by Ann Simas
“What do you see?” she asked them, squatting down to look out at their level.
“Doggie!” Maisie squealed.
“Luca has a dog!” Carson added, in case she’d missed seeing the golden retriever curled up beneath the shade tree. “Can we go pet it, Mommy? Please?”
The dog looked gentle enough, but whether the kids could go out and pet it was up to Luca. He returned just then, startling her because she hadn’t heard either him or Trey approach. “I didn’t know you had a dog.”
Luca stared down at her, his expression inscrutable. “I guess it never came up.”
Carson tugged on Luca’s trouser leg. “Can we go pet him, Luca?”
Luca crouched to the boy’s level. “If it’s okay with your mom. Midas likes kids.”
“Midas?” Carson said. “That’s a nice name for a dog.”
Luca smiled. “Thanks.”
“Nice, nice name,” Maisie agreed, reaching for the doorknob. “Wanna pet ’im.”
Luca’s eyes lifted to meet Sunny’s. “We can sit on the patio and talk while the kids get acquainted with him.”
“I should go,” Trey said, before she could answer.
Luca straightened. “And miss out on Sunny’s tall tale?”
Trey shrugged. “I admit, I am curious how things went.”
Sunny would’ve had to be deaf and blind to miss the change in Luca’s demeanor and the tone of his voice. He’d moved beyond being happy to see them to being pissed as hell at her. She sighed. What else had she expected? She’d run off with the kids in the middle of the night, drugged a cop and Angie, and cut off communications with everyone. Not exactly the way to endear herself to a man she’d come to care for, deeply. She turned beseeching eyes on Trey. “Please stay, so I only have to tell the story once.”
“Story,” Luca muttered with disgust. “I suppose you’re going to start with ‘once upon a time,’ too.”
“Chill,” Trey told his friend, leveling a look on him that made Luca flex his jaw. “I’ll stay, and may I add, I’m relieved that you and the kids are safe, Sunny.”
“Thanks, Trey.” She managed a smile, but inside, her heart hurt. She hoped she hadn’t damaged her budding relationship with Luca beyond repair. Did he really not have room in his own heart for forgiveness or understanding?
She needed a few extra minutes to compose her thoughts and get a grip on her sudden emotional turmoil concerning Luca. “Bathroom first,” she told Carson and Maisie, then you can go outside.” She extended both hands, which each child grasped.
The moment she realized she didn’t know where the bathroom was, Luca said, “Down the hall, second door on the right.”
Squaring her shoulders at his frigid tone, she said, “Thank you.”
. . .
“Yikes, it’s like a freezer in here,” Trey said, rubbing his hands up and down his arms.
“Butt out of this.”
“Can’t do that, buddy. You’re my partner and my friend. When I see you acting like an a-hole, I gotta let you know it.”
Luca turned furious eyes on him. “You do realize that she not only put herself in jeopardy, but also those two kids. She could just as easily be dead right now, and Carson and Maisie could be up at the Vale Luna compound being prepped as sacrificial lambs!”
“Keep your voice down,” Trey warned. “Do you want the kids to hear you?”
Suffused with a fury he’d never experienced before, Luca thought he might explode at any moment. “She’s irresponsible!”
“Really? She pulled off one of the most amazing getaways I’ve ever encountered because she loves those kids more than her own life, and you think that’s irresponsible?” Trey tilted his head at him and said in a low voice, “You know what’s wrong with you? You’re in love with the woman and you’re pissed because she didn’t come running to you in the beginning to keep her and the kids safe.”
Luca saw red. “You don’t know what the hell you’re talking about!”
“Don’t I? I saw the way you were with her when you pulled her out of that box. Your entire world has been crumbling since she disappeared. Then she shows up, coming to you for help, I might add, and you were beyond happy and relieved. Now that you know she’s safe, you’ve decided to let the anger that’s been festering inside you come out and push her away again.”
Luca resisted commenting. Or giving Trey a black eye.
“You’re in love with her. Admit it. Love makes you do stupid things, but don’t cave in to the urge to treat her like crap because you were scared shitless you might never see her or the kids again.”
“What makes you such an expert on the subject?” Luca shot back.
“Hell if I know,” Trey admitted, “except that Libby has me in such a tailspin, I figured I must be taking the plunge, too, so it’s okay for me to give advice about it.”
Incredulous, Luca opened his mouth to give his best friend what-for, but Carson came running down the hall, with Maisie close behind. Sunny wandered back at a slower pace, her eyes seeking his as soon as she entered the room. Though her chin was tilted up, he recognized it wasn’t a sign of defiance. Her countenance reeked of despair.
Hell, yeah, he was pissed about the choices she’d made, and she knew it. Didn’t he have the right to be ticked off? Shit, yes.
But, dammit, did she have to be like a damned open book? It was only too easy to read the regret in her expression, the fear in her eyes. Did she really need more crap from him?
Instead of reaming her out, which had been his intention, he opened his arms to her.
She walked into them and slid her arms around his middle, holding him so tightly he might have been a lifeline.
With some surprise, he realized that he was exactly that to her, as she was to him.
Instead of apologizing for being an ass, he tilted her head up and kissed her.
“Come on, guys. Uncle Trey will take you out to meet Midas.”
The door closed softly behind them.
Sunny broke away first. “I’m sorry, Luca. I did what I thought was best for everyone.”
He cupped her face in his hands. “I know, Sunshine. The cop is me is furious with you for that, and the man who’s in love with you is having a difficult time coming to grips with why you did it that way, but I get that you did what you thought was best for your kids.”
She grasped his hands with her much smaller ones. “You love me?”
He blew out a small sigh. “Apparently, I do.”
She gave him a wry smile. “Apparently, I love you, too.”
“I’m glad we got that settled,” his own tone a little facetious. “I’ve never been in love before, so I thought I was just losing my mind.”
. . .
Luca brought beverages and snacks out to the patio and set them on the table.
He, Sunny, and Trey spent an hour there, each with an eye on the kids who played with a seemingly tireless Midas.
Sunny recounted the events that had occurred since she’d disappeared into the night without telling anyone. He and Trey asked questions for clarification, and Luca managed to bite his tongue when he felt the urge to make an acerbic comment about her choices. Overall, he was impressed with her ability to even plan such a complex getaway, let alone improvise on the spur of the moment, when things went awry.
Sunny was both saddened and appalled when he told her about Boyson killing his girlfriend. “Will he stop at nothing to get at me and the kids?”
“He’s a whack job,” Luca said. “The LT discovered he’s been under investigation with Internal Affairs for the better part of a year. Until you, nothing they got on him would stick. No one else was ever willing to testify against him because they were afraid of him.”
“I’m afraid of him, too, but if he’s ever brought in again—”
“It won’t be if, Sunshine, it’ll be when.”
When she didn’t respond, Luca realized that she hadn’t just stopped talking, she’d zoned out from the real world
to the vision world. He pushed out of his chair and went to stand behind her.
The setting of this vision was completely different. Two large flat rocks sat in the middle of a clearing surrounded by trees. Carson and Maisie, each on top of one of the rocks, were tied down. Though slightly older than they were now, they were still recognizable. Sunny was nowhere to be seen.
Fear slammed through him as if it were something tangible.
The vision vanished.
Luca became aware of Trey standing beside him. “Did you see it?”
Trey shook his head. “No, but from the looks of both you, it was pretty horrific, whatever it was.”
Sunny peered over her shoulder at him, a trembling hand pressed to her chest. “You saw?”
Luca nodded. “Is this the first time for this vision?”
“No, the second, but something was different.”
“What?”
“Boyson wasn’t there.” She swallowed with apparent difficulty. “What do you think that means?”
Luca had no idea in hell. “When was the first vision in that setting?”
“Yesterday.” She paused for a moment, her agony clear. “You know what that means, don’t you?”
He nodded and said, “But I hope to hell you’re wrong.”
Sunny dropped her face into her hands. A moment later, she said, “Do you think Boyson has any connection to Sally Box?”
Where the devil had that come from? Luca almost said no, but after a moment’s consideration, asked, “What makes you think he might?”
Sunny shrugged. “I don’t know. I made a mental note to ask you to check and see if it was possible.” She turned completely around in her chair and said, “I thought I was crazy for even considering it, but she was there.”
“There? What do you mean?”
“In the circle of Vale Lunatics surrounding the sacrificial stones. I saw her there in the first vision, too. She’s part of it.”
Luca didn’t doubt Sunny for a moment, but he wished like hell that her visions had a rewind so he could see for himself.
Chapter 37
. . .
Sunny got the kids settled into their slumber bags on the floor in the spare room. Luca used it for a home office and library, but with a little rearranging, it worked.
Carson and Maisie were so excited about not sleeping in a bed for the first time, she thought they’d never stop chattering. Finally, though, their energy petered out and they floated off to dreamland.
She plugged in the baby monitor and turned it on, taking the receiver with her as she wandered back to the living room.
Luca sat on the sofa with his bare feet propped up on the coffee table. She was so used to seeing him in a suit and tie, it always surprised her when he dressed casually. In this case, that meant sweat shorts and a Broncos T-shirt. The sight of his long legs stretched out reminded her of how they’d felt against hers—his slightly rough with hair, hers smooth and hypersensitive.
Sunny’s heartbeat picked up and her breaths came a little faster.
Luca looked up and smiled at her.
Her pounding heart did a little flip-flop. “Are you still angry at me?”
His smile morphed into a wry grin. “I should be, but I’m not.”
“Going into hiding seemed like a good idea at the time.”
“I’m sure it did.” He extended a hand to her.
She took it and snuggled in beside him. “How did Boyson know about the cabin? Zach made me promise to never tell a soul about it.”
“I’m guessing someone at Vale Luna expected Zach to have a safe house somewhere and did a property search on his name.” He hesitated. “You should know, since Zach died, Vale Luna has bought up the parcels surrounding the cabin.”
Sunny looked up at him, flabbergasted. “You’re kidding?”
“I wish I was.”
Her mind churned with questions. “Boyson’s escape, was that engineered by Vale Luna?”
“Pretty sure it was. If they’ve been wanting to get their hands on Carson and Maisie since Zach died, they’ve been keeping an eye on you, which means they knew about Boyson.”
“That’s the way I figured it, too, but I was hoping I was wrong. Did any of them make contact with him at the jail?”
“Zach’s brother Zeb did.”
Sunny almost couldn’t comprehend it. Would the Fyfe’s go to any length to get her children? Of course they would! Otherwise, there wouldn’t be any visions, and she wouldn’t be on the run with Carson and Maisie.
“When loose lips started flapping down at FPD, and Boyson’s girlfriend told him you were MIA, he would’ve contacted the Fyfe’s immediately. They would have sent him and the other guy up to see if you were there.”
“He came the first time by himself, but the second time, I’m pretty sure he was with Zeb. I’ve never met him, but I’ve seen a picture of him, and he looks a lot like Zach.”
Luca stared hard at her. “He was there twice and yet you still didn’t call for help.”
“I moved the kids and all our stuff down to the safe room,” she said in her own defense.
He remained silent, but his jaw flexed repeatedly. “You saw me and Trey when we were there, too.”
“I did, but I didn’t recognize you.”
He leveled a look of disbelief on her.
“Honest, I didn’t. It was like you both knew you were on camera and you made sure it wasn’t catching your faces. Besides which, even when you left the cabin, your backs were to the lens.”
“Give me a break, Sunshine. We were wearing Kevlar vests. Who else would it be?”
“I had a inkling it was you and Trey, but I couldn’t very well come out of hiding at that point, could I?”
“Think about what you just said and ask me that again.”
After several moments of arduous conflict with herself, Sunny said, “I had a plan, Luca. I needed to stick to it.”
Luca’s sigh came out oozing with resignation. “So you’ve said.”
Since neither of them could go back and change the past, Sunny moved the conversation forward. “When Boyson came back the second time with Zeb, that’s when the decision was made to torch the cabin.”
“You waited until they set the fire to take off?” he asked, incredulous.
“No, they left because they didn’t have any matches or firestarter with them. I knew I had little time to prepare, but I got everything together and we made our escape through the tunnel.”
“But you reported the fire before you took off.”
“How do you know that?”
“I’m a cop, remember? I investigate shit.”
Chastened by his not-so-subtle gibe, she remained silent.
“It’s a good thing you called it in, otherwise, the whole damned forest might have ignited.”
“I was worried about that,” she admitted.
“So, you took off and drove up to Killion’s place. It didn’t hit me immediately why that name was familiar when he introduced himself. All his phone ID said was BK Freight Hauling.” He studied her for a moment. “I guess you thought someone who’d had experience with cults was your best option, in the end.”
Sunny wondered if he was going to chastise her again.
“Good move on your part. His method of getting you to my house was genius.”
“I definitely owe him one,” she agreed. She bit her lip, trying to decide if her next words should be uttered. “He’s the only person outside my family that I knew I could trust…besides you.” Again, she hesitated, “Just so you know, it wasn’t Bobby who was my best option in the end. It was you. Bobby just helped us get here.”
He continued to stare down at her, his expression giving away nothing. Finally, he said, “What am I going to do with you, Sunshine?”
She blinked at him, again unsure if she should keep her mouth shut, or bare her soul. She almost went with soul-baring, but how would she explain to her children in the morning why she was in bed with Luca?
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Instead, she said, “For starters, kiss me goodnight. I’m exhausted and I need to get some sleep.”
“You’re sleeping in my bed.”
She shook her head. “I’m not.”
His eyes narrowed on her. “Tell me you’re not planning to sleep on the floor next to the kids.”
She tilted her chin up. “I am. Do you have a spare blanket and a pillow?”
He heaved a giant sigh. “You like to do things the hard way, don’t you?”
“No, but I have to be near my children, Luca.”
“I know you do, sweetheart.” He must have heard the misery in her voice, for he smiled, then gave her the kiss she’d asked for before he pushed up off the sofa. “Go get ready for bed. I’ll bring what you need.” He offered her his hand.
Sunny took it and let him pull her up off the sofa. He took the opportunity to embrace her and lay one more hot kiss on her. She almost caved on where she planned to sleep.
Ten minutes later, teeth brushed, she was in the cotton pajama shorts and sleeveless tee she planned to sleep in. She padded into the spare room on bare feet, only to discover that Luca had rearranged things yet again while she was in the bathroom.
Carson and Maisie’s slumber bags had been moved closer toward the wall, but were still on the area rug that covered the wood floor. A sleeping bag had been unzipped and laid flat on the area he’d opened up next to them. Two pillows were positioned at the top and a lightweight blanket lay folded across the foot.
A vague whisper of sound told her Luca had come in behind her.
She turned and shot him a questioning glance.
He responded with a sloe-eyed, suggestive look.
She smiled at him. “I like your solution.”
He smiled back. “I was hoping you would.” He flipped off the light switch and the room went dark save for glow of the nightlight plugged in near his desk.
Sunny gave the kids one last check, then situated herself on the side of the sleeping bag closest to them. Luca lowered his big body next to her and folded an arm around her middle.