Her daughter began wiggling in Rachel’s lap. She put her back down on the floor. Katie waddled to the blocks and sent them flying with a giggle. Then she headed out of the den.
Rachel pushed herself to her feet. “She’s a girl on a mission.” No doubt looking for Michelle.
As Rachel exited the den, she glimpsed Katie disappearing around the corner heading toward the foyer and living room. When Rachel found her in the entry hall, her daughter was turning around in a circle, a frown crinkling her forehead.
“Mimi?”
Before Rachel could respond, Michelle shouted from the porch, “You don’t understand. You can’t!”
As Rachel snatched Katie up in her arms, Michelle shoved the front door open, stomped across the foyer and took the stairs two at a time.
Katie followed her, her forehead crinkled. She tried to twist from Rachel’s arms. “Mimi! Mimi!”
“Let’s go see Nana, sweet pea.” She held her close as she hurried back to the den. Why was Michelle so angry at Dallas?
* * *
Dallas leaned against a post on the porch, darkness blanketing the landscape. The second Michelle had stepped out of the house she’d wanted to know everything going on in the case. He told her they were making progress, but that was all he’d said.
Behind him the front door opened. He looked over his shoulder as Rachel approached him, worry on her face.
She stood next to him. “Are you all right?”
“How much did you hear?”
“Only when she stormed into the house.”
“She doesn’t want me to work the case anymore.”
“What? Why?”
“She wouldn’t tell me.” He dropped his head and stared at the step below him, kneading the tight muscles in his neck with one hand.
Rachel clasped his free hand. “Wait till she calms down. A lot has happened to her.”
“I know. I should be here for her, but we’re too close to a breakthrough. I can’t stop now.”
“Remember she’s the one who insisted you look for Brady.”
“And if my nephew isn’t found, I know my daughter. She’ll blame herself.” He took Rachel’s other hand. It felt so right standing there with her.
Rachel rose up on tiptoes and brushed her mouth against his. “Also remember she’s nearly fourteen, and that’s not an easy time for a teenage girl.”
He slid one arm around her waist and brought her closer, kissing her. “Thanks for being here.”
“I could say the same thing.” She reached up and cupped the side of his face. “Tell you what. I’ll go up and see if Michelle will talk to me. Katie needs to be put to bed. I’m glad I’m here to do it. I’ll see if Michelle wants to help me.”
He touched her hand on his face, brought it around and kissed the palm. “Thanks.”
After Rachel left him alone on the porch, his cell phone rang, and he quickly answered a call from Taylor. “Did you find the car?”
“Sort of. I found the person who owns it. It’s Jamie Johnson and he lives at the Fowler Ranch.”
“I’ll go pay him a visit. Thanks.” Dallas glanced at the front door. He’d go see the guy alone and let Rachel be a mother. That was the least he could do for her.
NINE
After Rachel turned off Katie’s overhead light, a soft glow from the nightlight illuminated the room as she and Michelle tiptoed out into the hall. “She’s finally asleep. I wasn’t sure she would lie down. Thanks for helping me.”
Michelle lowered her head. “I’m sorry about earlier downstairs. I hope I didn’t scare Katie.”
“You didn’t. Are you all right now?”
“Yes—no.”
Rachel smiled. “Which is it?”
“No.” The teen’s shoulders hunched forward. “Dad’s probably angry with me.”
“No, he isn’t. Just concerned. So am I. We’re getting closer to finding Brady. He thought you would be happy about that.”
“I am, but y’all were in a bad wreck today. Someone was shooting at you. I can’t lose him, too!”
Rachel’s room was across from Katie’s. “Come on in here and tell me how you found out about it. We didn’t want you to know.”
“How much have you kept from me?”
Rachel sat on her bed while Michelle began pacing. “That’s the only thing that happened to him.”
“But not you. I overheard your mom and dad talking about your near misses.”
Rachel patted the mattress next her. “Sit down. I’ll tell you what we’ve been doing these past few days.” She recounted everything from her wreck to possibly finding the getaway car in Brady’s kidnapping. “If we discover whose car it is, we might have found the kidnapper.”
“I shouldn’t have yelled, but...” The teen glanced away and rubbed her thumb into her palm as though she were trying to pierce a hole in her hand.
Rachel waited a moment for her to finish her sentence. When she didn’t, she asked, “But what?”
Michelle lifted her face and looked at Rachel. When the teen opened her mouth to reply, nothing came out.
Rachel slipped her arm around her shoulders. “You don’t have to tell me, but you should tell your dad what’s bothering you.”
“I can’t! I—I don’t want to remind him.”
“Remind him of what? You can tell me, honey.”
Tears pooled in Michelle’s eyes. “My mom left my dad because of me.”
Rachel’s heart cracked at Michelle’s pain-filled words. “Why do you say that?”
“I heard her and Dad fighting. She told him she was leaving. She didn’t want to be a mother anymore—that there was more to life than that. Dad tried to get her to stay, but she told him that he could have full custody of me. The next thing I heard was the front door slamming shut.” Tears flowed down her face, dropping onto her lap.
Rachel’s own eyes welled up with tears. She drew Michelle into her embrace, her heart cracking apart at the sound of the girl’s sobbing.
“I can’t lose Dad,” Michelle mumbled, cradled in the shelter of Rachel’s arms.
Katie would never know her father. Even if he had lived, Rachel didn’t think he would have been part of Katie’s life. The thought broke her heart.
Finally, Michelle pulled back from Rachel and gently swiped her tears away. “Please don’t tell Dad.”
“I promise I won’t, but I do recommend you have a talk with him.”
“Oh, Rachel, what if he dies?”
“As you know, my dad was the county sheriff for a long time. I remember when I was a young girl I kept chewing on my clothes. I was ruining shirt after shirt. Mom finally sat me down and asked me what was going on. It had been my way of handling the stress of watching Dad leave each day and go to his job. Not long before that, he’d been in a shootout. He didn’t get hurt, but a deputy did. I kept thinking that could be my father.”
Michelle’s eyes grew round.
“Mom called Dad into the room, and we talked about how I was feeling. He hugged me, then looked me right in the eye and said, ‘You can’t worry about when you’ll die. That’s in the Lord’s hands. Only He knows the time, and until then, He wants you to enjoy every moment of your life. That’s called living to your full potential.’ I never forgot those words. My dad was meant to help people and keep them safe. In that moment, I knew I wanted to do the same thing when I grew up.” Her father’s words had changed her but also had brought her closer to the Lord. She’d lost her trust in God, and the hate and anger toward her husband had filled in the void. That needed to change.
“How can I stop worrying?”
“That’s a good question, and I’ve struggled with that. But I’d forgotten another thing my dad told me. Trust God. If you do, you don’t have to worry. I haven’t been doing that lately. I’ve been angry at God. Tha
t can take over your life, and you begin to look at everything in a negative light.”
“So you think I should talk to Dad?”
“Yes, when you’re ready.”
Michelle hugged Rachel. “Thanks.”
“If you ever need to talk, I’m here for you anytime.” Rachel rose. “I’m hoping in the next couple of days we can find your cousin and wrap up the case.”
“Me, too. I miss Brady.” Michelle rubbed her eyes. “I miss our ranch and my horses.”
“You should ride one of my dad’s.”
“He mentioned that today.” Michelle headed for the hallway. “Are you going to bed?”
“No. Your dad and I need to finish some things up first. Good night.”
Out in the corridor, Michelle hugged Rachel again, then headed for her bedroom.
Rachel walked toward the den. When she entered the room, she glanced at the table. Empty. Where was Dallas?
She went in search of him. In the kitchen, her father was making a pot of coffee. “I thought you were in bed already.”
“Nope. I’m taking the first watch.”
“Where’s Dallas?”
“He’s running down a clue.” Her dad searched the cabinet for a mug.
She clenched her hands into fists. “Why didn’t he come get me? And what vehicle did he use?”
Slowly her father swung around to face her. “I gave him the keys to the SUV delivered late today for him. He called Deputy Jones to meet him at the Fowler Ranch so he’ll have backup.”
“Without consulting me!”
“I told him I would tell you. You were busy putting Katie to bed. You haven’t gotten much time with her these past few days.”
“What clue did he get? At least you can tell me that.” Hurt mingled with anger.
“Who the compact car was registered to. It belongs to Jamie Johnson who works and bunks at Fowler Ranch. He hasn’t been there very long. He used to work on a ranch in the El Paso area.”
She thought of how close the Fowler Ranch was to the residential area where Lenora and Paul lived. Had Johnson been stalking them, looking for the right time to abduct the baby? Then what did the lost bracelet and the Baby and Things store have to do with the case? “I’m in charge of this investigation, and I don’t like the fact you two went around me.” She strode out of the kitchen.
Her father came after her. “What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to the Fowler Ranch right now.”
“What about the warrant for Baby and Things? ”
“I’ll do the warrant later.” She exited the house and marched to her cruiser, furious that not only her father but Dallas was trying to protect her.
What right did they have?
* * *
As Dallas hopped from his new SUV at the Fowler Ranch his cell phone rang, and he quickly answered it. “Did you get his driver’s license picture?” he asked Taylor.
“Yes, just sent it to you.”
“Thanks. I’ll let you know what happens.” Dallas noted the text from Taylor had come through and opened it. The face of the dead man in the grove stared back at him. Jamie Johnson was the male kidnapper.
Deputy Jones pulled up behind Dallas’s vehicle, parked in front of Houston Fowler’s main house, and Dallas headed for the cruiser. “We’ve gotten a break in the case. Johnson was half of the kidnapping team.” Dallas showed the deputy the picture of the dead man’s driver’s license.
“Yeah, the station has received two calls about him. They recognized his picture that was just released to the press.”
“Have you called Rachel?”
“Not yet. I thought the sheriff would be here with you.”
“Let Fowler know why we’re at his ranch. We need to check the bunkhouse where Johnson stayed as well as the men who worked with him. I’ll let Rachel know. She was busy so I left without telling her.”
Jones smiled. “I think I’ve got the easier job.”
Dallas was beginning to think the same, especially now that he knew Johnson was definitely one of the kidnappers. But she’d looked exhausted when she went inside to put Katie to bed. Dallas leaned against the back of his SUV and called Rachel’s cell phone.
“I started to ignore your call just like you ignored informing me of a break in the case,” she answered.
From the sound of steel woven through her words, he was in deep trouble. “Jamie Johnson, who works for Houston Fowler, is the owner of the car we saw on the billboard surveillance camera. I—”
“And you didn’t think I should be told that,” she interrupted, anger fueling her words now.
“Right after you left the porch, I got a call from my office about the owner of the car. Just now I heard from Taylor and received the driver’s license of Jamie Johnson. He’s the man who kidnapped Brady. He’s the dead guy we found in the grove earlier today.”
Rachel sucked in a deep breath. “And the guy who attacked me twice. Don’t ever keep me in the dark again, even if you think I need the rest. Let me decide. I’m only five miles away from the ranch.”
After three attempts to hurt Rachel in so many days, his first impulse was to say she shouldn’t have come by herself. What if there was a fourth attempt? But he remained silent.
“Deputy Jones is talking with Fowler right now.” Dallas glanced at the deputy talking to the ranch owner. “And Fowler doesn’t look too happy.” What if Fowler was the person behind the baby-shopping ring? “See you in a few minutes.” He disconnected and marched toward the pair on the porch.
Dallas stuck out his hand. “It’s nice to meet you Mr. Fowler. I’m Texas Ranger Dallas Sanders, and I’m working this case with the sheriff’s department.”
The ranch owner glared at Dallas, but Fowler shook his hand with a tight clasp, as though he were challenging him. “It’s nearly eleven o’clock at night. I was on my way to bed. A little heads-up would have been nice. Where’s Sheriff Young?”
“She’ll be here in a couple of minutes. We’d like to search the bunkhouse. Is Jamie Johnson’s car here?”
“How should I know? My foreman runs the ranch. I don’t have a lot to do with it. I’ve already cooperated with the sheriff’s office a few days ago. We hardly ever use that back entrance into the ranch.”
“Who is your foreman and where does he live so we can talk to him, too? When did Jamie Johnson start working for you?” Dallas asked as he glimpsed Rachel pulling up behind the deputy’s cruiser.
“Chuck Stallings. He hires the guys that work for me. You’ll have to ask him. My real estate company is where my attention is, not the ranch.”
Dallas ground his teeth together. “May we search the bunkhouse? Remember, two babies have been kidnapped recently.”
“Fine. I’ll call my foreman. He’ll meet you there. It’s behind the barn. The view is blocked from here.” Fowler waved his hand in the general direction then pivoted and stormed into his house, the slamming of the front door reverberating through the night air.
“I see Houston Fowler isn’t happy with you,” Rachel said as she approached.
Dallas frowned and started for the bunkhouse. “That’s too bad.”
While her deputy stood back, Rachel followed him, matching his strides. “We’ll talk later about what you did to me. Right now, have you thought about who was driving Johnson’s car tonight to the shopping center? So far, I haven’t discovered a dead man can drive.”
“Yes, and I’m having my office look at footage around the shopping center to see if they can figure out where the car went after it left. Also because Baby and Things is in San Antonio, I’m having Taylor, who has been helping out on this case, get a warrant for the store and meet us there first thing in the morning when it opens.”
“Was I going to be included in the search of Baby and Things?”
“Yes, of course
.” He lowered his voice so Deputy Jones couldn’t hear. “But I’m not the one who was punched in the face twice and been in two car wrecks. You needed the rest.”
“If the circumstances had been reversed, would you have been okay if I’d done that to you?”
“Okay. You’re right. I blew it. But my intentions were genuine.”
“I can take care of myself.”
“I know.” And he did. But that didn’t stop him from wanting to protect her. He cared about her. He...no, he wasn’t going there. Not yet.
Dallas hung back when an older man came around the barn. Rachel greeted him. As he and Deputy Jones approached them, he realized Rachel was talking with the foreman.
“You didn’t see Jamie Johnson after he left early this morning?”
Chuck Stallings nodded.
“Did he drive his car or is it here?”
“He drove his car, and he hasn’t come back yet. Has he done something wrong?” The foreman looked right at Dallas.
“This is Texas Ranger Sanders. We found Johnson’s dead body earlier today. He was murdered.”
“I’m really not surprised. It didn’t take much to get him angry. But I’ll say he was a good cowhand.”
“How long has he worked at this ranch?” Dallas asked.
“He’s been here a couple of months. I got a reference from a guy in El Paso I used to know. We worked together on a ranch when we were younger.”
Dallas paused a few extra seconds in case Rachel wanted to say anything. When she didn’t, he asked, “Which ranch?”
“The Ace in the Hole Ranch. He’s the foreman there. Mr. Fowler said you wanted to check the bunkhouse. There are only two other cowhands staying there.”
“How many cowhands do you have?”
“Twelve. Only the guys who are single choose to live in the bunkhouse. Most of them have been with us for years.”
“Are the other two guys here right now?” Rachel asked.
“One is. The other is out checking the herd. Both of them have been with us for a couple of years. Johnson is the only new cowhand. I can unlock his room. Each one has their own space.” The foreman walked toward the bunkhouse with a long porch that ran the length of the front.
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