He pulled up to the back door. “The deputy is checking the house, then we can go inside.”
When the young man came outside and gave the all-clear signal, Ben ushered Tory into the house while Cade escorted Michelle.
The second her daughter was safe, Michelle wrenched away from them. “He was in the barn. He hung that,” Michelle flapped one arm in anger and fear, “that thing to scare us. This wasn’t supposed to happen.”
“I’m sorry, honey.” Helplessness attacked Tory.
“I hate your job,” Michelle screamed, running from the kitchen with Cade’s pregnant dog following her.
Tory didn’t know what to say to Michelle because right now she had no control over what was happening. She started to follow Michelle.
Cade stepped into her path. “I’ll know more when I go back and check the barn. I’ll call Paul and the sheriff to let them know. Give her time to calm down. She won’t hear what you’re saying right now.”
“Michelle is my daughter. I know her better than you.” Her own anger came to the foreground, and she went after Michelle. She had to try to talk to her. Cade had no idea what Tory had been going through the past few years after Derek’s death. Her even-tempered daughter’s emotions were all over the place. She realized it was partly due to Michelle’s age, but her life had been rocked to the core when Derek unexpectedly died from a heart attack at such a young age.
Tory knocked on the closed door. When Michelle didn’t say come in, Tory tried the handle. The door was locked. She pounded on it, but Michelle didn’t say anything. Panic surged in her.
Then she heard a sob through the wooden barrier. Michelle might be physically safe, but she wasn’t emotionally all right.
Tory hadn’t planned for any of this, and she didn’t know how to deal with it. God, where are You? I need You.
The sound of footsteps coming up the staircase made Tory stiffen. She didn’t want to see anyone. She swung around to hurry to her room when Cade poked his head around the corner.
She stopped, the compassion in his expression releasing a flood of emotions she’d tried to dam. He covered the distance in several long strides and gathered her into his arms.
“She’s shut me out.”
He nodded his head toward the staircase. “Let’s go downstairs and talk.”
“That’s not going to help. Finding the person doing all of this will.”
He captured her against his side and moved to the steps, whispering, “Do you want Michelle to overhear us?”
She shook her head.
In the living room, she sat at one end of the couch with Cade at the other while Ben took the chair across from them.
Cade moved closer until there was nothing between them. “Remember that time you were angry with your mother because she wouldn’t let you go to the school dance, and she tried to talk with you. You wouldn’t listen. She kept pressing and you two had a big fight. Give Michelle the time your mother should have given you that day to calm down.”
“Michelle blames me for all of this.”
“She’s upset and saying whatever comes to mind.” Cade held her hand between his. “I’m meeting Detective Alexander and Sheriff Dawson in the barn. The deputy is over there to make sure no one goes in until it’s been processed.”
“Why did someone leave that in the barn?”
“To throw us off our game.”
“No. He can’t get to me, so he wants me to know he’s still after me but also Michelle.”
“I won’t let that happen, Tory.” He squeezed her hand gently. “We’ll talk more when I’ve checked the barn.”
Cade walked out the front door. Tory’s feelings were conflicted. Part of her wanted to go hide and pull herself together by herself. But she also didn’t want to be alone with her problems either. How could a person want two opposing things at the same time?
“Tory, He’s with you,” Ben said across from her, his aging face solemn. But there was a light in his eyes. “You aren’t going through this by yourself. Turn to Him and draw strength.”
“I know Cade is doing everything he can, but even he can’t promise Michelle’s safety.”
“I wasn’t talking about my nephew although he will do all he can to keep that promise. I’m talking about the Lord. A lot has happened to you in a short amount of time. You don’t even have time to recover from one blow before another strikes you. But God is with you, supporting you.”
“Everything I’m trying isn’t working. I feel like my life has totally fallen apart. My daughter doesn’t want me to be a DA and I understand why, but I feel this is what I’m supposed to do. Helping to keep El Rio safe.”
“If that’s your path, then there will be other ways to keep El Rio safe or you’re meant to be where you are. Turn to God. Ask Him. Turn your future over to Him. I discovered that the hard way. I used to fight His plan every step, and it was an exhausting battle. When I finally gave control to Him, He astounded me.”
His words made sense, but could she put them into practice? “Thanks, Ben. You’ve given me something to think about. But I need to do something about Michelle.”
“We could always remove the furniture in here and hang a hoop up in the living room.”
The image brought a chuckle from Tory.
“I’m half serious if it’ll keep her calm and not thinking about what’s going on. Or maybe Bella will hurry up and have her puppies. That will keep her attention for a little while.” He smiled. “Remember how you were at fourteen. Put yourself in her shoes. And give her time. You’ve done a good job of raising her.”
It didn’t feel like it at the moment. “You can be my uncle anytime.” Tory pushed to her feet. “I’m going to get ready for bed.”
As she climbed the stairs, she realized she had a lot to consider. It was times like this that she missed her parents and their guidance. But mostly she missed the connection she used to have with the Lord. Her life had been so busy the past few years that she’d moved away from Him. Her first priority would be spending quiet time with God every day and reconnecting.
* * *
Cade shook Detective Anderson’s hand. “It’s good to see you. I know this is out of your jurisdiction, but since it’s connected to the incident at Tory’s house, I thought you needed to be brought in. Sheriff Dawson got called away and will come out here later to look around.”
“Tell me what happened.” Anderson took his own pictures while Cade went through how he discovered the hanging plastic doll. “The intruder got into the barn by cutting the chains I had locked around the back door handles.”
“Did you touch anything?”
“No.”
“Then I’ll take fingerprints and see if I have any usable ones, especially on the inflatable woman.”
“Maybe we’ll get a break and what we find will match with someone’s in the system.”
“When was the last time you were in here before this happened?” Alexander pointed to the dummy dangling from a rope.
“We played basketball last evening before dark. No one at the ranch came in here after that.”
“So we’re talking almost twenty-four hours. We had footage from traffic cams for the two directions a person can drive their car toward Tory’s house. Let me see what we can get from the last camera leaving town on this highway and see if there are any matches. It’s a long shot. At Tory’s house the intruder very likely didn’t drive to her place. Some criminals make dumb mistakes, but it’s not too hard to if he wanted to avoid being captured on the traffic cam near her house.”
“I know it’ll take time to go through the tapes and it’s a long shot, but no one on the street reported anyone suspicious in Tory’s neighborhood during the time frame.”
“What if they’re afraid to say something?” The detective jotted a note on
his pad.
“That’s possible considering the members of the biker gang are our main suspects. But a lot of the neighbors work and wouldn’t be home at that time. I’ll find out from Tory who might have been around and pay them another visit tomorrow. I’ve finished talking with Mederos’s cohorts, at least the ones I could find.”
“Since I haven’t heard anything, I’m assuming you got nothing.”
“You assumed right. One way or another his trial will probably be over next week.”
“And you think the harassment will stop then.”
Cade shrugged. “I hope so.”
“What if Tory’s daughter was the real target of the trashing and photos? What’s happening to her may have nothing to do with Judge Parks’s murder. Have you considered that?”
“Yes and I’m still considering it. I’m looking at each incident as separate and yet possibly connected.” Cade hated leaving Tory after Michelle’s reaction to this latest taunt. “Do you need me for anything else?”
“No. I’ll take the plastic doll down and see if I can track where it came from. I’ll look around on my own. Have you checked the whole barn to make sure nothing else is in here that shouldn’t be?”
“No, only a cursory inspection. My priority is keeping Tory and Michelle safe so I wanted to get them away from the barn as fast as possible.”
“I understand.”
“If you find anything, let me know or take a photo and show me before you leave. I don’t want to be gone too long.” Cade left the detective taking photos of the back door.
He didn’t have high hopes of Alexander finding anything that would lead to the culprit. A more pressing concern was making sure Michelle had calmed down. This was not the time to rebel.
When he entered his house, the first thing he noticed was the silence. The second was the scent of pizza. His uncle made them from scratch, and they were delicious. Cade grinned. Uncle Ben was a wise man. Michelle’s favorite food was pizza with everything but anchovies on it.
He made his way into the kitchen. “Where’s Tory?”
“She’s in her bedroom.”
“Was she all right after I left to meet Detective Alexander?”
“Better but not all right. I have a feeling that isn’t gonna happen until she knows Michelle will be safe.”
“I know what Tory’s feeling.”
Uncle Ben turned off the oven. “I’ll keep these warm. See if you can get Tory and Michelle to come down to eat. I was hoping the smell might draw your daugh—sorry, Michelle out of her locked room.”
“You’ve got to be careful. Her life right now is so fragile. I don’t want to add anything to what’s going on in Michelle’s life.”
“No one has asked, but how are you doing with them here, especially Michelle?”
“I’m fine. So long as I can keep them alive.”
“Have you and Tory forgiven each other?”
Had they? “I haven’t taken the time to consider if I have. But—” Cade cocked his head to the side “—I think I have. I can’t answer for Tory.”
“It’s a start. Go tell them dinner is ready.” His uncle took the plates and utensils to the table.
“Will do.”
Cade climbed the stairs two at a time. The scent of the crust baking along with the various toppings had stirred his hunger. When he knocked on Tory’s bedroom door, she almost answered it immediately.
“I was just about ready to come down. Ben knows how to torture a person. I didn’t eat much at lunch, and I’m starving.”
“Me too.”
Tory glanced at Michelle’s closed door. “I’ll let Michelle know it’s ready. It’ll be hard for her to turn down pizza, but I won’t be surprised if she does. I haven’t seen her this upset since Derek’s death.” She started for their daughter’s room.
Cade moved quickly, catching her arm and halting her. “Let me talk to her. Sometimes it can work better in this kind of situation if a relative stranger talks to her.” He didn’t want to be a stranger to her. He didn’t want yesterday’s basketball game to be the only one they ever had.
“I don’t know if that’s...” Tory stared into his eyes.
“Please.”
She blinked and looked away. “Okay. But don’t expect too much.”
“I won’t.” All he could do was hope. He’d counseled troubled teens he’d encountered in his job, but not one that was his child—and didn’t know it. He felt like he stood at the edge of a hot lava flow and what he sought was trapped in the middle.
He knocked on Michelle’s door.
“Mom, go away. I don’t want to talk. I don’t want dinner.”
“Michelle, it’s Cade. Can I come in?” He hadn’t tried the handle to see if it was locked as before. He needed her to open the door because she wanted to talk to him. He wouldn’t use the master key. Forcing her to listen wouldn’t work. It never had for him as he was growing up.
The minutes ticked by. How long should he stay? What in the world was he going to say to make the situation better? Why did he think he could?
The lock turned, and the door opened. Michelle grasped the frame as though it were the only thing holding her up. Her red-rimmed eyes lifted to his. Bella moseyed out of the bedroom and headed toward the stairs.
“I wish I had the right words to make this all go away, but I don’t. But I’m a good listener if you need someone to talk to.”
She let him in. “I wish Dad was here.”
“I miss Derek too.”
“And now Mom is in danger. Why does she want to prosecute bad guys?”
“Why do you think?”
Tears filled up her blue eyes—eyes so much like his. She rubbed them and turned away. “Because her friend was killed in a bank robbery.”
“That’s what motivated her to become a prosecutor, but I think now there are other reasons why she stays in the job. El Rio is growing fast because of its location, and so has the crime rate, but she’s working to keep that down and is succeeding. The conviction rate since she took office has increased. That’s a good thing.”
“Not if someone wants her dead. I know that picture was taken today. She had on that outfit when she came home earlier. Someone is following her.”
“I was right beside her when that picture was snapped. It was taken at a distance.”
“I know the kind of things Mederos has done. Some people have disappeared and haven’t been found. Others...” Shivering, Michelle hugged herself.
“Where did you hear this?”
“I saw it online. Is it true?”
“I don’t know exactly what you read, but Mederos is a criminal who needs to be brought to justice. He doesn’t care who he hurts to get what he wants. Your mom is trying to stop him once and for all.”
“Why can’t someone else do it?”
“I’m going to do all I can to make sure she stays safe. You too.”
“Because it’s your job?”
“Yes.” And because you’re my daughter.
“What if you can’t?”
“I don’t think in can’ts but in cans. As someone once said, failure isn’t an option.”
Michelle stuck out her lower lip. “I still want Mom to quit. Then we’ll be safe.”
If only it were that simple. “Right now, all I can think about is how hungry I am. Wait till you have my uncle’s pizza.”
“I’m not...” Her stomach suddenly growled in hunger. She giggled. “Well, maybe I am hungry.”
“C’mon, let’s eat.”
She looked around as though she wasn’t sure she should leave the room.
“I can bring a plate up to you, if you want, but then you’d miss hearing how Uncle Ben decided he could make better pizza than the joint in town that eve
ryone loves.”
“He can? I love that place.”
When they entered the kitchen, Uncle Ben and Tory sat at the table, their heads bowed as his uncle blessed the food. The second Tory glanced up, the expression of joy in her eyes was all the thanks Cade needed.
Cade sat in the chair across from Michelle. “This smells great.”
“Yeah.” Michelle grabbed a slice of pizza and took a bite. “This is the best ever. Yours is so much better than Pizza Galore.”
Uncle Ben beamed.
As they ate dinner, a sense of family hung in the air. This was what Cade had missed all these years. He only wished there was a way to preserve this feeling, in order to relish it in the lonely days ahead.
* * *
The next day, after long, tiring hours in court, Tory gathered her notes and stuffed them into her briefcase. Pushing to her feet, she caught Mederos’s gaze boring into her as he was escorted from the courtroom. He was a master at intimidation, but after the plastic doll left in the barn yesterday, her resolve was stronger than ever. He needed to be stopped.
Michelle might not like the idea she couldn’t leave Cade’s ranch house, but she would be protected while Tory finally put this man in prison for his crimes. She’d make it so uncomfortable for the biker gang that they would move on. Tomorrow the hard part would be over. Carlos Dietz would testify, then disappear into the Witness Protection Program. People would see they could stand up to a man like Mederos and survive. She would be calling Carlos earlier than planned and hoped that would throw a wrench into Mederos’s plan of intimidation.
Tory turned away from the sight of Mederos exiting and greeted Cade with a smile. “I’m ready to leave. Any progress with the case of the dummy?”
“Just to clarify. Who or what dummy are you referring to?”
She chuckled. “I wish I could say Mederos was a dummy, but he’s smart.”
Officer Sims stood on her left side while Cade was on her right. “Even smart ones can be tripped up. It would be nice not to have to deal with the Mederos gang anymore. I’m rooting for you. That’s why I volunteered to be the one guarding you in the courtroom.”
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