Beautifully Broken Pieces

by Catherine Cowles

  Bridgette’s jaw fell open. “Y-y-you can’t do that. My daddy will have your job for even threatening something like that.”

  Walker snorted. “Your dad might be rich, Bridge, but he has zero pull in this town. No one likes him because he indulges your spoiled ass and thinks his shit doesn’t stink.”

  Her mouth gaped open and closed like a fish’s. Walker shook his head and exhaled a long breath. “I’m sorry you lost your best friend, but it’s no excuse to attack someone who’s done nothing wrong.”

  “She’s done everything wrong!” Bridgette’s gaze shot to me, anger flaring back to life. “You,” she seethed, “you ruined everything. Walker was about to ask Caitlin to move in with him before you strode in and stole him away. You should be ashamed of yourself. Better yet, you should just leave. No one wants you here.”

  I held my tongue, even though I wanted to give this chick a piece of my mind. Bridgette was now a shade of red that I was pretty sure meant a stroke was imminent. She cocked her arm back as if she were about to slap me, but a hand caught her around the bicep. “We have got to stop meeting this way, gorgeous,” Tuck said, sending a devilish smile my way.

  Walker stiffened. “What did you just call her?”

  I rubbed a hand up and down Walker’s back. “All right, all right. Enough with the drama already. If you haven’t noticed, we’ve got ourselves a bit of an audience.” I tipped my head to the side, towards a group of at least twenty people who were gathered at the front of the church, including, I winced, Walker’s entire family, Bryce, and Ashlee. Shit. I waved, attempting to reassure them. Jensen gave me a thumbs up. I fought the urge to laugh.

  “God, help me,” Walker begged.

  I smiled up at him. “Well, we are about to walk into a church, this seems as likely a place as any for him to hear your call.”

  “I think my prayer should be ‘God save me from smartass women.’”

  “Sounds like a good prayer,” I agreed.

  Tuck let out a bark of laughter. “You two are meant for each other.”

  Bridgette whirled on Tuck, smacking him in the chest. “Oh, shut up, you fool.” And then she stormed towards the church, still the color of a tomato.

  Tuck turned back to Walker and me. “Well, that was a fun way to start the day.”

  Walker took my hand in his but used the other to smack Tuck on the backside of the head. “Hey!” Tuck protested. “What was that for? I just saved your girl from getting bitch-slapped.”

  I leaned around Walker so I could meet Tuck’s eyes. “Thanks for that, by the way.”

  “No problem, gorgeous,” he said with a wink.

  Walker slapped him again. “That was for being a flirty fucker. Stop hitting on my girl.”

  Tuck grinned. “What? You worried she’ll finally see the error of her ways and leave your sorry ass for a real man?”

  Walker threw an arm up in the air. “I give up. You’re hopeless.”

  “You’re both hopeless,” Sarah said as we reached the church steps. “And you’re embarrassing Taylor, so behave.”

  A gentle smile formed on my face. I loved Sarah, she was the best. There were still times when she did things that caused my heart to pang because it reminded me of my mom, but mostly, she was a comfort. A way to experience the same kind of care my mother gave to everyone in her orbit. Sarah dipped to kiss my cheek. “I hope you gave that awful girl a piece of your mind.”

  I let out a soft laugh. “I didn’t even need to, your son had that pretty well covered.”

  Her eyebrows rose. “Glad to hear it.”

  We all filed into the church. Walker, Tuck, and I slipped into the row behind the rest of the Cole clan, Walker refusing to let Tuck sit next to me. I pressed my lips together, staring at my lap, not trusting myself not to smile or laugh.

  When I lifted my head, my gaze landed on the dark coffin at the front of the church. Pain sliced through my heart as memories of my mother’s funeral slammed into me. She’d opted to be cremated, so there hadn’t been a coffin, but everything else—the flowers, the sea of black, the sounds of sniffling—was all heart-wrenchingly familiar.

  My heart picked up its pace, my breathing growing quicker, more shallow. I wasn’t sure if I could do this. It was too much, too soon. A hand took mine, guiding it to a chest. Walker’s voice sounded over the blood roaring in my ears. “Breathe with me. Just copy how I breathe.”

  It took a few false starts, but I finally followed his instructions. I’m not sure how long it took, but my heart rate began to slow, and my breathing evened out. “Sorry,” I whispered.

  Walker traced tiny circles on the back of my hand, which was still planted on his chest. “What did I say about apologizing? Plus, I’m the one who should be saying I’m sorry. I never should have asked you to come.”

  I swallowed thickly. “I wanted to be here for you.”

  He squeezed my hand and then lifted my chin with a finger so that I was forced to meet his eyes. “You are here for me. You made me smile on a day when I thought that would be impossible. And when I feel your body next to mine, my soul settles somehow. I feel…at peace. So, you are here for me in every way I need.”

  I brushed my lips against his. “I’m glad,” I whispered. Walker wrapped his arm around me and, as the pastor began to speak, I got lost in my own thoughts. I thought about how I hadn’t needed to run as much lately. How well I slept next to Walker. How the peace I felt when I was with him was the same serenity I experienced when I lost myself in the water.

  It scared the hell out of me that this man could come to mean this much to me so quickly. I closed my eyes and offered up a silent prayer. Please, God, please don’t take him from me, too.

  35

  Walker

  My body jolted awake as my phone rang out from Taylor’s nightstand. She moaned. Sadly, not the kind of sounds I loved hearing from her. This was an angry, frustrated moan. She batted at my chest. “Make it stop.”

  I chuckled, hitting the screen of the phone. “Cole.”

  “This is Harry at dispatch. We have a report of an attempted kidnapping. Officers are on the scene, but we thought we should call you, given everything that’s been going on.”

  I was suddenly wide-awake, my body on high alert. “You did the right thing. Where’d it happen?” I was already climbing out of bed, searching for the clothes I’d shed in a mad dash to get both Taylor and myself naked as quickly as possible last night.

  “Three blocks south of the saloon. Corner of Hillhurst and Pine.”

  I buttoned my jeans while cradling my phone between my ear and shoulder. “Tell them I’ll be there in ten.”

  “Will do, Deputy Chief.”

  I slid my phone into my pocket and pulled my shirt over my head. Glancing back at the bed, I saw that Taylor was sitting up now, fully awake and biting the inside of her cheek. She was breathtaking. Hair all mussed from sleep and me having my fingers tangled in it. Her skin glowing. But her eyes…her eyes were filled with fear.

  I crossed to her in two long strides. Cupping her face in my hands, I brought it close to mine. “Everything’s going to be okay.”

  “What’s going on?” she whispered, her voice still raspy with sleep.

  “This happens sometimes. Not regularly, but every now and then. A case where they need a senior officer on-scene. So, I gotta haul my ass outta bed, away from my girl, and give them a hand.” I didn’t want to tell her the details. I didn’t want to freak her out any more than necessary. She’d already had a tough day, she didn’t need this.

  Of course, she pushed. “What happened, Walker?”

  I kissed her hard on the mouth and then sat next to her on the bed. “An attempted kidnapping.” Taylor’s pretty mouth fell open. “The victim is fine, but I need to go see what’s going on.”

  Her hands shot out quicker than I’d ever seen her move, and she clung to me, arms around my neck. “Please, be careful.”

  The funeral had taken a toll on her. I never should have ask
ed her to go with me. It was too soon. There were too many bad memories, and now she was freaked the hell out. I rubbed a hand up and down her spine. “Everything’s going to be fine. I promise. I just need to take a few statements and put some pieces in place.”

  Taylor sagged against me in relief. “Okay,” she breathed.

  I kissed the side of her face, her temple, then her forehead. “You’re mine.”

  I felt her smile against my throat. “I’m yours.”

  I pulled back, studying her face. She still looked concerned, but there was no longer panic in her eyes. I glanced at my watch, three a.m.. “This will take a couple hours, and then I’ll probably just stay at the office. But I’ll call you when things are wrapped up to let you know everything’s okay.”

  She nodded, pressing her lips together. “Thanks.”

  “Of course.” I rose from the bed, crossing to the closet to grab my badge and gun. Taylor had insisted I get a lock box if I wanted to keep a gun at her house. The thought made me smile.

  Holstering my weapon, I crossed back to Taylor and brushed my lips against hers. “Talk to you in a few hours.”

  “In a few hours,” she said softly.

  I made my way out of the cabin, making sure the door was locked behind me, then jogged to my truck. It took me less than ten minutes to get to the scene. What I found there shocked the shit out of me. Sitting huddled on a bench, shaking like a fucking leaf, was Bridgette. Kelly, one of our few female officers, was consoling her, while a medic checked Bridgette’s pulse. A few other guys milled around.

  Hopping down from my rig, I strode towards Bridgette and Kelly. I slowed my pace as I got closer, not wanting to frighten Bridgette any further. I carefully took a seat on the bench on Bridgette’s other side. She didn’t move, didn’t even look at me. I met Kelly’s gaze. She just shook her head.

  This was not good. I turned to the medic. “She in shock?”

  The guy, who looked all of eighteen, nodded. “I’d say that’s a pretty good guess. She’ll respond if you ask her questions, though.”

  I scrubbed a hand over my stubbled jaw. “Bridgette, can you tell me what happened?”

  Her head slowly and jerkily turned towards me. “I-I was walking to my car from the saloon, and someone grabbed me from behind. Put a hand over my mouth. I tried to kick him, but I couldn’t. So, finally, I bit his hand and screamed.” She lifted a shaky hand to point at two guys talking to another officer. “Those guys saw and came running. Whoever had me, he-he shoved me to the ground and took off.”

  Kelly spoke up then. “No one got a good look at the guy. He was wearing a ballcap. They said they’d guess a pretty large build.”

  “H-he told me not to scream. That it would be worse if I fought him.” Tears tinged black with mascara tracked down Bridgette’s cheeks. “His voice. It-it sounded familiar, but I can’t place it.”

  My spine went ramrod straight. This had to be the same guy who killed the hiker and Caitlin. Had to be. This was too small a town to have more than one violent psychopath. “Bridgette, I want you to think real carefully over the next couple hours and days. See if you can’t remember where you’ve heard the voice before.”

  “O-okay.”

  I jerked my chin at the medic. “I think you should take her in, let the docs take a look at her.”

  “Was already planning to as soon as you were done with your questions.”

  “Thanks.” I crossed to the other officers and got the same story from the two guys who were here from Portland to do some fly fishing. They were freaked and didn’t have any additional information.

  I drummed my fingers against the side of my thigh. If this was the same guy, where would he go when he was spooked? I swirled ideas around in my mind before landing on one. He would go to where he felt safest. His comfort zone. His hunting ground.

  “Hank,” I called to one of the officers. “I want you and Kelly with me. We’re going to check out the area around Creek Line trail.”

  “Now?” Hank asked, his eyes widening.

  “Now. If this is the same guy, he’s going to retreat to where he feels safe. The woods. We have to find him on his turf.” I called dispatch and let them know I was taking a couple of officers to follow up on a hunch. “Let’s roll out.”

  Hank and Kelly hopped into their squad car, and we headed for the Creek Line trailhead.

  We were all sweaty and exhausted, even though the sun had yet to rise. Our group paused to suck down some water, and for me to study my GPS. I had guided us towards the area directly between where the first and second bodies had been found. I hoped that we would find something, anything that would point us in the direction of our guy or his hidey hole.

  Our trek through the woods had been mostly quiet. I gave Hank and Kelly silent props for not uttering even one word of protest, even when, two hours in, we’d still found nothing. Zero signs of life. I blew out a breath. “I want to check out one more spot. If there’s nothing, we’ll call it a night. Thanks for sticking with me.”

  “Of course, Deputy Chief,” Kelly said, taking another swig of water. “We can stay out here as long as you need.”

  “Just want to check out the area north of the creek, closer to the mountain.”

  Hank nodded his agreement, and we all took a moment to adjust our gear. Silence again reigned as we made our way off the trail and towards the creek. After finding a downed log to cross on, we began the incline up the other side. A tiny glimmer of light flashed in the corner of my eye. I froze, holding up a hand for the others to follow suit. “Turn off your flashlights,” I said as a low order.

  My eyes strained to see in the darkness. There it was. A small, flickering light. From what? A lantern? Fire? I let out a slow breath. I had two choices. I could call it in, wait the hours it would take to assemble the SWAT team, and hope this guy didn’t get away in the meantime. Or, I could go in with Hank and Kelly at my back. It was a risk either way.

  I checked the gun at my hip. “We’re going in. I’m going to call in backup, but I don’t want to risk losing this guy while we wait for them to assemble and hike in. You are to use extreme caution, and I am going to take point.”

  Hank’s and Kelly’s postures both straightened. “We’re with you, sir,” Hank said.

  I jerked my head in a nod and made the hushed call. Turning back to Hank and Kelly, I hoped I was doing the right thing. “All right. Let’s do this. Follow my lead. No lights. Try to make as little noise as possible.”

  No light and careful feet meant slow progress. It took us nearly half an hour to get up the hillside. We grabbed onto tree roots and rocks to pull ourselves up when needed, and as we got closer to our destination, each of our breathing was ragged. We were filthy, exhausted, and covered in scrapes, but we were going to get this bastard.

  Just as we crested the top of the ridgeline, a loud crack sounded. It was deafening against the silence of the pre-dawn forest. I didn’t have time to react before a burning sensation filled my chest. The force of the bullet sent me sailing backwards, crashing into the dirt.

  Curses filled the air around me. “Stay down,” I wheezed. “Active shooter.”

  “This is going to hurt, sir,” Kelly said before leaning all her weight against my wound. It was as if a hot poker lanced through my chest.

  I heard Hank’s muted voice on the satellite phone, something about an officer down. My vision began to tunnel. “Oh no, you don’t,” Kelly yelled. “Stay with me, Walker.”

  I tried to force my focus, to narrow it in on her. “Tell Taylor—” I began.

  “Nope. You’re going to tell Taylor whatever this message is,” Kelly began. “But I guess you can practice on me.”

  My lips tried to pull into a smile but failed. “Tell her…love her.” Just before my world went dark, my mind was filled with nothing but images of Taylor’s face. Her bewitching blue-gray eyes. Her wide smile. Her golden hair, framing her beautiful face like a halo. If I was going to go, at least the last thing I saw was
pure beauty.

  36

  Taylor

  The words on the page blurred as I attempted to read the same paragraph for probably the fifteenth time. I snapped the book closed and picked up my phone for about the one-hundredth time. Nothing. No missed calls or texts.

  My stomach churned. Something wasn’t right. Walker should have called by now. My eyes bore imaginary holes into my phone’s screen. I tapped the message icon.

  Me: How’d everything go?

  Me: Just making sure you’re okay.

  Me: Please just send me a quick text letting me know everything’s fine.

  My morning tea roiled in my stomach. That’s it, I was calling Jensen. I hadn’t wanted to worry her, but I was now officially freaking out. I had just tapped on her contact when I heard tires on the gravel of my driveway. My breath whooshed out of me. It had to be Walker. I was going to smack him really fucking hard for scaring me this badly.

  I rushed to the door, yanking it open and stepping out onto the porch. I was halfway down the steps before I realized the car wasn’t Walker’s. It wasn’t one I knew at all. The driver’s door opened, and it took me a couple of seconds to recognize Tessa as the form who exited the vehicle.

  My heart stuttered, skipping several beats before settling into a rapid rhythm. Tessa started towards me, her steps measured, her face pale and her expression worried. I fell backward, my ass landing with a jolt on the stair. There was a burning sensation in my chest I’d only felt once before. I shook my head back and forth with a fierceness that made it ache.

  Tessa crouched in front of me, careful not to touch me. “Jensen asked me to come and get you. She got a call while we were setting up for the day.” She paused. “I’m so sorry. Walker’s been shot. He’s at the hospital now, but it’s bad.”

  Her voice was incredibly gentle. It didn’t matter. Her words still inflicted a level of pain I’d never thought to experience again. I had taken great care to make sure I never had to go through it again. But I’d gotten lazy, careless. I’d let my walls crumble, and now I was paying the price.