“Do you think she’ll care?”
“Of course not.” He slid behind the wheel and slammed the door against the cold. “But she’ll notice.”
Lina jumped inside and pulled the door closed behind her and rubbed her hands together. “It’s so cold here.”
“It is. But you get used to it.” He pulled out of the parking lot and returned to town, stopping in front of the boarding house. Todd took her hand. “Whatever is going on with you, count me in. Whatever you need, I’m here for you and Sadie.”
His hand was rough but warm. Strong. Long fingers. For some bizarre reason she felt completely safe around him. But she’d been wrong once before and she couldn’t risk Sadie’s safety again. Nor Todd’s. Ramon wouldn’t take her departure easily and he couldn’t be far behind. One mistake with a credit card and he’d been on her trail; the message he left on her cell phone had terrified her. As a result, she’d been operating on cash and with a burner cell ever since.
“Thank you.” She laced their hands together, amazed at the size difference. “For everything.”
***
Long after Lina and Todd were fast asleep, a black Mercedes pulled into town. The driver drove up and down Main Street, checking the parking lots of the hotels and motels in Bandit Creek through black-tinted windows.
“Damn it!” The driver’s fist pounded the steering wheel. “Where the hell is she?” He looked up the street again. “This dump isn’t big enough to hide in.”
He drove up Main Street and pulled into the Powder Horn Saloon. Walking from the parking lot he tried to sidestep a lurching, stinking drunk without success.
“Watch where you’re going, you old fool.”
“Best you take your own advice,” the old man slurred. “You should watch the road in your rearview mirror as you leave town.”
“Idiot.” Ramon brushed off his suit jacket then dusted off his hands as he entered the bar. Some idiotic country and western song wailed from the jukebox while local yokels shuffled around a small dance floor. Geez, people here were too stupid to live.
He crossed to the bar, looking at the bottles standing sentinel. “Give me your best Scotch.”
The barkeep stared at him and grabbed a bottle from the far corner of the glass shelves behind him. “This is our best.” He turned, with a big smile. “Johnnie Walker Black.” He pulled out a shot glass. “We’re out of JW Red.”
Ramon nodded. He hated cheap scotch but he’d have to make do. “On the rocks, he added.” He threw the blended whiskey back and shuddered. Why couldn’t they serve decent booze?
“Is there a decent place to stay in town?”
“The Olds Hotel is clean but it’s full.” The barkeep pursed his lips. “There’s a list of motels on the wall in the john.”
Figured. As if he’d take a leak in a place as disgusting as this. He tapped his glass on the bar, threw back the second shot and dropped a fifty. “Thanks.”
After checking out the list of motels, he walked outside and back to his car. He had to spend at least the night in this dump. When he found Adelina, he’d make sure she paid. With the only currency she valued.
He had no idea the bartender had placed a call to the sheriff.
Chapter Eight
As she showered, Lina wondered how she’d face Todd this morning. She didn’t do one-night stands. She’d never slept with anyone other than Ramon. Mind you, there hadn’t been much sleeping last night. Looking herself in the eye, in the mirror, she decided it was best if she got dressed and went down to breakfast. Worrying about seeing him wasn’t going to make it any easier. If she was lucky, he’d have already gone to work.
She pushed the curtain aside and checked the driveway. No such luck. Todd’s truck sat in the midst of the falling snow. The thermometer said it was near zero. It might be a good day to stay inside and keep warm.
As she entered the kitchen, she saw Todd sitting at the table, stirring a cup of joe. He looked up as she mumbled “Good morning.” She thought she saw a smile but she hurried to the coffee pot. She’d never been so embarrassed.
Mrs. Murphy served bacon and eggs, along with a plate of pancakes. As she sat at the table, she looked at Sadie and Lina. “We usually put up the tree the first Saturday in December. I wonder if you two ladies would like to help me get the house ready for the holidays?”
Sadie nearly jumped out of her chair with delight. “Could we, Mommy? Please? It would be so much fun to decorate Mrs. Murphy’s Christmas tree. Please?”
Lina had to agree—decorating a tree in this snowy, mountainous town seemed like a fairy tale Christmas. It would keep her busy so she’d be able to remain politely distant from Todd. She had never been so uncomfortable in her life. And he seemed to be enjoying himself. “Sure, sweetie. It would be great to help Mrs. Murphy do the tree.”
“Todd, the tree is in the attic. Would you bring it down for us?”
He nodded. And winked at her.
“There are a few other boxes and bins up there, Todd. They all need to come downstairs so we can make the house festive.”
“Sure thing.” He emptied his coffee cup and tossed his napkin on the table then rose to his feet. “Where do you want them?”
“Put them in the living room. We’ll get you to help us move the furniture to make room for the tree and the decorations.”
He strode out of the kitchen, apparently nonplussed by last night. Or perhaps he was regretting being with her. Obviously he was experienced and she wasn’t. Maybe…. She had to stop or she’d drive herself crazy. What did she know about men on the morning after?
“Come on, missy, let’s put the dishes in the dishwasher so we can get started.”
Lina watched Sadie and Mrs. Murphy for a moment before making up her mind. She wasn’t a coward. She had to face him and see if she could get some peace about last night. Rising to her feet. “I think I’ll see if there’s anything I can do to give Todd a hand.”
She hurried up the stairs to the bedrooms and then hustled up another flight to the attic. A few steps from the top, she stopped, her jaw dropping open. This was the attic of every child's dreams. Pattern forms, trunks, hanging blankets, a five-foot Santa, and piles of outdoor Christmas lights. Dust everywhere. The motes didn’t dance, rather they warred, repeatedly colliding with each other.
“Achoo.”
Todd crossed the floor to her, extending his hand. He helped her into the attic and pulled her against him. “I've wanted to do this since we came home.”
She wrapped her arms around him, relieved that he felt the same as her. Wanting to crawl close and stay there. What was it about this man that made her feel so safe?
“Not as much as I've wanted you to,” she murmured against his lips.
Todd claimed her mouth, devouring her. He clamped her butt, pulling her to him. “I hated leaving you at your door last night.” He trailed kisses down her jaw and neck, separating the collar of the shirt she wore.
“Todd? Did you find the Christmas tree?” Sadie called upstairs. “Mrs. Murphy and I want to decorate it.”
He dropped his forehead to hers. “Yes, Sadie, I did. Your mother and I are figuring out what we should carry down first.”
“That’s silly.” Her high-pitched giggle carried up to them. “You have to bring the tree before the decorations.”
“Sadie, where are you?”
“At the attic stairs, Mommy. Can I come up?”
“No. Absolutely not.” She walked to the hole in the floor to look down at her daughter. “Get back to Mrs. Murphy, young lady. We’ll be along in a minute and I don't want you in the way while we're hauling things down.”
“Okay, Mommy.”
Lina turned to Todd. “We’d better get the tree downstairs.”
He smiled. “Miss Sadie is not the most patient person in the world, but that’s good.” He checked around. “If not for her, I might have been tempted to do something that would brand me a horny toad where you’re concerned.”
“And I’d have let you.”
“Smart woman.” He took her hand and turned to the nearest corner of the attic. “I hope Mrs. M has all her Christmas stuff here.”
“It would be easy to get at.”
Todd nodded. “It would mean that she only has one store's worth of Christmas ornaments and not a full mall.”
Lina peeked more carefully into the corner and snickered. She’d never seen so many Christmas ornaments in one place, outside of Wally World. “Good heavens.”
He sighed. “Let’s take it all and help her go through it. Some can probably be given away while others will be used or stored for someone.”
He set the tree aside, then The older woman glanced at Todd. “Why don’t you bring down more decorations and we'll put the tree together?”
He nodded and turned back to the stairs.
Mrs. Murphy tipped her head toward Lina. “Go ahead and give him a hand, dearie. Miss Sadie and I can put this together and there are lots of boxes to bring down.”
She agreed and hurried to the stairs, hot on Todd’s heels. In the attic, she stroked his back with an open palm. “What can I take?”
His gaze roamed up and down her body. “I know what I'd like you to take, but I think we'd better stick to business.” He smiled, the skin around his eyes crinkling. “Unfortunately.”
He turned back to the boxes and pushed a couple her way. “These are light enough.”
While she took one bin, he piled three on top of each other and hefted them before following her.
In the living room, Sadie pulled back one of the drapes. “Look at the snow! It’s really coming down.” The adults stopped and looked outside.
“The way the snow is falling, the least amount of wind will turn it into a blizzard.”
“A blizzard? Is that bad, Mommy?”
“Not as long as we’re inside a warm house, sweetheart. Lina looked outside. Hopefully it would stop before she had to leave for work. “Now let’s get busy with the tree.”
They started at the top of the pre-lit tree with the garland. When they were halfway down the tree with their strands, they connected with Sadie, and she squealed with delight.
“We met, Mommy, we met.” She smiled at Mrs. Murphy. “Can we put on the decorations now? Can we? Please?”
Mrs. Murphy nodded. “Of course we can.” She started sorting through the boxes of ornaments. “Since you brought them all down, Todd, I might as well sort through them. I think it's time I got rid of some of these.”
Todd looked at the piles of boxes and bins and shook his head. “I think there are lots.”
The older woman wagged her finger at him. “No sauciness, young man. I collected Christmas ornaments all my life, but I agree—it's time to winnow them out. Mr. Murphy and I don't need so many choices anymore.”
“How can we help you do this?” Lina asked. She couldn't imagine having so many choices. In Atlanta, their tree had been real. Ramon didn't like a lot of fuss, so they'd kept it simple. But she didn't know what Ramon had done with all their things. Not that it mattered. They were almost across the country and they were safe. Combined with the warmth in this home, losing their possessions was almost meaningless. Almost.
Todd bumped her with his hip. “You seem to be in deep thought. What's going on?”
“Nothing. Nothing at all.” There was no point in involving Todd in her problems. Last night had been great but she couldn’t come up with a way to stay here. She and Sadie could get lost in a big city. There was safety in the crowd.
They spent the morning finishing the tree. When it was done, they decorated the house, putting Christmas ornaments on virtually every surface in the living room, dining room and even the kitchen.
Mrs. Murphy took in all the bins and boxes and rubbed her palms together. “What do you think, Miss Muffet? Is this enough Christmas for you?”
Sadie nodded vigorously as she spun in a circle. “I think it's beautiful. Everywhere.”
“As soon as the weather clears, I'll put the rest of the lights up outside.” Todd stood in the doorway, a grin on his face as he surveyed all the decorations.
“There are lots out there already. We don’t need more.”
He growled. “I know. Mr. Murphy put them up after I specifically told him he wasn’t to climb that ladder.”
Mrs. Murphy laughed. “He always was a stubborn cuss—even when he was a young man.” She squinted at him. “Something like another man I know.”
“Whatever.” He moved the curtains aside and looked at the falling snow.
“I think it’s time for lunch, don’t you?” Mrs. Murphy rose to her feet and started for the kitchen.
He rubbed his stomach. “I could eat something. I've worked pretty hard this morning.”
The girls laughed at his nonsense, since he'd mostly helped placing things up high or when they were heavy. Not too strenuous at all.
They enjoyed soup and grilled cheese sandwiches, comfortable with each other and with a job well done. As they cleaned up, Lina tipped her head to Sadie. “I think you'd better go upstairs for some quiet time this afternoon, young lady. It's been a busy week.”
“Do I have to?” Sadie whined.
“Yes. We're not going to do anything until you've relaxed for a while.” She looked at Todd and wondered if they’d be able to find a moment or two alone.
***
As they climbed the stairs, the phone rang.
Mrs. Murphy answered and listened for a moment, then turned to him. “It’s for you.”
“Hello?”
“Todd, it’s Adam.” His heart stutter-stepped. The deputy wouldn’t be calling unless there was news.
“What did you find?”
“Ramon’s in town. He’s driving a black Mercedes. Everyone has let us know there’s a stranger in town. Apparently he’s asking questions about Sadie and Lina.”
Damn.
***
“God damn town.” Ramon twisted the steering wheel to pull out of the spin. “Who the hell lives in a snow-covered cold dive in the middle of nowhere?” He scanned what he could see of the street. “Especially when the snow keeps falling.”
He turned up another street and checked driveways for Lina's Toyota. A guy had seen her fill up the car down the highway. The gas tank wasn’t big enough for her to go much farther and he'd checked all the towns on both sides of the interstate from there. He’d checked every street in this stupid town at least a dozen times. No sign of her or her car. And no one, no one at all, had seen the bitch or his kid. His gut told him they were here but where?
He slapped the steering wheel. “Where the hell are you, bitch? I want my daughter!”
He turned down another street, checking carefully.
Damn. How many places were there to stay in this hick town? She wasn't in any of the hotels or motels. Nobody would admit to seeing a woman and a child, but he had a feeling they were lying.
Yokels!
He saw Joe's garage up ahead and decided to circle it one more time. Nothing. No tracks, no business. Clearly the damned place was closed. Probably filed for bankruptcy. Shit.
After another hour of driving up and down slippery streets he gave up and returned to his room. He needed a drink and a new plan. He’d checked the whole town at different times of day. His only other choice was to ask a few more of the locals if they’d seen her. She couldn’t have gotten any farther down the highway, which meant she had to be here. Somewhere.
***
With Sadie settled in for a nap, Lina quietly tiptoed across the hall. Before she could tap, Todd pulled the door open and pulled her inside. He closed the door behind her and dragged her into his arms.
She reached up, seeking his lips and he responded. After breathless moments of contact, she leaned away. One hand on his chest, she took deep breaths. “We can’t, Todd. Sadie won’t sleep for long.”
“We don’t have to take long.” He waggled his eyebrows at her. “I can be quick, if you’d like.”
She slapped his chest lightly. “Stop teasing me. Besides, Mrs. Murphy might come upstairs. And then where would we be?”
“Under the bed?”
She laughed. “Stop teasing.” She had never seen him so light-hearted. From the taciturn man she’d first met, he’d morphed into a caring human being.
“I wanted to talk to you about Ramon. It’s important that you know how dangerous he is.”
“Don’t worry. The town is watching for him. And we’ll manage.” He kissed her forehead then turned her toward the door. “Unless you want to forget about everyone else who is in this house I suggest you leave.” He patted her butt which softened his words.
“We will take care of him, Lina. I promise.”
She turned to kiss him goodbye and noticed his eyes were hard and cold again.
After a short nap, she got Sadie dressed to go outside. It was still cold and the snow had continued to fall. They were going to get a treat for Sadie at the candy store and pick up Lina's pay check. She had planned to work for a week or so, make enough to get her car fixed and then head out. But her car hadn’t even been looked at. Besides, she couldn't leave Craig and Penny in the lurch. Their business was growing like crazy and Penny was too far along to stand for long hours at a stretch boxing candy. Given the weather, and with any luck, Ramon wouldn’t be able to get to Bandit Creek. So she'd stay and help them out. Besides she still needed her car in Seattle and the mechanic wouldn’t be back for another few weeks.
She looked out the window of the front door. Fresh snow covered the yard. The wind had picked up and was swirling the flakes around. Hand on the latch, she leaned closer, brushing the condensation off the window with her hand.
Oh my God.
A black Mercedes was trolling slowly down the street. Ramon!
She slammed the door, then leaned against it. A scream echoed through the house as her stomach dropped to her knees. She flattened her hands against the door to hold herself up!
Todd came running. “Babe, what is it? What's wrong?”
“I have to leave.” She grabbed the lapels of his jacket. “Todd, lend me your truck, I have to leave. Now.” She looked up the stairs. “Where's Sadie? We have to go, right now.”
Christmas on the Run (Bandit Creek Book 32) Page 7