Love's Everlasting Song

by RaeAnne Hadley

  Rebecca cringed mentally and wished she’d taken her cell phone with her when she flew out of the house this morning. She could have talked with Luke and eased his mind that she was fine.

  It took a moment to realize what Heather had said. Kip dropped the lawsuit. She shook her head and smiled. “Everything is good. Thank you so much for checking on me. I’m sorry to have wasted your time.”

  “As long as your are fine, it’s not a waste of my time. I would rather pull up and find that a person is all right than have to call in a homicide. I’m here to protect you, regardless of how silly you think a call would be. Do we understand each other?” Deputy Heather smiled grimly.

  “Yes, ma’am. I understand. I’m hoping things will be smooth sailing from here on out.”

  “I sincerely hope so for both of our sakes but my experience has been that things tend to escalate before they get better. Just be cautious and don’t hesitate to call us.”

  Rebecca felt tears threaten her eyes and she blinked them back quickly. “I will, I promise.”

  “I’ll let you go then. Oh, and don’t forget to call Mr. Grayson, he sounded pretty worried.”

  Rebecca watched Heather pull away and raced back to the house to retrieve her phone. She saw Luke had tried to call seven times and hit the programmed number. She knew the time difference but according to the caller ID, the times he called indicated he wasn’t asleep. She felt slightly guilty knowing she was the cause of keeping him from sleep but when he answered, she felt relief, hearing his voice and she allowed the tears to fall.

  “Rebecca, where have you been? Is everything okay? Why haven’t you answered your phone?”

  The worry in his voice touched her and she broke down, telling him everything that had happened with Kip. He didn’t say anything as she told him what had happened and she started to worry that he was angry with her for not calling the police last night. She finished with telling him about what Deputy Heather had told her and that’s when she had realized she had left her cell phone in the house.

  “I’m so sorry I didn’t answer my phone, Luke. I didn’t mean to make you worry.” She heard Luke sigh before he spoke.

  “I obviously have reason to. Kip may have dropped the lawsuit but he’s clearly unstable. You shouldn’t be there by yourself. You shouldn’t be there at all. How about an early vacation? You could fly over here and finish out the tour with me. You can see Ireland, then Scotland followed up with London. We will have an amazing time seeing part of the world together before heading to Hawaii.”

  She smiled, knowing he was trying to protect her and she felt her love growing because of it. “I can’t. I have world championships, remember?”

  “You can do it next year. With an additional year of practice, you’re sure to blow the competition away.”

  “It’s every four years, not every year and Othello will be too old for this age group. Luke, I know and appreciate what you’re trying to do but I can’t. I’ve worked so hard to get where I’m at. If I wait four more years, it will actually set me back and I already have almost half of my stud bookings filled based on my presence at the show. I have to go, my career depends on it.”

  “But what about your life? You can’t go if you’re dead and at this point, with everything that’s happened, I wouldn’t put it past Kip.” he argued.

  She blew out a frustrated breath. “Grayson, I thought you, above everyone else, would understand. You get one chance at hitting it big and this is mine. Othello and I have worked for years for this show. I’m not going to miss it. I will be careful, I promise.”

  “Oh, it’s Grayson now? Is that what you’re going to call me when you’re mad at me?”

  She heard the amusement in his voice and grinned. “Depends. Are you going to frustrate me a lot?”

  “Probably.” he laughed, then sobered. “At least let me send out some security to keep an eye out on your place. I’ll feel better.”

  She paused, thinking about it but felt uncomfortable at the idea of strangers lurking around her property. “Thank you, but no. I don’t feel that’s necessary.”

  “Rebecca, I’m not letting you stay out there by yourself.”

  “Oh, you’re not letting me?”

  “Bad choice of words. Let me rephrase. I don’t feel comfortable with you being out there all by yourself. You don’t want me to lose sleep and mess up my tour because I’m worrying about you, do you?”

  She laughed, knowing he was turning the tables on her. “No, I don’t want to be responsible for that. Let’s make a compromise. If Kip comes out again or even calls, I’ll call you and you can send out your goons.”

  It was Luke’s turn to laugh and she felt her pulse hitch, loving the sound of his laughter.

  “They’re not goons but I’m willing to accept your compromise. If he even looks cross-eyed at you or shows up on your property, call Deputy Heather first, then me. Deal?”

  “Deal. Now go get some sleep so you can sing your heart out.” she laughed.

  “Oh, Rebecca, don’t you realize? You already have my heart. But I’ll let you get on with your day. I’ll talk to you soon.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  The day went by as normally as any other day but her mind was on Luke, Kip and how her life had changed so dramatically within the past year. She wondered how much more her life was going to change with the upcoming months. She knew the show was going to change it even further, but hopefully for the best. She’d planned and dreamed of it her whole life and she could finally see it coming to fruition. All of her years of dreaming and planning had never included a man like Luke Grayson. It still seemed like a fantasy but she welcomed the unknown possibilities with him. Her professional and personal life was turning into a living fairytale and she welcomed it. She knew there were no guarantees in life, including her and Luke’s, but she was a dreamer and was willing to risk her heart to see how it played out.

  The understanding and compassion he gave her made it easy to risk it. She’d never experienced that before. She hoped it played out in her favor. Right now, though, she had to focus on her closest dream. Winning the world grand championships.

  She got Othello out and saddled him, unaware of the watching eyes from the tree line next to the barn.

  * * *

  October fifteenth dawned brisk and bright, the air cool and the leaves on the trees brilliant oranges, reds and yellows. Fall was one of her favorite seasons. The smell of the falling leaves and the crisp air invigorated her. Pretty soon the snow would fall, the showing season was coming to an end and winter would be a time to take a break. She had her wood in for the long, cold season, her barn was filled with hay and her freezer was filled with the beef from her family’s fall butchering. With the help from her mother and Megan, her shelves were restocked with jars of fruits and veggies they had canned together. Although she still worked with Othello, she spent the last couple of days cleaning her show tack and packing her horse trailer.

  Her truck had both gas tanks filled, the trailer hooked up and almost everything loaded. She saved the hay for the night before she left, in case they got moisture, so she wouldn’t have to worry about spoiled hay.

  She walked through her barn, taking pleasure in the layout she had planned so carefully. The front of the barn held her tack room on one side of the isle and her feed room on the other. The feed room held about a third of her hay while the second story of the barn held the rest. Walking down the center isle, there were six stalls on the right that led out to twenty-foot runs, where she kept her mares and her geldings. On the left, there was Othello’s large, box stall, then the opening to her indoor arena. Walking toward the end of the barn, two large sliding doors opened up to her acreage. She often let her horses loose to graze on the grassland but she always kept it closed in the winter months. It was her perfect barn and knew that potential clients would appreciate the care and details she had demanded of her contractor.

  She got her evening chores done and decided to take an
early shower and enjoy a beer on her deck before bed. She luxuriated in a hot shower, recalling memories of her and Luke enjoying each other under the water. She dressed in a heavy flannel shirt and sweatpants, knowing that the evening air would be frigid on the deck. She pulled her hair up into a ponytail, put on her slippers and started to grab a beer from the refrigerator when she smelled the acrid smell of smoke.

  She kept her windows open during the day since they were so nice but it was too early in the season for a fire. She felt the hair rise up on her neck before she hear the first scream from her horses.

  She raced out of her house to see the front of her barn engulfed in flames. Knowing it would breech where her horses were, she raced to the barn, swinging the doors open, choking on the smoke that filled the isle way. Coughing, she stumbled towards the stall doors, sliding them open to allow her horses to flee from the burning structure. Othello, three of her mares and two of her geldings raced past her, disappearing into the darkness. As she swung open the last stall, she didn’t sense her mare with foal rush by and she called out for her. The smoke was so thick and the circuit breaker must have blown with the heat so she wasn’t able to see anything. She felt her way into the stall, searching for her horses. She heard the foal scream out in fear and found the mare pressing her baby against the far wall, trying to protect her foal. Choking, Rebecca tried to soothe the frightened mare.

  “C’mon, girl, trust me. I’m trying to help you.”

  The mare refused to move, terrified of the flames that were moving closer. Rebecca’s eyes were watering from the smoke but there was a dull glow as the flames lit up the burning barn. Instinctively, she ripped off her shirt, dunked it in the water tank then wrapped it over the mare’s eyes.

  “Come on, Sadie, follow me, trust me.” she pleaded. She put an arm around Sadie’s neck, grabbing her mane as she often did in the pasture to bring her in, leading her through the stall door. Sadie’s colt nervously followed and when Rebecca had led them to the barn opening, she pulled the shirt off of the mare’s eyes and watched both of them run off into the darkness of her pastures. Her shirt caught in Sadie’s mane and ripped out of her hands . Choking, she moved to follow them but heard shouts at the front of the burning barn. Stumbling around the outside of the barn and away from the paddocks, she started to call out to the voices but her throat was burned and scorched from the heat and smoke. She coughed and kept moving blindly around her perishing barn. She ran into someone when she was halfway to the front and she blinked rapidly to try and clear the smoke from her eyes.

  “All the horses are out, did you call the fire department?” she rasped as she clung to the person’s shirt.

  “Of course I didn’t, you stupid twit. All of those damn horses were supposed to die when I set the fire. You were supposed to be in the house and not be able to get to them. Once again, you screwed up my plans. But maybe this will be better, the dedicated horse lover perishing in the flames, trying to save her precious beasts.”

  She stumbled back, bile threatening to rise into her throat as she heard Kip’s cold voice. Kip’s hands closed over her bare arms and gripped her painfully.

  “Oh, you’re not going anywhere this time, witch. It’s time you paid your dues.” He pulled her closer and realized she was topless. “Oh, what is this? Came out to save your precious creatures without your clothes? Maybe I’ll have some fun before I end your life. You gonna give it to me like you do Luke Grayson so I will forever know what he has been bragging about?

  “Maybe it was you holding out on me this whole time. Was there someone else? Were you pleasing some other man and neglecting your poor hubby? I think you owe it to me this one last time.”

  He dragged her over to the tree line away from the burning barn and she knew if he got her in the forest she would never live to see daylight. Even though her eyes, throat and lungs were burning from the smoke, she started to fight him blindly. She brought her knee up, hoping to catch him in the groin but he nimbly blocked her kick.

  Coughing from the smoke, he tried to laugh. “Not this time, Becks.” He let go of one of her arms and grabbed her around her waist to drag her farther into the dark. She took the opportunity and began to punch him in the face and claw at his eyes. He cried out, his grip loosening, back-handing her across the face. She felt the blow explode across her cheekbone and white light flashed in her eye. The fear of dying renewed her attack as she felt him regain his hold, trying to grab her free hand. She gathered all of her energy and punched him, her fist falling short of his jaw and hitting him in the neck. She felt him release her and she fled back to the burning barn, not wasting any time to look back, trying to listen for his following footsteps.

  She heard sirens and shouts coming from the driveway and she stumbled blindly towards them. Her eyes were watering so badly that she screamed when she felt hands grab her shoulders and she started flailing within their grasp.

  “Rebecca! Rebecca! It’s Deputy Heather. It’s all right, calm down!”

  Rebecca recognized Heather’s voice and she slumped into her, sobbing and shaking.

  “Rebecca, you’re safe but I need to know is there anyone else in the barn?”

  “Kip. Kip is here somewhere.” she cried.

  “Is he in the barn? Rebecca, focus. Is Kip in the barn?”

  “No, over by the trees. That’s where I got away from him.” She was shaking and her eyes still burned but she pointed over to where she thought she had left him.

  Heather led Rebecca over to her cruiser, grabbing a blanket from the trunk and wrapping her in it. Firemen were unrolling hoses from the pumper and starting to spray the burning structure as two other cruisers pulled up.

  “We have a code ten on the property.” Heather yelled at her fellow deputies as they got out of their vehicles. She pointed in the direction that Rebecca had indicated before turning back to Rebecca. “We have an ambulance over here and I’m going to have them check you out. I think you have a broken cheekbone and you’re bleeding under your eye. They will take good care of you and keep you safe. Were you able to get the horses out?”

  Rebecca nodded numbly and looked at what had once been her beautiful barn.

  Heather took a deep breath and led Rebecca over to the ambulance. She was amazed that Rebecca had been able to get her horses out. Growing up in the small town, she knew how important the horses were to Rebecca and knew she would have been devastated if any of them had perished. When she had arrived on the scene, the barn had been engulfed and there wouldn’t have been any way for the firefighters to save any living thing.

  She handed Rebecca over to the paramedics and heard shouts coming from the other deputies. She ran down to where they were standing. On the ground at their feet lay Kip, looking sightlessly at the burning barn, his neck swollen and bruised. Heather called on her radio. “Dispatch, we have a code echo out at the Gordon ranch. Please send an ambulance and the coroner.”

  She turned to her co-workers. “Alright, guys. Let’s treat this as a crime scene now. Get the tape and markers. I have a feeling our arsonist is lying here and we need to document everything. I want this to be an easy case to close.”

  She turned away and made her way back to the ambulance. When she got there, the paramedics had started an IV and were getting ready to transport Rebecca to the hospital. She climbed into the back and held Rebecca’s hand.

  “Rebecca, I need you to answer some questions, can you do that for me?”

  Rebecca looked up at her and nodded, her left eye blood red, her cheekbone swollen twice it’s size.

  “Did Kip do this? Did you see him?”

  “He was in the barn. I’d just gotten Sadie and the foal out and he was right behind me.” Rebecca’s eyes tearing up again and her voice hitched in her throat. “He said he wanted to make me pay but because I’d already gotten the horses out, he was going to kill me. But he said he wanted to make me suffer first, that he was going to have some fun with me. He…he dragged me to the trees…he was going to
rape me before he killed me. He said they would find my naked body…” she began to cough, her sobs overtaking her.

  “It’s alright now, you’re safe.” Heather soothed.

  “But he’s still out there. I hit him and he released me but he’s still out there somewhere.”

  “We got him, Rebecca. You can relax. He’s never going to hurt you again. Can I call someone for you?”

  “My mom. Please call my mom. She’ll call Megan for me. Can I go get my cell phone? I need to call Luke. He wanted to send out bodyguards and I wouldn’t let him. I was wrong, I’m so sorry. I never thought Kip would do something like this.”

  “Sshh. It’s ok. Luke had sent bodyguards, you must not have known about it. They were the ones who called 911 when they saw the smoke. They were looking for you in the house but couldn’t find you. They were down at the barn when I showed up then you came running out of the smoke by the trees. If they hadn’t seen the flames and called, we wouldn’t have been here in time. I’m glad Luke sent his goons.

  “I’ll bring your phone to the hospital but let them check you out first, alright? I’ll call your mom right now. She’ll probably beat you there, I’ve seen the way she drives.” Heather joked and was rewarded with a smile from Rebecca.

  “Just don’t arrest her if she’s going too fast.” Rebecca tried to laugh but she felt hollow inside, the shock sinking in.

  “I promise. I’ll put out an APB that you’re mom is off limits tonight.”

  Heather climbed out of the ambulance and called both paramedics over. “She doesn’t know Kip is dead and I think it would be too much for her if she found out so keep it under wraps for now. I’ll let her know once we have this buttoned up and she has family with her.”

  They both nodded and climbed into the ambulance, taking off towards the hospital.

  “I knew this one was going to end ugly.” Heather mumbled to herself. “Just glad it wasn’t her leaving in a body bag.” She watched the ambulance drive away. She waiting until the taillights were out of sight before heading back down to the waiting corpse.