Highly Compromised Position

by Sara Orwig

  “No, I talked to Connor.” In seconds Nita answered. “Here,” Tom said, handing Rose the phone. He listened while she talked slowly to Nita and then Will before she handed the phone back to Tom.

  “She’s about asleep,” Tom said.

  “Thanks for calling us,” Will answered. “Nita will be in to see her tomorrow.”

  “That will be good,” Tom said. Rose had closed her eyes and she was breathing deeply and evenly. “I’ll stay with Rose. I’m not leaving.”

  “Thanks, Tom. Thanks for saving her.”

  “She saved herself, but it was good we were there to get her to the hospital. I hope to hell they have Durmorr by now.”

  “We haven’t heard anything,” Will replied. Tom thought that might be bad news, because Connor would be one of the first people Gavin would tell when Malcolm was caught.

  Tom told Will goodbye, then stood to stretch his aching muscles. As he did, he saw himself in the mirror and grimaced. He was surprised they hadn’t booted him out of the hospital, except they were probably accustomed to people in all sorts of disarray in emergencies. His black hair was tangled; he had smudges of smoke on his face and arms. His T-shirt was ripped and smudged with soot.

  He raked his fingers through his hair and then gave it up. He sat beside Rose again.

  He longed to hold her, but he was afraid he would hurt her. He moved closer and brushed her hair lightly away from her face with his fingers.

  He wanted to marry her.

  He stroked her fingers lightly. She responded to him like a woman in love.

  “I love you,” he declared in the quiet room. He leaned forward to kiss her cheek. When he had seen her tumble from Durmorr’s car, his heart had stopped beating. He had been more frightened than any other time in his life. He was going to have to do some real convincing, though, to get her to believe him.

  He took her hand gently, slowly closing his fingers around hers. “I love you, Rose,” he said again. Even though she couldn’t hear him, he liked declaring his love to her. Quietly he sat in the semidarkness, holding her hand until his arm went to sleep. He released her and turned his chair so he could still hold her hand while stretching out his legs and he fell asleep.

  Tom stirred and opened his eyes to find Rose watching him. He still held her hand in his and he smiled at her. “Good morning.”

  “Thank you for saving me,” she said and winced.

  “You saved yourself. I’m sorry he got to you in the first place. Don’t try to talk, because I know it hurts.”

  “I want to talk to you. Thanks for staying with me through the night.”

  “I wanted to be with you,” he said, glancing down at his soot-covered clothes. “How do you feel?”

  “Sleepy and sore but otherwise all right. No cramping.”

  “Thank heaven.”

  She squeezed his hand. “I’m glad you’re here.”

  “Rose,” he whispered her name, leaning forward. “You can’t imagine how much I want to hold you. I won’t, because I know it will hurt you, but—”

  He never got to finish because a nurse bustled into the room. “We’re going for another test,” she said cheerfully and Tom stood.

  “I’ll see you later, Rose.” He left and waited through a test and then a visit from the doctor, who finally appeared to tell Tom he could go back and join Rose.

  “I can go home,” she said.

  “Great,” he exclaimed, delight making him smile. His worries and fears for her well-being finally fell away. “Rose, that’s so good that you’re all right and they’re releasing you. I’ll bring my pickup to the door.”

  It was another half hour before the hospital personnel helped Rose get into Tom’s pickup.

  “I’m glad to be out of there,” she said as they drove away.

  He took her hand and raised it to brush light kisses across her knuckles. “Can you make one more stop at my condo while I get some clean clothes? I keep things both there and on the Devlin ranch.”

  “I’d like to see your condo.”

  “Happy to oblige,” he replied, and in minutes they passed through the gates in Pine Valley, where he drove to another small gated area of half a dozen elegant one-story condos.

  “Come inside and see my place. But I’ve rarely been here because Uncle Lucas insisted that I stay at the ranch.”

  She strolled through the kitchen into a living area with a vaulted ceiling, white walls and a polished hardwood floor.

  “This is lovely, Tom,” she said, looking through glass doors onto a patio that was covered with pots of flowers. “Who takes care of the plants while you’re at the ranch?”

  “That goes with the condo. I pay someone to keep this clean for me. Can you make yourself comfortable and let me quickly shower? I’m filthy.”

  “Go ahead. I’ll be fine,” she replied and sat carefully on the sofa.

  In less than half an hour they were back in the truck and she leaned back against the seat. “Whatever they gave me to sleep hasn’t completely worn off,” she said.

  He held her hand on his knee and wanted to declare his love, but this wasn’t the moment to do so. A sunny sky warmed the chilly November air as they sped toward the horse farm.

  “I talked to Connor while I was waiting for you this morning. No animals were injured and the fire was contained in the stable, so the building was the extent of the loss.”

  “Thank goodness! I can’t believe Malcolm did all that just to get me.”

  “If that got him what he wanted, he probably thought it was worth the risk. Look at the other chances he’s taken.”

  When she shuddered, Tom brushed kisses on her hand again. “It’s over, Rose. Don’t think about it.”

  The entire drive Tom kept Rose’s hand on his knee. “I’ve got a brochure that’s due next Monday,” she said. “I need to get back to work, but I know with the fire, Nita and Daddy will need help.”

  “They’ll understand and you’re to take it easy today. I heard the doctor tell you specifically to rest, and I’ll see to it that you do.”

  “Oh, you will?” she asked and he glanced at her to see a smile on her face.

  “Yes, I will,” he said. “You can relax a day.”

  She turned to look out the window. “All this fight to get our land away from us. That must be what it’s all about. Tom, look!” she exclaimed, pointing ahead and leaning forward in the seat.

  He gazed down the road and then looked to his left and saw a tangle of wrecked fencing. “Damn, someone tore down part of your fence. Or maybe it was Malcolm getting off the property last night.”

  Tom slowed, crossed the road and pulled off on the shoulder, sending a cloud of dust spiraling behind him. He eased across the bar ditch. “I want to check it out,” he said, getting out of the truck.

  As he knelt and studied the dusty ground, he heard Rose climb out behind him.

  He stood and gazed all around them. “Judging by the tracks, I think someone has come and gone. This is more than just Malcolm leaving the farm.”

  “Tom, I see something. Look over there.” She pointed and then gasped. “Do you see?” she asked.

  “I see three hundred mesquite trees,” he said, but then he spotted shiny black metal. “It’s a car,” he said. “I see it now. Damn. That looks like Malcolm’s car. I can’t imagine he abandoned it, but there appear to be two sets of tracks, so maybe he had someone waiting for him with another car. Let’s go see.”

  “And if Malcolm is there?”

  “He’s not going to be parked out here in the boonies on your horse farm, just sitting and waiting for someone to find him. I’ll call Gavin and tell him we may have found the car.” Tom pulled out his cell phone and talked briefly to Gavin before he broke the connection.

  Holding her hand, Tom strode across the rough ground. A few yards from the car he stopped her. “You wait here and let me look inside.”

  Rose waited in silence while Tom looked in the front window and then the back. He walked aro
und the car. When he circled the front end, he stopped and drew a sharp breath. A body was stretched on the ground.

  Eleven

  “Get back, Rose,” Tom called, pulling out his cell phone and calling Gavin again. Curious, Rose followed him and saw black trousers and legs stretched out on the ground. She barely saw the body before she turned away.

  While a breeze whipped up dust, Tom called Gavin. “We’ve found Malcolm Durmorr.”

  He saw Rose glance again at the body stretched on the ground and shudder. Tom moved between her and the body to partially block her view.

  In seconds Tom joined her. “I told Gavin we’d wait because he’ll want a statement.”

  She nodded. “I didn’t go close enough. What happened?”

  “Someone has pumped him full of lead. He’s been shot several times,” Tom replied grimly. “There lies our killer.”

  “So who killed Malcolm?” she asked, mystified.

  “Damned if I know. Or why he’s here on your land. He had to have left last night, unless he met someone out here and the person shot him because he let you get away. But that doesn’t make sense either.” Tom raked his fingers through his hair. “I don’t have answers. Now we have more questions. I’m calling Connor and letting him know.”

  She nodded and Tom took her arm. “Let’s wait at the car,” he suggested, and she moved along beside him while he talked to Connor, then put away his phone.

  “Connor and Nita are coming. As soon as they get here, Nita can take you home. I can get Gavin to send one of his deputies to your house to get your statement.”

  “I’m fine,” she said, knowing Tom was worrying about her. “Who would kill Malcolm?” she repeated.

  “A man like Malcolm is bound to have a lot of enemies,” Tom said, glancing over his shoulder toward the black car. Wind caught Tom’s raven locks and blew them across his forehead. He brushed his hair back with his fingers. “Malcolm lived a nefarious life. There are probably a number of suspects for his killer, but why Malcolm was on your land, I can’t imagine.”

  They reached the car and sat inside. Wrapping her arms around herself, Rose shuddered. “I could have been with him—”

  “You weren’t, so don’t think about it. Thanks to your own gutsy moves, you got away from him. Malcolm didn’t fare as well.”

  They fell silent as Rose ran her fingers through her hair and gazed into the distance.

  “Here comes Gavin,” Tom said.

  In the next hour Rose gave her statement to a deputy and waited with Tom, Nita and Conner while they all watched Gavin walk around the crime scene.

  Finally he joined them. “You folks might as well go on home. I’m sure Rose doesn’t need to wait out here.”

  “Any clues as to the killer?” Tom asked, and Gavin shook his head.

  “They’re checking it out now, but it’ll take some time for the lab work.” He looked at Tom and Connor. “Malcolm was shot once in the groin and several times in the upper body. It looks like someone was in a rage.”

  “The kind of life Malcolm led, a lot of people might have been furious with him,” Tom said, taking Rose’s arm. “If you’re through with us, I’m taking Rose home.”

  “We’re going, too,” Connor said and Gavin nodded.

  “I’ll keep you posted,” Gavin replied.

  “I have to admit, I’m a frazzle,” Rose said. “We’ll go see Daddy later today, but right now I think I need a nap.”

  “Take her home,” Nita said. “I’ll tell Daddy that you’re fine. And y’all come to the house for dinner if you feel up to joining us.”

  They parted and Rose climbed into the truck. “I ache all over,” she said. “And I can’t keep from wondering who killed Malcolm. Gavin’s got a big job ahead of him,” she remarked.

  “Yep, he does. I’m glad you spotted the downed fence and the car. Someone would have sooner or later, but sooner’s better. Let’s get you home, where you can recuperate.”

  “Gladly,” she murmured, leaning her head back in the seat. “So we’re sort of back to square one—still searching for a killer.”

  “Except now we know some things, like who killed Jonathan Devlin.”

  As soon as Tom and Rose were inside her house, he said, “A hot shower will relax you and help those bruises.” He placed his hand on her shoulder. “You’re beautiful and it’s a struggle, but I’ll wait until you’ve recovered before I kiss you. You can’t imagine how badly I want to just hold you.”

  “I couldn’t possibly look beautiful today. I’m cut and bruised and pregnant—”

  “And absolutely gorgeous. I keep touching you to reassure myself that you’re alive. Malcolm got what he deserved.”

  After a shower Rose climbed into bed. “I’m exhausted,” she said. “Whatever they gave me isn’t wearing off quickly.”

  “I promise to be careful, but I want to hold you,” he said. He stretched out beside her and with great care drew her as close as he could without pressing against her tightly. “How’s that?”

  “It’s wonderful,” she murmured.

  “Darlin’, I’m going to take care of you the best I possibly can,” he said. “I want you to always feel safe with me. I’m not leaving you alone again until they catch the killer. Remember, someone out there still thinks you know where Jessamine Golden’s treasure of gold is.”

  “I don’t want to dwell on that now,” Rose replied. In minutes she fell asleep in Tom’s arms.

  The next day after breakfast Rose stayed at the main house with her family while Tom drove into Royal to vote for Jake. He stopped at a jewelry store before he headed back to the horse farm.

  That night while Connor and Nita drove to Royal for Jake’s watch party, Rose and Tom went to the main house to view the election returns with Will and Jane. By the time the four of them were seated in the living room, the polls had closed half an hour earlier and both watch parties were in full swing.

  Dressed in a stunning red woolen dress that clung to her figure, Gretchen was beaming and talking about victory. In the early count, she had close to the same number of votes as Jake.

  “She’s hiding her grief over Malcolm well,” Rose remarked. Seated on the sofa with Tom beside her and his arm casually across her shoulders, Rose was warm in a bulky navy sweater and navy woolen skirt. Tom played with locks of her hair and she was aware of each little tug.

  “Gretchen was hell-bent on this election, from what I saw and heard, but the polls showed Jake leading the entire campaign,” Tom said.

  “I’m surprised she’s doing as well as she is,” Jane said, shifting the yellow-and-blue baby blanket she was knitting for Rose’s baby.

  “Early precincts don’t tell the whole story,” Will said. “I think Jake will win.”

  Rose’s attention was more on Tom than the television and the election reports and she was glad when after an hour and more precincts had reported, Jake had such a wide margin that the announcers declared a landslide victory for him.

  Finally Gretchen conceded in a clipped, brief speech that congratulated Jake. She bit off the words, then turned away from the mike.

  “I need to get home,” Rose said. “I’m glad Jake won.”

  “When you’re home, listen to the late news and you’ll probably hear again about Malcolm,” Will said.

  “I imagine it’s all the old news we heard earlier,” Rose replied. She and Tom said their good-nights and strolled home.

  “I’ll be glad to be inside. Out here in the shadows there are too many reminders of last night,” Rose said and Tom pulled her closer against his side.

  “Believe me, everyone has his guard up and there are more men patrolling now than before.”

  She glanced up at him. “I can tell that you’re watching for someone right now,” she said, looking into the darkness beyond the yard lights.

  “I’m just being cautious. I can’t forget that there is still a killer on the loose and you’re still a target.”

  That night he held her clo
se again until she was asleep and then he slipped out of bed to go through the house one more time. He gazed outside. The grounds were brightly lit all around the house, throwing the area beyond into darkness. He saw Jimmy walking by the stables and knew the men were patrolling the grounds.

  Tom had a mental list of things to do the next day and one included getting a gun from his uncle Lucas.

  Midday, Tom ordered five dozen red roses for Rose and then took her to stay at the main house while he went into town on an errand. To his relief, she was recovering swiftly from her ordeal and her bruises were turning yellow. Her mouth had already returned to normal.

  It was late in the afternoon when he returned to the main house and they all insisted that he and Rose stay for supper.

  All the time they ate he kept glancing across the table at her. Wearing a red sweater that clung to her lush breasts, she looked gorgeous, and he longed to be alone with her. All he could think about was getting her home.

  The scare they had all had at Malcolm’s hands made Tom want to keep Rose in his sight every second. With all of the others present Tom knew he was being ridiculous, but it was difficult to let go of his fear for her.

  After supper, he sat close to Rose, lacing her fingers in his and trying to keep his mind on everyone’s conversation while hoping she would soon say it was time to go.

  To his relief, they left early in the evening and bundled into heavy jackets. The night was cold and blustery with a storm sweeping in. Tom wrapped his arm around Rose and held her close, watching their surroundings the whole time, and he knew Connor was standing back in the shadows on the porch watching, too.

  When Rose and Tom were inside the guesthouse, Tom left to build a fire while Rose made cups of hot chocolate.

  In the living room the smell of wood smoke mingled with the scent of the enormous bouquet of red roses. Rose put their cups of steaming chocolate on the coffee table.

  She watched Tom as he stoked the fire. His jeans pulled tautly over his muscled legs and his black sweater emphasized his raven hair. She crossed the room to him, and her heart thudded when he turned to look at her.