Tattered Stars

by Catherine Cowles

  Calder rubbed his thumb against his glass, clearing a path of condensation. “The little time I’ve spent with her, she seems to value her autonomy and her ability to take care of herself. Given the way she grew up, I’m guessing she didn’t have a lot of control there.”

  “I’m not trying to control. I just want to make sure she’s safe.” I felt like a broken record.

  “But you usually do that by controlling every factor you can. Let me guess, you didn’t want her to be alone tonight?”

  “Wouldn’t you feel the same?”

  “I sure would. I’d just hide it better.”

  I let out a snort of laughter. “You always did have more tact than I did.”

  “Damn straight.”

  My phone buzzed on the table, and Hadley’s name flashed across the screen. I hit accept. “Hey, Hads. What’s up?”

  “I might have a problem.”

  I straightened on my stool. “What’s going on?”

  “I’m pretty sure someone’s following me.”

  “Following you where?”

  Calder was on his feet in a flash, pulling some bills out of his wallet and tossing them on the table. He motioned for me to follow him towards the door.

  Hadley muttered a curse across the line. “I thought he was just riding my ass at first, but he’s following every turn I make.”

  I pushed open the door. “Where are you?”

  “On my way home.”

  “Turn back towards town.”

  Hadley had taken her inheritance from our grandparents and bought a gorgeous piece of property fifteen minutes outside Wolf Gap. But the price for that beauty was isolation. None of us had been crazy about her living by herself, but she’d been determined.

  “I’d turn around if there was a place to do it, but I don’t want to get boxed in.”

  I beeped the locks on my department loner vehicle and climbed behind the wheel, Calder jumping into the passenger seat. “Calder and I are on our way. You’re going to be okay.”

  I glanced at Calder as I hit the lights. “Hold this and put Hads on speaker.”

  He did as I instructed as I radioed for backup. “We’ll be there in a few minutes. Just hold on,” he assured her.

  “Shit,” she cried out.

  “What the hell was that?” Calder barked.

  “He rammed my bumper.”

  I pushed down on the accelerator. “Can you make out anything about the vehicle or the person in it?”

  “Not really. A truck or SUV. Big grill.” Another crash sounded across the line.

  Calder gripped the phone tighter. “Hadley!”

  “I’m okay,” she said through gritted teeth. “You want to play, asshole? Hold on.”

  “What are you doing, Hads?” God, I hoped it wasn’t something completely insane.

  Tires squealed in the background, and then a loud thump sounded. I held my breath, waiting. The sound of what could only be gravel and rock spitting out from under tires came through the phone speaker. “Got it.”

  I gripped the wheel harder. “What exactly did you get?”

  “I turned off my headlights and pulled a U-turn around that old pine a mile from the turnoff to my place.”

  Calder let out a whoosh of air. “You could’ve gotten yourself killed.”

  “Better than whoever’s behind the wheel of that truck killing me.”

  I turned onto the road that led towards Hadley’s place. “Are they following you?”

  There was silence for a moment and then the release of an audible breath. “No. I don’t think so. I think whoever it was kept going.”

  There was a whole network of roads out there that led to a million different places. Whoever it was could hide anywhere. And, at any point, they could turn back around. I accelerated yet again and didn’t take a breath until I saw my sister’s truck in the distance. “Pull over. This is us.”

  For once in her life, Hadley did what I asked the first time I asked it. She slid the truck over and shut off the engine, and I did the same but left my lights flashing. As Hadley climbed out of the vehicle her legs trembled.

  Calder moved before I had a chance to round the SUV, pulling her into his arms. “You’re okay. I’ve got you.”

  For the first time in years, my sister burst into tears. The sound startled the hell out of me. Hadley held her emotions close to the vest, rarely letting me or anyone else in our family in on what was going on in that head of hers unless she was pissed off. To see her break like this, shaking in Calder’s arms, made me want to rip whoever had done this limb from limb.

  “You’re safe, Hads,” Calder whispered into her hair. “No one’s going to hurt you.”

  “I know,” she choked out. Hadley let him hold her for another few seconds and then straightened. “Sorry. I guess it scared me more than I realized.”

  Calder gave her a gentle smile. “Adrenaline dump. You know how those can be.”

  “I’m not usually such a sissy about them.”

  I pulled her in for a hard hug. “You’re not a sissy. You’re damn brave—if a little foolish.”

  Calder’s face hardened. “You never should’ve made that turn. It was crazy.”

  “And it worked,” she said, pulling out of my hold. “It saved my butt, so don’t give me a hard time.”

  He opened his mouth to say something, but I shot him a look, and he closed it. A squad car came screeching up, and Young and Williams were out in a flash. Young looked Hadley up and down. “You okay?”

  “Fine.”

  I looked at my two officers. “See if you can find any sign of him. SUV or truck, large grill.”

  Williams winced. “That could be half the county.”

  “The grill will have paint from Hadley’s bumper, so if you pull someone over, look for that.”

  Young nodded, waving Williams back to the car. “We’ll let you know what we find.”

  Hadley let out a shaky breath and leaned against the side of her truck. “Can one of you drive me to my place? I don’t think I’m quite ready to get back behind the wheel.”

  Calder scowled in her direction. “You’re not staying at your place alone. He could be waiting there for all you know.”

  “It was probably just someone with a severe case of road rage. They have no idea who I am or where I live.”

  “Hads…” I began. “Calder’s right. You shouldn’t stay there tonight. Especially when you’re on edge.”

  “You can stay at my place. Or your mom and dad’s,” Calder offered.

  Hadley crossed her arms under her chest. “I’ll stay with Hayes.”

  “I’m staying at Everly’s, remember?”

  “Well, then I’ll stay there. I can sleep on the couch.”

  I knew that tone. Stubbornness coming through. She’d never spend the night at Mom and Dad’s by choice, and Calder had stepped on her toes. I wrapped an arm around her shoulders. “Come on. Let’s get you to Ev’s. I bet you could use a drink.”

  “Try ten.”

  I forced out a chuckle but didn’t feel it at all. Because all I could wonder was whether whoever had tried to run Hadley off the road was the same man who’d tried to take Everly. And I still had no idea who he was.

  34

  Everly

  I closed the door to the guest room softly, my socked feet padding along the floor. Hayes looked up from his spot on the couch. “She okay?”

  I eased down onto the couch next to him. I didn’t opt for the other end like I should’ve. I went for close—I wanted to feel Hayes’ warmth and safety. I wanted to hook into that phantom pull that always dared me to lean just a little bit closer. “She will be.”

  He wrapped an arm around my shoulders, pulling me into him. “She still pissed at me?”

  The corners of my mouth tipped up. “She might have been talking about interfering, overprotective asses, but I think that was mostly about Calder.”

  “At least, I can always count on her to be more annoyed with him than me.�
�

  I traced an invisible design on Hayes’ chest. “We’ve given you a hard time today, haven’t we?”

  “Nothing a beer or two won’t fix.”

  I still felt guilty. Seeing how Hadley reacted to her brother’s overprotective ways had put things in perspective for me a bit. “I need to know I’m in charge of my life. That I’m the one who gets to make decisions about how things will go.”

  Hayes set his beer on the side table next to the couch. “Who else would be?”

  I arched a brow in his direction.

  “All right. I know I tend to want to corral. To plan for all contingencies. I don’t think that will ever change. But I can try to remember that it’s important I don’t bulldoze.”

  I curled my knees up to my chest, turning my body into his. “Thank you. And I’ll try to keep in mind that the bulldozing comes from a good place.”

  Hayes brushed the hair away from my face. “I care about you, Ev. You came in like a flash flood with no warning, and now I can’t imagine my life without you.”

  I swallowed, my throat sticking with the movement. Because I cared about him, too. More than cared. “It scares me.”

  “That I care about you?”

  I nodded. “And what I feel for you.”

  “I’m not gonna lie; it’s a damn relief to hear those words from your mouth. That I’m not in this alone.”

  My palm rested flat against his chest, his heart thumping against it. “You’re not in this alone. But I’m not sure how it will ever work. How me staying here will work. There’s this mountain to overcome, and I’m not sure if I’m strong enough to climb it.”

  One hand came up to frame my face, that rough thumb sweeping across my cheekbone. “You are. A mountain always looks terrifying from the bottom, but you just have to take it one step at a time.”

  “One step?” My heart rattled against my ribs. Not the quaint flutter of a crush but a violent battle cry.

  “One step. Can you do that with me?”

  I wanted to. So desperately. I wasn’t sure when I’d last done something reckless just because I wanted to. “I can do that.”

  Hayes’ head dipped, moving so slowly it was almost painful, giving me every chance to pull away. But I didn’t. I waited with the violent beat against my ribs until those lips met mine. I sank into the kiss—the warmth and comfort and fire.

  The slow pull of it turned hungry in a matter of breaths. Hayes’ hands went to my hips. Soon, I was straddling him, his tongue dueling with mine as his fingers dug into my flesh. I rocked against him, feeling the hardness beneath his jeans and letting out a little mewl.

  The sound only seemed to stoke Hayes higher. The kiss took on a slightly feral edge, desperate and seeking. But I still wanted more. If I were going to jump, it might as well be from the highest cliff.

  “Bedroom,” I said as I tore my mouth from his.

  Hayes searched my face. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes.” I wasn’t certain this wouldn’t end in wreckage around us, but I was sure I wanted to feel what it was to wholly belong to this man, body and soul—even if only for one night. I wanted to give myself over to everything he could make me feel, even if I didn’t think it could last. “Make me yours.”

  Hayes’ eyes flashed, and he lifted me in one swift move. My legs encircled his waist as I simply held on. We strode towards my bedroom on the other side of the small cabin. I thanked my lucky stars for walls made of thick lumber that insulated sound.

  He closed the door behind us with a foot and continued to the bed, stopping just shy of it. Hayes never once looked away from me as he lowered me to the floor. Each millimeter of movement sent sparks of sensation dancing across my skin.

  As soon as my feet touched the floor, my hands were in his tee, tugging and pulling until golden skin greeted my eyes. Planes of lean muscle I couldn’t resist exploring. My fingers traced a pec as his hands went to the button on his jeans. Hayes hissed out a breath as I circled a nipple. “Ev…”

  I looked up at him with a wicked grin. “Yes?”

  He pulled me flush against him as his jeans fell, and he stepped out of them. “You know, I’ve wanted those clever little fingers on me since the moment I saw you.”

  The knowledge of that, the power, made something stir to life inside me. “Then let’s give you what you want.” My hands went to his boxer briefs, sending them to the floor. My fingers curled around his shaft, stroking.

  The groan he let out made everything in me tighten. Hayes traced a hand over the center of my sleep shorts and then slipped under the hem. He pulled back a fraction. “No underwear?”

  “Not when I’m going to sleep.”

  “You mean to tell me that every time I’ve seen you walking around this house in those damn shorts, there’s been nothing underneath?”

  I shrugged.

  Hayes’ head dropped to my shoulder. “You’re going to kill me. I’m going to die of an actual stroke.”

  I gave his neck a playful bite. “Let’s have a little fun first.”

  “Damn straight.”

  In a flash, Hayes had me on my back on the mattress, pulling my sleep shorts from my body. He tossed them over his shoulder as he moved for my tank top next, throwing that somewhere else. “I knew you’d be beautiful.” One finger circled my nipple. “But you steal my breath.”

  “Hayes.” His name was a cross between a whimper and a plea. “Need you.”

  Those dark eyes caught fire, and I’d never seen anything more beautiful. “You have me.” He tore open a foil packet, rolling a condom over his length as my legs encircled his waist once more, bringing him closer to me. His tip bumped against my opening. “You with me?”

  “Always.” It wasn’t a lie. After this, a piece of me would always be with him. Buried somewhere deep, even if I had to walk away.

  My eyes fluttered closed as Hayes slid inside.

  “Stay with me, Ev.”

  My eyes flew open as he began to move. My back arched as I met him stroke for stroke. It was different. Whatever was between us made it so. That pull had rooted itself deeply now, and I didn’t think it would ever break.

  My fingers curled into Hayes’ shoulders as he angled his hips, driving himself impossibly deeper. Sparks of light dotted my vision with each thrust. I dug in deeper, searching for that last piece.

  That thumb, the same one that’d gently stroked my cheek to ease me, found that tightly wound bundle of nerves. The rough pad circled and teased, then flicked with a force that sent everything crashing down around me. And as we came apart, I knew nothing would ever be the same.

  35

  Hayes

  “You’re whistling again,” Young said as she pulled up a chair in the meeting room.

  I immediately stopped. No part of me should be whistling. Not when we’d had two attempted abductions recently, and someone had nearly run my sister off the road last night. But I had been. Because amidst the storm swirling, I was the happiest I’d been in years. “I think you’re hearing things, Young. No whistling over here.”

  She snorted and took a seat. My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I pulled it out.

  Mom: You need to talk to Hadley. Convince her to move home until whoever’s doing this is caught.

  I sighed and slid the phone back into my pocket without responding. I knew this was triggering for my mother but trying to force Hadley to move home would only make things worse.

  “Not whistling now. Everything okay?”

  “My mom isn’t dealing with all of this well.”

  Sympathy filled Young’s face. “I can’t imagine how scared she must’ve been. If someone took one of my babies from me…”

  “I know she’s hurting. But she doesn’t always deal with that pain or fear well when it comes to Hadley.”

  Young winced. “They’re still struggling, huh?”

  I nodded. “And what’s going on isn’t making things any easier.” I looked back at the whiteboard I’d moved into our meeting room. Th
ere was a scattering of facts about the case, locations, and other information. The pressure of finding whoever was behind this was only mounting.

  More officers flooded the room, and I did my best to shake it off. “Grab a seat, folks.” I’d called in everyone, even those currently off duty. Only those needed for active assignments weren’t here, and they’d get a recount at another time.

  The chatter died down as everyone found a chair and pulled out either their phones or old-school pen and paper. I surveyed the room. “As you know, we’ve had two attempted abductions in the past few weeks. Last night, my sister, Hadley, was almost driven off the road. We don’t think it was related, but we’re not ruling anything out. Because of my ties to the case, I’m handing over the reins to Sergeant Ruiz. He’ll walk you through what we have so far.”

  Every single person in the room was laser-focused on what Ruiz had to say. We laid out a plan and asked every officer to be on alert for any suspicious activity. I’d also decided it was time to put the word out in the community, an alert that would suggest that women stick together in groups and not go anywhere alone. It burned to do it, to create panic in the community, but panic was a hell of a lot better than regret.

  “I think that’s everything.” Ruiz looked to me for confirmation.

  “That should do it. If you have questions, we’ll stick around to answer them.”

  There were a few, but people mostly headed out for their days off or back to whatever task they’d been working on before. I gave Ruiz a fist bump. “You did good running your first rodeo.”

  “I hate talking in front of crowds.”

  “Come on. I’ll get you a cup of coffee to celebrate.”

  We didn’t even make it to the door before Williams flagged me down. “Uh, boss? Your mother’s here, and she’s agitated.”

  I sighed and glanced at Ruiz. “I guess that coffee will have to wait.” I turned back to Williams. “Send her back to my office.”

  I wound my way through desks to get to my space. At least, I could shut the door there. I searched for the buzz of happiness I’d had this morning. The one from waking up tangled with Everly. The one that was fading far too quickly.