by Ali Vali
“Let him cool off, Emma. Don’t worry. He’ll be fine. You just hit a raw nerve without knowing,” said Mook.
“What do you mean?”
“He still misses Marie. It upsets him sometimes when someone mentions her name, and he wasn’t expecting it.”
“Did Cain have to institutionalize her?” Emma remembered Cain’s younger sister and the afternoons she’d spent listening to Cain read to her. She recalled Marie’s blue eyes looking adoringly at Cain.
“She died almost three months ago.”
“What? How?”
“You aren’t getting the story out of me, and I’ll have to insist you don’t ask Hayden about it again.” The bodyguard broke out into a run when his charge disappeared into the house, leaving Emma to fill in the blanks however she wanted.
The two houseguests spent the rest of the afternoon and early evening behind the closed door of their bedroom. Emma walked past it more than twenty times but took Mook’s warning seriously.
Chapter Eight
The sun had set by the time Emma felt comfortable enough to knock and see if Hayden and Mook wanted to come down for dinner. Her hands flew to her chest when, before her knuckles made contact with the wood, the door opened. Hayden had his coat on and rushed past her toward the stairs, obviously heading outside.
She heard the front door open and close and ran down after him. Is he leaving? Her worst fears were confirmed when she saw the entourage of people standing in her father’s yard.
Pulling back the curtain in the living room, she spotted a large SUV parked near the barn. From the light spilling out of the large building, she saw Hayden clinging to Cain. He stayed in Cain’s arms for a long time, as if trying to make himself feel better after the horrible morning he’d spent with his birth mother. He’d obviously called, and she’d come early to take him away.
Cain and Hayden strode into the barn, leaving all the help, as Cain liked to call them, outside near the car. The head of the Casey family surely wasn’t expecting a mob hit or trouble here, since she’d brought only Merrick and a couple of others with her. In New Orleans, depending on what was going on in the business, anywhere from four to eight guards trailed Cain every day. They had also been a presence in Emma’s life, and of all the things she missed, the guards weren’t one of them.
Emma looked on as Hayden told Cain something and kept pointing toward the house. Cain cocked her head to the side as she listened, looking in her direction every so often as if she knew Emma was standing at the window.
When the boy finished, Cain hugged him again before she put her hands on his shoulders and started to explain something to him. “Hayden, she didn’t know about Marie, so try and let that one go, buddy.”
Cain squeezed his shoulders, trying to get him to look up. The death of her sister was still a raw spot for both of them, but especially for Hayden, who had spent so much time with Marie. Cain would arrive on many an afternoon to find him reading to her from one of his textbooks so she could learn whatever he was studying in school.
“If she called more often than every four years she’d’ve known.”
“And as my grandmother used to say, if you were born with wheels you’d have been a bicycle,” said Cain in a light voice.
“Mom, what in the world’s that supposed to mean?”
She laughed as she watched her son’s face go from an expression of gloom to one of confusion. “I’m not really sure myself, but it seemed like the right thing to say.”
“Come on. I’ll show you where we’re staying for the night. We’ve got a lot to catch up on.” Hayden moved away from Cain for a minute and went to welcome Merrick.
When he did, Cain looked back up at the house, saw her ex-lover standing in the window, and wondered what had brought their talk around to her late sister. Something had, because she knew Emma well enough to know she would use all the time she’d been given to win Hayden over, just like she had won her own heart so many years before.
Cain hadn’t gotten this far in life without being smart enough to suspect this visit was Emma’s first step in a plan to lure Hayden away from the evil Caseys. Cain would find out what had upset him soon enough, but now it was time to get out of this fucking cold. If Hayden wanted to leave, the morning would be soon enough.
“Cain?”
She turned toward the masculine voice and broke into a smile. “Ross, how are you?”
“Fine, thanks for asking. And thank you for letting young Hayden come visit. We’ve really enjoyed having him.” Ross stood at the door of the barn wearing a heavy plaid wool jacket with matching hat.
The flaps that covered his ears looked almost comical, but Cain found herself wishing she had one of her own. “Thanks for having him, Ross. Hayden’s a great kid.” She patted her son on the back.
“Yeah, and now he can go back to the city with the knowledge of how to milk a cow under his belt.”
They all laughed at the statement, making the young man blush.
“Let me show you where you’re bunking down for the night, Cain.”
“I’ll get it, Mr. Ross. Go on inside with Emma.”
Ross quickly moved toward the house, acting as if he knew Hayden and his mother needed privacy.
“What’s up?” The question came out of Cain’s mouth the minute the door of the bunkhouse closed.
“I just want to leave here. Does something have to be wrong?”
Cain took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She had wanted her son to know Emma, but not at the expense of his happiness. Heading down the path of sleepless nights and nightmares again wasn’t high on her agenda. They had gotten through the pain of Emma’s desertion together the first time, and she would always help him. But if it she could avoid a repeat of that cycle, she would do whatever was necessary for Hayden’s peace of mind.
“Right this minute?”
“No, you’re right. No sense spending the night in one of those uncomfortable chairs at the airport, but tomorrow I want to go. I came so you wouldn’t think I was afraid to try, but I don’t want to stay. It’s just…” Hayden turned and faced the front door of the bunkhouse.
“Finish, son. You know you don’t ever have to do anything just to make me happy. Someday I’ll start asking you to do things for the good of the family, but that’s far in the future. The best thing my old man did for me was let me live before he gave me too much responsibility. I love you, Hayden, and if it’s in your best interest I’ll move heaven and earth to give you what you want. If it’s to leave here, you don’t even have to tell me why.”
Cain put her hands on her son’s shoulders. As smart and mature as her kid was, he was still a kid.
“It’s just that you’re my family, Mom. You and Aunt Marie. I don’t need anything or anyone else.” He recognized the long intake of air and slow exhale he heard above his head as a technique Cain used to calm down.
“Did something happen, or did someone tell you something?”
“No, I’m just ready to go home.” The big hands on his shoulders just patted him gently before pulling away. The loving gesture let him know she would give in and leave in the morning, if that was what he really wanted.
Mother and son sat with their guards in the small kitchen in the bunkhouse and ate. Merrick had brought supplies with her, knowing Carol wouldn’t feed them. And considering they were in the middle of some frozen hell, they didn’t have a slew of restaurants to pick from if she wasn’t up to cooking.
A little after ten, Cain settled Hayden down in one of the bunks in the large open room at the center and waited for him to go to sleep. When he was out for the night, she and Merrick shared a look before Cain put on her coat and hat and headed outside. She hadn’t made it halfway toward the front door of the farmhouse when Emma stepped onto the porch.
“He wants you to take him home?”
Cain looked at the empty fields, wondering how people didn’t go completely insane living out here. “Tomorrow. Now you want to tell me what in th
e hell happened? I didn’t think you two would be glued at the hip when I got here, but the phone call I got this morning surprised me. Hayden doesn’t usually give up on anything so easily.”
“He told me today all the stuff he talks to you about was none of my business, so why should it be any different for me?” Emma was hurting and tried to lash out at the person she blamed for her misery.
Cain just nodded again and turned around, headed back to the bunkhouse. “Please, don’t go. I’m sorry. This isn’t your fault.”
“What do you want from me? I raised him to be strong, Emma. Not to be like me but to choose his own path and be whatever he wants. Hayden’s his own person, and I happen to love the hell out of who he is. He’s better than me and you put together. Whatever happened today, you’re right. That’s between the two of you, but don’t expect me to get in the middle. Nor am I going to champion your side. So what is it you want? For me to shake him until he agrees to stay?” Cain took her hands out of her coat pockets and spread them out, obviously frustrated.
“I want to talk to you and not have you sound like you hate me. I want for our son to look at me like I’m a member of his family, like I’m his mother and not some woman he has to spend time with because that’s what you expect. I want him to want to please me as much as he lives to please you.” Her voice started to sound ragged even to her own ears by the time Emma was done.
The stream of air that left Cain’s mouth smoked the air at least two feet in front of her. “You could’ve had all that and more, and you know it. You left for your own reasons, none of which were me asking you to go. In fact, if memory serves me correctly it was me who asked you to stay. You want him to look at you and treat you like you’re his mother. You should’ve sent him a letter now and then. What I did four years ago was a mistake, but I’m not making any more where you’re concerned. I’ll give you the morning to convince him to stay, if you can. After that I’m taking him home, if that’s what he wants.”
“What do you mean you made a mistake?” Emma wondered if Cain really regretted killing the man for what he’d tried to do.
“I listened to you, and I let him live. It’s a mistake that has cost me dearly.”
Just as quickly Emma realized Cain was still a heartless liar. What she had put into motion didn’t seem so horrible now.
Chapter Nine
Merrick was sitting on Cain’s bunk when her boss stepped back into the room and watched as she stripped off her hat, gloves, and coat. She enjoyed looking at the long, denim-wrapped legs since she rarely saw Cain in anything other than a business suit. They shared a close relationship, but she had never been able to convince Cain to cross the line and add being lovers to their list of accomplishments. She knew what Cain needed was a woman like Emma, but one who thought like her when it came to business and family. Merrick loved and accepted all of Cain, whereas Emma obviously could only stomach the soft and gentle parts. Emma had never sat back and learned, like Merrick, that it was Cain’s strength for all things that made her incredibly attractive.
“How’s the ex?”
“A little miffed. It would seem her son doesn’t love her as much as he loves us. It always amazes me the things people can do to convince themselves how the world around them should work and respond to their decisions.”
“Baby, what have I told you about women?”
“I believe your advice was along the lines of staying away from them. Maybe only after Special Agent Barney Kyle finally snares me in the trap he’s been laying for years and convinces a judge to send me to the men’s prison do I see that happening.”
When Cain mentioned the man who led the task force formed to bring down the Casey organization, Merrick stood up from the bed and prowled toward her. If any of the others were awake, they knew better than to watch them or comment. She pressed her body to Cain’s and slid her hands up to the back of Cain’s neck.
“I don’t see that happening either.” She smiled through the statement before she pressed her lips to Cain’s and coaxed her boss into kissing her back. The kiss was long and convincing, and Merrick pulled away first. With Cain’s head still hovering close, she moved around to kiss her neck and trace Cain’s ear with her tongue. “The camera’s set up in the overhead light fixture, and so far I’ve found four bugs dispersed throughout the room.
“Sorry, baby, but I think Emma’s visit had more to do with getting Hayden comfortable with the idea of being here, so when the time came and he’d be here permanently, he’d be easier to handle. Little Miss Muffet’s plan involved more than getting together with her long-lost son and feeding him curds and whey. Kyle’s goons have been in here. I’m sure of it.”
If Cain was angry, she never showed her feelings when she pulled back a little to look at Merrick’s face. She kissed her again and smiled. “That sounds like a wonderful idea, but it’ll have to wait until we have a bit more privacy. Maybe we’ll stick around here for a couple of days to build up the suspense before we can take care of our problem. A little ache can sharpen the sense of relief when it comes. Don’t you agree, sexy?”
Cain leaned closer and traced Merrick’s ear with her index finger. “Remember what happened to the girl in that rhyme, sweetling. Along came a spider. Only this time Emma might just have found a black widow, and I do believe they kill and eat their mates when they’re done playing with them.”
She laughed and moved out of Cain’s embrace, but not before slapping her in the stomach. Her boss had given no clue as to who would be hurting by the end of the trip, but if Emma and Kyle knew what was good for them, they would start praying to whatever entity they believed in now. Because “relief” as defined by Cain Casey could leave a person praying for death instead of salvation.
*
Before the sun came up the next morning, Cain was sitting on the bed assigned to her, waiting for her son’s eyes to open. Experience let her appreciate the quiet, knowing it wouldn’t be long before Hayden would wake up and join her for a run. They enjoyed this time together every morning—first with her pushing him in a running stroller, then with him riding his bike to keep up, and now with him keeping pace on legs almost as long as hers.
If she was grateful for one thing, it was that her brother Billy had lived to meet Emma. When Billy saw the way his older sister looked at the small blonde, he’d gone to a local clinic a few times and left them a gift for the future. She could still remember the shock she’d felt when he’d told her about it, joking it was his way to keep the Casey legacy alive for the next generation.
Billy’s gift had given them their son and his name, which Billy had picked out before he died, three months before the child’s birth. Cain liked to think her brother was watching over them from heaven and that was why Hayden resembled their family so much and had turned out to be so terrific. If she had to have a guardian angel, Billy Dalton Casey wasn’t a bad guy to have sitting on her shoulder and whispering in her ear.
“Get ready, kid. I want to go running in the boonies.” Cain spoke in a hush so she wouldn’t wake everyone else. There was no danger out here she couldn’t handle herself, and she wanted the time alone with her son for a talk.
Hayden had opened his alert blue eyes while she indulged in thoughts of her brother, and his quickness to get out of bed showed he had missed their morning ritual. Cain might have lost Billy to stupidity, but the generous man had given her a little bit of himself before he died so she would never be alone.
Cain moved to Merrick’s bunk and kissed her forehead while Hayden was in the bathroom. “Enjoy a rare morning off, sweetling, since I’m thinking no one’s going to jump me from behind a tree way out here.”
“But…” Merrick said, ready to complain.
“I’ll take care of myself and the kid, don’t worry. I even promise to be back in plenty of time to help you make breakfast.”
“I can blend into the background.”
Cain laughed softly, looking down at Merrick. “Honey, you’re talented beyond
words. I’m not going to argue that, but in my eyes you can never blend into the background. I never told you this, but your breasts are a major distraction when you come with us in the morning.”
Merrick knew she was being teased. It would take a hard blow to the head to distract Cain from anything. “Then I guess me and my tits will be sleeping in today.”
Mother and son stepped out into the frigid cold and completed the stretches they’d begun inside. Cain detested running in so many layers, but the Wisconsin temperatures wouldn’t let her get by with less.
“Where to, Mom?”
“How about we end up somewhere nice and open that would take a lens from space to see my lips moving?”
Any hope of leaving today vanished from Hayden’s mind as he started off at a slow jog. If they headed far away from the tree lines dispersed throughout the property, he was certain Cain would open up and tell him what she couldn’t within the perimeter of the house and barn. It was hard to bug open spaces, and even harder to listen in on someone’s conversation without being seen.
The two agents who followed them couldn’t get any closer than half a mile when Cain and Hayden stopped to watch the sunrise. A small device Cain had turned on when they stopped running was giving the sensitive long-distance mike trained on them a steady stream of static.
“We aren’t leaving today, are we?”
“I’ll make it up to you, I promise, but no, we aren’t. Emma invited you for the week, and I’d like for you to take her up on her offer.”
“When we talked yesterday you said I could leave this morning, no questions asked.”
“Hayden, I know being a month shy of twelve isn’t exactly adulthood, but I want you to understand that sometimes opportunities come and you have to take them.”