listening for sounds of you waking up. I’m having a hard time restraining myself from telling Jeffrey our news, so I’m glad you’ve finally surfaced.”
He’d set the mood, and Baylee felt herself relax. “I would have shot you.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, she was appalled at what she’d said, but Grant took over immediately setting the mood to rights again. Taking her hand, he turned toward Jeffrey. “I asked Baylee to marry me and...”
Baylee interrupted. “I said a very loud, yes.”
Jeffrey laughed. “You did, did you? And what about me?”
Grant joined back in saying, “You’re already married. Besides you’re not my type.”
Baylee held up her
hand. “You guys are horrible. Seriously, we need to talk, because even though Grant had intended to move here, it makes more sense for me to move to Blackhawk.”
The next couple of hours they talked about the logistics of getting married, Jeffrey taking over the practice, and the move. Baylee called a halt to the conversation when she noticed the time. “Good grief, I need to get dressed. And what time is your first appointment this morning.”
Jeffrey groaned. “In half an hour.”
* * * *
Baylee couldn’t believe the turn her life had taken in a mere two weeks. She’d married Grant in the old church up the street the Friday after he’d proposed. She’d been attending it for the past year and come to know the fatherly pastor and his wife. It was fast, but neither of them wanted to wait. The reminder that life was short still rang in their minds.
The ceremony had been everything she could ever have imagined. Grant’s family had surprised them and flown in. With Jeffrey, Tracy, and the girls, it had been perfect. She didn’t need people and didn’t want a production. Afterward, Grant had taken everyone, including the pastor and his family, out for an elegant dinner.
Her resignation from active partnership in the firm had gone without a hitch. They’d just hired an additional attorney, and there had been three attorneys they’d considered, so they picked their next choice to take her place. Eventually she’d sell her half of the partnership to Jeffrey, or, if he chose, the other attorneys could buy in.
She smiled when Grant came in from taking the last load out to her car. They’d be leaving for Montana in a few minutes. All that was left was to say good-bye to Jeffrey, and it was going to be bittersweet.
As if reading her thoughts, Grant came over and gave her a hug. “You’ll see him again soon. Mom already has the plans for our reception going, and Devon has the guest suite at the lodge ready for them.”
He bent down and gave her a kiss that started out light but quickly changed to what it always did. Baylee wrapped her arms around his neck but stopped when she saw Jeffrey leaning against the door. “Ah hum. You guys aren’t going to get home in time for your own reception, the way you’re starting. Heck, we’ll beat you there.”
All Baylee heard was the word “home.” Laughing, she turned and threw her arms around Jeffrey. “I am so happy.”
Jeffrey gave her a little push and reached over to shake Grant’s hand. Motioning to the door, he walked out behind them.
Seated in the car, Baylee waved as Grant pulled out. The sun was shining but not as brightly as the glow she felt from within. From the meadow and a proposition, to a marriage and a journey to forever, life had turned perfect.
THE END
WWW.LAVADADEE.COM
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Lavada Dee writes Contemporary and Romantic Suspense. She has always loved to read and gained an early love of the romance genre from sneaking her mother’s True Confessions from under her bed. That was many, many, many years ago, and she has advanced into reading just about every genre out there. Her love of reading naturally evolved into writing. Lavada says, “I’ve always told myself stories. Lying in bed, doing household chores, and gardening leaves my mind free to dream up characters and build a life around them.”
Lavada lives in the Pacific Northwest, where they encourage friends to drop in. While it’s impossible for all of us to physically drop in to chat, we can do it via cyberspace. She would love to hear from you and invites you to subscribe to her Blog/News on her website.
For all titles by Lavada Dee, please visit
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Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
About the Author