Fields motioned with her gun at his back to climb the bowed stairs of the unstable porch. He carefully avoided the broken boards but Fields was too busy making sure he didn’t do anything rash to notice and stepped right through a stair, losing her footing. Evan swung around at the sound and saw his opportunity. He reached out and grabbed the gun from Fields’ hand as she struggled to pull her foot from the splintered hole. With his free hand, he grabbed her by the arm and pulled her up onto the porch, levelling the gun at her.
“Looks like those Mai Tai’s will have to wait,” he said.
Sally
“So if you were sent here to kill me, why am I still alive,” she asked Cruz. “Why not just do it when you found me and leave me in the dirt with Joey?”
Before Cruz could answer her, a truck pulled up in front of the house. Sally’s heart leapt when she saw Evan through the window. Her excitement was quickly dashed though when she noticed that Field’s was with him, and holding him at gunpoint. Her mouth went dry as she thought about the mistakes she’d made along the way that led to now. Not only had she screwed up her own life but now Evan would pay with his. She closed her eyes and said a quick prayer that he could get free from this when a commotion erupted out on the porch. Her eyes flew open in time to see Field’s lose her footing and Evan overpower her, taking her gun.
Cruz swore loudly and reached for the door, pulling it open as Evan was pushing Fields toward him with a gun to her back. Cruz immediately crossed the small room and grabbed Sally from the chair holding her in front of him with his gun to her temple. She started to struggle against him before Evan shook his head motioning for her to stop.
“Are you hurt,” he asked her, looking her up and down for any visible signs of injury.
“No, I’m fine,” she said, tears springing to her eyes. The relief of seeing Evan here warred with the terror she felt with the gun to her head.
“How do you think this is going to go down here Sherriff,” Cruz asked.
“Well I thought maybe we could make a trade. Sally for your partner, Deputy Fields here,” Evan said.
“And then what? You just let us walk out of here,” Cruz asked.
“No, then I arrest you both and haul your asses back to town,” Evan answered. “Or I could shoot your partner right now and just take you,” he offered.
Cruz seemed to contemplate this for a moment but instead of answering, he swung the gun away from Sally’s head and toward Fields, putting a bullet through the middle of her forehead. Sally screamed and tried to run but Cruz still had hold of her. He pulled her back against him and put the gun back to her temple. She flinched as the hot barrel touched her flesh. “Not well versed in the ways of bartering are you Sherriff? If you’re going to negotiate with someone you should really know how valuable your goods are first,” he said, motioning to Field’s body on the floor. “How about option number three? I drop you, then your girl and be on my merry way?”
Evan needed only a minute to recover from the shock of Cruz shooting his partner before his brain formulated another plan. He knew it was a gamble and that it would hurt Sally but for her safety he had to try. At that same moment, he spotted one of his deputies approaching through the kitchen from the back door. He lowered his gun and began talking.
“Go ahead,” he motioned to Sally. “You’d be doing me a favor anyway. By now the whole town will know her story. I can’t be with her anymore. She’d ruin my career and my business. I don’t know how Chicago is but here, people love to talk shit.”
Sally’s jaw dropped open and the wind went out of her as if he’d punched her right in the gut. Her fears were coming true. He had realized that she was more trouble than she was worth and was cutting her loose. How could a man like Evan be with a girl like her? But to turn her over to a killer? Condemn her to death? She couldn’t reconcile that with the man she knew and loved. Before she had a minute to contemplate it further, she noticed Evan glance briefly over Cruz’s shoulder. From where she stood, Sally could see the reflection of the deputy in the dirty window and relief flooded through her. Even met her eyes and nodded ever so slightly before yelling “Down!”
Sally let her body go completely limp, causing Cruz to lose his grip on her. As she hit the floor, gunshots erupted around her and she scrambled behind the old couch, covering her head. When the shooting stopped she was afraid to open her eyes and her ears were ringing something awful. She jumped as a hand touched her shoulder and looked up into Evan’s face as he crouched over her.
“Are you ok? Were you hit,” he wanted to know, searching over her.
“No, no I’m fine. What about Cruz,” she asked, sitting up.
“He’s dead, Walker got him when you dropped. You sure you’re ok,” he asked again. His voice sounded funny, almost strained and his face started to lose its color. He started to stand and stumbled back onto the couch.
“Evan!” Sally screamed as he fell back, seeing the bloom of bright red blood spreading through his shirt.
Evan
He had hated saying those things about Sally, hated the look of hurt on her beautiful face, but knew he needed to distract Cruz enough for Walker to get into position. Once he saw his deputy in place, he yelled for Sally to drop and managed to get a shot off into Cruz’s shoulder. Cruz returned fire and Walker dropped him from behind with six bullets in his back. Evan felt a slight sting in his right side but his adrenaline was pumping so high it barely registered. He’d seen Sally crawl behind the couch and needed to get to her to make sure she was ok.
He felt himself get woozy, his voice sounding strange in his own ears. Like he was hearing himself from far away. His side began to burn and he could feel his shirt grow sticky. Sally screamed his name just as he felt himself drop onto the couch and then everything went black. He could still hear voices from time to time but he couldn’t tell who’s they were. He felt himself being rolled from side to side and jostled around. He was fighting to open his eyes, to get back to everyone but then a calm fell over him and he slept.
He didn’t know how long he was out for but when he woke, he was in a hospital room with bright lights shining down on him. He had IV’s in his arm and tubes coming from his side. He realized he was on a ventilator and began to panic, trying to pull at the tube in his throat. Alarms started to sound and a flurry of activity erupted around him. He felt something run cold through the veins in his arm and fell back to sleep.
Several days later, Evan woke with only the IV remaining. The tubes down his throat and in his side were gone. Everything hurt like hell. A nurse came in just then to check his vitals.
“Good afternoon Sherriff,” she said pleasantly. “Are you having any pain?”
Evan tried to speak but his throat was dry and felt bruised from the ventilator tube. He nodded and pointed to his side.
“No problem, I’ll get you something for that. Here, why don’t you try some small sips of water,” the nurse brought the straw to his lips and Evan took tentative sips, careful not to overfill his sore belly.
“What? What happened,” he asked hoarsely. He was having difficulty deciphering between his dreams and reality.
“You were shot, Sherriff,” the nurse told him. “The bullet went in through your side and lodged in the lower lobe of your lung. You gave us quite a scare for a while there,” she said.
Just then the doctor came in to examine him. The doctor told him that he’d endured a three hour surgery in which he’d coded twice and had to be resuscitated. How long had he been asleep, he’d asked. Almost two weeks, the doctor told him. Was anyone else brought in injured with him? No, just Evan. The doctor concluded his exam and gave some additional orders to the nurse. She told Evan that several of his deputies had been by every day to visit and that the sweet lady who owned the diner had brought apple pies for the whole staff. She was a favorite around here. Evan asked about Sally.
The nurse scratched her head and thought for a minute before answering. “Well there was a woman who was with you w
hen you came in. Pretty, petite little thing with blond hair. Is that your Sally?”
“Yes,” Evan smiled, “that’s my Sally.” He noticed the nurses frown and his smiled faltered. “What,” he asked her.
“Well the night you were brought in she stayed until you were out of surgery but we haven’t seen her around here since.”
Sally
Once Evan had made it out of surgery, Sally agreed to speak with the police and the Marshal’s Service. She gave her account of the events starting with her kidnapping at least three separate times. She was assured that there were no more leaks in the Marshal’s service and that she would have no worries from here on. Teddy Cruz had been picked up once the DEA agent he had in his pocket had been informed of his wife’s death. There were more arrests of people Sally had never heard of nor cared about. She just wanted to get home and wash Evan’s blood off of her clothes.
Home, she thought as she wearily climbed the steps to her apartment. Where was that? She didn’t know anymore. It sure wasn’t in Chicago. She had thought it was here, Pawhuska, this quiet town that had embraced a stranger and made her feel welcome. Now that everyone knew her story, would they still want her there? Evan didn’t. Evan.
She looked down at her shirt, at the dried blood that clung to the fabric. She had cradled Evan against her, pushing her hands to his side to try and stop the life from draining out of him. She was bone-weary as she climbed under the shower spray, the water as hot as she could stand it. She felt the water wash over her, melting some of the stress from her shoulders. She lathered her hair three times and scrubbed at her skin until it was pink, feeling like she couldn’t wash the day’s experience off of her. Her legs felt weak and she sat in the tub, wrapping her arms around her knees as the water pelted her back and cried. She cried until there were no more tears, until her throat ached and her eyes burned, until the water ran cold.
Climbing out of the shower, she dried off and wrapped her hair in the towel. She walked to her room, ignoring the clothes spilling out of the open drawers. She pulled a t-shirt and a pair of underwear on and climbed into bed, falling into a deep sleep within seconds of her head hitting the pillow.
When Sally woke in the morning, she felt hollow. Realizing she hadn’t eaten in almost two days, she went to the kitchen to find something for breakfast. She poured the last of a box of cereal and some milk into a bowl and stood at the counter to eat. She looked over the living room, at the broken vase and dead flowers on the floor. She finished her breakfast and cleaned up the mess Joey had left in his wake. She went back to the bedroom and began refolding her clothes and putting the drawers back in order. Coming around the side of the bed, she noticed something sticking out from beneath it and bent to pick it up. A picture of her and Evan at the town Labor Day picnic. She plucked the picture from the broken frame and sat back on the bed. That day had been one of the happiest days of her life. She’d laughed and eaten until she thought she would throw up. They’d done a three-legged race and had danced under the stars to the band playing late into the night. Back at Evan’s house, they had made love and fallen asleep in each other’s arms. It had been a perfect day. And now, it was all gone.
Sally thought back to the things that Evan had said. That people would talk, that he couldn’t be with her anymore. She would ruin him, that’s what he had said. Had she been so foolish to think that he would still love her after he found out who she really was? She placed the picture in the drawer of the nightstand and stood to get dressed. She needed to figure out what she was going to do with the rest of her life.
Evan
After almost three weeks in the hospital, Evan was cleared to go home. He would need to rest at home for a while longer so his lung could heal and would need physical therapy to help regain the strength he’d lost from being in bed for so long. Walker, the deputy that had saved his ass, drove him home.
“As pissed as the Mayor was when you had GPS trackers installed on all the cruisers, it sure paid off,” Walker was saying. “That’s the only way we could’ve found you. Smart thinking you putting one on your truck too.”
Evan nodded as Walker talked, interjecting when necessary. He wasn’t talking much these days. Truth be told, he’d been in a funk since the nurse had told him that Sally had never come to see him in the hospital. He honestly couldn’t blame her after the things he’d said. He had hoped she would give him the chance to explain that he didn’t mean them. That he loved her no matter what. That he didn’t give a damn what anyone else thought, or about his career, or his business. All he cared about was her. But he’d never had the chance. He’d tried calling her from the hospital but it always went to voicemail and he couldn’t bring himself to leave a message. He needed to see her, to talk to her, to hold her and tell her everything.
“More than you can possibly eat,” Walker was saying.
“I’m sorry, what? I must’ve been daydreaming,” Evan responded.
Walker smiled kindly at him, knowing where his boss’ thoughts most likely were. “Everybody’s been bringing food to the station. Leanne’s been taking it to your house, stocking your freezer. She said there’s enough there to keep you from having to cook until next spring.”
“That’s great,” Evan said, without much feeling. He loved his town and the people in it, he truly did. Their generosity did touch him but he was far too preoccupied, stuck inside his own head.
Walker pulled up to Evan’s ranch and came around the side to help him out. Evan still moved rather gingerly, his side still burning from time to time if he stepped the wrong way. The deputy gathered the small duffel with Evan’s things and followed him to the house. Evan opened the side door to find his kitchen full of flowers, balloons, cards and a banner reading, “Welcome Home Sherriff!”
“I told Leanne you wouldn’t want all the fuss but you know how she gets. And Minnie was right there egging her on. Shit, those two are mother hens if I ever saw some,” Walker laughed.
“Tell her I appreciate it would you? I’m going to take a few days before I start returning calls,” Evan said, perching himself gingerly on a high stool.
“No problem Sherriff,” Walker said. “If there’s nothing else you need, I’ll leave you to it.”
Evan stood and held out his hand, giving Walker’s a quick squeeze. “I owe you Ben,” he said.
“Nothing of it, Sherriff,” Walker stated, slapping his shoulder and seeing himself out.
Evan went to his room and tried to relax but he couldn’t get Sally off his mind. He tried calling again but this time instead of going to voicemail, a voice came on stating that the number was disconnected. Evan felt his stomach plummet. He dialed the number for Buck’s, hoping she would answer.
“Buck’s,” Buck Carter’s gruff voice barked into the phone.
“Buck, it’s Evan, is Sally there,” he asked, holding his breath.
After what seemed like forever, Buck finally responded. “Sally’s gone Evan. Turn’t in her keys and left town about a week ago.”
THE END
Cowboy Romance
Sally and Evan: Take Me Home
Book Three
Rose Haven
Sally and Evan: Take Me Home
Evan
Evan wasn’t quite sure he’d heard right.
“Say that again Buck,” he asked
“I’m sorry Evan but Sally turn’t in her keys ‘bout a week ago and cleared out. I thought you knew,” the older man said sympathetically.
“No, I had no idea. Thanks Buck,” Evan said and hung up the phone. Right now he wasn’t sure what hurt worse, the healing hole in his lungs or the twisting in his gut. Damn it all to hell. If he would have just left a message, just let her know that he hadn’t meant what he’d said, Sally wouldn’t have left. Or maybe she would have. If Evan really thought about it, he didn’t know Sally at all. Shit, her name wasn’t even Sally. Casey. The name sounded so foreign on his tongue.
He was having a hard time putting everything together in hi
s head. He couldn’t make it make sense. His instinct had told him from the get-go that she’d been hiding something. That she was running away. Her file said she was from Indiana but her accent had said otherwise. She’d seemed skittish at first, quick to jump if startled. Evan never in a hundred years would have figured she’d been party to drug deals and violence. That wasn’t the woman he knew. The woman he loved.
Evan had never let himself get this close to anyone before. He’d watched his strong bull of a father wither and die when his mother passed. He had been terrified of that depth of love and he’d never allowed himself to get close to it. Until Sally. The wrenching in his stomach right now was proof that he loved her that much. That despite all of the lies and surprises, he would go to his grave for her. He damn near did.
When he’d first woken up and found that Sally hadn’t been to the hospital, he was angry. He’d doubted the love she’d professed to him. If she loved him like she said she did why wasn’t she here holding his hand, giving him ice chips, smoothing his hair from his forehead the way she did when he lay with his head in her lap? He let himself think that he was just another guy whose attention she’d lapped up like a lost dog. Those first few days he’d been quite a prick to anyone who dared a visit to his room.
It wasn’t until Walker came in one afternoon to see him that he got a reality check. Walker told Evan how Sally had reacted when he’d been shot. How her tiny frame single-handedly pulled his large body onto the floor and put her hands over the hole in his side to stem the flow of blood from the wound. How she’d cradled his head in her lap and whispered “please don’t die Evan, I love you” over and over while her tears splashed onto his face. How she’d refused to let the paramedics take him to the hospital without her and had refused to eat, drink, or even wash his blood off of her until she knew he’d made it through his surgery. Then the anger faded and the heart-hurt took over. He’d have rather been angry.
BILLIONAIRE ROMANCE: The Unforgettable Billionaires: The Complete Collection Boxed Set 1-12 (Young Adult Rich Alpha Male Billionaire Romance) (Alpha Bad Boy Billionaire Romance) Page 121