Morrow's Horizon (The Morrow Women Series Book 1)

by Sierra Kummings

  Guilt stained his father’s cheeks. “Yes, okay. Sorenson wants a piece of our bank for some reason, and this seemed like the best way to do it. We keep our shares in the family, and he gets a stake in the company through Elise. All we did was introduce you two, but since you hit it off… Surely you can see the benefits.”

  “The bene—”

  BOOM!

  With no warning, the world exploded as an Improvised Explosive Device detonated in the enclosed space, ringing in Jacob’s ears. He glanced about the room in terror, fighting the urge to dive under his desk.

  His father!

  Was his father hurt?

  Was he…

  Jacob jumped to his feet, his frantic gaze taking in the man standing in the same spot as he had a moment ago, unharmed. In fact, the whole office appeared unharmed. Yet even though Jacob’s mind saw the reality, his body reacted to another. While he tried to process everything, his heart beat a furious rhythm and sweat ran down his back, gathering at the base of his spine.

  What the hell had happened?

  “Sorry, boss.” Vanessa poked her head around the corner through the open doorway. “UPS just came. The door slammed behind them…”

  Her voice trailed off as she no doubt took in Jacob’s face.

  He didn’t blame her. He’d seen himself after one of his episodes. He knew he looked like a man who’d just encountered his most feared demon.

  When his father turned to stare at him too, Jacob commanded into submission the tremors that threatened to rock his body, and stood there with rigid posture. The strength it took to remain rooted in the present and not allow himself to spiral into the past became a battle every bit as fierce as any he’d waged under enemy fire. He dug his nails into his palms, the flesh scarred from years of the repeated behavior.

  One hundred.

  Ninety-nine.

  Ninety-eight…

  While he continued his silent count to regain control, as usual, Jacob’s father remained oblivious and turned back to the window.

  GET OUT!

  Internally, Jacob screamed the demand at the man, wishing his father had half the sense that Vanessa had. She’d ducked out of the room as soon as she’d glanced at his face. But not Brian Smithsfield. That man was as clueless as they came.

  Jacob schooled his voice to remain calm. “Well, if that’s all then. I have to plan for that two day conference next week since I’m leading one of the group forums, so…” Hoarseness had him digging his nails in harder. The pain barely registered, but it was enough to enable him to sit again. If his father wouldn’t leave him alone, he at least needed the barrier of his desk between them. He’d only hurt one person while having a flashback, but that was one person too many. “We can talk about the rest later. I—”

  “Does that mean you’ll think about it then?”

  About marrying Elise? Not a chance in hell. But Jacob kept his answer silent. If giving his father that impression would get the man out of his office, it was worth the lie of omission. “Close the door on your way out, please?”

  His father nodded and as soon as the door closed, Jacob slumped in his seat.

  Mierda. When would it end?

  Even as guilt ate at him for wanting his penance to stop, the urge to drive his jeep off the cliffs behind his house like the fucking pussy he was almost had him reaching for his keys.

  But he couldn’t do that. He couldn’t fail his men again.

  He could deal with the living nightmares. They were only bad right now because it was December. Six years ago, he’d… no, six years, two weeks, and three days ago, he’d betrayed his country in the worst possible way.

  If this was the least of his punishments, then he’d gotten off far too easily.

  4

  Sara waited for the snap of Bel’s seatbelt before backing her trusty red Toyota out of the parking space and cranking the heater up. Goodness, it was cold. Her old car took forever to warm up too. She shivered and fought the temptation to get Jacob’s coat from the back seat and put it on. She didn’t need to tempt fate. “God, I’m glad today is almost over.”

  “I bet. Thanks for giving me a ride home when you have so much on your plate.” Bel fidgeted in the front seat as if Sara giving her a ride was an imposition.

  “Stop it. We’re friends. You don’t have to thank me.”

  “What can I say? My momma taught me to always be polite.” The heavy sarcasm that laced Bel’s voice turned to pity as she asked, “You don’t still think Mr. Ramírez is going to fire you, do you?”

  “I hope not. But who knows?” After the conference call, Sara had spent the rest of her day waiting for Harrison to come back in and ask her to hand in her key and count out her vault. As assistant manager, she didn’t work the teller line often, but she had a box so she could work the line as back up when the need arose or to cash out other employees when the teller coordinator was out. She wouldn’t have been fired until someone retrieved those things from her in person.

  “See? I told you not to worry. It’s highly unlikely Jacob was talking about firing two people during your call. And we already know Gina got the axe over at Poway.”

  “Yeah, but…”

  “No buts. You didn’t get fired today. That’s encouraging, right?”

  “Yeah, but, what do I do on Monday or the next day? Eventually he’s going to find out I work for him.”

  “So make yourself invaluable to him before he finds out.”

  Sara knew one way she’d like to become invaluable to the man. She couldn’t stop thinking about him, and not in work appropriate ways either. She wanted to see him again. She’d told herself she just wanted a chance to explain why she’d been so stupid in the first place, but come on. She wanted to ride him like the Belmont Park roller coaster.

  “You’ll figure it out. You always do. Now stop stalling. Tell me about the one and only Jacob Ramírez. Did his smile melt your panties?”

  “Not even a little.”

  Bel scoffed her disbelief. “Go sell that lie somewhere else. I’m not buying it.”

  “What? It didn’t.” It’d done a hell of a lot more than melt them. Sara cast a sly grin at her friend. “His smile coupled with his voice made them burst into flames.”

  “Now that’s what I’m talking about! The man is hot and I’ve only seen him in pictures.”

  “Oh, Bel, his pictures don’t even come close to doing him justice. He’s just…”

  “What? You can’t hold out on me now. He’s just what?”

  “Taken.” The remembrance of Jacob’s girlfriend killed Sara’s jovial mood. Why was she still fantasizing about someone like him? Hello, daddy’s girl. Ugh! To change the subject, she asked, “Do you mind stopping by the Gallos’ with me to pick up their gift donation?”

  “They’re still donating?”

  “Every year.”

  “Wow. That’s great.”

  “They’re a great family.” Mr. Gallo had been a recipient of both of the programs Sara volunteered with when he’d returned home from his last tour of duty and retired from the Navy. She’d taken over meals for his family as they readjusted to their new life, and provided Christmas gifts for his daughter and two sons when he’d struggled to find a civilian job. He and his wife had been especially grateful when Sara had delivered a specialized stroller that her niece had outgrown. Their daughter had severe global delays just like Tessa and they’d appreciated the gift so much, they now gave back every Christmas. “Are you sure you don’t mind, though? I still have to go by corporate to take Jacob’s jacket back and this stop will put you home even later.”

  “Don’t make running errands with you sound like such a chore. It’s infinitely better than the alternative of letting my mom take me home.”

  Sara could only imagine. “Heard an earful this morning I’m guessing?”

  “Did I ever. I swear, if I make it through these next two weeks of my car being in the shop, I’ll deserve a freaking medal.”

  That she woul
d. A few minutes in the presence of Bel’s mother was a few too many for Sara. The woman interfered too often in her daughter’s life. Bel needed to find out who she was, and she’d never do that under the watchful eye of Ruth Patterson, especially when the woman’s good intentions made Bel feel less than.

  Mrs. Patterson was from a different era. She believed a woman’s duty was to stand by her man—and she’d stood by hers with a smile on her face, even though he’d been unfaithful like Sara’s dad. Sara didn’t have a problem with Bel’s mother making that choice, but she did have a problem with the woman forcing that same decision onto her best friend. Frankie had wanted out of the marriage. What was Bel supposed to have done? Tie him down and never let him leave? “I can pick you up next week if you want.”

  “I appreciate the offer, but I’m twenty minutes out of your way and you’ve got too much to do with the Christmas wish list.”

  “It’s not a problem—”

  “I can suck it up. Seriously. I’m just upset because she lectured me again on the sanctity of marriage. I swear every time she does that, she makes me feel as if my divorce was my fault.”

  “Oh, honey. You did everything you could. You know that, right?”

  “Of course I do… But it would be nice for my mother to acknowledge that. At least once… especially now.”

  “Your mother should have acknowledged it a long time ago.” Sara put on her blinker to switch lanes, trying to get them out of the congestion on El Cajon Boulevard. Risking a quick glance at her suddenly quiet friend, she nosed her car into the right-hand lane and turned onto a side street. “Why don’t you go out on a date and forget about your mother?” And Frankie. Sara wanted to see her friend happy again. “If you’d only let me, I’d love to set you up with the guy who’s been helping me with the veterans. Ray’s attractive, sweet—” Sharp laughter from Bel cut her off. “What? He is.”

  “I know. I’ve seen him. His attractiveness isn’t the problem. I guarantee you Ray isn’t interested in me.” Bel flicked strawberry blonde hair over a slender shoulder in a move worthy of shampoo commercials, completely unaware of the picture she created.

  “How can you say that so definitively? At least let me ask him.”

  “Sara, Ray is one hundred percent gay.”

  No way. Sara hadn’t gotten that impression from him at all. “Don’t you think I’d know if my friend was gay?”

  “I thought so, but apparently not. Come on, have you ever seen him with a girl?”

  “What does that have to do with anything? He’s busy.” Starting up his own business took sacrifice. “He’s—”

  “He’s not too busy to manage checking out Harrison every time he comes into the branch.”

  He did? “I thought he just liked to keep an eye out for our manager so as not to get me in trouble.”

  “Sage would be disappointed in your lack of skills. You really don’t have any gaydar, do you?”

  “And you do have it?”

  “I knew your friend was gay, didn’t I?”

  “Okay, fine. Maybe I don’t pay attention to those kinds of things, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be open to moving on.” Despite offers, Bel hadn’t given any man the time of day. And she certainly didn’t look ready to now, not with her chin jutting out in defiance.

  “What’s the point? I don’t want to have my heart broken again. My husband left me, remember?”

  “Bel, he went to war.”

  “You know what I mean. He came back. Then he left me.”

  “And you know it’s not that simple. Remember what the therapist said?” War changed people in ways those who hadn’t served couldn’t comprehend. Sara saw it every day with the families she helped while volunteering.

  “Of course it’s not. But I’m tired of pretending that makes it okay. I would’ve been there for him. I wanted to be there for him.”

  Yeah, Bel had. It’d taken a few years for her to even start letting go after their marriage had ended. She’d kept their things in storage hoping he’d eventually realize he was her forever. Her person. When he never so much as answered her calls on his birthday and Christmas last year, she’d been devastated.

  The position at the bank had helped. Bel had accepted the job last January, finally deciding to sell their stuff and move out of her parent’s home, if not start over. As much as Sara disliked Harrison, his attitude had lit a fire in Bel that had been missing since her divorce. Whether her friend recognized it or not, her spunk had slowly returned. Sara hated that Bel’s mother might ruin that with her misguided ideals. “No one doubts you wanted to stay with him. No one who truly knows you.”

  “He did.” A river of pain in the form of a solitary tear escaped from Bel’s lovely hazel eyes. “Frankie refused to give me the opportunity.”

  Sara squeezed her friend’s hand. “I’m sorry. I wish things hadn’t happened the way they did. I wish he’d come back whole.” Body and mind. Losing his left arm and leg had been the least of his battles.

  “It wouldn’t have mattered. Him finding someone else proves that.”

  “What do you mean ‘him finding someone else’?”

  Bel looked out the passenger window, her reflection in the glass an image of grief. “Frankie called last night. Said he’s getting married next month.”

  “He did what?” What kind of loser flaunted their fiancé at their ex? “Oh, honey. Why didn’t you say anything?” All morning Bel had let Sara carry on about utter nonsense while she had to have been dying inside.

  Bel’s look out the window became even more forlorn. “You had your own stuff to deal with. Plus, having to take over Harrison’s duties today. Honestly, I’m not sure it even hit me until a few hours ago.”

  Sara’s heart sank for her friend. This could set her back so far. Too far. Bel deserved better than lonely nights spent crying over some jackass.

  At the turn for the Gallos’ street, Sara grabbed Bel’s hand again, giving her friend as much love as she could while driving. When another tear slid down Bel’s cheek she channeled her immature sister and asked, “So, when should we toilet paper Frankie’s house, hmm? Or would you rather egg his car? Or… I’ve got it! Why don’t we—?”

  “Stop—Oh my God, Sara, stop the car, now!”

  For a second, Sara thought that her friend hadn’t understood she’d been joking, but then Bel pointed to the left where smoke hung heavy in the air.

  My God.

  Two houses away, the rental house of the family she’d come to see burned in ten-foot flames, the fire still raging around jagged remains of sheetrock and wooden framing. Sara’s gaze flicked from person to person standing around watching until at last Mr. Gallo came into sight.

  As soon as Sara parked at the curb, both her and Bel jumped out of the car and sprinted to his side where Sara asked, “Karen? The kids?”

  “They’re at the neighbor’s… A friend took me out to lunch. Karen… It happened while Karen was napping. Wh-what would have happened if she hadn’t gotten out… if the kids hadn’t been in school? Oh, God… Everyone’s fine. They’re fine.”

  Sara couldn’t attest for the rest of his family, but he didn’t look fine. His eyes held more devastation than when he’d first come back from overseas.

  But they were alive. All of them. Including the little girl who reminded her so much of Tessa. Tessa. A fire like that would be hell for her niece, or any medically fragile child. Inhaling even a fraction of that smoke could set the stage for an upper respiratory infection or worse. “Do you have a place to stay tonight? Somewhere away from the smoke?”

  Mr. Gallo shook his head while staring at their belongings engulfed in flames. “We can’t afford… we lost everything.”

  “Don’t worry about that.” Sara had enough in savings to swing a few nights until the family could connect with local resources. She had no idea if the Navy base would offer emergency shelter or allow them to apply for housing, but none of that mattered right at the moment. Housing was the least of th
eir worries. They needed to get their daughter away from the smoke, and Sara would do anything she could to help. “I’ll get you a hotel room.” For as long as she could. But their charred van smoldering in what used to be their garage meant it’d take two trips to transport everyone in her car. “Bel, do you mind…?”

  “Not at all. Leave me here.” While Bel spoke, she sent a text message to someone. Almost immediately a chime sounded in reply. “See, things will all work out. I’ll wait here for Sage, and she and I can take Mr. Gallo to the hotel.”

  I love you. Sara mouthed the words against her friend’s temple, embracing Bel in a thankful hug. “Your ex is missing out. I don’t care who his fiancée is. You’re much more awesome than this new chick.”

  Bel hugged her back just as tightly. “Don’t worry about Jacob’s jacket. Sage and I will return it after we drop off Mr. Gallo.”

  “No, honey, I can’t ask you to do that. What’s a few more hours anyway?”

  “It’s one less thing you have to think about. It’s fine. I promise. Besides, your time needs to be focused here. You’re better at figuring out how to best help this family than anyone I know.”

  Yeah, maybe she was. An idea was already beginning to form. Sara gave her friend another squeeze before going toward the house Mr. Gallo pointed to. She ran back as an afterthought.

  “What are you…?” Bel stared at her as she rummaged in her car.

  “Here, pin this to the pocket, will you? And ask Sage if I can borrow fifty dollars to put with it.”

  “Sara, he’s rich.”

  “And I stole from him. Something has to make it right.” Without another word, Sara left in search of Mrs. Gallo and the kids. She had calls to make. Several of them. It would take a lot of money to get the family replacements for their daughter’s equipment and supplies alone. For most of those things, they wouldn’t be able to wait for insurance while it moved at its typical snail’s pace.

  She’d enlist Ray’s help first. His nonprofit would be her greatest asset. If he could find a big-name donor or sponsor, someone like a department store, or maybe a grocery market, or…