by Hope White
“Not to me, it doesn’t,” Sara said.
Nate sighed. “He’s got a point. Keeping you all in one spot will make our job easier. I’ll call the chief and let him know. I’ll take the first shift. Better get my overnight bag from the truck.” Nate went outside.
“I shouldn’t be staying here, Will,” Sara said.
“You don’t belong in a jail cell.” He stood and extended his hand. “Come on, I’ll show you to your room.”
She took his hand and he gently held on, anticipating her wanting to pull away.
She didn’t.
He led her down the hallway and flipped on the light. Papers were scattered across the daybed.
“Sorry.” He rushed over and collected them and then placed them on his desk. “The bed’s only been slept in a few times, when Megan’s sister came to visit. Clean towels are in the guest bathroom, which we rarely use. What else?” He looked around the room.
She reached out and touched his cheek. “Thank you.”
“Of course.”
“For so many things.”
The walls felt as if they were closing in, and he could hardly breathe. Her gorgeous blue eyes studied him, as if she was trying to tell him something, something important, and intimate.
“Whatever happens, please know how much I appreciate you...” She hesitated. “Your generosity and your strength. You amaze me.”
“My ego thanks you.”
His gaze drifted to her lips. He wanted to kiss her again.
“I...I could use a glass of water,” she said, her voice soft.
“We’ve got that here,” he teased. “In the kitchen.”
She didn’t move. Neither did he.
Will’s heart pounded against his chest. He sensed she needed to put distance between them, and he understood why. It was important they stayed focused on remaining safe, and not get distracted by their attraction to one another, or the promise of...did he dare say love?
Two loud cracks echoed from outside the window.
Followed by a crash.
And the house went dark.
TWELVE
Sara protectively yanked Will away from the window and pulled him into a crouch.
“Daddy! Daddy!” the girls cried.
“Go to the girls,” Sara said calmly. “And stay down.”
They both felt their way into the dark hallway.
“Where do you keep flashlights?” she asked.
“Everywhere. Kids are afraid of the dark. Got one in here.” He opened a hall closet and fumbled for a second, then handed her a flashlight.
“What about you?”
A light winked from inside the girls’ bedroom. “Claire’s on it.”
“Daddy!” Claire called.
“Go.” Sara pointed the flashlight so he could make his way down the hall.
“You aren’t going outside, are you?”
“No. Go on, they need you.” She gave him a gentle shove. Once he was in the room with his girls, Sara went into the living room and peered through the curtain. The entire block was dark.
Neighbors opened their doors. She spotted a neighbor across the street starting down his front steps to investigate.
“What is going on?” she whispered.
She watched a few more neighbors wander outside, then head toward the end of the block. She went to another window to search the dark street. Someone flipped on their car headlights, illuminating a vehicle that had collided into an electrical pole. It must have damaged the transformer.
“Yikes.” She wondered if the driver had been under the influence, or if he’d hit the gas instead of the brake by accident.
Another set of headlights clicked on, illuminating the street in front of Will’s house. She snapped her attention to Nate’s car and spotted someone kneeling beside Nate, who was on the ground.
“Oh, no,” she said in a hushed tone.
She wanted to check on him, but figured he’d be furious if she left the house. She called 911, but they’d already been alerted about the accident and downed police officer.
“What happened?” Will said coming into the room.
Little Marissa dashed to Sara and wrapped her arms around her from behind. Tense from the past hour, Sara fought the urge to untangle the girl’s arms from her waist. Stop thinking about yourself and consider how much this little girl needs female comfort.
“Looks as if a car hit the transformer,” Sara said, stroking Marissa’s hair. “Your neighbors are taking care of things.”
“Can I see?” Claire said.
“No,” Sara said.
Claire stopped dead in her tracks. Will looked at Sara in question.
“The car is pretty smashed up, and the driver is probably...” She hesitated. “Well, images like that can give you nightmares for weeks. Trust me, I’ve had my share of those.”
“You have?” Marissa said, looking up at her.
“Yup. Better idea, let’s light some candles and have a party.”
“A party, cool.” Claire started for the kitchen, where Sara assumed they kept the candles.
“Me, too,” Marissa said, chasing after her sister.
As they rooted around in drawers, Sara motioned Will to come closer.
“Was it really a transformer?” he said in a soft voice.
“Yes, but there might be more to it. Nate is hurt.”
“Where, outside?”
“Yes.”
Will started for the front door. “I’ve gotta help him.”
“Will, your girls—”
He whipped open the door just as Nate came stumbling into the house with help from Will’s neighbor.
“I tried keeping him down until the ambulance came. He wasn’t having any of it,” the elderly neighbor said.
“What happened?” Will asked.
“I’m fine.” Nate collapsed on the couch.
“I’m Sara,” she said, extending her hand to the neighbor.
“Oscar Lewis, nice to meet you.” They shook hands.
“Yay, more people for the party!” Marissa said, coming out of the kitchen.
Claire took one look at Nate and said, “What happened to Detective Nate?”
“Car clipped me,” Nate said.
“Marissa, take the candles. I’ll get some ice.” Claire unloaded the candles into her sister’s arms and disappeared into the kitchen. Sara marveled at how mature the eight-year-old Claire acted in the face of a crisis.
Sirens wailed from the street.
“Oscar, can you tell them I’m in here?” Nate said.
“Sure, police and EMTs?”
“I don’t need an ambulance, but the driver of that sedan will.”
Oscar left and Sara shut the door. Marissa stood in the corner, lining up candles.
“Hey, baby M, can you help your sister?” Will asked. “We need ice, and warm, wet towels for detective Nate’s cuts and bruises.”
“Okay, Daddy.” Marissa danced off to join her sister in the kitchen.
Sara sat on a coffee table in front of Nate, Will hovering close by. “What really happened?” Sara said to Nate.
“I’m not totally sure. One minute I was texting, the next, a sedan was speeding toward me. I dived out of the way, but he clipped me. I went down, shot at his back tire and he crashed.”
“Why would he run you down?” Sara said.
Nate shook his head. “This case is getting stranger by the minute.”
A knock sounded at the front door. Will went to open it.
A cute blond woman in her twenties rushed into the living room, spotted Nate and froze. “You’re hurt.”
“I’m fine,” Nate said.
“I he
ard the call go out and came to see—”
“I’ll answer questions for the blog tomorrow, Cassie. This isn’t the time.”
Sara read more than curiosity on Cassie’s face. Sara read true concern.
And Nate was oblivious.
“What happened?” Cassie said, taking a step toward him.
Claire rushed into the room carrying an ice bag wrapped in a towel. “Here’s the ice.”
“He needs ice?” Cassie said.
“Where do you need it?” Claire asked.
“My knee would be great.”
Claire held the ice pack to his knee, and an odd expression crossed Nate’s face. “You’ll probably get a better story by interviewing the neighbors.”
“Really?” Cassie said, her voice laced with sarcasm. Shaking her head, she muttered, “Turkey.” She stormed out of the house.
Sara and Will shared a look.
“I saw that,” Nate said.
“Who was she?” Sara asked.
“She writes a community blog. I’m her source.”
“Yeah, that’s one word for it,” Will said.
“Focus, guys,” Nate said. “Obviously you’re not safe here.”
“Not a problem,” Will said. “I’ll call Bree and we’ll head over there tonight.”
“Head where, Daddy?” Claire said.
“Echo Mountain Resort. We’re going to stay there for a while.”
Another knock sounded at the door and Will answered. Chief Washburn joined them in the living room. “You okay?” he asked Nate.
“Yeah, but seriously frustrated.”
“Well, you’re gonna be more frustrated,” the chief said. “The driver ran off.”
“How is that possible?” Nate said.
“Neighbors saw where he headed. We’ll do a search.”
“Unbelievable,” Nate said. “We lost another one.”
“Let’s focus on what we do have control over,” Will said. “I’ll help the girls pack.”
* * *
Will and the girls were situated at Bree’s cottage and fast asleep a few hours later. The girls shared an upstairs bedroom. Sara decided to stay upstairs as well, wanting to be close to protect Will, Claire and Marissa. Will and Nate bunked in the living room for the night.
Even with all the excitement, the girls were up bright and early the next day, ready for church. He asked them to be as quiet as possible so as not to wake Sara, yet she came down for breakfast. Will invited her to church, but she said she needed to focus on changing her looks. He suspected something else kept her from surrendering her troubles to God. That was a discussion for another time.
Officer Ryan McBride escorted Will and the girls to church, and stood guard outside. Nate hung back at the cottage to help Sara and brainstorm angles about the case.
During the service, Will said an extra prayer of thanks that Nate wasn’t seriously injured last night.
The theme of the service was having faith during troubling times. Will embraced the message, needing the extra encouragement. He held firm to his faith regarding his abilities to be a good father, and he had faith things would work out for Sara.
Maybe even for Sara and Will?
From a practical standpoint, this relationship wasn’t real. It was formed by tense emotions during dangerous circumstances. Sometimes love and practicality had little to do with one another. He was drawn to Sara, without question. Hopefully, after her case was solved, he could share his feelings. To what end? Her job, her life, was back in Seattle; sure, only three hours away, but it might as well be three thousand miles away. The next woman he married would have to be a good mom for the girls. Parenting wasn’t a part-time job.
Parenting? Marriage? Between the excitement of yesterday and his clients’ needs, Will was obviously sleep deprived, apparent in his random thoughts today.
“Go in peace and serve the Lord,” Pastor Charles said. “Amen.”
“Amen,” the congregation repeated.
Will helped the girls on with their jackets, and waited while they buttoned up. Friends smiled and greeted him as they passed down the center aisle. Will offered greetings in return, exchanging pleasantries and a brief story or two.
With his girls on either side of him, Will clung to their hands and they made their way toward the exit. Once outside, he spotted Nate. Beside Nate stood a blond woman wearing a red ski cap and sunglasses. She looked like a teenager, and it took him a minute to realize it was Sara. She certainly had changed her looks.
Will led the girls toward Nate and Sara.
“You guys ready to head back to the resort?” Nate said.
“Yeah, they have an indoor pool,” Claire said.
“Who’s got a pool?” Will’s mother-in-law, Mary, said over his shoulder.
“The resort,” Claire said.
“Will, may I have a word with you?” Mary said.
“Sure, Mary, what’s up?”
“Over here, please.” She motioned for Will to join her a few feet away, while his father-in-law entertained the girls with a story.
“Mary?” he questioned.
She stopped, turned around and waved an envelope between them. “It’s our official request for custody of the girls.”
Will’s heart dropped to his knees. “I don’t understand.”
“I haven’t filed these papers, and I won’t. Unless you continue to put the girls in harm’s way.”
“I would never—”
“You’re not thinking straight, Will. I heard about last night, about how someone tried to run down Detective Walsh in front of your house. Why was the detective there anyway? Because he was keeping watch over the woman you rescued. Why was she at your house?”
“She was checking to see if I was okay.”
“Why wouldn’t you be okay?”
He didn’t answer.
“Because something else happened that I don’t know about.” Mary sighed. “I stopped by the house last night and you and the girls were gone. Where did you stay?”
“At the resort.”
“In hotel rooms?”
“No, at a friend’s cottage.”
“Because you were too frightened to stay in your own home. Do you see why I’m concerned?”
“We’ve got it under control.”
“Look—” she hesitated “—you and I often don’t see things the same way, but we agree on one thing, and that’s the welfare of your girls.”
“And?”
“Whatever trouble this woman is in, she’s brought it into your life, correct?”
He didn’t answer, he couldn’t answer. She was right.
“I don’t want a court battle, and I don’t want to upset Claire and Marissa, but I can’t stand the thought of them being put in harm’s way because you played the Good Samaritan.”
He couldn’t believe she was making him feel ashamed about helping a person in trouble.
“Let the girls stay with us until this situation is resolved, and we’ll forget about this.” Mary slipped the envelope into her purse.
“Will? Everything all right?” Sara said, approaching them.
His mother-in-law narrowed her eyes at Sara, and then glanced at Will. “Please call me by the end of the day and let me know your decision.” She passed by Sara and motioned to Ed that they were leaving.
“What was that about?” Sara said.
“She’s worried about the girls.” He gazed across the parking lot at his daughters, under the protective eye of both Nate and Officer McBride.
“Because of me and the case,” Sara said in a flat tone.
“Mary came to the house last night after hearing about the accident. We were gone. She figured out we didn’t feel safe at the house.
She threatened to take the girls away.”
Sara touched his arm. “Will, no.”
“Threatened, but she won’t. She loves them too much. It would crush them to have us embroiled in a court battle over their welfare.”
Marissa started to run off and visit with her friend Addy. Nate blocked her and shifted her closer to the car.
In that moment, looking at his baby girl’s disappointed frown as she waved goodbye to her friend, Will realized this was no way for the girls to live—under the watchful eye of an overprotective father and police officers—until the case was solved and Will was out of danger.
It would break his heart to be away from them again, but he had to think of their well-being over his emotional needs.
“I need to talk to Nate.”
As he headed toward Nate, Sara walked beside him. “You’re a good dad,” she said. “Don’t ever forget that.”
“Thanks.” Will nodded at Nate. “Got a sec?”
Sara asked Claire a question about drawing, and both girls offered their advice. Will pulled Nate aside. “I’m thinking it might be easier on all of us, and safer for the girls, if they went away for a few days with their grandparents.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. I should have suggested it sooner, but was missing them something fierce when I got home from my hiking trip.”
“Setting them up at the resort—”
“Doesn’t remove them from the potential danger. How safe do you think they’d be with my in-laws?”
“Safer than staying with you, especially if they take them out of town. Also, we could ask Harvey to tag along and play bodyguard. His cop instincts are razor sharp and he’s got plenty of time on his hands since he retired from the resort.”
“Good idea, thanks.” Will gazed at his adorable girls. “I did the right thing by helping Sara, and now I have to do the right thing by keeping Claire and Marissa safe.”
“Your in-laws might still be here.” Nate craned his neck.
“No, not yet. I want to spend the day with the girls, then if you don’t mind, could you take them over to Mary and Ed’s?”
“Sounds good. Let’s get you back to the resort.”
* * *
Sara, Will and the girls hung out in Breanna McBride’s cottage, drawing, baking and playing games. Sara had tried to isolate herself upstairs in the bedroom, but the girls were having none of it. They demanded she come downstairs and visit, as Marissa put it.