Saving His Soul (Serenity Springs Series, #3)

by Dawn Sullivan

  “Ryder needs you,” were the first words out of his mouth when she opened the door.

  “Is he at the ranch?”

  “No, the hospital.”

  “Stop growling like a big ole bear, Creed,” Sloane ordered, from where she waited in his truck. “You are going to scare the woman.”

  “Scare her?” Creed groused. “She carries a gun, Sloane. I highly doubt she is afraid of me.”

  “Why is Ryder at the hospital?” Rayna interjected, hearing only the fact that something was wrong with Ryder. “What happened?” Making sure she had her keys, Rayna left the house, shutting the door behind her. When she got to the bottom of the front porch steps, she looked behind her to find Creed still standing in the same spot he was in when she opened the door to him moments before. “What happened to Ryder?” She demanded, already afraid she knew the answer. He had stayed with her again, and it put him in danger.

  “We don’t know,” Sloane told her, her voice carrying over the yard. “He lost consciousness at church this morning, so Caiden took him to the hospital. The rest of the family went with them, while Creed and I came to get you.”

  “Why?”

  “Why what?” Sloane asked.

  “Why did you come here?”

  “Because my brother asked for you before he passed out,” Creed said gruffly, finally moving towards her. “He says he needs you, so I’m taking you to him.”

  “But you don’t want to,” Rayna guessed, hearing the anger resonating deep in his voice. “You think this is happening because of me.”

  “Is it?”

  “I have no idea,” Rayna replied honestly, “but I hope not.”

  “Me too,” Creed growled, stalking past her to get to his truck.

  Ignoring his bad attitude, Rayna went to her own car. She knew where the hospital was. She didn’t need an ass like Creed to show her how to get there. Raking a hand through her hair in frustration, Rayna grumbled to herself, “He may be an ass, but it’s just because he loves his brother. I would be the same way.”

  Not bothering to wait for Creed and Sloane, Rayna put her car in gear and headed toward the hospital, missing the movement by the open hayloft door as she drove by.

  She was good, but not as good as he had hoped. He’d all but waved to her from his hiding spot, and not once did she look up. Not only that, but she was obviously looking for something this morning, but it didn’t look like she found any of the clues he left for her. All were exactly the same as when he left them, except for the barn doors. He knew for a fact that she saw those the day before. However, she missed what he left in the car, and he was sure that she did not even notice that he’d been in her house. He was tired of playing with someone that was below his standards. He was ready to finish the job and move onto something more worthy of his time.

  Picking up his phone, he dialed his boss. “She’s lacking in most ways,” he said the minute the call was answered. “This is getting boring. Let me take her out now.”

  Once his request was approved, he hung the phone up with a small grin. Now things were about to get interesting.

  Chapter 26

  Ryder opened his eyes groggily, slowly turning his head as he tried to figure out where he was. There was an annoying beeping noise coming from one side of him, and soft conversation from the other. His head pounded, a dull, aching throb. What the hell happened? He remembered talking to his sister, and walking out of the church. That was it. There was nothing after that.

  “So, you have finally come back to us, young man,” a gentle, comforting voice said as a cool hand pressed against his forehead. “You had your family awfully worried there for awhile.” Worried...there was something he should be worried about. What was it?

  “Rayna!” her name left his lips on a shout as he rose up in bed, grunting at the pain that shot up the back of his neck and into his skull. “Where the fuck is Rayna?” he demanded, trying to remove the IV from his arm. The need to find her and make sure she was alright pushed at him, making him yank the covers aside and attempt to stand.

  “She’s fine, Ryder. Sit down.”

  Ryder fought against the strong hands that held him to the bed. He had to find her. Had to make sure she was okay. “Something’s wrong with me, Caiden. What if that bastard did something to me, and got to Rayna too? We need to find her.”

  “I’m right here, Ryder. I’m safe.” Her voice soothed him, causing him to stiffen first, but then slump against his brother. He didn’t fight anymore when he realized that she was there with him, and let Caiden help him back into the bed.

  “Rayna,” he rasped, holding out his hand. “Come here.” He needed to feel her close. Needed her next to him.

  “Hush,” Rayna whispered softly, sitting on the bed beside him. He leaned into her touch when she gently moved a lock of hair back from his forehead. “I’m here with you now. You’re going to be just fine.”

  “I’m not worried about me,” he told her, clasping the hand she slipped into his tightly. “I thought something might have happened to you.”

  “I don’t know what you all are talking about,” a deep voice said from the doorway, “but this young lady looks just fine, Ryder Caldwell, and what’s wrong with you can easily be fixed in a couple of days.”

  Opening his eyes, Ryder glanced at Dr. Winninghoff as he strode into the room. The man had been the Caldwell’s primary physician since he and his siblings were children. He watched as the doctor greeted his parents, and then Caiden, Katy, and Creed. “Where’s Sloane?”

  “She took Cassie to get some lunch,” Creed said, coming to stand beside the bed, on the other side from where Rayna sat. “My little girl is pretty upset. She’s worried about you, Ryder. We all are.” Creed’s eyes hardened when they settled on Rayna. “Why don’t you tell us what’s going on, Doc? What’s wrong with my brother?”

  Ryder held tightly to Rayna’s hand when she tried to pull back from him, glaring at Creed. “Watch yourself, Creed,” he growled quietly.

  “Boys, stop it. Now.” Cara ordered. “I, for one, would like to know what is really wrong with my son. I have no doubt it is not Rayna. He hasn’t been himself for months now. It started way before she came home.”

  “It’s quite simple, actually,” Dr. Winninghoff said, smiling kindly at all of them, “Ryder is just plain exhausted.”

  “So, it is her fault,” Creed muttered, glaring at Rayna. “He’s spent the last few nights over at her house watching over her while she slept. Protecting her and not taking care of himself.”

  “I am going to tell you one more time to shut your fucking mouth, Creed,” Ryder said, his voice low.

  “And then what?” Creed shot back.

  “Then I’m going to get out of this bed and kick your...”

  “Boys, that is enough!” Charles Caldwell’s voice rang out loud and clear in the room, and there was immediate silence. Their father did not raise his voice often, but when he did, you listened. “Ryder has done nothing that you didn’t do with Sloane, Creed. When she was threatened after moving here, not only did you sit outside her apartment at night to make sure she was safe, your brothers and sister did as well. Maybe you should think about that? Instead of condemning the woman he has come to care deeply for, maybe you should be stepping up to help him, the way he helped you. The way he helps everyone. That man works harder than anyone in this room. He is up at the crack of dawn, if not earlier, to get his chores done on the ranch before he comes to work for you. He doesn’t have to help at the station, but he does because he knows you need him. He helps Caiden at the veterinarian practice if he needs to. Hell, he even helped the neighbor three weekends ago, then came home and worked all night on his own things in the barn.”

  “Dad...”

  “No,” Charles held up a hand when Ryder tried to interrupt, “no one else seems to see everything that you do, son, but your mother and I do. We know how hard you work, and we know what a good man you are. And even if your bullheaded brother can’t see
it, we know that Rayna is good for you. We’ve seen it in the way you act lately. You’re happy, Ryder. Really happy. It’s been a long time since we have seen you that way.” Ryder watched in shock as tears filled his father’s eyes. “You always have a smile on your face, always are the first one to step up and volunteer to help when asked, but your mother and I know you better than anyone. You were not truly happy until Rayna came home. Nothing you have done for her these past few days has put you in this hospital, son. It was everything you did for everyone else before that.”

  “It’s true,” Dr. Winninghoff agreed quietly. “You push yourself too hard, Ryder. All the sleepless nights over the past few months, working so hard to keep everyone happy, helping everyone out in need at the expense of yourself, that is how you ended up in here.”

  “Well, shit,” Creed grunted, removing his Stetson and running a hand through his thick dark hair. “It would seem I owe you an apology, Rayna.”

  Rayna shook her head, “No, you don’t. You were right. It may not be just my fault that Ryder ended up in the hospital, but I’m to blame too.”

  “No one is to blame,” Cara said, coming forward to slide her arm around Rayna’s shoulder. “Your father is right though,” she continued, looking at her children in disapproval. “Ryder has been at Rayna’s house the past couple of nights watching over her, and where have you been? He needed your help. Rayna’s in trouble. He was there for Sloane.”

  “That’s different,” Creed started to say.

  Cara cut him off, “Exactly how is that different? Sloane had a stalker, one who endangered all of our lives, along with the lives of every child in the Serenity Springs Elementary School. I don’t give a damn who is after this woman, Creed. Ryder cares for her. That makes her ours to protect.”

  Katy’s eyes lowered in shame, and she agreed, “You’re right, Mama.”

  “No one needs to protect me,” Rayna interjected. “I appreciate it, Mr. and Mrs. Caldwell, more than you will ever know, but I’m a federal agent. I can take care of myself.”

  “Everyone needs help sometimes, child,” Cara said, hugging Rayna to her. “Accept it, because my children are going to give it whether you want it or not.” Her eyes turned to steel as she looked at first Creed, then Caiden, then Katy. “Who’s up first? It’s obvious Ryder won’t be able to be there tonight.”

  Pride filled Ryder as he grinned at his mother. This was why he didn’t give a damn who his biological parents were. Charles and Cara were all he would ever need. “I will be there, mom. I’m going to stay with Rayna.”

  “No, actually, you aren’t,” Rayna said, rising from the bed, and leaning over to give him a kiss on the cheek. “You are going to go home with your parents and get the rest you need. I know you. If you come with me, you will just stay awake all night trying to make sure I’m safe.”

  “I need to be with you, Rayna.”

  “No,” she said, placing her hand on his cheek, “you need to go home and take care of yourself. Get some sleep. I will be just fine.”

  “Yes, she will,” Creed promised gruffly, stepping forward and clasping a hand on Ryder’s shoulder. “I’ll watch over her tonight, like I should have been doing all along. Forgive me?”

  Ryder hesitated, looking from Creed to Rayna. “If anything happens to her...”

  “Nothing is going to happen, little brother, I promise.”

  “And I will cover your shift at work tomorrow,” Katy volunteered.

  “It’s your day off,” Ryder protested weakly.

  “When was the last time you had a day off?”

  Not knowing how to respond to that, Ryder looked up into Rayna’s eyes. “Promise me you will be okay.” He knew it was unfair to make her promise him something she had no control over, but it did not stop him from asking.

  “Everything is going to be just fine,” she murmured, leaning over and kissing him softly on the lips. It was a sweet, soft kiss, and as much as he loved it, Ryder wanted so much more.

  “I would like to keep you in the hospital overnight,” the doctor said, laughing at the look Ryder shot him, “but I know it will never happen. However, Ryder, you need to rest. Your body needs time to recuperate from everything you have put it through. It isn’t going to happen overnight. Take a few days, let your family take care of you for once.”

  “I have to take care of the animals.”

  “I will take care of everything that needs done on the ranch,” Caiden told them. “I don’t have any animals in the clinic right now. I will close it down, and just work on an on-call basis until things are back to normal.”

  What exactly was normal? Ryder wondered, leaning weakly back against the pillows behind him.

  “I can help Caiden,” his father said.

  “Not too much, you won’t,” Dr. Winninghoff responded. “I don’t need you back in here too.”

  Ryder’s father had suffered a mild heart attack a couple of years ago, and that was when Ryder took over everything with the ranch. Charles did the bookwork, but Ryder handled the rest. “I can handle it,” Caiden said, straightening from the wall. “You can supervise, Dad.” Everyone chuckled knowingly, because that was exactly what Charles would do.

  Rayna smiled down at him, running her fingers through the unruly lock of hair covering his forehead again. “I need to get going now, Ryder, but stop worrying about me. I’m trained to take care of myself. I will be just fine.”

  “Do you need a job?” Katy grinned at her. “I know of one position that just opened up, and we were already actively searching for a couple of deputies. Plus, with me leaving in a few months, Creed is really going to need the help.”

  “You’re leaving?”

  “Let’s just say I need to do a little investigating regarding some things in my past,” Katy answered. “While I’m gone, we could use you here.”

  Ryder’s heart skipped a beat as he waited for Rayna’s response, and then it took off flying when she replied, “I will definitely keep that in mind.”

  After one last look at him, Rayna left the room. He watched her go, before turning to his family. “Keep her safe. I can’t lose her again.”

  Chapter 27

  The ride home was short, but Ryder was on Rayna’s mind the whole way there. He was adamant that his family take care of her, and it warmed her heart that he cared for her the way he did. Her feelings for him had grown from the teenage crush of years ago into something so much more. Somehow, the man had managed to get past all of her defenses. She was so deeply in love with him, that she knew there was no way out. Now she just needed to figure out how to stay alive, so she could find out if he felt the same.

  The minute Rayna walked into her house, she knew she was not alone. Acting on instinct, she grabbed her gun, ducking at the same time, barely missing the knife that embedded itself deep in the door behind her. He had finally decided to stop fucking with her, and was going to try and take her out. Screw that. She finally had something to live for. She would not be going down easily. Crossing the living room floor at a run, she jumped behind the loveseat, barely missing the knife that flew her way, sticking in the wall just above her head. So, the bastard preferred knives over bullets. That could be to her advantage. Making herself stay still, she listened intently, trying to pinpoint exactly where he was. Everything happened so fast when she entered the house, that she didn’t know for sure. He was either on the stairs, or in the dining room. From the angles of where the knives hit, she was betting on the stairs.

  Knowing her best chance was to come at him fast and hard, Rayna rose quickly, spraying bullets at the stairs, before ducking behind the loveseat again. Excitement filled her when she heard at least one bullet hit its mark, as the intruder cursed loudly. “You fucking bitch,” he yelled. “You will pay for that!”

  Rayna grabbed the Glock 22 hidden in her boot. It was time to get serious. Instead of standing again, and giving him a clear shot, Rayna crouched low, running across the floor to the dining room, squeezing the triggers of b
oth guns as she went. Another knife came at her. This one skimmed her arm, nicking it before sticking in the far wall. Rayna let out a hiss of pain as she rounded the corner, slamming her back up against the wall, breathing heavily. Carefully, she placed one of the guns on a shelf beside her. Removing her phone from her front pocket, she clicked on a button, pulling up the screen that held images of all of the rooms in her house. It was money well spent, she thought, stopping on one of the pictures. He’d gone back upstairs, and was sitting on the floor in her parents’ old room. There was blood pouring from a wound in his thigh, and she could tell he was pissed off. He looked familiar, but even though she tried to zoom in on his face, she could not quite place him. The man quickly removed his shirt, tying it around his leg, over the wound. As she watched, he pulled a SIG from his belt. “I guess you like bullets after all.”

  The man stood, stumbling out of the bedroom and down the hall. “You can run, but you can’t hide,” Rayna murmured. She heard the creak on the third step down from the top, as he tried to creep down them. She knew every noise the house made. Had made it a point to study every little thing about it when she moved in. She was done playing. Her future with Ryder was on the line. The son of a bitch was going down.

  Rayna knew the minute he hit the bottom step. She sat her phone down on the shelf, and picked up the 22. Raising both guns, she stepped around the door, standing in the entrance of the living room. Holding them steady on him, she snapped, “Who are you, and what the hell are you doing in my house?” After getting a clear look at him, she already knew the answer to both questions, but her intention was to distract him from the weapon he had pointed in her direction.

  “You aren’t as good as you think you are,” he huffed, favoring his left leg. “That was a lucky shot.”