Angels Landing

by Rochelle Alers

  Chapter Nineteen

  Kara sat on a gurney in the ER’s examining room, waiting for Jeff. She was examined, her chest x-rayed, and medically cleared to be discharged. Home for her wasn’t Sanctuary Cove or Angels Landing. It was nowhere on Cavanaugh Island. Home was Little Rock. She was going to forfeit her birthright. He walked into the room, and she didn’t know how, but she’d managed to hide her love for him behind a façade of indifference. The strain of possibly losing his grandmother was apparent by the lines bracketing his firm mouth.

  “How is she?”

  “They’re going to keep her for a couple of days.”

  Kara couldn’t stem the tears filling her eyes. “She’s in this hospital because of me.”

  “Stop it, Kara! I’m not going to let you blame yourself for something you couldn’t control.”

  “But I could control it, Jeff. If I’d packed up and left the first time someone threw a brick through the window, your grandmother wouldn’t be lying in a hospital fighting for her life.”

  “Gram is not fighting for her life. She has a little trouble breathing, so they have her on oxygen.”

  “Don’t, Jeff.”

  “Don’t what?”

  “Don’t try to minimize what happened. What if I hadn’t been there when that smoke bomb came through the window? What if I’d gone for a walk instead of sitting on the porch? Your grandmother would’ve died, Jeff, because I’m too stiff-necked to accept the truth. Eden is right. I’m an outsider, and the people on the island will never accept me. And the fact that I’m Taylor’s daughter is of no consequence to anyone. At least not to the Pattons.”

  Jeff moved closer. “I told you I would protect you.”

  “I know. But the truth is you can’t. No one can.” Kara couldn’t stop her chin from trembling. “I’m trouble, Jeff. I’ve been trouble since the moment I discovered I was Taylor’s daughter. It’s like there’s a bull’s-eye on my back that says hit her with a brick. What’s next? A bottle filled with gasoline and a lighted rag? I may be some crazy’s target, but how many others will become collateral damage if they were to come after me again? I’m going to call David and let him know that I’m giving up the house and the two thousand acres. After that, I’m calling my mother and father to tell them I’m coming home.”

  A shudder shook Jeff as he met her eyes. “You can’t leave.”

  “Why not?”

  A beat passed. “Because I love you.”

  Kara couldn’t stop the sob that began in her throat. “And I love you, Jeff. I love you so much my heart hurts. But our love isn’t enough to protect those we love.”

  Bending slightly, Jeff scooped her off the gurney. “I didn’t visit hell, not once but twice, while losing my soul when I did unspeakable acts all in the name of war, to let you walk away from me, Kara Newell.”

  “You can’t stop me from leaving.”

  “Yes, I can. I’ll lock you up and keep you in jail until I find out who’s trying to run you out of town.”

  “You can’t.”

  He gave her a lethal stare. “Do you want to test me? I thought not,” he said when she didn’t answer. “I’m going to hire someone to watch Angels Landing around the clock. Wherever you go, they go. Think of yourself as the first lady with a secret service detail.”

  “That’s not funny,” she countered.

  “No, it’s not. Now, we’re going home where I’ll pick up a change of clothes. I’m going to drop you off at the station house where you’ll stay until I return. Then we’re going to Angels Landing to stay in your guesthouse for the night. You will come with me tomorrow to bring my grandmother home before your house arrest begins.”

  “You’re really going to lock me up?”

  “You can stay in our break room. It’s where we bed down while on duty.”

  “Will I be allowed one phone call to my lawyer?” she teased.

  “You can call anyone you want.”

  Kara laid her head on Jeff’s shoulder. Why now? she asked herself. Why did he wait until she was ready to walk out of his life to admit that he loved her? He’d promised to protect her from a phantom who struck without warning, not caring who stood in their way.

  “Can I see Miss Corrine before we leave?”

  “She’s resting.”

  “What about Oliver?”

  “I called my clerk and told her to take him to the vet. I’ll stop by and check on him, too.”

  I can’t believe I’m doing a bid. Kara tried to find a comfortable position as she lay on a cot with a too thin mattress in a room that looked directly into a cell. She may not have been behind bars, but she definitely was spending time in a police station. She and Jeff had returned to the Cove where she changed clothes and packed an overnight bag with enough clothes for two days.

  Kenny peered at her through the half-open door. “Do you need anything, Kara?”

  “No, thank you. I’m good here.”

  “I’ll have you know the boss told me to change the linen.”

  “Thank you, Deputy Collins.”

  “Please call me Kenny.”

  “Okay, Kenny.”

  “You can turn on the TV if you want.”

  Kara just wanted to tell the deputy to go away and leave her alone so she could think. She’d called David, but his secretary told her he was out of the office and wouldn’t return until the following day. She left a message for him to call her.

  Everyone on the island was chatting about the incident at Corrine’s house. There was talk that if and when they found the person, he or she would beg the police to get them before they meted out their own form of Cavanaugh Island justice.

  Turning on her side, she closed her eyes and miraculously fell asleep.

  Jeff walked into the Angels Landing town hall, heading for the mayor’s office. He knocked on the open door, garnering Harlan’s assistant’s attention. “Good afternoon, Erin. Is Harlan in?” There was something about Erin that reminded him of Kara’s friend Dawn.

  “He is, but he’s in a meeting with someone very important.”

  Bracing both hands on her desk, Jeff leaned closer. “Who is he?”

  Her round blue eyes looked like marbles. “I can’t tell you his name.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because Harlan told me I was never to mention his name in or out of the office.”

  “Do you have his business card?”

  She smiled. “Yes.” Opening her desk drawer, Erin took out a card and slid it across her desk.

  “Bingo.” The man with Harlan was from the same company who’d sent Porter to soften up Kara. “Don’t bother to announce me.”

  “Wait, Jeff. You don’t have to go in to hear what they’re saying.” She handed him a tiny earpiece, then flipped a switch on a box in a drawer in her desk. “Sit over there and pretend you’re waiting.”

  “Why are you doing this?” he asked.

  “Because I hate the greedy bastard. If Harlan knew that I listen in on his meetings with these vultures, not only would he fire me, but he would also have me arrested.”

  Jeff winked at her. “I promise not to out you.” He placed the listening device in his right ear, then sat on a wooden bench.

  He recognized Harlan’s voice immediately: “You can’t come in here and threaten me.”

  “And why not, Mayor Patton? You told me the girl wouldn’t stay. Not only is she staying, but she’s turning the house into a museum.”

  “The house, Scott. The house isn’t two thousand acres.”

  “Take your head out of your ass, Patton. If the house becomes a museum, what do you think is going to happen with the rest of the property? It will become a mini-Williamsburg. I want you to put more pressure on her.”

  “Eden tried talking to her.”

  “I’m not talking about lip service, Patton. I’m talking about action. I had my people send her a message by throwing a brick through her window, but apparently it didn’t work. I’m certain this morning’s brick with the pe
pper grenade got her attention. There won’t be any more bricks. The next time there will be a bullet with her name on it.”

  “You’re nothing but a piece of shit if you think I’m going to be a party to murdering my cousin or hurting anyone else on this island. We protect our people, not take them out. And the other woman in that house just happened to be the sheriff’s grandmother. What do you think is going to happen when he finds out you were behind the latest bully scheme?”

  “I’m not concerned about your sheriff. Let’s get back to Miss Newell. I thought she wasn’t your cousin.”

  “Of course, she’s my cousin. We asked for the DNA test and said we were going to contest the will to intimidate her.”

  “Well, apparently intimidation doesn’t work with your cousin because she’s still here. And that means we now are going to do things my way.”

  “You’re not going to hurt her, Scott.”

  “You’re right. What we’re going to do is eliminate her. I know people who can make her disappear just like Jimmy Hoffa.”

  “Get the hell out of here before I call the sheriff.”

  “Call him. She’s still gone.”

  Jeff had heard enough. He stood up, walked past Erin, and pushed open the door to Harlan’s office. “What’s this I hear that you were looking for me, Harlan?” Both men stared at him as if they’d seen a ghost. “Scott Pierce,” he crooned. “May I call you, Scott?”

  The slightly built, deeply tanned man in what appeared to be a three thousand dollar suit and imported footwear, perfectly barbered black hair, and equally black eyes glared at him. “I’m sorry, but I don’t know you.”

  “And you really don’t want to know me, Mr. Pierce. I just happen to be the sheriff of this beautiful island you’re looking to turn into your own personal playground. And the woman you plan to make disappear is someone I love very much.” He rested his right hand on the butt of his gun. “How are we going to do this? The easy way or the hard way?”

  “You can’t arrest me.”

  “And why not?”

  “You can’t prove anything. Patton and I were discussing business.”

  “Business that included you threatening my cousin,” Harlan said. He opened a desk drawer and pushed a button.

  Jeff watched the natural color drain from the man’s face when he heard his words played back on the tape. “You can’t tape me without my permission.”

  Harlan smiled. “That’s where you’re wrong. Legally I can tape every meeting in my office. Jeff, please get this garbage out of here.”

  Jeff took a pair of handcuffs off his gun belt, stood behind the dapper developer, and cuffed his wrists. “Scott Pierce, you’re under arrest for conspiracy to commit murder. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say or do can and will be held against you in a court of law. You have the right to speak to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed for you. Do you understand these rights?” He turned to Harlan. “Please call Charleston PD and tell them to have a bus waiting at the causeway.”

  “It’ll be my pleasure. I’m sorry I ever got involved with this pond scum, but I hope to make up for it when I get to testify against him in court.” He offered Jeff his hand. “Thank you. And please let Kara know how sorry we are for the way we treated her. As you know, we can be a lethal bunch when we feel threatened. To make up for our behavior, I’d like to arrange a get together so we can give her a proper welcome and apology.”

  Kara lay in bed with Jeff, her leg resting over his. The room was pitch-black. A thunderstorm had temporarily knocked out the power on the island. When she couldn’t find any candles in the guesthouse, they’d decided to go to bed early.

  “How long do you think we’ll be in the dark?”

  “It all depends.”

  “On what, Jeff?”

  “If it’s a blown transformer or if a line is down. The one thing I know is there will be zero crime on the island tonight.”

  She laughed. “Cavanaugh Island is dark enough without a blackout.”

  Jeff shifted on his side, pulling Kara to his chest. “Thankfully it doesn’t happen too often. After the last one most folks bought generators.”

  “What time are we leaving tomorrow to pick up your grandmother?”

  “Any time after ten. We’ll pick her up, then go to Haven Creek to get Oliver; then we’re going home.”

  “Miss Corrine and her baby both had overnight stays in the hospital.”

  Jeff chuckled. “You know the first one she asked about was Oliver. I told her he was at an animal hospital in the Creek, and the vet wanted to keep him overnight for observation.”

  “Do you think I’ll ever get my dog back?” Kara asked with a smile.

  “That’s something you’re going to have to take up with Gram.”

  A beat passed. “I still can’t believe Harlan knew who was behind the threats against me.”

  “He didn’t know until this morning, Kara. Your cousin felt he could intimidate you by forcing you to take the DNA test and by contesting Taylor’s will, but he had no idea Scott was resorting to violence.”

  “Did you suspect Harlan was behind the brick throwing?”

  “I wasn’t certain whether he was behind it, but I suspected he knew something. Instinct told me the Pattons were involved in some way because of Eden’s visits.”

  “What about Porter?”

  “I gave the DA his name, and he says he’s going to subpoena Mr. Caldwell as a witness for the prosecution.”

  Kara didn’t want to believe it was over, that she didn’t have to leave the people she’d come to love. “Will I be called in to testify?”

  “If the DA can convince Pierce to accept a plea, then you won’t. It would be in his best interest to accept it because legally you could sue him and his company, and I don’t think he’d want that.”

  “If he does take the plea, what will he get? A suspended sentence? Probation?”

  “I don’t know, baby. I’m not an attorney.”

  “But Eden is,” Kara countered.

  “What is it you want?”

  “I want restitution. If Pierce accepts a plea, then I want Eden to sue the hell out of him and his company. I want them barred from doing business in South Carolina, and I want whatever money we get to go to charities dedicated to advocating for women and their children. And don’t you dare say it, Jeff. Yes, I’m still a social worker. Now that I’ve decided to stay I’m going to apply for a part-time social work position with either the public schools or a municipal hospital.”

  “What other plans have you made, baby?”

  “That’s it,” she said.

  “What about us?”

  She smiled. “What about us, Jeff?”

  “How long do you think we’re going to shack up together without getting married?”

  Kara tried turning over, but Jeff’s arm wouldn’t permit her to move. “You were the one who invited me to live with you and your grandmother.”

  “That was before you were in jeopardy and before Gram needed someone to keep her company. We’ve uncovered who was behind the threat to force you to leave, and Gram has bonded with Oliver, so there’s no need for us to live together.”

  “Your grandmother can’t take my dog!”

  “You can fight with Corrine Hamilton if you want, but you’ll wind up on the losing end.” They both shared a laugh before Jeff cupped Kara’s chin in his hands. “I love you, Kara, and I don’t know how else to say it.”

  “Say what?”

  “Marry me.”

  Kara felt her heart beating through her chest. Jeff had just uttered the two words that lay in her heart when she’d been too much of a coward to acknowledge that was what she’d wanted from the first time they’d slept together. She’d fallen in love with Jeff. He was someone who made her feel safe, someone she could envision growing old with. She knew living with him was fodder for gossip, and as sheriff his morality would be called into question when it was time for his r
eelection.

  “I marry you and what happens after that?”

  “That would depend on you, Kara. I want children, but if you don’t, then I’ll accept your decision. I want to spend the rest of my life here, but if you don’t, then I’ll follow you wherever you decide to go. And if I was still in the corps and you didn’t want to become a military wife, I would resign my commission. I love you that much.”

  Tears of happiness pricked the backs of her eyelids. A man who’d told his cousin that he should’ve let his girlfriend love him more than he loved her had just flipped the script. Kara loved Jeff, and she suspected he loved her more. “Love is not about giving up what you want for the other person. It’s about sharing what you have. I want to marry you and give you a baby, lots of babies before I get too old, and I want to spend the rest of my life on Cavanaugh Island. And when I die, I want to be buried in the cemetery with the Pattons who came before me. I’m home, Jeffrey Hamilton, because you’ve become my home.”

  Jeff moved over Kara, supporting his greater weight on his forearms. “You have just made me the happiest man in the entire world.”

  “Kiss me, babe. Kiss me and make love to me so I know this is real.”

  He nuzzled her neck. “I can kiss you, but I can’t make love to you because I didn’t bring protection with me.”

  Kara’s fingertips trailed up and down Jeff’s back. “I thought we’d get a jump on starting a family.”

  “I guess you don’t want to have a long engagement.”

  “Of course not. I’ve always wanted to be a June bride, and that means we’ll have to plan something quickly.”

  “Your father and my buddies are getting together over the Memorial Day weekend. We can use the occasion to get married and have a blowout of a reception on the beach.”

  “I love the idea of having a beachfront ceremony, but I’d like to hold the reception here at Angels Landing. A caterer can set up tents and tables, and we can invite the entire island to attend.”

  Jeff caressed the length of her leg and thigh. “Do you plan to invite the Pattons?”