Her Christmas Guardian

by Shirlee McCoy

  Amber had said that if her family knew Scout was pregnant with her half brother Christopher’s child, they’d do everything in their power to gain custody.

  That had scared Scout enough to send her running. The Schoepflins had power and lots of it. They came from a long line of politicians and socialites. According to Amber, the money came from a great-great-grandfather who’d made it big during the California gold rush. Maybe it was true. Maybe it wasn’t. Amber had had a vivid imagination and a way of twisting the truth to fit her mood. Whatever the case, the Schoepflins had money, political clout and plenty of friends in high places.

  Scout had herself.

  And right then, sitting in the SUV with two other people, she felt more alone than she’d ever been in her life.

  SIX

  Boone glanced in the review mirror as he drove down the dirt road that led to Raina Lowery’s place. They hadn’t been followed. He’d taken a few unnecessary turns and woven his way through a few quiet neighborhoods just to be sure.

  Jackson had made it to the house ahead of them, and he wasn’t happy. He’d made that known—loudly—during a phone conversation with Stella.

  One night.

  That was what he’d finally promised after Boone had grabbed the phone and called in about three dozen favors he’d done for Jackson over the years.

  One night would work if Lamar cleared Scout’s house as a crime scene and let her return the following day. Boone was hoping that would be the case. If not, he’d have to make other arrangements. He could bring Scout to his D.C. apartment, but he didn’t think she’d like that idea.

  He pulled into Raina’s driveway and parked behind Jackson’s car. Almost every light in the house was on, the porch light glowing invitingly. He’d had a porch at the house he and Lana had shared. A porch swing, too. He tried not to think about those things, but when he got tired, the memories were always at the surface, tempting him to spend some time exploring them.

  Not tonight. He had to get Scout in the house, get her settled. Then he was going to call Lamar. He’d hinted that Scout might be involved in something illegal, that maybe she’d got herself in too deep. Boone wanted to know if Lamar had found evidence to support that or if he was just making a conjecture. He suspected the latter. He’d done his own research. Scout had been in River Valley for three years. She’d been working as a librarian in San Jose before that. No criminal record. Not even a traffic ticket. Her neighbor said she was quiet and sweet. Her coworkers sang her praises. If she was involved in anything illegal, there wasn’t a person around who suspected it.

  He opened her door, offering a hand as she slid out. She took it, her palm dry and cool. She had thin fingers and delicate bones, her steps shuffling and slow as he helped her to Raina’s door. It opened before they reached it, Jackson hovering on the threshold. He didn’t look happy.

  “Took you guys a while,” he commented as he stepped aside and allowed them to enter. “I thought you’d be here half an hour ago.”

  “Boone insisted on taking fifty side trips,” Stella growled. She didn’t look any happier than Jackson. Perfect. The two of them together should be fun.

  “I wanted to make sure we weren’t being followed. I didn’t want any trouble following us here.”

  “Maybe you should have thought about that before you decided to use Raina’s place as a safe house. We’ve got property in D.C. if you need it.” Jackson glanced at Scout, his expression easing. Boone had known it would. One thing about Jackson: he always rooted for the underdog, always wanted to help the helpless. Right at that moment, Scout looked about as helpless as anyone could be, her skin pale, the bandage on her forehead sliding down over her eyebrow. “You must be Scout,” he said. “I’m Jackson Miller. I was sorry to hear about your daughter’s kidnapping.”

  “Me, too,” she said quietly.

  “My fiancée has a room ready for you. If you want to follow me—”

  “Samuel and I can bring her there.” Raina Lowery stepped into the foyer, her blond hair pulled back with a headband. She’d been through a lot the past few years, first losing her husband and son in a car accident, then being kidnapped while on a mission trip to Africa. Boone had been on the mission to rescue her and had helped out when she’d faced more trouble after her return to the States. He liked and respected her. He also liked her cooking.

  And she had been cooking. He could smell it in the air, something spicy and probably delicious. Hopefully, there were leftovers.

  Samuel stood beside her, his face just a little less gaunt than it had been a few months ago, his prosthesis barely noticeable beneath the sweatpants he wore.

  “Hey, Sammy,” Boone said and was rewarded with a shy smile.

  “Hello, Daniel Boone! You shoot any bears today?” The kid had been reading every book about Daniel Boone that he could get his hands on and loved to joke with Boone about his name. After everything he’d been through, it was good to see him loosening up and having fun. He’d been a child soldier in Sudan, but had risked his life to save Raina. Things had been easier for him since Raina had brought him to the U.S. Hopefully, bringing someone who was obviously injured and in trouble into his home wouldn’t send the kid back into fear and anxiety.

  Boone frowned. He should have thought about that before he’d talked Jackson into letting Scout stay there.

  Raina stepped forward and took Scout’s arm. “Come with me. I’ll get you tucked into bed and then bring you a nice cup of tea.”

  “I don’t want you to go to any bother.” Scout met Boone’s eyes, silently begging him to intervene.

  Wasn’t going to happen.

  He smiled encouragingly and was rewarded by a deep scowl. That was fine. She could be mad as a wet hen. It wasn’t going to change anything.

  “I already have the water on to boil,” Raina insisted. “Besides, I really don’t think a cup of tea can be classified as a bother.” She led Scout down the hall and out of sight, Samuel following along behind them.

  There was a moment of complete silence. Not one word from Jackson or Stella. Not good. Neither of them was known for being quiet.

  “Go ahead,” he finally said. “Let it out before one of you explodes.”

  “The only thing I’m going to let out is a yawn,” Stella responded. “You think Raina has an extra bed? I’ll take the couch if she doesn’t. I’ll even take the floor if you’ve got an extra pillow and blanket.”

  “Upstairs. First door to the right. She made up the bed for you. I told her not to make it too comfortable. You’re not used to luxury.” Jackson grinned, and Stella swatted him on the shoulder as she walked past.

  “Good night, boys. Don’t get into any trouble for the next six hours, because I plan on sleeping for at least that long.” She walked up the stairs, moving a lot more slowly than usual. Her last mission had taken a toll on her. Physically and mentally.

  She’d never admit it, but Boone saw it in her eyes, in the slope of her shoulders, the quick fatigue after minimal work.

  He wouldn’t say anything. Couldn’t. Everyone who’d been on the team for any length of time had had missions that drained them. Stella would come out of it eventually. In the meantime, the team was rallying around her, making sure she didn’t do anything stupid while she was recovering.

  “Want some coffee?” Jackson asked, already walking down the hall and heading toward the kitchen.

  “I’d rather have whatever it is Raina was cooking. It smells great.”

  “It’s some kind of stew. Samuel requested it. Guess he ate it a lot before his parents died.” Jackson grabbed a bowl, ladled thick stew out of a stockpot that was sitting on the stove and handed it to Boone. “Spoons are in the—”

  “I know where they are.” Boone had been in the house on a number of occasions. He’d even celebrated Thanksgiving there. He knew wh
ere the silverware was. He also knew where the soda was. He grabbed a can from the fridge and sat at the table.

  “Make yourself comfortable,” Jackson said drily.

  “I have. Thanks.”

  “Smart aleck,” Jackson grumbled as he dropped into the chair across from him.

  “Were you expecting something different?”

  “Sadly, no. Want to tell me why you decided HEART needed to be involved in this case?”

  “For the same reason you got involved in Raina’s. I realized someone needed help, and I decided I wanted to be the one to do the helping. HEART has all the resources necessary, and your brother wasn’t opposed to using them to bring Lucy home.”

  “He wasn’t enthusiastic about it, either.”

  “When is Chance ever enthusiastic about anything?” For as long as Boone had known the brothers, Chance had been the more serious one, the more practical. He didn’t believe in doing anything based on emotion. He liked rules, and he followed them.

  “Good point.” Jackson rubbed the back of his neck and frowned. “You said someone ransacked Scout’s place. Any idea what they were looking for?”

  “None.”

  “Any idea why someone would go to so much effort to kidnap Scout’s daughter?”

  “No.”

  “Do you think she knows?”

  “I don’t know. She was unconscious for three days, and she’s not in good enough shape to answer a lot of questions. I’m hoping when she is, she’ll have some ideas.”

  “It might not be a bad idea to push her a little. There’s a child missing. Time is of the essence. Scout didn’t look great when she walked in here, but she was walking. That’s better than a lot of witnesses we’ve interviewed.”

  “True.”

  “So? Why aren’t you interviewing her?”

  “I plan to. I want to run a couple of things past you first.” He scooped up stew and ate it quickly, burning his mouth in the process. Didn’t matter. The stuff was good. Lots of spices and chunky pieces of meat and vegetables. “This is good. You’re one blessed man, Jackson.”

  “I’m blessed, but not because Raina can cook. I’m blessed because she’s the woman she is and because she’s bringing Samuel along with her when she marries me.” The sincerity in his eyes was unmistakable. No matter how much Boone liked to jab at the guy, he was happy that Jackson had found someone to love and who loved him in return. That was a great thing, a powerful thing.

  When it worked.

  And when it didn’t, it could cause more heartache than anyone should ever have to experience.

  “You’re a good guy, Jackson,” he said, because it was true. “It pains me to have to say that, because most days I’m not all that fond of you,” he added.

  “The feeling is mutual. Now that we have that out of the way, how about you tell me what you’ve found out about Scout?”

  “People at work like her. The neighbors like her. She attends church every Sunday and people there have nothing but praise for her. No criminal record. No outstanding warrants. She hasn’t had a traffic ticket since she moved to town.”

  “How long ago?”

  “Almost three years.”

  “Right before her daughter was born?”

  “According to her neighbor, she had the baby four months after she moved in.”

  “Where’d she move from?”

  “San Jose.”

  “That’s a long way to come for—what? A job?”

  “That’s what she told people at her church.”

  Jackson raised an eyebrow. “You’ve got a lot of information in a short amount of time. You’ve obviously been busy.”

  “Not just me. Stella did a lot of the groundwork while I was at the hospital. The fact that Lucy is missing is opening a lot of mouths that might otherwise be sealed closed.”

  Jackson nodded. “Does she have family in San Jose?”

  “Not that I’ve found.”

  “No ex-husband?”

  “No record of a marriage or a divorce.”

  “Then who’s the kid’s father?”

  “Good question. The birth certificate didn’t list anyone.”

  “Interesting.” Jackson drummed the tabletop, looking as though he had more to say.

  Boone was too impatient to wait for him to think it through. “How so?”

  “River Valley is a pretty conservative community. Small-town ideals, you know?”

  “I’ve only been here twice, so I’m not all that familiar with it.”

  “You grew up in a small town. You know the way things are. People can be judgmental. They like to throw stones while they’re living in their glass houses.”

  “That’s a stereotyped view.”

  “No doubt, but it doesn’t change my point.”

  “Which is?” Boone finished the stew, went back for another helping.

  “There are plenty of people around here who would probably be pretty judgmental of a single mother. They’d be watching carefully to see what kind of person she was. One mistake and gossip would fly, people would start murmuring. You haven’t heard any murmurs.”

  “No,” he responded, even though it wasn’t a question.

  “So, we can assume that Scout keeps her nose clean, that she’s not out partying every night, probably doesn’t have boyfriends who spend the night or druggie pals sleeping it off in her basement.”

  “What’s your point, Jackson?”

  “She’s living a quiet life, minding her own business, not doing anything that anyone could remotely criticize her for. As far as I can see, there’s no one in River Valley who would want to harm her, so we need to be looking a little more closely at her life in San Jose.”

  “That’s what I’ve been thinking.”

  “Is that the direction the police are taking?”

  “I think they’re taking any direction they can find.”

  “Maybe Chance can put in a call. See what he can find out.” Of everyone on the team, Chance was the most diplomatic. He knew how to get the team into areas no one else was allowed, knew how to get information that others would never be given access to, knew how to work the system so that it worked for him.

  “You want to ask or should I?”

  “Since you’re already in the doghouse with him, I’d better do the asking.” Jackson stood and stretched. He and Cyrus Mitchell had just returned from a mission to Colombia. The fact that they’d made it back before Thanksgiving was a minor success. The fact that the six teenagers who’d been held hostage at an international school there had been rescued and reunited with their families was a major one. Jackson seemed invigorated rather than worn-out from the trip, riding the high from a successful rescue.

  Or maybe he was just riding the high of being reunited with the woman he loved.

  Boone wasn’t jealous, but he was a little tired of looking into his friend’s contented face. He got up and washed his bowl, his back to Jackson. “You put in a call to him, and I’ll talk to Scout, see what I can find out about Lucy’s father.”

  “You think she’s going to open up to you about it?”

  “If she thinks it will reunite her with her daughter,” he said as he walked out of the kitchen.

  He followed the soft murmur of voices back through the living room and down a narrow hall. There were only two bedrooms there. Samuel’s and Raina’s. Light spilled out of Samuel’s room, and he went there, peering into the open doorway.

  Just as she’d promised, Raina had tucked Scout into bed. Or had tried. Scout was sitting on the edge of the mattress, her face pale, what looked like a flannel nightgown in her hand.

  “Boone,” she said as he stepped into the room, “I’m glad you’re here. I was thinking that maybe I should just go back to my
place.”

  “You mean the place that the police don’t want you to be?”

  “I can’t stay here. I’m taking a ten-year-old child’s bed.” She smiled at Samuel as if she were afraid she’d offended him.

  “Samuel is bunking with me,” Raina cut in smoothly. “And he’s really excited about it. We’re going to read and eat popcorn before bed. It’s all worked out.”

  “But—” She tried to protest, but Raina headed for the door.

  “Come on, Samuel. I’m going to get Scout some tea, and you’re going to finish your homework. Otherwise, we can’t have our reading party.”

  * * *

  Take me with you, Scout wanted to say, but they were already gone, their footsteps tapping on the hallway floor as they left her alone in the room with Boone.

  He watched her intently, his eyes the deep blue of a midnight sky. He had something to say, and she was afraid of what it was. Had he heard from Officer Lamar? Had something been found? Had Lucy been found?

  Her pulse jumped at the thought, and she stood on shaky legs. “Did you hear something from Officer Lamar?”

  “No.”

  “So, they’re no closer to finding her.” She dropped back on the bed, the jarring movement sending pain shooting through her head. It hurt enough to bring tears to her eyes, but she wouldn’t cry. If she did, she might never stop.

  “I’m afraid not.” He pulled over a child-sized chair and sat in it. He was so tall, they were still nearly eye to eye. “We need to talk, Scout, and I need you to be completely honest with me when we do. Can you do that?”

  Could she?

  She’d kept her secret for so long, she wasn’t sure she could do anything else.

  “You’re hesitant, but it’s the only way I can help you, Scout. If you’re not honest, I may as well call my boss and tell him that HEART isn’t needed.”

  “You are needed.”

  “Does that mean you’re going to tell me what I want to know?” He didn’t smile. As a matter of fact, he had no expression on his face or in his eyes. He could have been talking about taking a walk or going for a drive, could have had absolutely no vested interest in her answer at all.