Disoriented for a moment, she clutched at the man in front of her as panic shot through her like a bullet.
“Whoa.”
Did he say that for the horse or for her?
“Sara, we’re almost home.”
Damn that word again. Home. Yes, but not for her.
As they approached the main ranch yard, a figure, shadowed in the porch light, limped over to them. Kerr.
Sheriffs’ vehicles were parked in front of the house, and officers wandered out of the front door at Garrison and Sara’s arrival.
Kerr opened the gate from the fields.
The horse walked a few steps, then stopped.
Kerr whistled. “Holy fisticuffs, Batman, what the hell happened? Sara, goddamn it, your face. Shit. Are you all right?”
“Glad to see you, too, man. Can you help her down?”
Sara managed to move her wrecked body enough to hook a toe in the stirrup and swing her other leg over the horse’s rump. Thank God for Garrison’s support and Kerr’s steady hand when she landed on the ground.
Garrison dismounted, also landing heavily. Both men clutched each other around the neck and pounded upper arms.
As Kerr led the horse away, Garrison pulled Sara into a tight embrace.
“Thank you,” she mumbled into his chest.
He kept moving his arms to new holds around her head, neck, and back, like he couldn’t hang on to her enough. Little tremors rippled through his muscles. “Son of a bitch.” His voice cracked. “I thought I’d lost both of you.”
After a moment, they leaned back.
“Zach,” they both said together.
Moving as quickly as their aching and abused bodies permitted, they sidestepped a deputy to enter the house.
“Zach?” Garrison called. He turned into the living room. “Zach? Dad?”
No one sat in the living room. Where was his father?
Kerr entered the house. “They’re at the hospital.”
• • •
Garrison spun and ran out the door to the truck, ignoring the officer again.
Sara followed. “Garrison!”
“Get in.” He paused. “Please.”
The sudden need in his voice stopped her cold. Was her future worth this man? Later. She’d deal with those thoughts later.
“If you’re sure ...”
“Yes. I’d like you to get checked out at the hospital, too.”
“No, I—”
“Please.” Again. He held a hand out across to the passenger side. “I almost lost you and Zach today. I need to know that you’re both okay.”
A lump made her throat ache. He wanted to see Zach, understandable. He wanted to make sure her injuries weren’t serious.
Practical and reasonable.
Her chest ached, and her eyes burned.
She got in and buckled up as Garrison revved the truck and sped away.
No. She wouldn’t feel sorry for herself. She’d made her decision; time to cut ties with Garrett and the Taggart family. She would finish out the semester, but this week had made it obvious she needed to be someplace else.
Where? How?
Anywhere. No way would she stay here with all of the bad blood from dealing with Hank. From the damage done to the Taggart family.
What about her school loans? She would deal with them. She’d talk with the board members. Figure something out. If necessary, she’d simply pay off the loan, however long it took. She could get a second job if she had to. Hard as paying off $100,000 would be, at least she could give the Taggarts some space. She could move on with the plan she’d mapped for her life.
The best decision, right?
So why did it hurt like a bomb had just exploded inside her chest?
For right now, though, she would make sure Zach was all right.
In no time, they pulled up to the ER at Bondurant Valley Hospital, just outside of Copper River.
Her heart pounded harder as each step carried them closer to the doors.
The receptionist startled at Garrison’s and Sara’s rough appearances.
“Oh my word, are you two all right?” the older woman said.
“Fine,” Sara said.
“Not fine. She needs to be checked out,” Garrison interrupted. “But I’m looking for my son, Zach Taggart. Is he here?”
The receptionist picked up the phone, mumbled into it, and then pointed through the double doors. Sara held back.
“Stay with me. Please.” The words seemed ripped from him. His haunted amber eyes bore into her face, like he memorized her appearance. A shudder drilled through her.
She’d miss his eyes, his intensity.
Her heart broke into little pieces. Maybe she could stay at his side for a bit longer. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt him.
Sure as hell would hurt her.
• • •
Garrison pushed down nausea as he shoved open the ER doors, Sara right behind him. He’d watched his mother die of cancer in this hospital five years ago. Now Zach was somewhere inside. Alive? Dead? Sweat broke out on Garrison’s brow.
At the direction of a nurse, he rounded the corner of a patient room and tore the curtain aside. Eric and Shelby looked up from their seats in hard plastic chairs next to a hospital bed. They both looked like day-old leftovers, poorly reheated.
Zach sat up and smiled. “Dad!” His bright orange hair stood straight up from his head. Smudges of dirt speckled his forehead and cheeks.
Garrison’s chest tightened as he hugged his son hard to his chest. He’d almost lost the most important person in the world to him. Never again would he take his kid for granted.
He shifted his grip, careful of the electrodes and IV lines coming out of his child.
“Kerr said Dad’s here,” Garrison said over his son’s shoulder.
Shelby rubbed Zach’s head and, with a tilt to her head, led Garrison and Sara out of the room and down the hall a few feet. Eric stayed with Zach.
A sinking feeling settled in his gut.
Shelby pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. “Dad’s in the CT scanner right now. Doctor thinks maybe it’s a stroke.”
“From tonight?”
“He might have been going through a series of ministrokes over the past few days. Apparently his blood pressure is sky-high. Damn it. I should have known.”
Sara’s tired eyes widened, but she pressed her lips together.
Garrison rubbed his head. “Not your fault. Guy’s stubborn. I’m amazed you got him here tonight.”
“He had a seizure; police and EMS were already at the house. So we didn’t give him a choice.”
“Will he be okay?”
“Not sure. But they’re taking good care of him. Might admit him, if he’ll allow it.”
“Oh, he’ll allow it,” Garrison growled.
“Kerr’ll be here soon, and he’s planning on staying with Dad. All night if necessary.”
“Good.” He faced Sara. “Please get checked out. I need to know you’re okay.”
She opened then closed her mouth. “Sure. Okay.”
Waving a nurse over, Garrison handed her into the medical professional’s care. He wanted to go with Sara, but he needed to be with his son. With twin unhappy expressions, Shelby and Eric withdrew from the exam room.
“Doing better?” Garrison rested his hand on Zach’s head and shoulder.
“Lots. You know what?”
“What?”
“They gave me hot chocolate. In a big cup.” He demonstrated with hands.
“Awesome.” He kept his hands on his kid. Couldn’t stop smoothing his son’s orange hair. Couldn’t stop rubbing his kid’s warm skin.
Zach was alive.
Son of a bitch, at some point he’d have to explain to Zach about his mother’s death. Not right now, though. He needed his son to recover from his ordeal first. Garrison needed time to process what he’d learned, too. Grieve for the marriage he had never really had in the first place.
Zach leaned
forward and whispered. “Know what else?”
“What?” He played along.
His eyes widened. “They put bags of hot water, you know, down there. I think some girls saw ... stuff.”
Garrison stifled a laugh and hugged him. “Probably worth it, if you’re alive.”
“Yeah.”
He didn’t know how long he held his son, but it wasn’t nearly long enough.
A petite doctor popped into the room with a quirk to an eyebrow. “Hi, I’m Dr. West. So, sounds like you two have had an interesting evening. Mr. Taggart, is Ms. Lopez part of these festivities as well?”
Garrison nodded. “Yes, Ms. Lopez was mixed up in a kidnapping. She managed to get Zach free. Can you take care of her?”
“Next on my list. Your family is keeping me on my toes tonight.” Her shoulder-length brown hair swung forward.
“Are you new to the area?” he asked. “Sorry, it’s a small town.”
“No worries. Yes, I’ve been here since August, first job out of family medicine residency.”
“Not ER?”
“It’s a small hospital, Mr. Taggart.” She grinned. “Welcome to rural medicine. We have to cover a lot of bases.”
“I can see that. What do you think about Dad?”
She frowned. “Won’t know for certain until the CT is completed. If we can get his blood pressure under control and help him relax, we can limit any damage that is occurring.”
“You think stress brought on his symptoms?”
“Didn’t cause the problem but sure didn’t help.”
A stab of pain flashed behind his left temple. Reducing Dad’s stress. More to manage.
“And Zach?”
Her green eyes danced as she wrinkled her nose at Zach. “He’s going to be just fine.”
Bless him, but his son smiled and blushed.
“Thank you so much.” Garrison shook her hand.
A nod. “If you don’t mind, let me go work on your dad and Ms. Lopez now. Um, can I get the officer in for a statement? He asked to talk with you.”
“Sure.”
A few minutes later, an older officer, with a notebook ready, entered the cubicle. The officer gave him a professional smile and took the statement. Thank God the law enforcement guy wasn’t Tommy Brand. Garrison couldn’t take any more of the Brand clan this evening.
He provided the officer as much detail as possible regarding the events leading up to Zach’s kidnapping and what Hank had done to Sara. He gave directions based on what Sara had told him and where Shelby had indicated.
“Hank might have escaped or burned up.” He shrugged. They could throw Hank in jail for kidnapping and attempted murder. Or they could throw a funeral for him. Garrison would bring confetti and noisemakers to make a real party of it. He couldn’t care less as long as Zach and Sara were safe. “We left him tied up, but then there was some weird flash fire or something in the shack. I didn’t see him after that, but frankly, I wasn’t searching very hard.”
“Understandable.”
Garrison rubbed Zach’s head as his son nodded off.
After the officer left, Garrison rested his head on the pillow next to his son. He might have even drifted off for a few minutes there.
The doctor ducked back in and answered Garrison’s unspoken question. “Don’t worry. I took a look at Ms. Lopez. We’re running a few tests, but I think she’s just banged up. She’ll be fine.”
Garrison released a breath he hadn’t realized he held.
“What about my dad?”
“Needs to be admitted tonight for neuro checks and to get his blood pressure under control. We’ll have physical therapy evaluate him tomorrow.”
He nodded. “And Zach?”
His son peeled open his eyes at his name and yawned.
Dr. West smiled. “He can go home once this last bag of warmed fluid goes in. When he got here, his temperature was much too cold and he was semiconscious.” She tugged on the stethoscope around her neck. “His feet will end up with frostnip, but your sister got him warmed up nicely on the way over here. Probably saved him from long-term tissue damage.”
“Before we got in the ambulance, Auntie Shelby put my feet in her armpits! Ewww!” Zach obviously wasn’t too grossed out to tell the tale.
“Smart thinking,” the doctor said. “So, let me make sure all our tests are wrapped up, and then we’ll get you and Zach on the road.”
“Sounds great,” Garrison said.
Shelby poked her head in as the doctor left. With her wild, singed hair sticking out in all directions, the lines of exhaustion etched on her face, and her audible wheezing, Garrison wanted her evaluated as well. But his sister was too hardheaded to accept help.
“You should get rest, Shel.”
Her voice came out rough. “I will, soon. You too.”
“What about Dad?”
“Not your fault.”
“I know, but I’m sorry.” He cleared his throat. “And I’m sorry for what I made you do, sis.”
She waved a hand like she was brushing away lint. “Don’t even think twice about it. You had to do whatever it took to get to Zach and Sara. I don’t blame you.”
“But your head?”
“I’ll be fine.” The smile didn’t light up her face like it normally did. “It’ll be good to have you two back home.”
He shifted in his position on the side of the bed. “Sounds like we’re getting out of here in a little bit.”
Zach lifted a paper cup. “I want more hot chocolate.”
Shelby rubbed his head. “I’ll see what I can do, bud.” She paused. “Um, Garrison, someone wants to talk with you. It’s Butch Brand.”
Heat fired up his skull until it throbbed. “God da—” He glanced at Zach’s raised eyebrows and swallowed the curse. “What does he want?”
“He seemed pretty torn up. He really needs to speak with you, I think.”
After debating for a full minute, Garrison hauled air in and out of his lungs to try to calm down. “Fine. Stay here with Zach?”
“You bet.”
Garrison stormed down the hall and banged through the double doors to the tiny waiting area.
Butch looked up and immediately backed away, hands raised. “Hold on, man.”
“No, you hold on. If you don’t recall, your psycho brother tried to kill my son and my ... Ms. Lopez.”
“I’m here to apologize, I swear.”
Like hell. All he wanted to was drill into the man’s head to figure out the truth. But damn it, but after Garrison’s brain had nearly exploded this evening, no way could he use his power right now. He’d have to take Butch at his word, such as it was. “Fine.”
The older man rubbed his balding scalp. “I had no idea what Hank and Wyatt were up to. Hank hasn’t involved me in the offers on your ranch, or I would have told him to shut up and leave you all alone. And Wyatt’s along for the ride, doing whatever Hank says.”
“So you claim.”
“I swear. If I get to my brothers first, I’ll personally take them to the county jail.”
“Again, your word is weak.” He softened his tone. “I never saw Wyatt out in the woods, so God knows where he is now. And frankly, I’m not sure if Hank’s even alive.”
Sweat beaded Butch’s forehead, and he swallowed. “I see. Wow. Well. Okay, we’ll check the place out and see if there’s any sign of him.” He played with the bottom of his jacket zipper. “I need to let you know I’ve fallen down on my job as principal. I’m going to tighten up security for visitors in the school.”
“And?”
“And I will make sure the bullying is under control. For all kids. Period.”
“Noted.”
“I’ll do what I can do keep my family in check. Again, I haven’t had a lot of involvement with them lately, but what happened tonight is beyond unacceptable.” He stuck out his hand. “On behalf of my asshole brothers and my lack of leadership, I am taking personal responsibility. I apologize.”
&nb
sp; Garrison waited a beat until grasping his hand.
“Go back to your son, Taggart.” Butch walked away, shoulders slumped.
Reentering the ER, Garrison flagged a nurse outside of Zach’s space. “Excuse me. Where is Ms. Lopez?”
“I believe she checked herself out of the hospital.”
“What?”
“Eric took her home,” Shelby called from behind the curtain.
“What? Why?” He reentered Zach’s room.
“She claimed she didn’t want any more medical attention and that she needed to leave our family alone. Something about us being ‘better off’ if she didn’t hang around.”
“Exact words?”
“Yup.”
“Damn.”
“So, what are you going to do about it, big brother?”
Black, heavy, sucking emptiness settled over Garrison, but it couldn’t be helped. Family first. His Dad, Zach, Shelby. He had too much to take care of.
Besides, he’d given Sara an ultimatum and told her to think about her decision, hadn’t he?
Her choice was obvious, and apparently she’d made it clear tonight.
Frankly, he couldn’t blame her. Insanity and danger if she stuck with the Taggart clan or peace and quiet with her own life, free of land feuds and drama? Pretty simple choice for a nice person like Sara.
“I’m going to take my son home to rest, we’ll find out what’s going on with Dad, and we’re going to have a family meeting.”
Shelby punched him in the arm, hard, right over a bruise. “You’re a real idiot, you know?”
Chapter 27
It was well past midnight when Sara finally arrived back at her rental. Eric kindly checked her house before she entered. Nothing would be wrong, of course. No one would be there. She shivered. Thank goodness she’d had the kitchen window repaired over the weekend.
Eric offered to stay until morning, but she thanked him and politely sent him away.
After a long shower, she changed into pajama pants and a t-shirt. A quick look in the mirror and she sucked in her breath. Her left eye hadn’t shut completely, but the bruises and swelling were impressive. She shivered. Hank had hard fists, and if he’d used them more, she wouldn’t have survived the night.
Garrison took way more impacts than she had. How bad were his injuries?
What about Zach? Eric had said Garrison’s son would be okay. Please, Lord, let that be so. With good care and some good luck, hopefully he wouldn’t have lasting damage, physical or emotional.
Legacy of Lies Page 21